JOB PURPOSE

The purpose of the position is to provide strategic leadership and management to all aspects of World Vision Afghanistan (WVA) Zonal office operations including grants, humanitarian emergency programmes, ensuring that the ministry achieves optimum impact on child well-being.

As an SMT member in WVA, the Operations Manager is responsible:

• To foster an enabling environment in Zonal offices to ensure the successful implementation of on-time, efficient, effective, quality programmes that enable WVA to achieve World Vision’s strategic objectives.
• To ensure that WVA is accountable to all partners and that all work is of the highest standard, cost-effective and adheres to standards and policies of World Vision International.
• To ensure quality standards, security procedures, risk management, safeguarding, and compliance in Zonal Office operations is followed and used by Zonal office staff in the communities with which WVA operates.

MAJOR RESPONSIBILITES

Ensure Operational Efficiency and Effectiveness

• Oversight: Provide strategic and operational oversight of the Zonal office programme portfolio, ensuring mechanisms and tools are in place for effective/accountable implementation of projects (end on time, on target, and within budget) across all funding types.
• Implementation: Develop a culture of excellence with regards to the planning and implementation of projects, including periodic and targeted reviews of challenging projects to ensure completion and optimum expenditure rates.
• Coordination: Spearhead coordination between teams with Operations (such as Zonal Managers/Senior Zonal Managers, technical sector leads, MEAL) as well as with support functions to promote information sharing, joint planning, and problem solving.
• Quality and Rigor: Ensure effective support mechanisms are in place to facilitate quality programmes with technical rigor in child welfare and protection, livelihood, WASH, education in accordance with World Vision’s project models and donor requirements.
• Inclusion & Vulnerability: Ensure effective support mechanisms are in place to enable programmes to identify, include, and benefit the most vulnerable children, and report their impact on these children.
• Empowerment: Foster a culture of trust and mutual respect with the aim of empowering staff to take on more responsibility and to grow field staff’s contribution to addressing challenging context issues.

Foster Operational and Programmatic Planning, Reporting and Technical Quality

• Planning: Ensure there are clear annual operation plans for each Zonal Office programmes and operations based on WVA strategy and operational plan. Facilitate and be accountable for the execution and monitoring of annual operation plans in alignment with WVA donor requirements.
• Learning & Accountability: Ensure all programs comply with World Vision’s Learning with Accountability & Planning (LEAP) standards. Activities to support this include procuring human resources, funding, training, and one-on-one coaching to ensure strong compliance and best practice.
• Technical Excellence: Ensure Operations provides technical excellence across all programmes by ensuring clear roles and responsibilities as well as collaboration and constructive behaviour between zonal office staff, and technical sector leads.
• Technical Roles & Responsibilities: Ensure roles and responsibilities for technical planning, accountability and rigor are clear across zonal staff and technical sector leads, and in alignment with theory of change based programming and World Vision’s project models as well as responsive to evidence.
• Integration and Community Engagement: Champion integration across technical areas as well as transformational development through WVA integrated programme approach, which guides community engagement in the unique context of the isolated areas and its protracted crisis.
• Adaptive Management: Develop and implement effective systems for strategic and adaptive management, ensuring operational plans are in place and programs are able to make necessary adjustments to plans and budgets during implementation, in the interest of continuous improvement.
• Sustainability: Ensure program plans include clear strategies to strengthen the sustainability of outcomes.
• Reporting: Ensure all reports are high quality, developed in coordination with Program, and submitted on time to donors and support offices through relevant systems.
• Safeguarding: Ensure Safeguarding standards are championed and upheld throughout operations in Zonal offices.

Foster Risk and Compliance Culture

• Support the Integrated Ministry Director by serving in a lead role for business continuity through an integrated risk management approach, including security, financial, operational and reputation risks by developing contingency plans and scenarios for smooth operations in each Zonal Office.
• Ensure all organisational policies, procedures, and compliance regulations are in place, understood, and followed by Zonal office staff.
• Ensure awareness of donor requirements, including the timely preparation and submission of quality narrative and financial reports for grant projects implemented through each Zonal office.
• Ensure that audit reports are responded to and recommendations implemented within approved / agreed timeframes.
• Cultivate an atmosphere of good stewardship, accountable ministry, and diligent compliance with internal and donor processes
• Cultivate an atmosphere of trust for the creation and delivery of high quality, effective, and accountable programming with healthy burn rates.

People Management and Capacity Building

• Promote high team morale, especially within highly stressful fragile contexts and environments.
• Ensure quality staff are attracted, retained, and developed to effectively work within a fragile context.
• Ensure there are clear and deliberate retention plans specific individual staff members and succession plans in place for Senior Zonal/Zonal Managers.
• Effectively line manage and coach Senior Zonal/Zonal Managers and other direct reports, ensuring a shared vision, teamwork, effective communication, and active engagement in decision making and management approaches, as well as ensuring staff care measures are in place and followed.
• Champion performance management mechanisms, ensuring full participation and quality results to promote staff engagement and a culture of excellence. Address performance or behavioural issues when they arise.
• Promote Operations as ‘One Team’.
• Cultivate an atmosphere of staff empowerment and motivation leading to active participation in programme initiatives, lead by example, and actively engage with all staff.

Ensure Safe and Secure Working Environment

• Ensure security and risk mitigation measures are in place and in use in coordination with WVA Security and Access Manager for each Zonal office.
• Ensure adherence to Core Security Requirements in Zonal offices.
• Lead the timely implementation of security recommendations.
• Promote a culture of security awareness and risk reduction in Zonal Offices.