Thailand: Regional Roster Coordinator – Transforming Surge Capacity project

Purpose:

Working in 50 developing countries across Africa, Asia and the Americas, Plan’s stated Global Strategic Goal is to reach as many children as possible, particularly those who are excluded or marginalised, with high-quality programmes that deliver long-lasting benefits. Plan aims to achieve this goal by working in partnership with others and through high performing teams whose behaviours reflect the corporate values. It has a global income of around GBP 600 mio.

The Transforming Surge Capacity project aims to strengthen civil society surge capacity, i.e. the capacity of organisations to swiftly scale-up (and down) resources and people in a disaster response. The project brings together 11 agencies[1] that are part of the Start Network and two technical partners[2] to test out and generate learning on collaborative and localised approaches to surge, which involve multiple stakeholders outside of civil society (such as the UN and the private sector). The project is being implemented through the creation of collaborative platforms in the Philippines and Pakistan with an Asia regional hub led from Bangkok. More information about the project can be found here. One of the key outputs of the project is the development of a shared roster at the Asia regional level. The vision of the regional shared roster is to create a pool of skilled, trained and experienced individuals who can be deployed across national boundaries to support emergency responses in the region. Agencies that are part of the regional platform can tap into this pool to support their response to any medium-scale disaster in Asia. Detailed information about this innovative roster can be accessed here.

Dimensions of Role:

Budget: No budget responsibility

Staff numbers: There are no direct reports to the position holder. The Regional Roster Coordinator will establish and maintain ongoing communication with all consortium members, including the roster focal points, roster members and in-country HR contacts in those agencies. The person in this role will also be working closely with the roster technology provider, the facilitator of the roster training and the International MEL Officer of the project.

Area of responsibility: Regional

Key End Results and Typical Responsibilities:

The post holder will be required to complete the following objectives:

• New roster members are successfully confirmed and inducted on the regional shared roster and have submitted all necessary documentation and information prior to their first deployment. This includes the creation of communication materials and active follow-up with roster members on necessary information.

• Relevant focal points and decision makers in the agencies are fully oriented on the mechanisms of the roster and encouraged to use it. This includes the creation of communication materials and inductions.

• The regional roster trainings are rolled out smoothly. Activities under this objective include effective logistical support of the regional roster trainings, including liaison with the trainers and relevant administration staff. The Roster Coordinator will also be required to encourage training participants to exchange experiences and network with the other roster members during and after the training.

• Deployment requests are processed swiftly and successfully and the information flow between deploying and hosting organisations is supported effectively. To fulfil this objective, the post holder must be able to react quickly to an influx of deployment requests to a disaster, keep open communication channels and share the necessary information with participating agencies as quickly and clearly as possible. This objective also requires a very strong understanding of the regional shared roster mechanism and the flexibility to provide additional ad hoc support to agencies as required. He/she will also be required to support the monitoring of deployment requests and deployments by keeping track of the roster use.

• The roster technology platform is running smoothly and roster members are using it regularly. This includes effective working relationships with the technology provider and a keen eye for the usability and adaptation of the technology platform, as per the requirements of the roster and its users. The post holder will be required to organise orientations on the platform both with the roster members and with the relevant roster focal points in each participating agency. He/she will also be required to support the monitoring of platform usage.

• Information for the mapping of regional capacities is collected in time and with a high response rate. The post holder will be required to collect responses to the mapping study from country offices in all participating agencies, both through a survey and follow-up interviews. He/she will work closely with the Regional Platform Coordinator and the International MEL Officer to move the completion of the scoping study forward in the required time frame.

• The initial roster pilot is successfully expanded to additional sectors based on the mapping results and all necessary systems are rolled out in line with the plans. The Regional Roster Coordinator will be responsible for developing the additional systems required under an expanded roster, including new job descriptions, additional training events and renewed communication about the roster. He/she will actively support the participating agencies in the nomination and selection of roster members and will ensure all new roster members are successfully confirmed and inducted on the roster. Any adjustments needed from the initial setup of the roster will be made by the post holder as well.

• The setup of the external roster is supported effectively and in the specified time frame. Activities under this objective include the liaison with the lead of the external roster scoping (either a consortium member or a consultant), active support in the development of concrete concepts and the setup of systems for this roster, including selection mechanisms, roster policies, communications, and training opportunities.

• A regional simulation to test the rosters is set up successfully. The post holder will be working closely with the Regional Platform Coordinator and the International MEL Officer to develop a simulation plan and roll it out in early 2017.

• Concrete options to make the roster pilots sustainable are explored and developed. This includes monitoring the usage of the roster and jointly drawing conclusions from it with the platform members. The person in this role will also support the Regional Platform Coordinator in developing concepts for sustainable roster plans beyond the lifetime of the project, in coordination with potential future partners.

  Dealing with Problems:

• Balancing the needs and demands of multiple stakeholders;

• Planning and organising work systematically with attention to detail;

• Able to work on own initiative with minimal day-to-day supervision;

• Able to use interpersonal skills and a can-do attitude to solve problems;

• Able to work effectively with and communicate clearly to colleagues at different levels of seniority, from different cultural backgrounds and over long distances;

• Able to manage competing demands and expectations on the project and remain flexible and constructive in order to achieve the best outcome.

Knowledge, Skills and Behaviours Required to Achieve Role’s Objectives: • Bachelor’s degree in HR, international relations, development studies or a related field • At least 2 years’ coordination or technical experience in a humanitarian setting, preferably in an HR capacity • Experience in coordinating complex grant-funded projects (experience in consortium projects will be an asset) • Excellent proven communication skills • Excellent command of spoken and written English • Ability to build effective working relationships in a diverse team and over a long distance • Ability to garner commitment from busy individuals with competing priorities • Ability to take a planned approach, prioritise tasks and perform to a high standard to tight deadlines • Demonstrated experience in functioning effectively during times of high workload and competing demands • Creativity in approaching an innovative piece of work • Skilled use of computer software (including MS Office) and specialised technology platforms • Experience working on humanitarian surge response will be an asset • Experience working across multiple countries is desirable

Application Process:

Please send your CV and a covering letter explain why your skills, knowledge and experience meet the requirements of this job to PlanAsia.JobVacancies@plan-international.org by 5.00pm local time Bangkok on Friday 15^th July 2016. Please state clearly in the subject title of the email the job you are applying for.

For more information or questions, please contact RO HR & Recruitment Specialist, Khun Som.