The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world's worst humanitarian crises, helping to restore health, safety, education, economic wellbeing, and power to people devastated by conflict and disaster. Founded in 1933 at the call of Albert Einstein, the IRC is one of the world's largest international humanitarian non-governmental organizations (INGO), at work in more than 40 countries and 29 U.S. cities helping people to survive, reclaim control of their future and strengthen their communities. A force for humanity, IRC employees deliver lasting impact by restoring safety, dignity and hope to millions. If you're a solutions-driven, passionate change-maker, come join us in positively impacting the lives of millions of people world-wide for a better future.
The SAFE-PATH Senior Consortium Manager will provide strategic leadership, coordination, and oversight of a multi-partner consortium implementing integrated protection and shelter interventions in Donetsk and Kharkiv Oblasts.
The role will ensure effective, coherent, and high-quality implementation of activities delivered by IRC and partners across the evacuation cycle, including protection risk analysis and monitoring, case management and legal assistance, targeted evacuation and transit support, and CCCM/Shelter components.
The position will act as the central coordination, accountability and communication hub for the consortium (IRC, RCC, LAOOI, FCD),, ensuring alignment with program objectives, donor requirements, and protection standards, while strengthening integration across sectors and partners with a strong emphasis on localization, accountability to affected people, and partner‑led implementation, in line with donor expectations and IRC’s partnership principles of equality, complementarity, mutuality, solidarity, results-orientation, and humility
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
1. Consortium Leadership & Coordination
Provide strategic and operational coordination ensuring harmonized methodologies and partner‑led decision‑making where feasible.
Maintain full oversight across operational, financial, compliance, and programmatic aspects, ensuring timely escalation and support to partners
Ensure alignment through joint review with partners; facilitate program adjustments through participatory decision‑making.
Facilitate regular consortium coordination meetings and ensure effective communication among partners.
Identify and address gaps in implementation, including partner performance, operational challenges, and coordination bottlenecks.
2. Project Oversight & PCM (Project Cycle Management)
Lead consortium‑wide oversight, ensuring progress against targets, budget utilization, compliance requirements and risk management.
Liaise with the Grants focal point to structure Project Cycle Meetings (PCMs), including agenda setting and identification of priority issues.
Establish and maintain the consortium Dashboard, tracking progress, risks, and action points.
Facilitate PCMs, ensure documentation of decisions, and monitor follow-up actions.
Escalate key issues (budget, scope, risks, under/over-performance) to DDP/DDFM as required.
3. Integrated Program Quality & Technical Oversight
Ensure strong localization of technical approaches through capacity‑sharing, joint supervision, and partner‑led quality assurance.
Ensure integrated and harmonized service delivery across:
Protection risk analysis and monitoring
Case management and legal assistance
Cash for Protection and Individual Protection Assistance
Targeted evacuation and transit support
CCCM/Shelter interventions
Promote strong referral pathways and coordinated service delivery across partners and sectors.
Work closely with technical teams to ensure adherence to protection principles, SOPs, and quality standards.
Develop and oversee quality assurance and monitoring systems in coordination with technical and METAL teams.
4. Partner Support & Capacity Strengthening
Provide mentoring, technical guidance, and formative supervision to partners as needed.
Promote shared learning, best practices, and harmonized approaches across partners.
5. External Representation & Coordination
Represent the consortium in Protection Cluster, relevant sub-clusters, and working groups at regional and national levels.
Engage with government stakeholders, social services, and other service providers to strengthen coordination and referrals.
Ensure complementarity with other protection and shelter interventions in Ukraine.
6. Advocacy, Learning & Knowledge Management
Support development of evidence-based advocacy messages in coordination with Advocacy and Policy teams.
Contribute to documentation and dissemination of lessons learned and best practices.
Support assessments, evaluations, and reporting processes across the consortium.
7. Safeguarding, Accountability & Inclusion
Ensure safeguarding and GESDI principles are consistently integrated across all consortium activities by coordinating with designated safeguarding, accountability, and inclusion focal points within IRC and partner organizations
Facilitate effective linkages between consortium partners and relevant IRC technical units (e.g., Safeguarding, CRA, GESDI) to ensure alignment of approaches and avoid duplication of efforts.
Monitor, at a coordination level, the implementation of safeguarding and inclusion standards across the consortium, ensuring alignment and escalation of gaps through the appropriate technical channels.
8. Client Responsiveness
Ensure that client responsiveness is systematically embedded across consortium activities by coordinating with designated partner focal points responsible for information provision, community engagement, and feedback mechanisms.
Support partners in analyzing and acting upon feedback for adaptive programming.
Oversee that all partners establish and maintain accessible, inclusive, and functioning feedback and complaint mechanisms, in line with IRC standards.
Ensure that clear, accurate, and timely information is consistently shared with communities across all locations through partner-led approaches.
JOB REQUIREMENTS
Education: Advanced university degree in law, social sciences, international relations, humanitarian affairs, or related field.
Experience:
Minimum 6–8 years of relevant experience in humanitarian programming, including protection.
Demonstrated experience managing complex, multi-partner projects or consortia.
Experience in Ukraine or similar conflict-affected contexts is highly desirable.
Demonstrated Skills and Competencies:
Strong understanding of integrated protection programming including risk‑based approaches, disability inclusion and evacuation/transit support.
Proven ability to manage partnerships and coordinate multiple stakeholders.
Strong analytical skills and experience with evidence-based programming.
Excellent communication, facilitation, and representation skills.
Ability to work in complex, high-pressure environments.
Fluency in English required; Ukrainian/Russian strongly preferred.
REPORTING STRUCTURE AND TEAM COLLABORATION
The SAFE-PATH Senior Consortium Manager operates within a matrix management structure, ensuring both operational efficiency and technical quality.
The position reports operationally to the Field Coordinator, ensuring alignment with field-level priorities, security considerations, and operational planning. In parallel, the role maintains a technical reporting line to the Protection Coordinator (Rule of Law), ensuring adherence to IRC protection standards, strategic direction, and technical quality of integrated programming.
The role works in close collaboration with:
IRC technical teams (Protection, Legal, Case Management, Shelter/CCCM, MEAL, Partnerships, Advocacy).
Consortium partner organizations (RCC, LAOOI, FCD), serving as the primary coordination and communication focal point.
Grants, Finance, and Operations teams to ensure compliance, budget oversight, and efficient implementation.
External stakeholders, including Protection Cluster, sub-clusters, working groups, and relevant government counterparts.
While the position does not have direct line management responsibilities by default, it provides functional supervision and coordination across consortium partners and IRC technical leads. The role facilitates joint planning, problem-solving, and decision-making processes, ensuring strong collaboration, accountability, and partner-led implementation.
The position plays a critical role in fostering a collaborative, inclusive, and solutions-oriented team environment, promoting shared ownership, transparency, and mutual accountability across all consortium members.
WORK ENVIRONMENT AND OTHER RELEVANT INFORMATION
Based in Kharkiv with regular travel (up to 30%) to Donetsk and Kharkiv AoR
Work in a fast-paced, dynamic and high-risk environment
Hybrid work arrangements may be available
IRC employees are eligible to the following benefits:
Competitive salary
Purposeful job and development opportunities
English classes and unlimited online training courses
Life Insurance
Medical insurance for staff and family members
Free psychological support to employees and their family members
30 calendar days of annual vacation with flexibility beyond the legally set minimum requirements
Up to 10 days of paid medical leave
PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS
All International Rescue Committee workers must adhere to the core values and principles outlined in IRC Way - Standards for Professional Conduct. Our Standards are Integrity, Service, Equality and Accountability. In accordance with these values, the IRC operates and enforces policies on Safeguarding, Conflicts of Interest, Fiscal Integrity, and Reporting Wrongdoing and Protection from Retaliation. IRC is committed to take all necessary preventive measures and create an environment where people feel safe, and to take all necessary actions and corrective measures when harm occurs. IRC builds teams of professionals who promote critical reflection, power sharing, debate, and objectivity to deliver the best possible services to our clients.
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