Regional Coordinator-Matabeleland

Overview / Objectives of the position:

GOAL is recruiting a Regional Coordinator based in Bulawayo to oversee and provide robust leadership for all GOAL’s programming and operations in Bulawayo, Matabeleland South and North provinces. The Regional Coordinator supports the day-to-day management of the field team, operations and coordinate programme implementation across field locations within the region. The Regional Coordinator oversee GOAL operational/support functions (Security, Human Resources, Logistics, Finance and Admin) and Programme implementation and delivery. The Regional Coordinator is also responsible for representation and stakeholder engagement including coordination and communication with district and provincial authorities. The Regional Coordinator plays a key leadership and coordination role in representing and maintaining a strong work ethics and reputation for GOAL operations and programming in the region.

Main Responsibilities

1. Programme Governance, Day-to-Day Management of Field Team and Operations

% of Time: 55

• Oversee and coordinate day-to-day programme implementation across field locations, ensuring delivery is aligned to agreed workplans, budgets, quality standards and reporting requirements.
• Support programme team with start-up processes including detailed planning, internal systems set up, partner coordination routines, and roll out of implementation tools.
• Maintain oversight of workplan tracking, procurement planning, activity pipelines and key deliverables, ensuring timely follow up with responsible teams.
• Support the development and adaptation of detailed implementation plans and calendars, ensuring changes are documented and communicated clearly.
• Ensure targeting approaches and criteria are applied consistently, documented, and quality checked, with attention to inclusion and do no harm.
• Coordinate routine internal programme review meetings and follow up actions with programme leads and support functions.
• Conduct regular field visits to programme sites to monitor delivery quality, troubleshoot operational issues and support teams to remain on track.
• Work closely with the country team’s security focal point and the Programme Director to ensure programme activities reflect strong context awareness and appropriate security risk analysis.
• Ensure field teams follow safety and security procedures and escalate concerns promptly.
• Recognize opportunities for innovative action and create an environment where alternative viewpoints are welcomed.

1. Representation and Stakeholder Engagement

% of Time: 20

• Lead the socialization of GOALs programme with Government of Zimbabwe stakeholders and existing resilience initiatives, ensuring necessary approvals and collaboration as required.
• Represent GOAL at government, donor, NGO and other relevant events in the field, in close coordination with the Country Director.
• Ensure close coordination and information sharing with government and other relevant partners and stakeholders
• Work closely with the country team’s security focal point to develop and maintain systems that promote the safety and security of all team members in the field.
• Ensure all Government of Zimbabwe compliance procedures and policies are followed and maintained including regular coordination and communication with district and provincial authorities.

1. Finance, Grant Compliance and Operational Coordination

% of Time: 20

• Create and maintain systems to ensure effective and transparent use of financial resources for timely and informative reporting in line with GOAL programme and donor needs.
• In collaboration with the country programme’s operations and finance departments, ensure proper financial management, procurement, administration, human resources and logistics (including transport and asset management) needs of the programme are conducted within GOAL policy and with the maximum benefit to the programme.
• Work closely with Finance, Operations and Procurement teams to ensure programme needs are planned and addressed in a timely and compliant manner.
• Monitor implementation progress against budget and support the field team to identify expenditure risks, bottlenecks and mitigation actions.
• Support strong grant compliance through consistent documentation, file management and adherence to GOAL and donor requirements.
• Support preparation for audits, spot checks and donor visits, ensuring timely follow up on any actions required.

1. Reporting, MEAL, Learning and Adaptive Management

% of Time: 5

• Support the programme team in the preparation and consolidation of donor reports, internal updates and learning products, ensuring inputs are accurate, coherent and evidence based.
• Support and work with programme and MEAL staff members to ensure routine monitoring data is used for practical decision making, course correction and quality improvement.
• Support documentation of key processes, good practice and learning across partners and locations, and ensure findings translate into actions.

Safeguarding

Children and vulnerable adults a must be safeguarded to the maximum possible extent from deliberate or inadvertent actions and failings that place them at risk of abuse, sexual exploitation, injury and any other harm. One of the ways that GOAL shows this on-going commitment to safeguarding is to include rigorous background and reference checks in the selection process for all candidates.

Accountability within GOAL

Alongside our safeguarding policy, GOAL is an equal opportunities employer and has a set of integrity policies. Any candidate offered a job with GOAL will be expected to adhere to the following key areas of accountability:

• Comply with GOAL’s policies and procedures with respect to safeguarding, Code of Conduct, health and safety, data protection and confidentiality, do no harm principles and unacceptable behaviour protocols.
• Report any concerns about the welfare of a child or vulnerable adult or any wrongdoings within our programming area.
• Report any concerns about inappropriate behaviour of a GOAL staff or partner.

Knowledge and Experience

• Academic qualification in development, management, agriculture, economics, business resilience and/or related fields.
• Demonstrated experience in managing field operations, sub-offices and complex programmes, a minimum of eight (10) years.
• Demonstrated experience coordinating or managing consortium partners, including facilitating joint planning, aligning deliverables, managing dependencies and resolving delivery bottlenecks.
• Significant experience in resilience and systems-strengthening programming, private sector engagement, food security and agriculture, inclusive employment, and/or other related fields, with demonstrated experience in rural development contexts.
• Strong stakeholder management skills with the ability to lead across organisations without relying on direct line management.
• Strong managerial and analytical skills, including results-oriented management, evidence use for learning and advocacy, strategic planning, human resources management, financial management, and reporting skills.
• Strong organisational and planning skills, including workplan tracking, coordination of inputs, and delivery follow up across multiple workstreams.
• Demonstrated capacity to manage complex teams, including problem solving skills, and capacity to meet deadlines and deliver quality deliverables to meet objectives; and
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English, including ability to produce clear programme updates and contribute to donor reporting.
• Strong problem-solving capacity and ability to work under pressure with changing priorities.

Desired

• Previous experience managing field operations and sub-offices including management of integrated programme portfolios.
• Written and/or verbal skills in Shona and Ndebele.

Summary of the desired candidate

The successful candidate will be a highly experienced, an organised and delivery focused programme leader who is comfortable managing all GOAL operations in the region including day-to-day management of the team and sub-offices. They will be confident coordinating across various GOAL partners and keeping joint delivery on track through clear routines, practical follow up and calm problem solving. They will be comfortable working across functions to keep compliance and operational readiness tight and will contribute to a learning culture that keeps the programme adaptive and grounded in evidence.

They will have an outstanding ability to develop and adaptively manage multi-disciplinary team and complex programmes. They will also have proven experience in capacity strengthening, team and partners. Multi-tasking, prioritizing, problem solving and simultaneous attention to detail and strategic vision are essential. The most successful candidate will have a strong commitment to teamwork and accountability, thrive in evolving and changing environments and make effective written and verbal communication.

This Job Description only serves as a guide for the position available. GOAL reserves the right to change this document. Any published closing dates are estimated.  Due to the nature of GOAL’s work we aim to fill vacancies as quickly as possible.  This means that we will close adverts as soon as we have found the right candidate and this may be before the published closing date.  We would therefore advise interested applicants to submit an application as early as possible.