Mercy Corps is a leading international non-governmental humanitarian agency with a global mission to alleviate suffering, poverty and oppression by helping people build secure, productive and just communities.
Safeguarding at Mercy Corps is committed to the community members we work with and the beneficiaries we serve. As part of this commitment, Mercy Corps has zero tolerance for violations of our Code of Conduct (Sexual Abuse of Beneficiaries and Community Members (PSEA), Anti-Trafficking Policy, Child Safeguarding Policy, Mercy Corps Ethics Complaint and Whistleblower Policy, Sexual Misconduct in the Workplace Policy, Discrimination, Harassment and Bullying Policy, and Anti-Fraud and Corruption).

Mercy Corps Yemen would like to announce that the following position is currently open for recruitment:

• Position Title: CARM Officer 
• Number of Vacancy:  1
• Duty Station: Taiz Alhawban
• Position Category:  Full-time 1    AND   Regular 1    
• Duration of Assignment: till 28 Feb 2023 
• Deadline : 29 Sep 2022

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.

The Program / Department Summary
As an organization, Mercy Corps is committed to preventing all forms of exploitation and abuse, . A Community Accountability Reporting Mechanism is an essential part of Mercy Corps’ commitment to excellence and integrity.  It gives individuals, organizations and local groups a means of raising concerns or sharing feedback (positive and negative) with Mercy Corps, independently from program operations. In the context of Yemen, rolling out CARM across the country, will ensure that the country team’s programs will continue to uphold Mercy Corps’ high standards of accountability. 

The Position Summary

The CARM Officer will work under the supervision of the CARM Coordinator and work closely with the program and MEL teams. S/he will both develop and manage CARM processes and tools for Mercy Corps in Ta’iz, and work with the CARM Coordinator and additional stakeholders to develop the agency’s CARM strategy more broadly and within Ta’iz specifically. In addition, the CARM Officer will support programs implementing in Ta’iz in developing and managing their work plans for the rollout of CARM, Will raise the awareness and building capacity of the program teams, MEL and communities through training and awareness session’s , also development and promotion of standard operating procedures to ensure that the methods of providing feedback are safe, confidential, and accessible and that the feedback provided is timely.   

Essential Job Responsibilities 

Community Accountability and Reporting Mechanism:

• In consultation with the CARM Coordinator and CARM Team, MEL Team, and Programmatic Staff, implementing the day-to-day activities of CARM, in particular receiving, classifying, translating, and reporting, and responding to the suggestions and complaints received via CARM from MC program participants and stakeholders
• Monitoring and overseeing the main avenues that feedback and complaints will be filed within Ta’iz. This could include email, hotline, feedback boxes, face-to-face meetings, and additional feedback channels as applicable. 
  • Specifically: A portion of the Officer’s work hours each week may need to be spent monitoring a CARM hotline and receiving and answering calls from community members
• Ensuring that all feedback and complaints received are categorized, filed in the CARM database, and directed through the appropriate channels until each one is resolved, and each case is closed.
  • Follow-up as necessary with CARM Program Focal Points and the relevant internal stakeholders to ensure each feedback is addressed in a thorough and timely manner
• Conducting regular field visits to MC project locations to monitor CARM, open the feedbacks boxes, get face to face feedbacks and conduct FGDs with community members.
• In coordination with CARM Coordinator  and MEL Team, design assessments and/or tools that can be used to understand and identify locally appropriate, user-friendly and culturally sensitive communication channels for feedback a
• Ensuring the confidentiality and security of all complaints received  
• Analyzing the trends in CARM feedback and complaints received and preparing a weekly/monthly/ and/or quarterly reports
• Translating the text of written feedback and complaints into English, inputting the original Arabic complaint and the English translation into the secure CARM database
• Following up when   the complainants whose cases have been resolved and survey their satisfaction with CARM and with how their complaint was handled overall 
• Following up when necessary with feedback submitters, such as in cases where the feedback that was filed was unclear, in order to gain further details 
• Creating, maintaining, and updating IEC materials for CARM for internal and external use
• Together with CARM Coordinator and program teams, develop a process to ensure integration of learning from CARM into program implementation.
• Function as the key knowledge holder on CARM for Mercy Corps in Ta’iz. 
• Watch and report on any new needs related to CARM that arise in the project target areas.
• Identify gaps within the current CARM operational manual through consultations with the program team and in the communities where Mercy Corps works, and support the CARM Coordinator in updating the manual as necessary 
• Support programs in establishing and adhering to workplans for the rollout of CARM, including processes, procedures, and forms by project or location ز
• Other duties as assigned.

Capacity Building 

• Conduct orientation sessions for all departments on CARM and their roles and responsibilities toward a successful implementation of a community accountability and reporting mechanism. 
• Training of program staff on receiving complaints and feedback and on community sensitization  
• Provide training and on the job support to CARM Assistant in terms on handling calls/complaints, registration, and follow up. 
• Supporting programs and in particular CARM Program Focal Points in the training and awareness raising for communities, partners, and MC staff 

Team Management

• Develop the capacity of the team, deepen understanding of their roles and the CARM system functionality.
• Assist team members with information, tools and resources to improve performance & reach objectives.
• Promote accountability, communicate expectations and provide constructive feedback informally and formally via regular one on ones and performance reviews.
• Create and sustain a work environment of mutual respect where team members strive to achieve excellence.
• Play an active role in hiring, orienting and leading team members as necessary.

Accountability to Program Participants 

• 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.

Security 

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

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. 

Supervisory Responsibility: None initially. Possibility of 1 CARM Assistant in the future, depending on CARM rollout requirements and budget availability. 

Accountability 

Reports Directly To:  CARM Coordinator 
Works Directly With: CARM Team, MEL Team, Program Teams and CARM Program Focal Points, Support Departments, and local community members / program participants.

Knowledge and Experience 

• At least 2 years Experiences of working in accountability position or community beneficiary feedback mechanisms. 
• Experience of working with an international NGO in Yemen region.
• Degree in social science or related, and any certificate for Sphere is a plus. 
• English and Arabic written and spoken fluency is required.
• The ability to work closely in a team be patient, adaptable, flexible, able to improvise and work in an environment that is often stressful and potentially volatile,
• Good interpersonal skills with the ability to communicate and negotiate clearly and effectively at all levels, taking into account cultural and language difficulties.  Tact and diplomacy are essential. 
• Very good analytical skills mainly quantitative data.
• Computer literacy of using Word and Excel a plus.
• Good organizational skills, the ability to pay close attention to detail and capable of reporting in a timely manner.
• Strong organizational skills, timeliness, and the ability to multi-task
• Honest, hardworking, and committed to community accountability and confidentiality 
• A confident, flexible and initiative-taking attitude with the ability to work independently, to be proactive in working with others, a willingness and commitment to work long hours and/or over weekends and to spend considerable amount of time in remote field sites.

Knowledge and Experience 

Success Factors:

The successful Safety and Security Manager will combine effective leadership of complex teams and the ability to lead by example and influence. Also, S/he will be expected to have a proven ability to build internal staff capacity and competency and to provide program support services. Flexibility and creativity in planning and problem solving, ability to understand the larger picture while remaining focused on the details, proven ability to learn quickly, take initiative and be accountable for results, knowledge of security standards, precautionary measures, communication protocols and passion for professional learning and development are vital skill that we expect the Safety and Security Manager to have.

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 eLearning courses upon hire and on an annual basis.

Environmental Conditions

• Mercy Corps Team members represent the agency both during and outside of work hours. Team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and Mercy Corps' policies, procedures, and values at all times and in all in-country venues. Must be willing to travel throughout the country and be available for emergencies. 

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.

ACCOUNTABILITY TO PARTICIPANTS

• Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our participants and to international standards guiding international relief and development work, while actively engaging participant communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects