Grants Coordinator

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 futur The IRC responds to people’s acute and longer-term needs with integrated programs that improve health and safety, prioritize children’s education, foster economic wellbeing, and empower communities to regain control over their lives. Our work engages some of the most pressing issues in contemporary humanitarian action, including access, conflict sensitivity, coordination and impact. The IRC began its programs in Yemen in October 2012, establishing its presence in the south of the country in the Red Sea coastal city of Aden. Following the outbreak of war in March 2015 and the resulting humanitarian crisis, the IRC launched an emergency response in the southern governorates of Aden, Lahj, Abyan, Shabwah and Al Dhale, and later expanded. Yemen's operating environment requires a combination of direct implementation and partner-led approaches. The Grants Coordinator will support a diverse portfolio implemented across multiple geographic areas through both IRC teams and local partners, ensuring high-quality donor compliance, coordination, reporting, and award management. Our programs cover health, WASH, nutrition, economic recovery and development, education, child protection, and women’s protection and empowerment. The IRC has worked in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) for more than forty years. Today, more than 2,200 staff work across the region, including in Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Syria and Yemen, supporting people affected by some of the world’s most complex and protracted humanitarian crises. Scope of work The Grants Coordinator manages a large, multi-donor grant portfolio for IRC Yemen and ensures the timely development, submission and reporting of funding proposals. The role covers all grants administration activities, including proposal development, donor compliance, contract management and internal and external reporting, while keeping systems and documentation current. The Grants Coordinator also leads process-improvement initiatives and provides training and mentoring to country program staff and partners to strengthen donor management and compliance. Job summary The Grants Coordinator is a strategic role responsible for managing IRC Yemen’s grant portfolio, ensuring compliance with donor requirements, and leading the development of high-quality proposals and reports. Reporting to the Deputy Director of Programs (DDP), the Grants Coordinator supervises the grants team, coordinates inter-departmental efforts to secure and manage funding, and serves as the primary focal point for donor communications and risk mitigation. The role requires exceptional organizational skills, advanced writing ability, and the capacity to work effectively in a complex, conflict-affected environment. The Grants Coordinator works closely with all departments, including program, METAL, finance, supply chain, HR and partnerships, and liaises with the regional office in Amman and with IRC headquarters grants and technical units. Working relations • Reports to: Deputy Director of Programs (DDP) • Directly supervises: Grants Manager, Grants Officer and Communications Senior Officer • Key internal collaborators: Technical Program Coordinators, METAL staff, Field Coordinators, the Partnerships team, Finance and Supply Chain teams, the Awards Management Unit, and Regional and HQ Grants units • External: Donor representatives, local partners, government counterparts, and clusters and working groups Main responsibilities Proposal development and business development • Ensure that IRC’s proposal development system is understood and followed across management, program, finance and operations, resulting in timely, high-quality submissions. • With the DDP and HQ colleagues, proactively identify new funding opportunities by monitoring donor strategies, policies and funding trends, and keep the opportunity pipeline up to date. • Support the DDP and technical leads in new program design and in maintaining the Yemen business development strategy, in line with the country Strategic Action Plan (SAP). • Prepare for and lead Go/No-Go meetings for funding opportunities as required. • Oversee the development of all concept notes and proposals, acting as lead writer or editor, and develop efficient process-management tools for proposal development. • Define and communicate clear roles, responsibilities and timelines for each department, and facilitate cross-departmental coordination. • Review all proposal documents to ensure coherence across narratives, logframes and budgets, and ensure that outputs are accurate, complete, compliant with the solicitation and submitted on time. • Interpret donor solicitations and donor-specific rules and regulations to ensure responsive and compliant proposal design. • Act as focal point with HQ and external consultants during proposal review, editing and submission. Grants administration • Maintain a broad and deep understanding of IRC policies and of the terms and conditions across the grant portfolio and ensure that the Grants unit develops and maintains the procedures needed to apply them. • Review donor agreements and coordinate their review and signature with the relevant HQ offices; coordinate approval of pre-award spending as required. • Coordinate all project revisions, amendments, extensions and budget realignments, in consultation with the DDP. • Ensure timely and productive facilitation of Project Cycle Management (PCM) meetings, including design, opening, implementation, closing and lessons-learned meetings; capture action points and follow up to completion. • Maintain and regularly disseminate the grants tracker, including grant opening and closing dates, and share portfolio updates internally and with the Awards Management Unit. • Work with the Finance team to review spending plans and financial health, and to ensure effective spending, amendments, and closeout. • Ensure that the Opportunity Tracking Information System (OTIS) is updated and maintained throughout the award lifecycle. • Ensure that the grants filing system is respected and that all donor contractual documents, reports and key correspondence are filed consistently in up-to-date shared libraries. • Ensure that all communication with IRC colleagues and donors is constructive, clear and organized. • Act as focal point for communication with HQ on all grants administration functions. Donor compliance and relations • Serve as first point of contact for grants and compliance questions in-country, and advise staff (including senior management, finance and procurement) on resolving compliance issues. • Coordinate with HQ on specialized compliance matters as required. • Proactively assess risks in managing donor contracts throughout the project cycle; anticipate them, inform and support all concerned, including the Senior Management Team (SMT), to take timely mitigation measures. • Raise compliance issues early with program staff, the DDP and the SMT, and flag any projected inability to meet contractual obligations, reporting deadlines, spend rates or significant budget variances. • Develop and update compliance cheat sheets for all grants. • In coordination with the DDP a