Grants and Operations Manager

at University Research Co., LLC (URC)
Location Gulu, Uganda
Date Posted October 11, 2021
Category Management
NGO
Job Type Contract
Currency UGX

Description

Hours:                             Regular Full-time, 40 hours per week; Not Eligible
                                         for Overtime
Location:                         Based in Gulu, Uganda; With travel to districts as
                                          needed
Salary:                             Commensurate with required experience and
                                          qualifications
Reports to:                      Director of Finance and Administration.
University Research Co., LLC (URC)
URC is a global company dedicated to improving the quality of health care, social services, and health education worldwide. With a non-profit affiliate, the Center for Human Services (CHS), URC manages projects in over 45 countries, including the United States.
Established in 1965, URC offers a range of technical assistance to strengthen health and social systems and service quality by empowering communities and health workers to identify and scale up locally appropriate solutions to critical problems. Internationally, we expand access to and improve the quality of services addressing maternal, newborn, and child health; infectious diseases, including HIV/AIDS, TB, and malaria; reproductive health and family planning; food and nutrition; and vulnerable children and families. In the US, we focus on improving communication related to issues like substance abuse, with a particular focus on reaching underserved populations.
Project Overview:
With the RHITES-N Acholi Project (Regional Health Integration to Enhance Services in Northern Uganda – Acholi), USAID will continue its support of the Government of Uganda’s (GOU) efforts to improve access to and use of health services in the country’s post-conflict northern region. RHITES-N Acholi Project activities will build on USAID investments and national advances to increase access to and use of high-quality integrated services that accelerate the ability and capacity to respond to the specific health needs of residents in the Acholi sub-region, leveraging the URC-ASSIST project successes.
Roles and Responsibilities:
Reporting to the Director of Finance and Administration, the Grants and Operations Manager will be responsible for the financial and sub-contract management of grants from funds received under the project. S/he is responsible for grant monitoring and capacity building of recipients including internal control procedures, allowable costs/cost principles under USAID regulations, equipment and real property management and period of availability of funds. S/he will effectively administer sub-grants to enhance the projects’ activities. On the Operations side, S/he is responsible for, and accountable for the delivery of all logistics and supply chain related activities in accordance with the company policies and procedures. S/he performs a key role in ensuring that adequate logistics systems are in place and properly functioning towards meeting the objectives of URC’s program and observing all internal and donor-imposed regulations.
The duties and responsibilities include:
  1. Grants Management.
  • Works with grantees to complete legal incorporation, system for award management registrations and dedicated bank accounts for grant funds.
  • Work with grantees to prepare and complete their cost proposals during the application process to ensure compliance with USAID and URC financial rules and regulations.
  • Maintain a well organised and updated files and records on each sub-grantee.
  • Routinely monitor and review sub-grantees progress in meeting targets/deliverables and providing documentation of expenditures in line with sub-grant requirements.
  • Review activity reports from sub-grantees to ensure compliance.
  • Facilitate timely release of sub-grantees funding and reimbursement.
  • Analyse the monthly financial reports of each grant, including checking the supporting documentation of each grant report (invoices, receipts, quotations, etc.).
  • Providing and reconciling grants bank statements for each monthly/quarterly report.
  • Verifying that monthly spending and cumulative spending is consistent with the approved budget for each grant and confirming that the counterpart report complies with the general budget of the project.
  • Support improvement of sub-grantees financial capacity through regular coaching/monitoring/trainings.
  • Follow-up and review of sub-grantee accountabilities and reports for direct site support activities.
  • Draft periodic reports for the Director of finance and Administration and URC Headquarters and provide recommendation to improve grant preperformance.
  • Provide accounting and finance support to grants through site visits and scheduled meetings, visit field sites on regular basis to monitor financial related policies.
  • Stay abreast of donor policies, procedures, rules and regulations, compile and update applicable local policies and train URC’s program and partner staff in these policies.
  • Responsible for grant monitoring and capacity building of recipients in the following areas, wherever applicable: -
  • Internal control Procedures.
  • Allowable cost/cost principles under USAID regulations.
  • Cash Management systems.
  • Equipment and real property Management
  • Period of availability of funds.
  • Procurement standards.
  • Program Income
  • Reporting.
  1. Logistics and Procurement.
  • Provide the technical oversight, input and supervision to coordinate the staff support to, delivery of, and implementation of, all logistics support systems according to URC logistics and Procurement policies and procedures.
  • Participate in project design and planning to ensure that logistic systems are suitable and flexible enough to cope with expected workload.
  • Ensure procurement processing and management is in accordance with URC procurement policies and procedures and carried in a transparent, accountable, time efficient and cost-effective manner.
  • Ensure an open, ethical, and free competition for all procurements done.
  • Ensure that the local market surveys are regularly carried out to ensure a full knowledge of the availability and price of local, frequently purchased items and that all procurements are tracked and recorded.
  • Proactively coordinate and direct the management and tracking of all equipment and supplies from procurement or donations through its recipients’ control, storage and onwards transport and distribution facilitation.
  • Ensure assets management in line with URC Operations manual.
  • Capture pipeline information and coordinate the management of the supply chain ensuring that program and logistics staff are well informed and well prepared for incoming equipment and supplies.
  • Ensure timely reporting on stock status to help program staff with planning of stock distribution and stock replenishment. Support program staff to verify that distribution has occurred according to the intentions and plans of the donors, URC, and project partners.
  • Locate and negotiate contracting for storage/warehousing that is secure, well maintained and meets health and safe working practice requirements.
  • Actively engage with freight forwarders, clearing agents and customs to ensure that cargo is managed at all points of supply chain to avoid any unnecessary delays in delivery.
  • Supervise and coordinate all logistics matters related to transport and fuel management to ensure that vehicles are insured, managed correctly, being driven safely, maintained appropriately, damages are reported and ensure that vehicles internal equipment (tools, comms, etc.) are complete and serviceable and that usage of fuel is correctly supervised, logged and reconciled.
  • Liaise with security personnel on security related transport issues.
  • Regularly assess and update information on access routes to program sites, airports, transport means available, warehousing, fuel availability, field communications issues, staffing needs, training required etc. Raise related issues/challenges to senior management as required and ask for direction to work out optimal solution.
  • Maintain accurate filling systems with documented and supported records of action for audit purposes and submit weekly and monthly logistics reports to the in-country management team and global Logistics, pursuant with URC policies and procedures.
  • Be flexible and manage time accordingly and to be prepared to tackle other tasks commensurate with the role and level of experience at short notice.
  1. Compliance.
  • Ensure compliance with URC policies and procedures, donor regulations and local laws.
  • Ensure that the procurement and disposal of commodities especially those subject to USG export compliance regulations are in line with applicable licenses and are properly documented.
  • Ensure that the vendor eligibility screening is carried out in a timely fashion, updated regularly, and recorded appropriately.
  1. Human Resources.
  • Manage all staff within the department with integrity and foresight and in accordance with HR procedures and policies to ensure that they maintain the highest standards of accountability and professionalism.
  • Make frequent site visits to where staff supervised by you are working to ensure that the appropriate care and support is being offered. Ensure that staff supervised by you are evaluated regularly, trained and/or mentored in a structured accountable manner and written records of such are retained.
  • Oversee the recruitment, selection and performance of logistics staff as required.
5. Training/Capacity Building.
  • Determine internal training needs for staff under supervision.
  • Coordinate the delivery of training for national staff to increase their responsibilities in order to build capacity and ensure sustainability of programs.
6. Working Relationships.
  • Proactively engage with the COP, Director of Finance and Administration and key staff (Finance, program, Technical staff) on all logistic matters to ensure that programmatic and project planning incorporates sufficient funding for logistical staff and logistical support mechanisms.
  • Proactively engage on a regular basis with other URC logistics teams and logistics focal points from other Organizations to ensure appropriate links for interagency logistics coordination.
  • Proactively engage with donors, local government, project partners and other non-governmental organizations to plan, organize and schedule distribution of goods, material, and trainings as well as to ensure adequate information sharing, address common concerns/problems and seek solutions.
7. Other Requirements.
  • Represent URC in a positive and professional manner contributing to the creation of a positive image and overall credibility of the Organization, notably through the application of URC’s mandate, ethics, values, and standpoint regarding other actors.
  • Ensure the application of and compliance with security protocols and policies.
  • Promotes and encourages a culture of compliance and ethics throughout URC. As applicable to the position, maintains a clear understanding of URCs’ and donor compliance and ethics standards and adheres to those standards. conducts work with the highest level of integrity.
  • Any other duties as may be assigned.
Minimum Qualifications:
Required Experience & Qualifications 
  • A Bachelor of commerce or related degree from a recognized university with Logistics or Grants Management bias.
  • At least 5years of relevant experience managing the financial and administrative components of grants, grants under contracts, sub-contract, supply chain management, fleet management and asset management preferably in donor funded programs in the health sector.
Desired Experience & Qualifications 
  • Experience with sub-granting to Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), Community Based Organizations (CBOs) and districts required.
  • Specific experience with USAID contracting and grant mechanisms with demonstrated Knowledge of USAID financial and management systems, regulations, and reporting requirements.
  • Ability to independently plan and execute complex tasks while addressing daily management details, remaining organized and focused on long-term deadlines and strategy.
  • The commitment and demonstrated skills to build staff capacity in the areas of logistics management, supervision, and monitoring.
  • Excellent interpersonal communications and organisational skills.
  • Strong organisational and problem-solving skills with analytic approach.
  • Strong negotiation, interpersonal, management and leadership skills.
  • Ability to work in participatory manner with staff to assess needs, implement and monitor activities.
  • Proficiency with MS word and Excel (Minimum requirement).
Please note: Only candidates who are eligible to work in Uganda for an indefinite period without a need for sponsorship will be considered for this position.
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