Commercial Manager - WISH 2

Job Title           Commercial Manager

Grade               E

Reports to        Deputy Team Leader, Finance & Operations

Location           Kenya

Role Purpose: 

The Commercial Manager functions as the role of programme accountant who supports the sub-contracting of consortium partners and Member Associations, budget management, value for money, contract compliance based on a performance based financial model.

Context of Role:

WISH 2 (Women’s Integrated Sexual Health) is one of three components of the overarching WISH Dividend programme that is being procured by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office (FCDO). This programme is central to delivering the UK’s priorities on empowering women and girls as set out in the International Development Strategy, the UK’s strategic approach to sub-Saharan Africa and the International Women and Girls Strategy.

WISH 2 will be divided into two geographic Lots. IPPFAR is planning on submitting a bid as prime for Lot 2 which covers Burundi, Ethiopia, Madagascar, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, and Zambia.

Deliverables:

• To ensure effective FCDO/IPPF project financial management and reporting systems are in place in member associations (MA) and partners in order to manage donor compliant and efficient project spends against budget.
• To collect, prepare and analyse MA and partner project required reports in a timely manner in order to meet internal and external deadlines for submission in order to receive payments from the project and donor.
• To coordinate with the Deputy Team Leader, Finance and Operations on the oversight of all project financial processes and transactions, including the disbursements of funds and verification and approval of financial reports from subcontractors and a defined group of MAs’.
• To lead the adherence to key financial controls for the project, including budgeting, management reporting and forecasting, procurement policy, travel policy, bank reconciliations and treasury management, to ensure donor compliant project finance management.
• To review programmatic documents and other approval request documents to ensure budget feasibility, compliance with forward-funding guidelines, appropriate methods of financing/payment, and adequacy of financial reporting.
• To review and correct project budgets and reports prepared by MAs, giving support and capacity building to MA teams to build expertise and excellence in country.
• To develop methodologies and templates for compiling cost information and to provide coaching and guidance to technical staff at CO, ROs and MAs to ensure cost and activity information is correctly prepared.
• To maintain and deliver on all internal financial reporting requirements as communicated by the IPPF Global Finance team
• To train and advise MA’s and partners in FCDO reporting requirements and templates.
• To work closely with other commercial advisors, data analysts and programme teams to analyse and report on the results of the project and advise where improvements can be made.
• To provide in-house training to staff on financial and contractual compliance as required; arrange external training as required.
• To travel to MAs as part of evaluation teams and contribute from a financial perspective, ensuring that appropriate financial management and systems and controls are maintained in beneficiary countries.
• To work strategically across country operations to ensure adaptive management and effective responsiveness to a Payments by Results contract.

Reporting/Management Responsibility:

• Line management of the Commercial Officers.

Expertise:

• Significant progressive experience in financial management roles.
• Internationally recognised financial qualification such as a Certified Public Accountant or equivalent
• Advanced application in managing the accounting and finance component of large donor-funded programmes and setting up the accounting and finance function for a large restricted funded project.
• Experience of FCDO or institutional donors is essential and reporting requirements
• Experience of development issues and/or project implementation and monitoring.
• Experience in audit and financial control systems.
• A proven track record of financial analysis and commercial (acumen) experience.  Financial modelling is desirable.
• Previous not-for-profit experience essential and abilities and aptitude for coaching and capacity building.
• International experience (particularly developing countries) desirable.

Skills:

• Advanced IT skills (including spreadsheet applications, especially Microsoft Excel, and databases).
• Familiarity with procurement and audit requirements.
• Knowledge of financial reporting systems such as SUN and Netsuite.  A variety of experience advantageous. 
• Fluent in English and French (verbal and written) is required.
• Excellent interpersonal skills and an ability to work effectively with people from different countries and cultures. 
• Strong verbal communication skills required to train staff and to convey complex financial information in an easily understandable form to non-financial staff.
• Strong analytical skills using advanced excel knowledge.
• Excellent time management and organizational skills.

Your Ethos:

• Demonstrate an understanding of and commitment to safeguarding in a local and international context.
• Demonstrates ability and willingness to work in a diverse, multicultural, multilingual and intergenerational environment that is anti-racist and respectful of others.
• An intersectional (pro) feminist passionate about sexual reproductive health care rights + justice, including safe abortion.
• Supportive of people’s rights regardless of sexuality or gender identity/expression and supportive of workers’ rights and access to health care in sex work.

Application Deadline: 26th August 2024 at 11:59pm

For more details about this position, please see the job description attached (below).

Interested individuals should apply to [email protected] using the application form below and attaching a copy of their CV.  Please specify the job position you are applying for as the subject of your email.  Please note that applications will not be considered if they are not in the correct format.

IPPF is an equal-opportunity employer. As a leading global human rights organization focused on equality, empowerment, ending discrimination, and poverty eradication, we internally reflect social justice principles. We, as IPPF, strongly oppose racism in all its forms and resolutely go for a cultural change that will shift the existing imbalances in power and process. 

Applications are particularly encouraged from women, persons living with disability, and candidates openly living with HIV. 

IPPF is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults and expects all employees, volunteers, contractors and partners to share this commitment. Anyone employed with IPPF agrees to sign and adhere to IPPF’s Code of Conduct and Safeguarding (Children and Vulnerable Adults) Policy.

IPPF has​ been made aware of various fraudulent vacancy announcements circulated via e-mail from websites falsely stating that they are issued by or in association with IPPF.  These correspondences, which may seek to obtain money from the recipients of such correspondence are fraudulent and IPPF does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process (application, interview, meeting, processing, training or any other fees).