Director of Finance and Operations, USAID New Primary Education Activity | Ethiopia | 2024 – Chemonics International Inc
Accounting and Finance, Business and Administration, Human Resource and Recruitment
Chemonics International Inc
The anticipated USAID New Primary Education Activity will work in areas affected by crises in Ethiopia, while deepening interventions to promote holistic foundational learning for children in these areas. This activity will target primary school age children and include out-of-school children who may be suited to those grade levels. This may include overage children, based on the understanding that many children will enter primary school late. As this activity will focus on strategies to target the significant portion of children who do not gain foundational skills on time, within these grade levels and age ranges, the activity will target the lowest performing students and/or those children who have dropped out or who are at risk of dropout. The anticipated USAID New Primary Education Activity will support areas severely affected by conflict, drought and other natural disasters, and where learning outcomes are lowest. We are looking for individuals who have a passion for making a difference in the lives of people around the world.
Chemonics seeks a Director of Finance and Operations for the anticipated New Primary Education Activity based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The Operations and Finance Director provides overall operational and financial management support to the Chief of Party in support of project implementation. S/he is responsible for the compliance of finance, operations, procurement, and grants components for the project.
Responsibilities Include:
- Provide direct oversight of administrative and finance staff and build team capacity in adhering to USAID and Chemonics policies and regulations.
- Ensure timely and effective approvals processes, budget review and management, client communications, calendar and event management, regional travel management, and report submission.
- Ensure planned program activities are implemented successfully and according to schedule.
- Establish proper procedures, trackers, and filing systems for procurements, recruitment/hiring, performance management, subcontracts/vendors and maintain proper implementation of operational systems.
- Apprise the project management unit (PMU) on all pertinent procurement, financial and operational matters on a regular basis.
- Other duties as assigned by the chief of party.
Finance
- Review all expenditures and transactions against supporting documents from procurement, grants and subcontracts departments, ensuring appropriate back-up documentation is submitted in accordance with Chemonics procurement and financial policies.
- Oversee the accounting and financial records of local expenses.
- Ensure accurate and timely processing of payroll for local staff.
- Maintain and control the project field cash position, including but not limited to requesting accurate and appropriate wire transfer requests and ensuring that local bank accounts are reconciled and balanced on a monthly basis.
- Closely monitor and maintain low accounts receivables and payables balances.
- Oversee field office project finances and budget reporting and support senior management and the PMU with estimates of monthly, quarterly and annual expenditures, including through supporting and communicating budgets of activities included in the work plan.
- Ensure VAT claims and other in-country national reports and requirements are processed timeously and according to local and USAID regulations and maintain accurate reimbursement or response files
- Maintain transparent, detailed, comprehensive and audit-proof record keeping systems per Chemonics’ policies, including for all project expenditures.
Personnel and Human Resources
- Ensure compliance with Ethiopia and Chemonics human resource practices and adherence to field office policy manual.
- Confirm all personnel files are complete and compliant with Chemonics’ policies, local labor laws, and USAID regulations.
- Assist with the recruitment process, on-boarding and orientation of project staff, including development of scopes of work and employment contracts.
- Provide periodic business conduct and ethics trainings, including Chemonics’ Living our Values training.
- Promote and support staff continuous development and timely feedback and performance reviews
- Manage all annual performance management and incidental performance management procedures and requirements as necessary.
Procurement
- Oversee and ensure proper implementation of project procurement and logistics system, ensuring segregation of duties within procurement procedures.
- Oversee management of the physical office, as well as procurement of all office equipment, supplies and services
- Work with operations staff to ensure international and local travel is properly procured and effectively managed.
- Ensure RFQs, travel authorization and advance requests, purchase requests, purchase orders, and subcontracts are drafted, executed and implemented according to Chemonics’ policies.
- Oversee timely management of agreements with landlord, vendors, and subcontractors.
- Supervise staff to ensure inventory management and tracking of all project equipment and vehicles is maintained/updated. Security
- Ensure security procedures are followed and updates circulated to relevant staff.
- Oversee Safety and Security Focal Point (SSFP) and work with SSFP to draft contingency plans, the emergency action plan, telephone tree and emergency contact list.
- Train staff on satellite phone and other communication devices and conduct emergency drills.
Qualifications:
- Bachelor’s degree in accounting or business administration, master’s degree preferred.
- At least eight years of progressively responsible experience in administrative and financial management of large-scale, complex, international development assistance programs
- Extensive experience in development and managing a donor-funded grants program.
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English.
- Demonstrated ability to establish and develop working relationships and a high level of trust with public/private organizations as well as prepare regular and ad hoc reports, activity documentation and briefing papers.
- Demonstrated versatility, leadership, and integrity.
- Excellent computer skills (MS Word, Excel, Power Point, and Outlook) are required to effectively implement, analyze, monitor, and manage activity goals, inputs, outcomes, and achievements
