Finance & Compliance Director

Job Description - Finance & Compliance Director

Location: Kathmandu, Nepal- with field visits as required
Position Status: Full-time, Regular 
Salary Level: D 

Program / Department Summary 

The Mercy Corps Finance Department is responsible for leading all financial functions in Nepal, including accounting, payments and banking, payroll, budgeting, financial reporting, and grant financial management and compliance. The Mercy Corps Finance Department ensures compliance with donor regulations as well as Mercy Corps’ internal policies and procedures. In its role as a support to the Program Department, the Finance Department provides timely reports and assistance to the Country Director and the Program team to ensure that financial resources are used efficiently and effectively. 

General Position Summary 

The Mercy Corps Nepal Finance & Compliance Director is a member of the senior management team and head of the Mercy Corps Nepal Finance Department. As such s/he is responsible for all aspects of financial management of the country’s programs, working collaboratively to ensure compliance with Mercy Corps internal policies and procedures as well as donor regulations. S/he works under the direction of the Country Director and is responsible for all financial functions in Nepal, including accounting, payments and banking, payroll, budgeting, financial reporting and grant financial management and compliance. The Finance Director in support of the Program Department, provides timely reports and assistance to the Country Director and the Program team to ensure that financial resources are used efficiently and effectively. 

As gender equality and social inclusion (GESI), safeguarding, governance and environmental sensitivity are cross- cutting and core components of the all MC programs, the Finance & Compliance Director is required to own these components and ensure these components are integrated into his/her work area. 

Essential Job Responsibilities 
Strategy & Vision 

• Recognize opportunities for innovative action and create an environment where alternative viewpoints are welcomed. 
• Lead the Finance team, ensuring clear, consistent vision behind the financial design and is well articulated and rolled out across the team. 
• Provide key financial information to the Country Director and SMT, in order to inform strategic decision making around staffing and other programmatic and operational issues. 

Financial Operations 

• Provide monthly management reports to the Country Director and Program Managers, including expenditures by fund code/project, sub grantee reporting and other financial information, in a timely and accurate manner. 
• Develop annual fiscal year budgets with the Country Director and develop and implement grant budgeting and forecasting systems with Program Managers. 
• Lead proposal budget development process, working closely with program teams and HR, as well as local partners, for thoughtful, feasible and accurate proposal budgets. 
• Work with the Country Director to scenario plan cost projections and budgets for staffing options. 
• Carefully review and analyze award cost planning with comparison to actual implementation expenditure and support processes for increased accuracy in forecast planning. 
• Ensure effective, transparent use of financial resources in compliance with Mercy Corps and donor policies and procedures. 
• Maintain appropriate local insurance coverage in coordination with the Admin. Department, to protect Mercy Corps. 
• Ensure local annual financial audit as required by Governmental Agencies happened on timely manner. 
• Ensure partner sub-award processes during phases of pre-award, implementation and close-out of sub- awards are compliant with Mercy Corps’ Sub-Award Financial Management manual and donor policies. 
• Coordinate closely with the Partnerships Manager / Subaward Officers to ensure effective financial oversight, monitoring and capacity building of partners / sub grantees and support of pre-award assessments and any partner / subgrantee audits. 

Coordination and Representation 

• Interface with the donor representatives to convey financial information about programs as appropriate. 
• Communicate with partner’s/ sub grantees and ensure they understand and follow all appropriate subgrant / subaward procedures and archiving. 
• Participate in sharing best practices with NGOs and governmental agencies. 
• Collaborate with peers across Mercy Corps for learning and sharing, as well as close coordination with HQ finance teams for guidance and accountability. 

Team Management & Capacity Strengthening 

• Create a sustainable work environment of mutual respect that attracts motivated, skilled and effective team members and enables them individually and collectively to strive to achieve excellence. 
• Supervise and lead a diverse team of direct and indirect reports in field offices. 
• Lead the process of regularly assessing the fit-for-purpose nature of the team capacities, roles and responsibilities, and number, visiting the portfolio need at that time and make necessary adjustments to ensure team member competencies are properly matched with the level of their responsibilities. 
• Contribute to country team-building efforts; build constructive internal relationships; help team members identify problem solving options and ensure integration of all team members into relevant decision-making processes. 
• Design and facilitate capacity building training to Mercy Corps and partner staff as and when required. 
• Identify technical skills gaps within the team to provide necessary support through training, workshops, and materials as per need. 

Security 

• Ensure compliance with security procedures and policies as determined by country leadership. 
• Proactively ensure that team members and community operate in a secure environment and are aware of policies. 

Accountability to Beneficiaries 

• Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our beneficiaries and to international standards guiding international relief and development work, while actively engaging beneficiary communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects. 
• Team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and MC’s policies, procedures, and values at all times and in all in-country venues. 

Others 

• Ensure proper integration of safeguarding and GESI aspects into sector specific project planning and  implementation. 
• Mercy Corps as a humanitarian agency is expected to respond as and when crisis and humanitarian situation engulfs. As an MC employee all staff are expected to be part of humanitarian and emergency response in addition to their regular roles and responsibilities. 
• Create and sustain a work environment of mutual respect where team members strive to achieve excellence. 
• Conduct himself/herself both professionally and personally in such a manner as to bring credit to Mercy Corps and not to jeopardize its humanitarian mission. 
• Other duties as assigned by his/her supervisor and or Country Director. 

Supervisory Responsibility: Directly supervises Finance & Compliance Manager and indirectly overall Mercy Corps Nepal’s Finance Department. 

Accountability Reports Directly to: This position reports directly to the Mercy Corps Country Director 

Works Directly with: HQ Regional Finance Officer (with authority for technical financial matters); all in country Program Directors/Managers, Operations Staff; HR Staff; TSU team members, Partnership and Sub award compliance team and others. 

Success Factors The ability to interact effectively with international and national personnel both in a managerial as well as training capacity is required. An ability to support programmatic objectives with timely and meaningful financial information is essential. A demonstrated ability to multitask, meet deadlines and process information in support of changing program activities is necessary. An impeccable professional standard of finance and procurement ethics as well as the willingness and ability to enforce compliance with Mercy Corps and donor policies and procedures is essential. The Country Finance and Compliance Director must be willing to travel regularly to Mercy Corps field offices and project sites. 

Ongoing Learning in support of our belief that learning organizations are more effective, efficient and relevant to the communities we serve, we empower all team members to dedicate 5% of their time to learning activities that further their personal and/or professional growth and development. 

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. 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. 

• Apply Before : Aug-16-2020
• How to Apply for this job?

• Interested candidates are requested to submit Cover letter, updated Resume and Mercy Corps Application Form available at http://nepal.mercycorps.org- by COB August 16, 2020 to the email address: np-jobs@mercycorps.org 

  [Please mention the title of the Position on the subject line of the e-mail while applying] 

  Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. Telephone inquiries will not be entertained.