Director Programmes & Partnerships

Role Title

Syria Director Programmes and Partnerships

Role Information

Role Type: Partnerships and Programmes

 Pay Band: E

 Location: Beirut

 Duration: 6 months

 Reports to: Country Director

Partnerships and Programmes

 

Role purpose

Working closely with the Country Director, the role will support in shaping our Syria strategy based on the ongoing changes in context and needs, and lead on growing the portfolio. This role will lead on the management and development of British Council Syria programme portfolio, maintain good positioning of the organization within the Syrian context and with various organizations, and expand the scale, scope and inplact of our work on this key regional priority.

 

For work targeting populations in Syria, the role will have responsibility for all aspects of work across the various funding streams i.e. grant, partnership and client funded; while for work targeting Syrian refugees or host communities (mainly in Jordan and Lebanon, Turkey and/or Northern Iraq) this will be a support/multiplier role working with British Council teams in host countries to develop relevant programming that responds to international priorities and aligns with both host country objectives and our regional Syria response.

 

The primary focus of the role is to capture new co-funded or fully-funded business through demonstrating in-house and associated sector strength, and to be accountable for quality assurance of implementation.

About us

The British Council was founded in 1934 to create ‘a friendly knowledge and understanding’ between the people of the UK and wider world in order to enhance mutual prosperity and security, on the belief that greater trust and mutually beneficial relationships enable us all to better navigate the opportunities and challenges of a globalised world. We do this through cultural relations – making a positive contribution to the countries we work in by utilising the UK’s ‘soft power’ to build connections, create opportunities and engender trust. For the British Council this means sharing the cultural resources of the UK, such as art, sport, education, science, culture, language, innovation and creativity, and in doing so making a lasting difference to the UK’s international standing, security and prosperity. To achieve greater reach, impact and value for money we work in partnership with UK organisations and many others around the world.

 

The British Council manages international development projects worldwide, helping to create opportunities for people and societies to achieve positive change. As trusted international development partners, we work in a range of development sectors, including civil society, justice and security, education, skills and employability, and public sector reform. Working closely with governments, donor organisations, the private sector and civil society, we deliver value for money international development solutions that are both effective and sustainable.

Geopolitical/SBU/Function overview:

In Syria, the British Council closed and suspended its operations in its Damascus office in 2012, having been present on the ground since 1943. Nonetheless, we have continued to deliver cultural relations programming in support of displaced Syrians through our neighbouring country offices and also remotely through local partners still operating inside Syria.

 

The current Syria Directorate is dispersed across four locations, with a primary hub in Beirut. It has a mandate to support host country offices to develop multi-country responses to the Syrian crisis, for overall coordination of the regional response to the crisis, and to develop viable long-term models and programmes for delivering impact back inside Syria.

 

Our vision for Syria is a peaceful and inclusive Syria - where conflict and change is managed in non-violent ways, the displaced feel safe to return, and all citizens have the opportunity to participate in the political, social and economic development of their country. We will work towards this vision utilising the cultural resources of the UK to empower a constituency of Syrians in Syria and the diaspora - civil society, educators, academics, entrepreneurs, artists, and young people - with the skills, opportunities and resources to address the drivers of conflict, migration and violence in both the short and long term.

 

Our primary focus in the current context is supporting the long-term enablers of peace, security and recovery at the community level: values-based civil society organisations and networks, youth and women community leaders, artists, citizen journalists, social entrepreneurs, teachers and school leaders.

 

All programming response to Syria respond to one of the following priority areas:

 

• A more inclusive, diverse and conflict sensitive response to the Syrian crisis where all social factions (young people, women, local/tribal leaders…) feel capable of participating/influencing the decision making process 

• Improving access to quality primary, secondary and tertiary education for Syrian children and youth

• Networking and influence through utilizing British Council relationships in the MENA region, UK and wider Europe to promote dialogue, connect Syrians to each other and facilitate intercultural exchanges that help to challenge negative stereotypes of Syria

 

The post holder will be based in Beirut (the main hub for British Council Syria Directorate), and he/she will be leading British Council Syria Programmes team (currently one Arts programme manager, one Education & English project manager, and one business admin assistant. He/She will be working closely with the Team leader of Aswat Faeela (Active Voices)- our youth leadership programme and with the Business Support and Risks Manager, both based in Beirut. He/she will also work closely with regional SBU leads and Levant cluster leads (English for Education Systems Levant Cluster Lead).

 

The post holder will be a member of the Country Leadership Team, accountable for management of  programmes portfolio, programmes team management, financial planning, income generation (through contracts and partnership funding), evalution through our Results and Evidence Framework (REF) and other tasks as required.

 

Main opportunities/challenges for this role:

This job represents an exciting opportunity to lead a growing programmes portfolio in Syria, and play a key role in shaping British Council programming response to the Syrian crisis. At the same time, it entails working in a challenging and fragile contexts, with a team dispersed over 2-3 locations, and projects implemented in areas where we don’t physical exist. As such, it is expected that the post holder is highly agile, adaptable, think politically and is capable of managing work remotely.

There may be occasional unsocial / evening hours.

 

The role will involve travel in the region as part of portfolio management and business development activities.

 

Main Accountabilities:

Team Building and Knowledge Sharing

 

• Participate in planning and contribute to regular cluster/regional/organizational-level meetings on the Syria Response.
• Actively contribute to quarterly meetings of the Syria team in Beirut.
• Input contextual and sector expertise into Syria team communications (both internal and external).
• Mentor project managers to better deliver their day to day work, support them in finding solutions to the various problems they face and ensure British Council values and behaviors are built into their work

• Lead on identifying mutually beneficial networks for knowledge sharing that support the objectives of portfolio development and lesson learning.
• Model key behaviors to help ensure that the British Council Syria team becomes a model for remote working and matrix working over multiple countries. Be a leader in helping to define and implement a team culture and values built on professionalism, integrity and learning. 

 

Portfolio Management

 

• Lead on the delivery of portfolio strategy, in coordination with the Country Director, Regional and UK-based sector Leads, and Programme & Partnerships Leads in Host Countries, and closely monitor the changes in the context and adjust strategy accordingly.
• Ensure that the strategy and portfolio positions the British Council for future re-opening in Syria, aligns with existing Country, Regional and SBU Strategies, and directly responds to the agendas of priority donors and partners.
• Oversee of programme compliance and quality assurance
• Working closely with the Country Leadership team to identify and fill gaps in programme management capacity.
• Work with relevant colleagues to address risk management issues related to programming that targets populations in Syria. Ensure all necessary security and risk requirements are built into project design and delivery.
• Design and deliver an annual expenditure plan with the Country Director that utilizes our sector budget and ensures funding is used as a seed to generate greater income and impact.

 

Business and Partnerships Development

 

• Identify, track and resource forthcoming business opportunities for Syria with the support of MENA Business Development colleagues.
• Lead or support the technical conceptualization, design and winning of proposals with the support of SBU expertise in-country, region or UK. Manage recruitment of consultants where necessary for scoping or proposal development.
• Develop strong relationships and professional networks with client, customer and partner contacts, sector experts and relevant delivery teams across countries affected by the Syrian crisis. Key relationships will include local Syria partners, institutional donors (DFID, EU, FCO, USAID), UN Agencies and other INGOs working in multiple affected countries. It also may include participation in the country and sector level working groups that coordinate the international Syria response.
• Work with Regional Communications and Business Development colleagues to develop capability statements for our work on the Syria response, along with appropriate track record information to illustrate our sector response to the Syrian crisis.
• Manage the pipeline business opportunities for the Syria with full responsibility for leading on opportunities targeting populations in Syria, and responsibility for coordinating opportunities in host countries – by working with local offices to identify/agree priorities and put in place the necessary support to enable effective pursuit (e.g. scoping, facilitating pursuit, consultant recruitment, partner identification).

 

M&E and Learning

 

• Ensuring effective Value for Money and Monitoring & Evaluation plans are built into all programmes, in coordination with the relevant SBU Lead and the MENA Research & Evaluation Manager, and implemented effectively.
• Ensure that processes and mechanisms are in place for collecting data related to the  evalution through our Results and Evidence Framework (REF)
• In close coordination with Communications manager and project managers, develop a system for collecting impact stories at the field level.

 

Key Result Areas:

• Effective planning and management of the portfolio, including budget management that meets all expenditure and income requirements.
• Building a sustainable and growing portfolio composed of client and co-funded opportunities that delivers impact in the short/medium term and positions us for the long term.
• Contribution to shaping the British Council’s offer to displaced people and to countries / communities affected by fragility and conflict,
• Positive internal and external reviews of the British Council’s Syria Response and our social development work in Syria and affected countries, with particular emphasis on feedback from host country teams in Jordan and Lebanon.

Key Relationships:

External:

DFID, EU Syria Delegation, FCO Syria -CSSF, UN Agencies and INGOs (Regional and Country-Level), Government Stakeholders, Trusts and Foundations, Consultants and Sub-contractors.

 

Internal:

Syria Country Director,

Syria Business Support and Risks Manager

Syria Business Administrator Assistant

Syria Communication Manager

Human Resources Business Partners/Lebanon & Syria

MENA Strategic Business Units (SBU) Leads (Arts, Education, Society, English) and UK SBU colleagues,

MENA Communications Teams,

MENA Research & Evaluation Manager,

MENA & UK Partnerships and Business Development Teams,

Relevant colleagues in countries affected by the Syrian crisis (including Country Directors, Programme and Partnership Leads in Jordan and Lebanon).

 

Role Requirements:

Threshold requirements:

Assessment stage

Passport requirements/ Right to work in country

Must be able to work in Lebanon and to travel in the UK and MENA region.

Shortlisting

Direct contact or managing staff working with children?

Yes/No

If Yes then appropriate police check will be conducted.

 

 

 

Person Specification:

 

Language requirements

Minimum / essential

Desirable

English – (Level C1)

Valid proof of level required (IELTS 7.5 or equivalent)

Arabic – Mastery in all skills

Mandatory Aptis test in English (provided by British Council) if shortlisted candidate cannot provide proof of English

 

Qualifications

Minimum / essential

Desirable

First Degree

Postgraduate degree in relevant area (such as Development Studies, Political Science and International Relations…)

 

Role Specific Knowledge & Experience

Minimum / essential

At least 5 years managerial experience of identifying, developing and managing relationships with major partners across a range of sectors

At least 5 years’ managerial experience of developing and implementing sizeable projects

 

Commercial & business development (Level 3)

Able to define and develop programmes/services which deliver British Council goals on impact, income and surplus within a defined area of business that responds to market opportunities and aligns to wider corporate strategies.

 

Managing projects (Level 4)

Leading medium-to-large and/or high risk projects, coordinating a diverse team with awareness of equality and diversity impact as part of the project specifications and handling changes in specification or plan to meet unexpected circumstances

 

Managing people (Level 3)

Provides full line management to a team where all members are working in a similar area of expertise or business.  Scope includes planning, setting objectives, role modeling an inclusive culture, recruitment, development and performance management

 

Planning & organising (Level 3)

Able to develop and review the implementation of annual plans for a work group or function, taking account of business and customer requirements and reconciling competing demands

 

Managing finance & resources (Level 4)

Negotiates and agrees the resources for a defined area as part of forward planning, monitoring progress and adjusting resources or priorities to meet goals

 

Using Technology (Level 1)

Able, with adjustments if necessary, to use office software and British Council systems to do the job and manage documents or processes.

 

Account & partnership development (Level 3)

Identifies and deploys teams of Council staff whose attributes match the stakeholder/customer/partner’s needs, and adapting proposals to accommodate the needs of the other party

 

British Council Behaviours-Essential

Creating Shared Purpose (More Demanding)

Creating energy and clarity so that people want to work purposefully together

 

Being accountable (More Demanding) Putting the needs of the team or British Council ahead of my own

 

Making it happen (Most Demanding)

Achieving stretching results when faced by change, uncertainty or major obstacles

 

Connecting with others (More Demanding)

Actively appreciating the needs and concerns of myself and others

 

 

Working together (More Demanding)

Ensuring that others benefit as well as me

 

Shaping the future (More Demanding)

Exploring ways in which we can add more value