Deputy Head of Delegation

Organizational Context

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) is the world’s largest humanitarian network, with 191 member National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. IFRC uses the Triple R – response, resilience and respect – to deliver on Strategy 2030. IFRC responds to disasters and crises, ensuring timely, coordinated and locally led humanitarian action. IFRC supports its members in building community resilience in the areas of climate and environment, health and wellbeing, and migration and displacement. IFRC promotes respect for our fundamental principles of humanity, impartiality, neutrality, independence, voluntary service, unity, and universality, including in our work on values, power and inclusion. The IFRC focuses throughout on our core mandate – our raison d’être – of strategic and operational coordination, humanitarian diplomacy, National Society development, and accountability.

IFRC is led by its Secretary General and has its Headquarters in Geneva and five regional offices in Africa (Nairobi); the Americas (Panama); Asia Pacific (Kuala Lumpur); Europe (Budapest); and MENA (Beirut) as well as representation offices, service centres and delegations across the globe

IFRC has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment and other forms of harassment, abuse of authority, discrimination, and lack of integrity (including but not limited to financial misconduct). IFRC also adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All members of the IFRC workforce must contribute individually and collectively towards a working environment where everyone feels safe and empowered to perform their duties.

The IFRC Country Cluster Delegation, based in Kinshasa, DRC, is the IFRC Secretariat’s frontline presence supporting Red Cross and Red Crescent National Societies in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burundi, the Republic of the Congo, and Rwanda. It works to strengthen locally led, community‑based humanitarian action as the foundation of effective, sustainable response. Across the four countries, the Delegation supports a vast community‑based network of more than 1.2 million volunteers, over 600 staff, and more than 3,400 local units and 113 branches, ensuring deep territorial reach, including in hard‑to‑reach and high‑risk contexts.

The Deputy Head of Delegation (DHoD) ensures continuity of leadership by managing specific areas of support that are ordinarily under the HoD’s remit and also deputises for the HoD when specifically delegated

This role does not replace existing leadership profiles but complements them by ensuring that the delegation’s services are deliberately focused, targeted and catalytic, prioritizing areas where the IFRC Secretariat adds the greatest value in terms of coordination, accountability, and sustainability; the incumbent advances the delegation’s key shifts that underpin its operating model, ensuring that international support results in stronger, more sustainable and locally led humanitarian action

The incumbent reports to the Head of Delegation, with technical supervision provided by the Deputy Regional Director. The incumbent serves as Head of Office for the Democratic Republic of the Congo for internal management and operational matters, while external representation and cluster-wide leadership remain exercised within the single Head of Delegation and Deputy Head of Delegation structure covering the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burundi, the Republic of the Congo and Rwanda.

Job Purpose

Under the supervision of the Head of Delegation, the Deputy Head of Delegation supports the strategic leadership, overall management and effective performance of the Country Cluster Delegation, ensuring continuity of leadership and deputizing for the Head of Delegation as delegated.

The role contributes to the delegation’s strategic and operational direction, institutional risk oversight, external representation, and cross-functional coordination, while providing specific leadership for National Society Development, Membership Coordination, Accountability and organisational agility.

The post holder partners with the leadership of National Societies in strengthening governance, leadership, sustainability, integrity, and organisational effectiveness while promoting ownership of, and mutual accountability for, jointly agreed commitments and results; promotes coherent engagement of IFRC members behind National Society priorities; and advances localisation, accountability, transparency, and adaptive ways
of working in line with IFRC Secretariat Renewal, the IFRC Network Way of Working and IFRC’s constitutional mandates.

Through these responsibilities, the role provides strategic leadership to IFRC efforts to strengthen National Societies as accountable, sustainable, locally led, and effective actors and contributes to the effective delivery of the Country Cluster Delegation’s overall strategic objectives.

Job Duties and Responsibilities

1. National Society Development

• Lead IFRC Secretariat support and coordinate country-level IFRC Network cooperation in support of National Society Development (NSD) priorities.
• Advise and partner with National Society leaders to strengthen governance, leadership, organisational culture, integrity, sustainability and institutional effectiveness. Enable National Society-led organisational transformation by supporting leaders to diagnose systemic challenges, define strategic choices, build consensus and translate agreed decisions into measurable and
  sustained institutional change.
• Coordinate the use of relevant assessments, evidence and investment frameworks to inform coherent NSD strategies, plans, resource mobilisation and monitoring.
• Ensure that emergency operations, programmes and partnerships contribute to enduring National Society capacity, systems and sustainability.

2. IFRC Membership Coordination

• Lead implementation of the IFRC Network Way of Working and promote coherent engagement of the IFRC Secretariat and supporting member National Societies behind host National Society priorities.
• Provide cluster-level leadership, quality assurance and strategic support for membership coordination, while enabling each National Society to lead country-level coordination and cooperation arrangements in its own context.
• Partner with National Society leaders to convene, coordinate and align IFRC Network support around nationally defined priorities and strategic objectives.
• Promote unified planning, complementary implementation, joint monitoring, coordinated resource mobilisation and transparent support arrangements.
• Establish and facilitate mechanisms through which IFRC Network components review progress against jointly agreed commitments, address underperformance, agree corrective measures and practise mutual accountability

3. National Society Accountability, Integrity and Institutional Risk

• Advise, challenge and enable National Society leaders to foster accountability, openness, transparency, ethical leadership, responsible risk-taking and responsible stewardship.
• Advise and support National Society leaders to strengthen integrity systems, safeguarding measures, accountability frameworks, community feedback and complaints mechanisms, and risk management practices.
• Partner with National Society leaders to identify and address institutional performance gaps and risks that may affect effectiveness, credibility or sustainability.
• Support the HoD in the oversight of delegation-wide strategic and institutional risks, ensuring appropriate analysis, mitigation, escalation and follow-up in coordination with relevant risk owners and technical functions.
• Promote accountability to communities, including transparency, safeguarding, responsiveness to feedback and evidence of results.

Job Duties and Responsibilities (continued)

4. IFRC Secretariat Renewal, Agility and Organisational Performance

• Coordinate and monitor implementation of the delegation’s agreed Renewal commitments, facilitate cross-functional follow-up, and advise the management team on progress, constraints and corrective action.
• Identify duplication, decision bottlenecks and unnecessary bureaucracy, and support simpler, faster and more effective ways of working while maintaining appropriate accountability and risk controls.
• Promote clear decision rights, delegated authority, cross-functional collaboration, adaptive management and evidence-based prioritisation.
• Anticipate emerging issues and escalate significant governance, integrity, accountability or risk concerns through appropriate IFRC mechanisms.
• Promote a culture of continuous improvement, learning and responsible innovation, and monitor agreed organisational performance improvements.

5. Strategic Leadership

• Ensure continuity of delegation leadership by deputising for the Head of Delegation and exercising delegated strategic, operational, representational and management responsibilities.
• Serve as principal adviser to the Head of Delegation, contributing to the strategic and operational direction of the Country Cluster Delegation through analysis, problem-solving, prioritisation, decision support and oversight of implementation.
• Support the overall management and performance of the Country Cluster Delegation, including strategic planning, resource allocation, operational continuity, cross-functional coordination and resolution of significant management or delivery issues.
• Position the IFRC Secretariat as a trusted adviser, convener and enabler to National Society leadership, supporting ownership, institutional development, accountability and sustainable progress.
• Represent the IFRC and, when delegated, the Head of Delegation in engagement with National Society leadership, Movement partners, government counterparts, donors, humanitarian actors and other stakeholders.

6. Team and Portfolio Management

• Lead and manage a multidisciplinary team, setting clear objectives, priorities, accountabilities and performance expectations.
• Foster a high-performing, inclusive and collaborative culture, ensuring effective staff performance management, development, wellbeing and succession planning.
• Oversee portfolio planning, budgeting, resource allocation, monitoring and reporting in accordance with IFRC policies, delegated authorities and agreed priorities. Promote effective matrix management and collaboration across country, regional and global functions, reference centres, National Societies and IFRC Network partners.
• Champion a safe, respectful and inclusive work environment, actively preventing and addressing
  harassment, discrimination, abuse of authority, sexual exploitation and abuse, and other forms of misconduct.
• Serve as a trusted and accessible point of contact for concerns related to inappropriate conduct, ensuringconcerns are handled promptly, confidentially and in a victim-centred manner in accordance with IFRC policies.
• Hold staff accountable for compliance with IFRC standards of conduct, while promoting staff wellbeing,healthy workplace behaviours and appropriate use of available support, learning and safeguardingresources.

Education

• University degree in management, organisational development, international
• relations, social sciences, humanitarian studies or another relevant field. (Required)
• Basic Delegates Training Course or IMPACT training or equivalent knowledge (Required)
• Qualification or certification in project management(Preferred)

Experience

 

Required

• At least 10 years’ progressively responsible experience in large/complex humanitarian, development or organizational settings in positions relevant to the post
• At least 5 years’ experience in people management, including staff performance and development
• At least 5 years’ experience in high-level representation in an international environment and in maintaining partner and donor relations
• At least 5 years’ experience working at senior management level
• Experience in IFRC planning and budgeting systems or comparable systems
• Experience in producing international standard narrative and financial reports
• Significant experience in National Society Development, organisational development or institutional transformation.
• Demonstrated experience advising senior governance and executive leadership.
• Experience coordinating multi-partner or Federation-wide cooperation.
• Strong knowledge of IFRC governance, membership, accountability and integrity frameworks.
• Demonstrated experience leading organisational change, adaptive management or process improvement.
• Experience working with institutional risk and accountability systems.

Preferred

• Minimum 5 years’ experience working in the Red Cross Red Crescent Movement

 

• Previous work experience in the region and/or extensive knowledge of the Region

Knowledge, Skills and Languages

Required

• Demonstrated leadership and management skills, including the ability to utilise talent and experience of team members in a productive way
• Ability to work and communicate effectively in a cross-cultural and cross functional environment
• Demonstrated initiative, creativity and strategic thinking, including the ability to identify and analyse problems, respond to opportunities and challenges, and translate decisions into practical plans of action
• Outstanding interpersonal, networking, representational, communication and negotiation skills, with the ability to be proactive and persuasive
• Experience or familiarity with developing or revising Emergency Appeals and Operational Plans, and with EU-funded projects
• Strong financial management skills
• Proven ability to work in volatile security environments with strict security conditions
• High degree of discretion, tact and sensitivity in dealing with internal and external stakeholders at all levels
• Ability to work to tight deadlines and handle multiple tasks
• Ability to prepare high-quality reports, action plans, budgets, programme updates and country operational plans
• Ability to lead change and continuous improvement and to deliver strategies in challenging environments
• Demonstrated core proficiency in (a) digital communication & collaboration, (b) basic digital content creation, (c) digital safety & security, (d) data literacy, and (e) problem solving with technology (including responsible use of AI assistants.
• Understanding of and commitment to IFRC’s mission and values.
• Fluent spoken and written English and French

Preferred

• Good command of another IFRC official language (Spanish or Arabic)

Competencies, Values and Comments

• Values: Respect for diversity; Integrity; Professionalism; Accountability
• Core competencies: Communication; Collaboration and teamwork; Judgement and decision making; National society and customer relations; Creativity and innovation; Building trust Managerial Competencies:
• Managing Staff Performance; Managing Staff Development.
• Functional Competencies: Strategic Orientation; Building Alliances; Leadership; Empowering Others.