Proposal Summary
The McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) helps support education, child development and food security in low-income, food-deficit countries around the globe.
The program purchases nutritious packaged U.S. agricultural commodities from American farmers, ranchers, and producers and seeks to combine locally procured commodities to support school feeding and maternal and child nutrition projects. The McGovern-Dole projects address two strategic program objectives 1) Improved Literacy of School-Aged Children, and 2) Increased Use of Health, Nutrition and Dietary Practices.
FH Culture
All we do, and how we do it, seeks to promote God’s beauty, goodness, and truth in a broken world. As such, we are defined by our ability to make people’s lives measurably better; our ability to deliver impact is the measure of our collective success. For we know that we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God has already prepared in advance for us to do. At Food for the Hungry, we operate under a set of values called Heartbeat Values.
Job Summary
The Director of Finance and Administration will work under the supervision of the Chief of Party and is responsible for financial management, administration and compliance of USDA McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program.
Principal Responsibilities
Financial management and compliance
- Develop, coordinate and implement plans for the control, monitoring and reporting of all financial operations of the project;
- Ensure responsible financial management of the project funds and bank accounts in accordance with USDA/FAS requirements and U.S. Government financial regulations.
- Maintain current knowledge of local government requirements related to financial matters and ensure compliance with tax regulations and other legal requirements;
- Review payments and ensure they are in compliance with FH/USDA policies before the approval by the Chief of Party;
- Ensure all financial transactions are timely processed through the financial system.
Budget management and cash management
- Maintain and update periodic budget forecasting system;
- Support Business Development Manager in preparation of budget for any new funding opportunity;
- Provide analysis to ensure all costs are well estimated and provided for in new budget proposals or budget revisions;
- Perform high-level analysis of spending vs budget and planned cash flow to point out potential over/underspending areas.
- Monitor monthly cash flow, and work with program staff and other departments to develop accurate and timely cash flow projections and ensure the forecast budget in financial system is revised accordingly. Monitor and assess cash levels in country offices vis-à-vis spending plans, contractual commitments, etc. to ensure sufficient operational funds are available; Vendor and labor payments are made promptly upon receipts of necessary justification documentation;
- Ensure regular contact with local bank management on routine operational matters with country offices including negotiation of exchange rate, timely e-Banking services and efficiently processing of all bank transaction;
Financial reporting and Analysis (internal and external)
- Ensure compliance and timely reporting of partners, consultants and subcontractors.
- Ensure timely financial closing process in MS Dynamics (review, upload and post monthly journals);
- Ensure bank account reconciliations are completed on timely basis and that Financial Statement (country standard report) and supporting data are reviewed and produced on a monthly basis;
- Consolidate monthly financial reports to provide Chief of Party with timely reports on expenditure reports, expense reports by grant and budget variance reports, among others;
- External: Direct the preparation of, reviews and approves all donor financial reports in respect to accounting, legal and contractual requirements and ensures the review of such reports by the Chief of Party prior to submission;
- Other duties as assigned.
Job Level Skills and Behaviors
- A commitment to serving the poor and in full agreement with FH’s foundation and beliefs as expressed in The Heartbeat: our Values, Vision, and Purpose;
- Excellent people skills including warmth and sensitivity, conversational, able to relate to and effectively communicate with people from different cultures (at various levels within the organization);
- High integrity and a strong sense of professional ethics;
- Demonstrated knowledge of U.S. Government cost principles, regulation (code of Federal Regulations, Office of Management and Budget guidance, etc.)
- Practical experience in using wide range of accounting software including MS Dynamics 365 and fluent operation level;
- Proven experience in treasury activities, establishment and monitoring of budgets, and understanding of data processing concepts and systems;
- Demonstrated ability in analyzing financial documents, projections, expenditures, and accruals;
- Demonstrated computer-operating skills, including proficiency in Google platforms, Microsoft Office products, and virtual technologies such as Teams and/or Zoom.
- Able to self-manage a diverse and dynamics set of responsibilities, proactively solve problems and/or suggest viable while advancing goals and objectives;
- Strong people management skills/interpersonal skills with the ability to motivate, teach and mentor staff;
- Ability to interact positively with all levels of the organization and across organization and cultural boundaries.
Experience
Minimum 5-7 years of experience in financial management of donor-funded international development projects.
- Bachelor’s degree in accounting, finance, bussiness administration or related field.
- Significant experience in grant finance accounting, or equivalent combination of education and experience
Lenguage
Excellent oral and written communication skills in Spanish and English are required.
Ability to write reports, business correspondence, and procedure manuals. Ability to effectively present information and respond to questions from senior leadership, Government representatives, USDA, board of directors, consortia partners and the general public.
Safeguarding Policy
FH strives to provide an environment free from sexual exploitation and abuse and harassment in all places where relief and development programs are implemented. FH holds a zero-tolerance policy against sexual exploitation and abuse and harassment. FH expects its employees to maintain high ethical standards, protect organizational integrity and reputation, and ensure that FH work is carried out in honest and fair methods, in alignment with the Heartbeat Values and safeguarding and associated policies. Violations to stated policies will be subject to corrective action up to and including termination of employment.
The responsibilities listed above are not all-inclusive and may be changed at any time.