The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises, helping to restore health, safety, education, economic wellbeing, and power to people devastated by conflict and disaster. Founded in 1933 at the call of Albert Einstein, the IRC is one of the world’s largest international humanitarian non-governmental organizations (INGO), at work in more than 50 countries and more than 25 U.S. cities helping people to survive, reclaim control of their future and strengthen their communities. A force for humanity, IRC employees deliver lasting impact by restoring safety, dignity and hope to millions. If you’re a solutions-driven, passionate change-maker, come join us in positively impacting the lives of millions of people world-wide for a better future.

BACKGROUND

IRC’s Crisis Response, Recovery & Development department (CRRD) leads and delivers the IRC’s work in crisis-affected contexts around the world. This is achieved by over 16,000 staff across 350 offices in 40+ countries, working to deliver more than 600 individual grants and contracts and an annual budget in excess of $830M. Last year, our efforts served more than 33M crisis-affected people with high-quality humanitarian programming. The department consists of three programmatic pillars: Program Delivery, Technical Excellence and Emergencies & Humanitarian Action. The CRRD Finance team is one of three additional enabling teams within the department, alongside Policy & Planning and People & Culture.

JOB OVERVIEW

The Head of Finance, CRRD at IRC offers an exceptional opportunity to craft the financial landscape of a world-class organization dedicated to crisis response, recovery, and development (CRRD). This role is pivotal in driving our ambitious mission forward.

The Head of Finance, CRRD will enhance our financial direction for CRRD, dual reporting to the Chief Financial Officer and the Senior Vice President of CRRD. This role requires both strategic oversight and meticulous financial management to improve our impact and global scale.

Key responsibilities

Financial Performance & Risk Management

• Lead departmental financial performance monitoring routines to ensure resources are used efficiently and that any under-performance is swiftly identified and corrected.

• Provide CFO, SVP, and SMT with comprehensive analyses of financial performance, both aggregate and specific to individual units.

• Identify and mitigate material risks to financial performance, management, and compliance within CRRD.

• Maintain visibility on major audits, investigations, and other control and compliance reviews, ensuring timely and quality implementation of corrective actions.

• Ensure finance integration in Enterprise Risk Management at all levels.

• Develop and achieve relevant CRRD and Finance annual objectives.

Financial Management & Oversight

• Ensure adherence to robust financial management practices and accounting standards across all CRRD units and country programs.

• Maintain strong financial controls to comply strictly with our financial standards and donor requirements.

• Ensure grant and contract budgets reflect program needs, optimize direct cost coverage, and meet donor expectations.

• Guarantee that donor grant and contract budgets are spent appropriately and that financial reports are accurate and timely.

• Deliver excellent mentorship on financial and accounting practices along with relevant policies and regulations.

• Manage funding for match needs or strategic subsidies to improve programmatic impact.

• Coordinate the allocation and management of flexible ‘field funding’ to minimize subsidies and improve strategic investments.

• Ensure business processes within CRRD are efficient, compliant, and fit-for-purpose.

Financial Systems, Policies & Processes

• Act as CRRD Business Owner for INTEGRA (IRC’s ERP), driving its adoption and championing improvements.

• Represent CRRD in developing and deploying new or upgraded finance-related technology systems.

• Partner with CRRD and Finance leadership to improve financial policies, systems, and processes.

• Ensure standardized data practices and maintain high data quality across the organization.

• Contribute to the improvement of financial dashboards and internal reporting.

Cross-functional Partnership

• Liaise between CRRD program teams and Global Finance to ensure systems and processes meet CRRD’s needs.

• Maintain strategic financial alignment between CRRD and External Relations on finance and fundraising matters.

• Foster positive relationships with the Awards Management Unit regarding strategic financial matters.

• Collaborate with Information Technology on the development of financial technology within CRRD.

• Work closely with IRC’s Ethics & Compliance Unit and Internal Audit Unit on financial matters and corrective actions.

• Ensure CRRD and Finance leadership are informed and can influence relevant initiatives in partner departments.

Leadership & People Management

• Provide strong leadership to the CRRD Finance function, promoting IRC’s values through personal example and engagement.

• Coordinate a team of 10+ finance professionals and indirectly coordinate finance teams across the department.

• Champion professional development within the CRRD Finance team through structured initiatives and ongoing feedback.

• Actively contribute as a member of the CRRD Senior Management Team, the Global Finance Leadership Team, and IRC’s Senior Leadership Group, representing the CRRD Finance function globally.

Job requirements

Qualifications & experience

• 10+ years senior-level experience in financial budgeting, planning, control, forecasting, and reporting.

• Relevant academic or professional qualifications.

• International experience in a complex, matrixed global environment, preferably in a humanitarian, or related, organization.

• Solid understanding of non-profit financial regulations and donor compliance requirements.

• Experience in collaborative management on a global scale.

• Ability to participate in global meetings off-hours and travel internationally.

Demonstrated Skills and Competencies

• Strong abilities in developing effective plans and managing projects.

• Strong analytical and communication abilities.

• Proven management and leadership capabilities.

• Collaborative and personable great teammate.

• Working knowledge of Enterprise Resource Planning (Microsoft 365) systems is desirable.

• Proficiency in French, Arabic, or Spanish is an advantage.

Compensation:

Posted pay ranges apply to US-based candidates. Ranges are based on various factors including the labor market, job type, internal equity, and budget. Exact offers are calibrated by work location, individual candidate experience and skills relative to the defined job requirements.

US Benefits:

The IRC offers a comprehensive and highly competitive set of benefits. All US employees are eligible for sick time, a 403b retirement savings plans: up to 4.5% immediately vested matching contribution, plus an 3-7% additional IRC contribution, and an Employee Assistance Program which is available to our staff and their families to support in times of crisis and mental health struggles.

In addition, full-time employees are eligible for 10 US paid holidays, 20-25 paid time off days, disability & life insurance, medical, dental, and vision insurance (employee contribution starting at $135, $7, and $5 per month respectively) and FSA for healthcare, childcare, and commuter costs. Part-time employees are eligible for a proportionate amount of paid time off. These additional benefits apply to employees who work at least 6 months within a 12 month time period.

Standard of Professional Conduct: The IRC and the IRC workers must adhere to the values and principles outlined in the IRC Way – our Code of Conduct. These are Integrity, Service, Accountability, and Equality.

Commitment to Gender, Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion: The IRC is committed to creating a diverse, inclusive, respectful, and safe work environment where all persons are treated fairly, with dignity and respect. The IRC expressly prohibits and will not tolerate discrimination, harassment, retaliation, or bullying of the IRC persons in any work setting. We aim to increase the representation of women, people that are from country and communities we serve, and people who identify as races and ethnicities that are under-represented in global power structures.