Senior Advisor, Access and Civil Military Engagement

Save the Children International has an exciting opportunity for a Senior Advisor, Access and Civil Military Engagement to join our global team. 

 

Team and Job Purpose

Provision of effective safety and security management, governance, policy, procedures and systems that enables access, minimises safety, and security risks to staff, programmes, assets and our reputation. Ensuring staff, volunteers and consultants have the right information, are capable, and current to respond and manage critical incidents, and crises, enabling the quality and impact of our programmes for children.

Role purpose

To provide strategic leadership in facilitating humanitarian negotiations that enhance access to life-saving services for children in conflict and crisis settings, by advising and supporting frontline and regional teams in negotiating humanitarian access, ensuring the protection and delivery of services for children amidst conflicts and crises, ensuring that dialogues with conflict parties are conducted in alignment with humanitarian principles and organisational values.

 

Job Title: Senior Advisor, Access and Civil Military Engagement 

Reports To: Head of Access and Civil Military Engagement

Work Pattern: Hybrid/Remote with flexible working options available 

Contract Length: Permanent

Grade:  P4

Location: Any approved Save the Children International office location. For a full list of locations that Save the Children International can hire in, please visit: SCI Careers

Time Zone: Any

Right to Work: The successful candidate must possess the unrestricted right to work in their current or preferred location for the duration of employment. 

Language Requirements: English (additional language of French, Spanish or Arabic preferred)

International Travel Requirements: Yes, up 40%

 

Principal Accountabilities

• Lead the development and implementation of access strategies and negotiation plans, ensuring alignment with Save the Children’s values and principles for global and national humanitarian outcomes.
• Manage active collaboration with Country Offices to enhance their contextual understanding and capacity in engaging with armed actors, fostering a culture of mutual respect and shared knowledge.
• Oversee the integration of relations with armed actors and humanitarian negotiations within ongoing humanitarian and development efforts, promoting coherence and strategic alignment across teams and initiatives.
• Represent Save the Children in external forums and communities of practice on matters related to access and humanitarian negotiations, upholding the organisation’s reputation and commitment to impartiality and humanitarian principles.
• Establish and maintain effective partnerships with members, donors, and external stakeholders to promote and develop Save the Children’s humanitarian agenda, leveraging diverse perspectives and resources for collective impact.
• Ensure compliance with Save the Children’s policies on child safeguarding, health and safety, equity and inclusion, fostering an organisational culture that values diversity and empowers all staff to achieve their potential.

 

Experience and Skills

Essential

1.       Strategic Leadership: 

Demonstrated capability to lead and inspire teams, fostering an environment of accountability, collaboration, and innovation in line with the charity's mission.

 

2.       Humanitarian Negotiations & Diplomacy: 

Proficiency in negotiating access and services in complex and often hostile environments, ensuring adherence to humanitarian principles and the organizational values. 

 

3.       Cross-cultural Competency: 

Ability to work effectively across diverse cultural contexts, recognising the value of diversity and demonstrating cultural sensitivity.

 

4.       Relationship Building: 

Skilled in establishing and maintaining effective partnerships with internal and external stakeholders, including conflict parties, community leaders, and international bodies.

 

5.       Problem-solving and Innovation: 

Capability to develop innovative solutions to complex humanitarian challenges, adapting strategies to dynamically changing contexts.

 

6.       Communication and Influence: 

Excellent verbal and written communication skills, able to deliver impactful messages and advocate for the children's needs effectively.

 

7.       Integrity and Ethics: 

Exhibits the highest levels of integrity, demonstrating honesty and transparency in all dealings.

 

8.       Humanitarian Operations: 

Extensive experience in the field of humanitarian operations, with significant exposure to conflict and crisis settings.

 

9.       Leadership in Humanitarian Contexts: 

Significant experience in leading multi-disciplinary teams in a global environment, promoting a learning culture and strategic alignment across initiatives.

 

10.      Partnership Development: 

Proficient experience in developing and leveraging partnerships with donors, international organisations, and other stakeholders to advance humanitarian objectives.

 

Desirable

•         Additional languages including French, Spanish, Russian and/or Arabic.

 

Key Relationships

Internal (excluding direct team and manager)

• Regional Advisors and Staff in field locations
• Global Teams and Busines Partners (Context, Analysis and Foresight Unit, Policy and Advocacy, Legal, and Safety and Security)
• CDs and CO SMT
• Members

 

Education and Qualifications 

Essential

• A degree in International Relations, Political Science, Conflict Resolution, Humanitarian Law, or a closely related field is desirable. Equivalent professional experience will be considered in lieu of formal education. 

Desirable

• Relevant Certifications in negotiation, mediation, or security management would be advantageous.

 

Working at Save the Children International

Save the Children is the world's leading organisation for children, employing ~25,000 staff. We save children's lives. We fight for their rights. We help them fulfil their potential. Through our work in 116 countries, we put the most deprived and marginalised children first.

We know that great people make a great organisation, and that our employees play a crucial role in helping us achieve our ambitions for children. We value our people and offer a meaningful and rewarding career, along with a collaborative and inclusive environment where ambition, creativity, and integrity are highly valued.

The work here is challenging but is also immensely rewarding. At Save the Children, you will be in good company, working with talented, like-minded individuals who are determined to ensure that all children survive, learn, and are protected. Your contribution will help ensure children's voices are heard at the highest levels, and that we achieve our global strategy, Ambition for Children 2030, and reach every last child.

 

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and Equal Opportunities

DEI is core to our vision, values and global strategy. Save the Children is committed to creating a truly diverse, equitable and inclusive organisation, and one which will support us in our vision to ensure every child attains the right to survival, protection, development, and participation.

We are committed to equal employment opportunities, regardless of gender, sexual orientation, race, colour, ethnic origin, nationality, disability, marital or civil partnership status, gender reassignment, pregnancy and maternity, caring or parental responsibilities, age, or beliefs and religion. We are committed to diversifying our staff to better represent the communities we serve and actively welcome underrepresented groups to apply.

Reasonable adjustments will be made should any candidate invited to interview require this.

 

Application Information

Please attach a copy of your CV and cover letter with your application. A full copy of the role profile can be found here via the job listing. It is recommended that you save a copy of the role profile as it will no longer be available after the advert closes.

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis and the job advert may be closed earlier than advertised subject to the volume of suitable applicants. Please submit your application at your earliest convenience to avoid disappointment.

Due to the high volume of applications we receive, only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. Candidates who are successfully shortlisted should expect to hear from us within 2 weeks of the advert deadline.

 

Our recruitment process:

1. Application review by our recruiting team based on your CV and cover letter
2. Two-stage competency-based interviews with the hiring team
3. Some recruitment may include an additional assessment or case study stage, or a third stage interview
4. If successful, you will receive a conditional offer of employment, followed by your contract subject to passing background checks

We need to keep children and adults safe so our selection process includes rigorous background checks and reflects our commitment to the protection of children and adults from abuse. All employees are expected to carry out their duties in accordance with our Code of Conduct and all policies and procedures relating to Anti-harassment, Health and Safety, Safeguarding, and DEI and Equal Opportunities.

 

Save the Children does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process.