Head of Operations

Polish Humanitarian Action (PAH) is currently looking for a Head of Operations  to provide leadership to PAH Ukraine Country Team  operations department. Specifically overseeing all aspects of Logistics, Finance, Human Resources and Legal departments as well as teams across all PAH offices and intervention activities within Ukraine. This position is open to Ukrainian nationals only.  

General information:

Organization:          Polish Humanitarian Action (PAH), Warsaw-based non-governmental organization. 

Position:                 Head of  Operations 

Reporting to:           Country Director

Location:                 Ukraine, Kiev  with some travel (less than 20%) expected to field offices  

Job terms:              Full-time, 12 months employment contract 

Starting date:          ASAP

About PAH:

Polish Humanitarian Action is a non-governmental organization providing humanitarian and development relief worldwide since 1992. So far, we have carried out interventions in 52 different countries, implementing projects in Water, Sanitation and Hygiene, Shelter, Education, Food Security and Livelihood and Psychological support. Our head office is located in Warsaw, we have also offices in Torun, Olsztyn, Bialystok as well as 6 national offices: in South Sudan, Somalia, Kenya, Yemen, Madagascar and Ukraine, where we employ mainly local employees.

Learn more about values and principles that guide us in our daily work, you can find them in the PAH Culture Book. It is not only a guide to our activities, but also a document presenting the foundations on which our organization is based: humanity, impartiality, neutrality and independence.

Join our team to make the world a better place.

PAH has been present in Ukraine since August 2014 delivering humanitarian aid to the most vulnerable of the conflict-affected population. PAH provides assistance to internally displaced people, elderly and single mothers, working in the sectors of Protection, WASH, MPCA, Food Security and Livelihoods.

For more information, please refer to www.pah.org.pl

Key duties and responsibilities:

Specific objective 1: Financial Management 

• Accountable for all aspects relating to finance, including budgetary and accounting elements, as well as the Country office cash flow.
• Supervise the country program’s financial health including cash flow, coverage of operational costs, identification of financial and procedural risks, and implementation of relevant solutions. 
• Ensure and validate the preparation of budgets and financial reports and is responsible for external audits.
• Ensure PAH procedures are in place and followed

Specific objective 2: Human Resource Management 

• Responsible for the management of the local and international teams, for the definition/updating of procedures and HR management tools in accordance with labor regulations in the country and the HR policies of PAH, and for the monitoring of risks linked to HR questions.
• Collect all necessary information on local labour law and update internal regulations/work contracts accordingly.
• Follow up of the HR database (leave, contracts, etc.) and statistics.
• Ensure that all HR policies are understood and respected by all staff.
• Validate and coordinate the recruitment process started on a national level.
• Train and capacity build staff as required.
• Manage and supervise the team under his/her supervision. 
• Conduct the Appraisal Interview of the team under his/her direct supervision.

Specific objective 3: Legal compliance, Liaison and Reporting to Authorities

• Ensure legal  compliance with all Ukrainian and internal PAH laws, policies, guidelines and regulations
• Close collaboration with legal team ensuring compliance and adherence to Ukrainian legislation pertaining specifically to NGO operations in Ukraine
• Take leading role to coordinate with all operational and program departments as well as HQ desks to finalize periodic and annual reporting
• Lead and oversee all reporting to authorities are submitted and clarified on time
• Direct HR department on administrative orders, visas and residencies for expats to ensure they are done on time
• Coordinate with other humanitarian agencies on government 

Specific objective 4:  Logistics Management 

• Ensure internal and donors’ logistic process and procedures are in place and followed up.
• Accountable for systems mitigate risks from corruption.
• Ensure legal compliance according to national law, internal and donors procedures.

Specific objective 5: . Coordination of processes

• Ensure with the Head of Program that the coordination with the program team on budget follow up and forecast is taken place regularly.
• Oversee management & dissemination of all relevant financial, administrative, legal, HR, logistics information to relevant audiences within PAH and external stakeholders.
• Ensure the coordination of the operational and program teams for the preparation and during the process of audits.
• Attend internal coordination meetings.
• Attend & represent PAH at external partner & stakeholder meetings

The successful candidate will be selected based on the qualification requirements described below:

• Demonstrable knowledge, understanding and experience with Ukrainian legal policies & practices related to corporate business and/or international NGO operations within Ukraine
• Experience in managing multi department operations (minimum four (4) years) within difficult operating environments
• Demonstrable staff management experience including capacity building, training and facilitation skills
• Solid understanding of financial systems, including budgeting and budget analysis, and taxation and accounting practices
• Demonstrable working knowledge of logistics, HR and office administration procedures international NGO experience preferred
• Highly developed cultural awareness and ability to work well in an international environment with people from diverse backgrounds and cultures
• Strong results orientation with the ability to challenge & evolve existing mind-sets
• Proven ability to manage a complex and demanding workload
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills
• Strong sense of personal and professional integrity
• Bachelor’s Degree,  the required degree can be replaced with solid experience in the relevant field
• Languages: Ukrainian language fluency required (C1/C2). Professional fluency B2/C1 in spoken and written English required 

What PAH offers:

• Work experience with professional and flexible international NGO, which is one of the largest NGOs in the Central-Eastern Europe,
• Opportunity to work in a dynamic and motivated team,
• Professional development within the INGO context 
• Competitive salary
• Medical insurance
• Psychological support package 

How to apply:

Please fill in your application form online and submit your short resume (max. 2 pages) highlighting relevance and work experience relating to the role with cover letter in English no later than  December  30th , 2024. 

We strongly encourage qualified candidates to apply as soon as possible, the applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.  We reserve the right to close this advertisement early if we receive a high volume of suitable applications. 

Kindly note that only the candidates shortlisted for the next stages of the recruitment will be contacted.