Head of Institutional Funding Unit (IFU)

Description of the unit / department:

Trócaire is the official overseas development agency of the Catholic Church in Ireland. Trócaire’s mission is to:

• Provide long-term support to people who live in extreme poverty in the developing world, enabling them to work their way out of poverty
• Provide appropriate assistance to people most in need in emergencies and enabling communities to prepare for and resist future emergencies
• Tackle the structural causes of poverty by mobilising people for justice in Ireland and abroad

The International Division is responsible for the management and implementation of Trócaire’s emergency and long term development work in 17 countries in sub Saharan Africa, Latin America and Asia with an annual programme budget of over €40m.

The Institutional Funding Unit (IFU) is part of Trócaire’s International Division.The Unit consists of:

• Head of IFU (this role)
• IF Co-ordinator (to be hired)
• 6 Ireland based IF Officers (IFOs), including Belfast
• 1 IF Programme Support Analyst
• 1 IFU Intern

In addition there are a number of overseas Institutional Funding Officers with a particular remit to map, secure and manage Institutional Funding in-country.

Background to the Role:

In 2012-13, Trócaire secured a total of €34m from institutional funding sources of which €21m was secured for development programming and €13m for humanitarian response. Trócaire receives significant core funding from Irish Aid. Other key institutional donors include the European Commission, DFID, Comic Relief and Big Lottery. The development funding supports programme work in the thematic areas of: Gender Equality, HIV+AIDS, Governance and Human Rights and Sustainable Livelihoods. Humanitarian funding supports relief work in particular as well as some recovery and resilience work. Trócaire works to achieve the highest level of quality in all our programmes and is committed to demonstrating the impact of our work through accountability to beneficiaries, partners and donors.

A key part of Trócaire’s strategic plan is to further develop and grow our institutional funding in order to support high quality programmes which have positive and lasting impact on the lives of marginalised women, men and children in some of the world’s poorest countries and to support us to tackle the injustice and inequality that lies at the roots of poverty.

Trócaire’s Institutional Funding Unit’s remit is to develop the strategy and procedures to ensure key organisational income deliverables are achieved. The Unit provides programme and country teams with necessary support for the design, development and application for institutional funds and once funds are secured, the team provides contract management expertise and guidance.

Reporting to:

Director of International Division

Managing: (Individuals/Team)

One Coordinator and up to 4 other direct reports.

Contract Type:

Fixed Term

Contract Duration:

3 Years

Grade and Scale:

Programme Manager

Location of[1] Position

Maynooth with regular travel overseas and to Belfast.

Scope of the Role:

To lead and manage the Institutional Funding Unit at Trócaire.

To lead in the development and implementation of Trócaire’s institutional funding strategy within the parameters of the organisation’s strategic objectives as laid out in Trócaire’s Phase II Strategic Plan for 2011-2014, and through this support Trócaire cross organisationally to deliver on institutional funding objectives.

Safeguarding[2] Children Policy:

No unsupervised contact

Key Duties & Responsibilities

IFU Strategy

• Lead on developing and managing the implementation of Trócaire’s IFU Strategy, in line with Trócaire’s Strategic Framework and deliver on IFU objectives, deliverables and milestones
• Manage the development, implementation and tracking of Institutional Funding Policies and Procedures to help strengthen the overall grant acquisition and management cycle
• Support Country Directors in each of Trócaire’s 17 programme countries in the delivery of their country Institutional Funding strategies
• Development of multi-country and consortia alliances with other INGOs to secure a more diversified funding base
• Maintain a strategic overview of Trócaire’s key institutional donor relationships and increase Trócaire’s Strategic Engagement with Institutional donors – including through personal engagement and support to Country Directors and other managers
• Contribute to relationship and grant management of Trócaire’s strategic Irish Aid Programme Funding Grant

IFU Team Management

• Directly manage a Coordinator and a number of dedicated Institutional Funding Officers and support the management of overseas IFOs
• Ensure the IFU team and its members are clear on their roles in relation to achieving organisational and team objectives and that there is a positive and supportive teamworking environment in place
• Implement Performance Management procedures, including employee development, with direct reports a and support other managers in their Performance Management of IF staff(e.g. overseas IFOs).

Representational

• Participate in the International Division Management Team (IDMT)
• Work with managers in Trócaire’s Organisational Development and Corporate Affairs and Ireland Divisions, ensuring IFU contributes to the strategic objectives of the organisation as a whole.
• Represent Trócaire, as required, on relevant groups and networks of which it is a member, including at Donor related meetings.

Management Information Systems

• Spearhead continual improvement in the use of Trócaire’s MIS within the IFU to improve tracking and monitoring of key IFU deliverables and milestones
• Train, or organise training, and offer support to other IFU staff members in Trócaire’s MIS.

Additional Responsibilities

• Other duties as may be specified by Trócaire from time to time.

Person Specification – Essential Requirements (E)

(E) Qualification

• A primary degree or equivalent in a relevant area

(E) Experience

• Proven track record over at least 5 years of developing and implementing a successful institutional funding strategy for a development and/or humanitarian NGO
• Sound knowledge of government multilateral and non-state donors active in sub Saharan Africa, Asia and Latin America which would be of relevance to Trócaire
• Solid understanding of the trends within the institutional funding environment and proven ability to apply this knowledge to strategy
• Experience of working as part of a senior management team

(E) Skills

·         Excellent management and organisational skills, including people management and financial management

• Proven ability to manage global teams effectively and to develop a high achieving culture within them
• A sound understanding of development approaches relevant to a partnership-based NGO (partnership, partner capacity-building, working through a programmatic approach etc.)
• Excellent written and oral communication skills in English, able to write and review first class donor proposals and reports
• Highly numerate and able to monitor, track and respond to performance against plans

(E) Qualities

• Ability to operate under high pressure environments and to tight deadlines
• Demonstrated ability to manage and work with a participative style within teams
• Good ability to work on own initiative
• A commitment to social justice and the ethos of Trócaire

(E) Other

Person Specification – Desirable Requirements (D)

(D) Qualification

• Masters degree in development studies, humanitarian studies, or other related area

(D) Experience

• Management experience in development and / or emergency work, preferably in an overseas context
• Experience in strategic planning

(D) Skills

• Language skills in Spanish, Portuguese or French