Community accountability officer-mercy corps ukraine response

Position Description
Location: Moldova
Position Status Full time

This position is for 6 months with the possibility of extension based on funding availability.

About Mercy Corps
Mercy Corps is a leading global organization powered by the belief that a better world is possible. In disaster, in hardship, in more than 40 countries around the world, we partner to put bold solutions into action — helping people triumph over adversity and build stronger communities from within. Now, and for the future.

PROGRAM/ DEPARTMENT SUMMARY:
Mercy Corps’ response to the crises in Ukraine seeks to meet needs of vulnerable Ukrainians and other conflict-affected people in Ukraine, Poland, Romania and Moldova through partnerships with local Ukrainian, Polish, Romanian and Moldovan civil society organizations.

Mercy Corps is committed to accountability to all of our stakeholders, including the people we serve, and to the resources that are entrusted to us. We take a participatory approach in engaging with local partners and communities throughout the program design and implementation and their feedback, ideas, requests and complaints are key for us to improve programs and be accountable. A Community Accountability Reporting Mechanism (CARM) consisting of two-way communication channels (WhatsApp, Telegram, hotline etc.) and a database system is an essential part of Mercy Corps’ commitment to enable individuals, local groups, organization and other stakeholders to provide confidential feedback and improve program quality, integrity. It is also a mechanism for the prevention of corruption, fraud, any type of sexual exploitation and abuse. In the context of the Ukraine emergency response, designing and implementing an effective CARM will play a key role in ensuring that emergency assistance is responsive to the needs of displaced people, and continuously adapts over time.

General Position Summary
The Community Accountability Officer is a key team member who handles suggestions, questions, feedback and complaints from community members and program participants, ensuring that our commitments to responding to feedback are met. In situations where our partners do not have their own community accountability reporting mechanism, the Community Accountability Officer will support partner staff to advertise Mercy Corps CARM channels, and will handle all feedback received according to agreed internal Standard Operational Procedure (SOPs). In situations where the partner is working towards establishing their own community accountability reporting mechanism, the Community Accountability Officer will play a supporting role in capacity strengthening activities, in collaboration with the Community Accountability Manager, Senior Community Accountability Officer and Partnerships and Cash Officers.

Essential Job Responsibilities
PLANNING AND IMPLEMENTATION
● Support the CARM Manager in implementing the Country CARM Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for how all feedback and complaints are logged, graded and responded to, by;
o Monitoring assigned feedback channels;
o Logging feedback daily into the country CARM database;
o Assigning a feedback grade using the Mercy Corps standards;
o Ensuring that appropriate action is taken in collaboration with Mercy Corps and partner staff;

MONITORING AND ADAPTATION
● Review dashboards reports;
● Assist the senior staff in analyzing trends, gaps and areas of improvement in the handling of community feedback;
● Participate in the implementation of action plans to address weaknesses in CARM;

CAPACITY DEVELOPMENT / SHARING
● Actively participate in individual and team learning sessions;
● Support the implementation of capacity sharing plans with all partner organizations who are transitioning to managing their own CARM with Mercy Corps’ support;

SECURITY
● Ensure compliance with Mercy Corps global, regional and Ukraine specific security procedures and policies, as determined by country leadership;
ORGANIZATIONAL LEARNING
As part of our commitment to organizational learning and in support of our understanding that learning organizations are more effective, efficient and relevant to the communities they serve, we expect all team members to commit 5% of their time to learning activities that benefit Mercy Corps as well as themselves.
Code of Conduct
● Ensure all field and office-based activities are conducted in full respect to humanitarian principles and in an organized and dignified way.
● Conduct himself/herself both professionally and personally in such a manner as to bring credit to Mercy Corps and to not jeopardize its humanitarian mission.

Reports Directly To: CARM Manager.
Works Directly With: Partnership Team, CARM Manager, Community Accountability Advisor, , MEL Team, Operations Teams and Ethics/ Assurance/ Safeguarding.

Knowledge and Experience
● Required
○ Bachelor’s degree in social work, IT, humanities, social sciences or other relevant field is preferred.
○ Experience in remote data collection, and data management.
○ Excellent Computer skills: proficiency in MS Office package
○ Fluency in Romanian and/or Moldovan is required.
● Preferred
○ Previous work or volunteer experience in an international or local Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) is preferred.
○ Experience working in high-risk contexts is preferred.
○ Proficiency in Russian, Ukrainian and English is preferred.

Success Factors and Transferable Skills
Any skills you have gained through education, volunteer work, or life experience that are relevant for the position will be considered. Be sure to fully explain transferable skills and success factors and how they apply to this position in your cover letter.
The successful Community Accountability Officer will have excellent communication and interpersonal skills, demonstrated attention to details, will be committed to working long hours, and with Mercy Corps stakeholders regardless of race, religion, ethnicity, abilities or gender. S/he will be highly motivated, and capable of working with or without direct supervision. Other factors include:
● The ability to work under pressure
● Ability to work in a fast-paced emergency response environment and adapt to the rapidly evolving context as necessary.
● Excellent listening, interpersonal, communication and networking skills; and the ability to work with diversified populations.
● High level of self-awareness and self-development with the maturity to deal with constructive feedback.
● Willingness and ability to quickly learn new information/concepts and implement them.
● Strong team player with initiative and positive attitude towards problem solving.
● A learning approach to work with excellent capacity building skills.
● Attention to detail and patience to double check data results.
● Self-starter, multi-tasker, solution-seeker and innovator.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges. We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives.
We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening and evolving to become more diverse, equitable and inclusive than we are today.
Equal Employment Opportunity
Mercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer that does not tolerate discrimination on any basis. We actively seek out diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be collectively stronger and have sustained global impact.
We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunities are available to all. We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status or any other protected group in the locations where we work.
Safeguarding & Ethics
Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work, whether team members, community members, program participants or others, are treated with respect and dignity. We are committed to the core principles regarding prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary General and IASC and have signed on to the Interagency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members. As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and to adhere to Mercy Corps Code of Conduct Policies and
values at all times. Team members are required to complete mandatory Code of Conduct e-learning courses upon hire and on an annual basis.