Deputy Chief of Party/Technical Director, Food Basket Activity - Nigeria


About Mercy Corps

The Program / Department / Team
The Position
Essential Responsibilities

• Works closely with COP to develop the overall vision and strategy that drives program impact, innovation, and learning. Ensures the vision and strategy is systematically shared and internalized with the program team, partners, and key stakeholders.
• Lead the development of a technical strategy that is closely aligned with the vision and technically sound.
• Integrate and embrace all voices into shared strategies and foster an inclusive culture of curiosity, collaboration, learning, and adaptation. [WP1][AK2]

• Leads the implementation of the technical strategy ensuring it is appropriate to meet activity objectives, quality standards, and adapts with learning and contextual changes.
• Manages the consolidated consortium work, ensuring the program is on time, on scope, and budget, and that program plans are well coordinated with operational support functions (procurement, operations, HR).
• Adapts and develops context and program-specific guidance, tools, and training to advance the technical components of the program.
• Ensures data-driven adaptive management, learning, and reflective practices against work plans are adopted across the implementation team and facilitate improved decision-making.
• Integrate cross-cutting approaches including locally driven, shock-responsive, climate adaptive, social and gender inclusive, youth empowerment, and nutrition sensitive approaches.
• Ensure interventions adhere to Mercy Corps’ Gender Policy, Do No Harm principles, program participant accountability standards, and program management minimum standards.

• Recruitment, onboarding, and supervising the Activity’s technical staff and consultants.
• Create and sustain a work environment of mutual respect and learning where team members strive to achieve excellence.
• Provide team members with information, tools, and resources to improve performance, enhance technical and partnership management skills, and reach objectives.
• Promote staff accountability, communicate expectations, and provide constructive feedback informally and formally via regular one-on-one meetings and performance reviews.

REPRESENTATION

• Identify, build, and manage collaborative partnerships with consortium partners, sub-grantees, donors, local governments, and other stakeholders.
• Actively contribute to and collaborate with country, regional, and global counterparts to drive collective impact and share learning including with other Mercy Corps Nigeria programs.
• Communicate effectively across teams and partners to ensure overall project targets and donor obligations are met.
• Contribute to program visibility and advocacy work by helping disseminate program research and learning information. Represent Mercy Corps in forums with the broader humanitarian and development community.

• Ensure compliance with USAID and Mercy Corps’ regulations.
• Monitor partner activities to ensure adherence to grant agreements, Mercy Corps’ policies and procedures, and other relevant regulations, including those of USAID and the Government of Nigeria.
• Support systems to ensure effective and transparent use of financial resources for timely and informative reporting in line with program, donor, and Mercy Corps’ needs.
• Support sound financial management, including programmatic budgeting, spending projections, and monitoring of payments in compliance with USAID standards.

SECURITY and RISK MANAGEMENT

• Collaborate with country leadership to support preparedness and response to major disruptive events.
• Work closely with the country team’s security focal point to develop and maintain systems that promote the safety and security of all team members.
• Ensure that activities are designed and implemented with a clear analysis and understanding of security.

Supervisory Responsibility

Accountability

Minimum Qualification & Transferable Skills

• Advanced degree in agriculture, economics, business administration, or related field.
• At least 5 years of international experience in management/supervisory positions for large programs (preferably $15 million and above).
• Demonstrated technical expertise in market systems development with a focus on agricultural development, livelihood development, resilience, and/or food systems programming in the African context preferred.
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills, and a proven ability to network and maintain effective working relationships with diverse actors.
• Experience managing diverse teams in dispersed geographic locations including inspiring staff and developing a shared vision with staff and stakeholders.
• Knowledge of Nigeria’s governance and conflict dynamics is preferred.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English.
• Familiarity with USAID rules and regulations is required.

Success Factors

Living Conditions / Environmental Conditions

Accountability to Participants and Stakeholders


Ongoing Learning

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Equal Employment Opportunity

Safeguarding & Ethics