Awards Manager

ROLE PURPOSE:

The Awards Manager role provides strategic leadership in award and portfolio management, ensuring efficient and effective oversight of development and humanitarian programme awards, sub-awards, and contracts. As a key member of the Extended Senior Management Team (ESMT), this position plays a critical role in strategic decision-making, risk management, and donor engagement to maximize impact and sustainability.

This role requires close collaboration with Programmes Teams, MEAL, Partnerships, Finance, Supply Chain, and donor-facing teams to ensure compliance, strong financial stewardship, and seamless award lifecycle management. Additionally, the role will lead on enhancing internal systems, capacity building, and continuous improvement to strengthen award management functions across the Lebanon Country Office.

In the event of a major humanitarian emergency, the role holder will be expected to take on additional leadership responsibilities, ensuring swift and effective award management support in crisis response.

CHILD SAFEGUARDING:

Level 3 - the post holder will have contact with children and/or young people either frequently (e.g. once a week or more) or intensively (e.g. four days in one month or more or overnight) because they work country programs; or are visiting country programs; or because they are responsible for implementing the police checking/vetting process staff.

SCOPE OF ROLE:

Reports to: Director of Programmes Operations (DPO)

Staff reporting to this post: Awards Management Coordinator

Budget Responsibilities: N/A

Role Dimensions:

• Ensure compliance and risk management – oversee adherence to members /donors rules and regulations through timeliness and quality reporting, and strengthen internal systems by building capacity of all relevant staff and implementing effective compliance mechanisms and tools for robust grants and contracts management.
• Strategic leadership in award management - provide high-level oversight of the Grants Management Process, ensuring alignment with organizational priorities. Lead coordination with members, donors and internal stakeholders, serving as a resource person for all award-related decisions. Utilize Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to inform strategic decision-making and risk mitigation at the ESMT level.

KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY:

Award Management Leadership, Portfolio Management, and Strategy

• Lead the monitoring and analysis of grant and portfolio performance, ensuring alignment with organizational goals and donor requirements.
• Oversee the analysis of trends and risks in the portfolio, advising the ESMT on necessary adjustments or interventions to ensure grant effectiveness and operational efficiency.
• Analyse financial issues i.e. variances and resolve by collaborating with other teams
• Ensure award management systems and processes are successfully implemented, and key controls are in place to support effective portfolio management and compliance with donor requirements.
• Ensure regular award monitoring across the country office and facilitate regular meetings with key stakeholders to ensure individual award performance is being tracked effectively, and that risks and issues are being recognised and action taken.
• Lead the monitoring of all awards KPIs, while proactively engaging with Awards Coordinators to ensure KPIs consistently achieve and maintain a green status.
• Lead on the implementation of plans to address any performance issues identified through management information and KPI results in close coordination with the DPO
• Manage the relationship with the Global Teams, ensuring regular updates on the portfolio to flag issues or challenges.

Compliance (Systems, Processes, Donor)

• Clear understanding of Save the Children International (SCI) processes and key donor requirements, and support teams across CO to ensure all contracts and amendments follow SCI processes
• Ensure that all appropriate donor formats are available in-country and staff have a clear understanding of donor requirements/expectations throughout the award cycle.
• Ensure potential issues and amendment requests are flagged promptly to the relevant SMT members for sign off, then to donors via the relevant member. Lead on the donor waiver/derogation requests.
• Ensure all AMS records are an accurate reflection of current award status at all times, and have all required documentation attached.
• Ensure all partners and sub-award agreements undergo legal vetting, are input into and approved through AMS, and work with relevant staff to ensure relevant donor requirements are understood by implementing partners (this may include capacity building)
• Lead on partner’s Sub-award agreement amendment process and to be adhered with the donor requirements and Country Office processes.

Communicating with Impact, Negotiation, and Coordination

• Provide regular management information to the Director of Programmes Operations on the overall portfolio performance and escalate issues if/when they arise for SMT visibility and action.
• Represent the Awards function at the ESMT, providing strategic insights on portfolio performance and compliance risks to inform high-level decision-making.
• Oversee, in close coordination and through the sign off the DPO and Director of Programme Development and Qaulity (DPDQ), the processes for donor reporting to ensure that reports are high quality, delivered on time and supported by auditable records.
• Maintain effective communications with Save the Children members and in-country donors regarding donor related issues
• Lead Award kick off meetings to ensure that all award information is shared effectively with relevant staff, including field offices and partners
• Coordinate award close out processes and work with members to ensure awards are closed out on time, as well as partners Sub-award agreement assure it’s closed on time.

Developing Self and Others; Working effectively with others

• Lead on the delivery of capacity building both within the field office team and across the Country Office
• Carry out orientations and staff trainings for award management procedures, donor requirements for SCI staff and partner organizations.

General:

• Comply with Save the Children policies and practice with respect to child safeguarding, anti-harassment, code of conduct, health and safety, equal opportunities and other relevant policies and procedures.

QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor degree or a Diploma degree in Business Administration, Political Science, International Relations or Development, or any other related field.
• Strong written and oral English and Arabic communication skills.

EXPERIENCE AND SKILLS

Essential

• 7 to 9 years of relevant experience
• Proven track record of in-country award portfolio management and knowledge of major donors’ compliance requirements
• Experience communicating with impact in a complex stakeholder environment
• Experience of staff management, supervision and capacity building
• Proven track record of supporting a senior management team
• Problem solving skills to identify and lead the resolution of issues
• Computer literate (i.e. Word, advanced Excel, Outlook, financial systems).
• Cultural awareness and ability to build relationships quickly with a wide variety of people
• Patient, flexible, able to improvise and communicate clearly and effectively under pressure
• Excellent planning, management and coordination skills, with the ability to organize a workload comprised of varying and changing tasks and responsibilities

Desirable

• Experience with SCI AMS
• Significant experience with NGOs in an international environment

ADDITIONAL JOB RESPONSIBILITIES:

The duties and responsibilities as set out above are not exhaustive and the role holder may be required to carry out additional duties within reasonableness of their level of skills and experience.

EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES:

The role holder is required to carry out the duties in accordance with the SCI Equal Opportunities and Diversity policies and procedures.

CHILD SAFEGUARDING:

We need to keep children safe so our selection process, which includes rigorous background checks, reflects our commitment to the protection of children from abuse.

FRAUD PREVENTION:

The role holder is expected to uphold high standards of integrity and transparency, and will have access to financial, operational, or programmatic resources that require strict compliance with SCI’s Anti-Fraud and Corruption Policy. This includes responsibility for preventing, identifying, and reporting any suspected fraud, corruption, or misuse of resources in the course of their work.

SAFEGUARDING OUR STAFF:

The post holder is required to carry out the duties in accordance with the SCI anti-harassment policy.

HEALTH AND SAFETY:

The role holder is required to carry out the duties in accordance with SCI Health and Safety policies and procedures.