Director, Volunteer Cooperation Program
- Job Type
- Full Time
- Job Level
- Senior
- Location
- Ontario, ON
- Impact Area
- International Relief/Development/Peace
- Impact Category
- Nonprofit
- Company Type
- Nonprofit
About this position
Position title: Director, Volunteer Cooperation Program
Position location: Ottawa, ON
Reports to: Chief Programs Officer
Contract term: Permanent, Full-Time (Indeterminate)
Application deadline: November 4, 2019
Expected start date: January 2020
Travel: Regular travel in Canada and overseas
Background:
World University Service of Canada (WUSC) is a leading Canadian international development organization. Our vision is a better world for youth - a world where all young people, especially women, and refugees are empowered to secure a good quality of life for stronger families and communities. To pursue this vision, we work in three programmatic areas: Economic Opportunities, Education, and Empowerment. WUSC currently works in 25 countries across Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America, with an annual budget of approximately CAD $45 million. We have a staff of over 90 people in our Ottawa office, and over 200 people overseas implementing 16 development projects in collaboration with donors such as Global Affairs Canada (GAC), the UK Department for International Development (DFID), and International Financial Institutions. In Canada and globally, we work with a network of higher education institutions, civil society organizations, private sector partners, professionals, students, volunteers, faculty and community leaders that work with us to achieve our mission.
Volunteering for development is one of the important ways in which WUSC pursues its mission. The Volunteer Cooperation Program (VCP) supports economic empowerment of marginalized populations, especially women and youth. WUSC’s VCP program has ambitious targets to mobilize hundreds of skilled volunteers a year to support partners in developing countries who are working to advance gender equality and provide economic opportunities to poor and marginalized young people. WUSC works with institutions and individuals to identify, prepare and support volunteers who travel overseas to support our partners for various durations of time. The program will also mobilize Canadians along a continuum of awareness to action on global development issues.
Nature and Scope:
The VCP Director provides strategic and operational direction to WUSC’s Volunteer Cooperation Program in accordance with WUSC’s agreement with Global Affairs Canada (GAC), and is responsible for leading a team to deliver the expected development and public engagement results.
Responsibilities:
As VCP Director, your main responsibilities will be:
Volunteer cooperation program vision leadership
- Build upon WUSC’s theory of change to develop program inception plan, annual workplan and related programming strategies to guide the delivery of the program in Canada and overseas;
- Provide technical leadership on gender equality and economic empowerment for poor and marginalized youth;
- Identify best practices from Canada and globally on international volunteering for development, public engagement, as well as gender equality and economic empowerment that are relevant for the program;
- Work with colleagues to identify and leverage synergies across WUSC’s programming and public engagement efforts;
- Develop partnerships with Canadian and global partners whose networks and capabilities can add specific value to the goals of WUSC’s volunteer cooperation programming;
- Liaise regularly with Global Affairs Canada on the successful delivery of the volunteer cooperation program, including respecting the terms and conditions of the funding agreement;
- Participate in WUSC’s program leadership team and management committee.
Program Management Tools & Systems
- Establish program management operational tools and systems;
- Plan, monitor and coordinate operations in Canada and globally to assure the coherence of the program and the integration of its various elements, including the public engagement and developing country components;
- With the Monitoring & Evaluation (M&E) team, ensure the development and implementation of a robust M&E system for the program, that captures results from both a qualitative and quantitative perspective;
- With the Gender, Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) Advisor, ensure regular gender equality analyses that inform a clear gender equality and social inclusion strategy for the program;
- With the Volunteer Mobilization team, ensure a robust volunteer mobilization cycle is in place to identify and prepare volunteers to meet the needs of the developing country partners, provide ongoing support as needed to volunteers during their overseas mandate and ensure a thorough debrief and assistance with re-integration in Canada for returned volunteers;
- With the communication and campus engagement teams, ensure coordination and delivery of the program’s public engagement efforts;
- With Canadian partnership team, oversee development and management of Canadian partnerships.
Operational, Financial, Risk and Safety & Security Management
- Ensure the program’s delivery and cost structure provides value for money;
- With the finance team, ensure that robust financial management systems and controls are in place;
- Ensure appropriate risk analysis and development of mitigation strategies;
- In collaboration with the Human Resources and Security teams, ensure security and safeguarding preparedness of staff, volunteers and partners in accordance with WUSC policies and procedures;
- Oversee comprehensive incident management as needed.
Representation and Key Relationships
- Actively engage in relevant Communities of Practice in Canada and globally on best practices related to volunteering for development;
- Liaise regularly with institutional partners of WUSC and the program to identify opportunities to leverage the capabilities of the WUSC network for the program’s goals;
- Collaborate with the Senior Manager, Communications and Fundraising on the program communication strategy in order to influence positively Canadian perception of international cooperation and volunteer for development programming;
- Collaborate with the international volunteer for development networks in Canada and globally to promote volunteering and build a strong support for our work by the public, donors and governments;
- Act as the spokesperson for the program.
Funding
- Work with the fundraising team to ensure that the program’s volunteers and partners are well prepared as ambassadors for the program’s goals of gender equality and economic empowerment of youth;
- In collaboration with the program development team, identify opportunities to leverage additional funds towards the program’s goals;
- Identify and secure other financial/ non-financial contributions to the program.
People & Culture
- Build an innovative, entrepreneurial, inclusive and collaborative culture across the program team in Canada and globally;
- Ensure that all staff and volunteers understand and adhere to WUSC’s Code of Conduct;
- Provide leadership on safeguarding and security and promote WUSC policies and protocols within the volunteer cooperation program;
- Actively participate in WUSC’s internal coordination mechanisms, to align the program’s activities in Canada and globally with WUSC’s other programs and departments;
- Ensure annual performance evaluation and learning and development plans of Program staff in Canada and Overseas, as outlined in WUSC’s policies and procedure;.
Qualifications:
Education
MA in a relevant discipline or relevant work experience deemed as equivalent.
Experience and Competencies
- Thirteen years of experience in senior program management positions;
- At least 3 years experience in managing volunteering for development programs;
- At least 3 years experience in managing public engagement within the Canadian volunteer sector;
- Strong experience in gender equality and economic empowerment of youth programming;
- Demonstrated capacity in results based management and in maintaining relationships with Global Affairs Canada (GAC) and other development partners;
- Strong experience and proven skills in human resources management, team building and financial management;
- Experience in risk analysis/mitigation and security/safeguarding incident preparedness and management;
- Demonstrated ability to take an intersectional approach to inclusion, including age, gender and diversity;
- Strong intercultural skills;
- Excellent communications and representation skills;
- An innovative, entrepreneurial spirit;
- Familiarity with Google Suite an asset.
Language
- Fluency, oral and written, in English and French. An additional language would be seen as an asset.
WUSC offers a dynamic international work environment with a diverse intercultural workforce. We offer employees exciting opportunities to apply their skills and gain experience all while making a difference for youth around the world. We believe youth have the potential to provide for their families, build strong communities, and create positive social change for future generations. Employees at WUSC work hard to create lasting change in education, employment and empowerment.
The WUSC office centrally-located in Hintonburg, Ottawa. We offer competitive benefits, four weeks of annual leave (for full-time employees), safe and healthy working conditions, and fair compensation.
Applications:
WUSC’s activities seek to balance inequities and create sustainable development around the globe; the work ethic of our staff, volunteers, representatives and partners shall correspond to the values and mission of the organization. WUSC promotes responsibility, respect, honesty, and professional excellence and we will not tolerate harassment, coercion and sexual exploitation and abuse of any form. Successful applicants will be required to undertake an enhanced criminal record check where appropriate.
WUSC is an equal opportunity employer. We welcome and encourage applications from people with disabilities. Accommodations are available upon request for candidates taking part in all aspects of the selection process. To apply please visit https://wusc.ca/careers/ or click this link to apply directly
About us
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