Thailand: Director of Field Operations

Burma Border Projects Background:Burma Border Projects (BBP) is a non-profit organization that has been providing mental health support, psychosocial services and training to the displaced Burmese community along the Thai-Burma border since 1999. One of Burma Border Projects' primary goals is to address the mental health and psychosocial consequences of stress and trauma resulting from war, poverty, displacement and other human rights abuses. BBP works collaboratively with local community based organizations that support and provide assistance to Burmese refugees, migrants and internally and externally displaced individuals and families. In providing culturally relevant education and training, BBP instructs indigenous trainers, medics, community leaders and teachers how to provide counseling services, conduct mental health assessments and manage crises to build their capacity. Since 2008, BBP has had four full-time mental health workers based in Mae Sot, Thailand.

Mae Tao Clinic (MTC), founded and directed by Dr. Cynthia Maung and located along the Thai-Burma border in Mae Sot, Thailand, has been providing free health care to Burmese individuals and families, primarily ethnic minorities, since 1989. With an initial emphasis on providing emergency medical care to individuals crossing the border following the 1988 pro-democracy protests, MTC has grown to provide comprehensive health care services, including some of the first mental health counseling services for Burmese in the region. In 1999, Burma Border Projects was founded to begin addressing mental health needs at Mae Tao Clinic, and in 2006, the MTC Counseling Center (CC) was established, as a clinic department to address the broad psychosocial needs of both MTC staff and patients.

Position:Director of Field Operations

Reports directly to: Executive Director / Board of Directors (based in U.S.)

Direct reports include: Programs Manager and Psychosocial Officer

Work schedule: Full-time, 40 hours/week, Monday-Friday

Type of Appointment: Regular, full time appointment

Contract Length: 2 years with possibility to renew

Location: Based in Mae Sot, Thailand, with possible travel

Start Date: October 2015

Position summary: The Director of Field Operations executes a variety clinical and administrative responsibilities to support all BBP programs and staff, as well as partners on the Thai/Burma border in the area of psychosocial program development and implementation.

Primary Responsibilities:

· Provide mental health and psychosocial technical advising, program development and program implementation support to local partners

· Provide clinical and program supervision to all staff and interns, this includes ongoing capacity building, professional development, technical advice, and performance reviews; lead and facilitate weekly and monthly team meetings

· Develop psychosocial and mental health curriculum, monitoring and evaluation tools and related activities for trainings and workshops

· Facilitate trainings and workshops, including organizing logistics, collaborating with co-trainer/s, and documenting program indicators

· Represent BBP at partner and donor meetings and working groups in the community

· Write reports (internal and external donor) and grant proposals

· Responsible for grant management and providing capacity building to partner organizations in this area

· Oversee financial accounting by Finance Officer

· Implement new psychosocial programming for 2016

Secondary Responsibilities

· Communicate programmatic needs and direction to Executive Director and Board of Directors (based in U.S.)

· Facilitate meetings and visits with board members and donors when visiting the region

· Collaborate in the development of BBP marketing-related materials, HR policies and procedures, generate job descriptions and facilitate hiring and orientation of interns and new staff

· Update and manage financial and media accounts

Required Qualifications:

Experience and knowledge

· 2+ years experience in mental health and psychosocial programs

· Training facilitation skills

· Supervisory or management experience

· Capacity-building experience and ability to work in a low resource setting

· Local or international hire

Skills and characteristics

· Ability to work independently, flexible and open to change

· Ability to communicate technical information to both technical and non-technical audiences

· Organized with the ability to manage and complete numerous tasks and meet deadlines with strong attention to consistency, detail and quality

· Mastery of mental health concepts with the ability to flexibly apply these to various cultural contexts

· Strong computer skills in Microsoft Word, PowerPoint and Excel

Education:

· Master’s degree in social work (MSW), psychology or other mental health or international development related field

Languages/Background:

· Fluency in English both written and spoken

· Knowledge of Burmese, Karen and/or Thai a plus

Additional qualifications

· Knowledge of Thailand/Burma border situation, especially of challenges and cultural context as related to mental health

All interested applicants should send their CV and a cover letter addressing the selection criteria to:- michelle@burma-projects.org