Finance Partnerships Officer-Damascus

Background/Context:

The IRC has operated in Syria since 2012, providing protection, health, economic recovery, and early childhood development programs in Idleb, Aleppo, Ar-Raqqa, Hassakeh, and Deir ez-Zor, with new programs expanding into Hama, rural Damascus, and Homs. With a team of over 750 members, the IRC has established trust and strong community relationships, ensuring access and effective service delivery. It plays a significant role in Syria’s NGO, donor, and coordination forums, holding key positions and adapting to the evolving context.

With the new realities under the new government, as of December 2024, the IRC has deployed a team to Damascus to set up operations and engage in coordination structures for newly accessible areas across Syria—including parts of NES, NWS, and other previously unreachable locations in South and Central Syria, adjusting operations to maximize coverage and efficiency.

Job overview:

The Partnerships Finance Officer is responsible for providing financial management to ensure that the country program has the appropriate financial structure and systems in place to support the partnerships' strategic ambitions. This position is responsible for ensuring effective partnership finance management, including timely advances/payments to partners to ensure program and service continuity in accordance with partnership agreements, and timely expense booking and reconciliations and timely action to resolve any challenges with financial management. The Partnership Finance Officer support partnership finance manager for the financial and compliance aspects of the Partnerships Department, including ensuring high-quality financial monitoring and support of the partners in the Syria country program. Under the support of the Finance Partnership Manager, the Partnerships Finance Officer will actively develop and roll out all initiatives related to capacity building of partners in collaboration with the partnership team and the finance staff. This position reports directly to the Finance Partnership Manager of the Syria country program.

Responsibilities:

Partnerships Financial Management

• Ensure effective partnership agreement finance management, including timely advances/payments to partners to ensure program and service continuity in accordance with partnership agreements as well PEER, and work closely with FM for timely action to resolve any challenges during work related implementation.
• Follow up with IRC HQ and partners to confirm transfer and receipt of payments, respectively. And update FM for any expected delays or challenges.
• Timely Initial verification of partner’s submitted financial reports and expense booking, making sure the reconciliation provided by partner is aligned with the ledger information. In case of any discrepancies, report immediately to FM, and do necessary communication and correction actively in close coordination with Partnership finance manager.
• In close coordination with FM, monthly review for the balance sheet accounts (partner advance, Partner Liability, Hawala), and control accounts as well expense accounts, ensuring the transaction currency and reporting currency are correctly presenting the partner’s accounting procedures.
• Implementing IRC partnership accounting procedures by applying the applicable SOP.
• Make sure accounting procedures are followed correctly and actively contribute on monthly closure in terms of partners’ accounting analysis and correction actives.
• Participate effectively in the month closure and Year end closure process.
• Give hands to the finance units at difficult times of pressure such as audit and month and year end closure.
• Being expert Integra user, making sure all partners accounting passed to the system with correct coding and currencies and sufficient supporting documents and correct posting profiles. Explore system troubleshooting, and be familiar with system errors, agilely fix the system errors and report to subject matter expert for those errors which need technical insight.
• Settle advance/ liability transactions on timely manner on system and making sure the ledger presents the partner’s financial position at any time.
• Close coordination with Partnership finance manager, Finance Coordinator-Accounting & Audit, in terms of timely partner’s accounting and reconciliation.
• Support FM in verification of partners’ financial reports and support documentation, ensuring that expenses are reasonable, allowable, and allocable to the approved budget and align with the donor’s regulations. Communicate findings to Partnership finance manager and ensure timely follow-up to provide solutions and document the findings. Reviews must be driven by contract guidance IRC policies and donor rules and regulations and based on partner risk and sampling or review of full documentation, as required.
• In close coordination with FM, ensure proactive communication with the partners about the submission of their financial reports according to the terms of their sub-awards. Ensure tracking of the partners' submission of financial reports, communicating delays to the Partnerships Coordinator, through Finance partnership manager.
• Ensuring that the sub-awardee financial reports are approved (signed) by the appropriate authority within IRC, preparing the Journal Voucher, fully coding and posting it to the system after final review from FM, under supervision of FM, respond to questions that arise from the Syria finance team and IRC HQ and audit regarding submitted financial reports.
• Do financial monitoring and spot check visits to sub-awardee offices are conducted according to IRC requirements and standards.
• Under direction of FM, ensure Partner monitoring visit plans are drafted and submitted ahead of visits to review and share monitoring visit reports in a timely manner to partners, the related Program team, and the Syria Partnerships Coordinator as well partnership finance manager after review from FM.
• Reconciling the partnerships' advances on a monthly basis or quarterly based on agreement reporting requirements. reports to partnership finance manager on all overdue, unliquidated advances, and updates daily bases dynamic and online tracking payment & expenses & partner updates sheets for sub-grants finances.
• Ensure that a sound, accurate, and organized archiving system is in place, both hard and soft (electronic) copies for all financial reports and their supporting documents and in line with IRC ERP system.
• Work with the partnership finance manager and Syria Partnerships Coordinator and the Finance team to collaborate on internal and external audits to ensure proper compliance with all regulations and to ensure that all sub-awardee files in hard and soft copy are always 100% audit ready, report samples through FM to partners and do follow up for complete submission, initial review for the provided documents from parter before sharing with FM for final review.
• Support Partnership finance manager that Partnership Capacity Analysis (PCA) is conducted for all new potential partners, as well as updating the PCAs for all existing partners, on an annual basis. Report partnership finance manager and the Partnerships Coordinator in Syria on the findings and provide recommendations for improvement.
• Participating to Partnership Project Opening, Review, and Closure Meetings, including review successes, challenges, and lessons learned with the partner, capturing effective financial practices for future partnerships.
• Provide Financial training and mentoring support to partners, in accordance with partner project support plans, with a focus on supporting the partner to strengthen the Finance systems and capacities that are responsive to the needs of the partner (rather than replicating IRC’s systems and policies).

Job Requirements:

Education:

• At least a bachelor’s degree in accounting, finance, or any related field.
• Or at least institute degree and finance experience for at least 2 years’ experience in partnership financial work related.

Work Experience:

• Minimum 3 years of financial work experience.
• Good understanding of accounting processes and procedures.
• At least 1 years of experience in finance partnership sector in a non-profit setting.
• Experience in managing and handling partners’ projects funded by major institutional donors will be preferable.
• Knowledge of associated with funding from BHA or USAID, EU, UN, BMZ, GFFO, GAC, SIDA or FCDO rules and regulations will be a plus.
• Experience working with databases and/or other tracking software systems.
• Proven track record in developing the capacity of staff and pertners.
• Ability to work under work pressure and willingness\ ability and flexible enough to work for extra hours when needed.

Demonstrated Skills and Competencies:

• Computer literate and has strong competencies in MS Office package, especially Excel (e.g common formulas) and outlook
• Any ERP System experience is an advantage.
• Strong ability to work independently, organize work, meet deadlines, maintain composure, prioritize work under pressure, coordinate multiple tasks and maintain attention to details.
• A commitment to IRC’s mission, vision, values and IRC Way – Professional Code of Conduct.
• Credible written, presentation and verbal communication skills; ability to convey information effectively and solid experience providing training and staff development.
• Validated sense of professional discretion, integrity, and ability to handle complex situations diplomatically and to effective resolution.
• Excellent management and interpersonal skills and a solid ability to promote harmonious/cohesive teamwork, in a cross-cultural context.
• Validated ability to plan long-term, organize priorities and work under administrative and programmatic pressures with detail orientation and professional patience.
• Highly collaborative and resourceful; ability to establish positive working relationships with senior level management and all other partners to maximize cooperation and productivity.
• Curiosity, a desire to continually learn and develop is a must.
• Analytical ability in creating effective solutions to complex matters while adhering to labor laws and internal policies.

Language/Travel:

• Excellent written and oral communication in both English and Arabic are required; Kurdish is an advantage.
• Travel: 30% to field sites as well as attending regional and global workshops and meetings when required.

Key Working Relationships:

Position Reports to: Partnership finance manager.

Position directly supervises: N/A

Key Internal Contacts: Head of Teams (especially, Partnership Coordinator/Manager, Deputy Director - Programs, and the Deputy Director – Finance, Finance coordinator -accounting & audit), Budget Holders, and the Finance department team.

Key External Contacts: IRC partner organizations.

Professional Standards: IRC staff must adhere to the values and principles outlined in IRC Way – Global Standards for Professional Conduct. These are Integrity, Service, Accountability and Equality. In accordance with these values, IRC operates and carries out policies on Beneficiary Protection from Exploitation and Abuse, Child Safeguarding, Anti-Workplace Harassment, Respect at Work Fiscal Integrity, and Anti-Retaliation.

Returning National Candidates: We strongly encourage national or returning national candidates to apply for this position. If you are a citizen of the country where this position is based and are currently residing outside of your home country, you may be eligible for an attractive relocation package. Eligibility is determined based on IRC's operational needs and specific role requirements. IRC strives to attract, motivate, and retain qualified national staff in our programs.

Accountability to Clients: IRC staff must adhere to the commitment of contributing to the sustainability and development of its (CR) Client Responsiveness Mechanisms, preserving the culture of prioritizing the needs of our clients and affected communities by systematically listening to their perspectives and using their feedback to make programmatic decisions and give them greater influence over program design and delivery.

How to apply

https://forms.cloud.microsoft/r/GGcXUfgHqn