Mercy Corps is powered by the belief that a better world is possible. To do this, we know our teams do their best work when they are diverse and every team member feels that they belong. We welcome diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be stronger and have long term impact.
The Program / Department / Team (Program / Department Summary)Mercy Corps recognises that in order to address the world’s toughest challenges in the most impactful way, we must go beyond what we can achieve through direct programmes. We must improve the systems in which we and our communities operate, and shift the policies and practices of those who have power over the lives of the people we seek to help.The Global Policy and Advocacy (GPA) Team seeks change in the policies and practices of key institutions and decision makers in support of Mercy Corps’ mission to build secure, productive and just communities. While GPA team members advocate directly to governments and institutions in the USA, UK, and mainland Europe, we are also looking to increase our capacity to influence policy and practice in countries where Mercy Corps works. This includes advocacy to shape the enabling environment in which we are working, as well as the systems, policies and practices that impact on the communities we seek to support.
The PositionThe Senior Advisor, Global Advocacy Support will be responsible for further developing this element of our work, through a combination of providing technical support, training and advice to country teams (and those supporting them) and identifying opportunities to increase Mercy Corps’ capacity for advocacy and influence at country level. Essential Responsibilities Training, mentoring and capacity sharing Build on existing work to increase the expertise of Mercy Corps’ team members in country programmes to design and deliver effective advocacy, including:
Design and deliver tailored trainings and workshops on advocacy strategy, techniques and skills for Mercy Corps team members in country programmes and those supporting them. Continue to develop and share tools and resources to support teams’ advocacy (building on our existing ‘Advocacy In Action Toolkit’). Provide onboarding and ongoing support and mentoring for key team members (particularly Country Directors, dedicated ‘advocates’, or others playing a key role in advocacy in our programmes). Create a community of practice/advocacy champions and facilitate sharing of capacities, challenges, successes and advice. Catalogue examples of Mercy Corps country team advocacy efforts to support organisational awareness, learning and the development of best practice. Supporting Advocacy Strategy Development
Support countries to integrate advocacy as a tool to achieving Mercy Corps’ mission and objectives, including:
Assist teams to develop standalone country advocacy strategies, or integrate advocacy (alongside programmes and partnerships) into country or programme strategies. Provide advice on implementation of advocacy activities.Support GPA team members embedded in country programmesProvide ongoing ‘dotted line’ management and support to GPA team members working in country programmes (currently 2 but we are looking to increase).Increasing Resources for Advocacy Work with both country teams and global support offices (including fundraisers) to identify opportunities to increase our resources for advocacy at country level, including: Lead and/or support the development of successful advocacy funding proposals, either as stand-alone proposals or integrated into larger programmes, for public or private donors. Identify resources within existing programmes that could support advocacy (such as learning, research or activities that involve engagement with institutions and policy makers).Monitoring, evaluation, learning and Internal Communications
Act as a key focal point for tracking, communicating and building our ability to learn from country level advocacy, including:
Monitor and report on Mercy Corps’ advocacy efforts across the organisation Support teams to develop effective monitoring evaluation and learning approaches for their advocacy efforts. Build the internal profile of country level advocacy at Mercy Corps to grow support and understanding of the potential and power of advocacy and facilitate cross team learning.Other duties as assigned
Supervisory Responsibility The Senior Advisor will have dotted line responsibilities for dedicated advocates on the GPA team based in country or regional programmes (currently two). The Senior Advisor may have additional direct or dotted line reports if Mercy Corps is able to increase our resources for advocacy at country level. Accountability Reports Directly to: Senior Director Policy and Advocacy (Europe)Works Directly with: Various teams including: VP for Policy and Advocacy and other Global Policy Team members, Regional and Country Programme Leadership, the Technical Support Unit, Media and Communications, Research and Learning. Accountability to Participants and StakeholdersMercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our program participants, community partners, other stakeholders, and to international standards guiding international relief and development work. We are committed to actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.
Minimum Qualifications & Transferable Skills
Minimum of 5 years of experience in public policy advocacy, governmental affairs, policy analysis, governance work or related field - either directly or by supporting and training others to do so. Strong understanding of relief and development fieldwork, and understanding of the connections between policy considerations to their field-level implications. Strong understanding of the political and policy environments in the contexts where Mercy Corps operates, of how change happens and managing the risks of advocacy Proven track record of capacity building and enabling cross team learning, ideally related to policy, campaigning or a related field. Proven track record of developing or identifying new funding opportunities desired.
Success FactorsThe successful candidate will demonstrate an in-depth understanding of how to drive systems change, particularly in the kinds of contexts where Mercy Corps works, and be able to convey this knowledge and skills to teams from a range of disciplines, levels of experience and cultures. They will be able to package and share knowledge in a way that is accessible and digestible and speaks to the multiple different ways in which adults learn. Ideally they will also understand the challenges and systems involved in design and delivery of programmes so that they can help teams integrate advocacy more effectively into their work. The Advisor will also need to be a self starter and entrepreneur, looking for new and interesting ways to build capacity, networks, and interconnections across teams, as well as to leverage resources for country level advocacy. The successful candidate will not only have the right experience on paper but also be someone who lives and breathes our culture and values, and particularly the firm commitment to work in genuine partnership with our teams, partners and participants, and support two way capacity sharing.
Living Conditions / Environmental ConditionsThe position is based in LOCATION and it requires up to 30% travel to support country programs, which may include travel to insecure locations where freedom of movement is limited and areas where amenities are limited.
Ongoing LearningIn support of our belief that learning organizations are more effective, efficient and relevant to the communities we serve, we empower all team members to dedicate 5% of their time to learning activities that further their personal and/or professional growth and development
Diversity, Equity & InclusionAchieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges. We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives.
Equal Employment OpportunityMercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer that does not tolerate discrimination on any basis. We actively seek out diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be collectively stronger and have sustained global impact.We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunities are available to all. We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status or any other protected group in the locations where we work.
Safeguarding & EthicsMercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work, whether team members, community members, program participants or others, are treated with respect and dignity. We are committed to the core principles regarding prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary General and IASC and have signed on to the Interagency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members. As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and to adhere to Mercy Corps Code of Conduct Policies and values at all times.