Office Manager and Operations Lead

Job Description

Office Manager and Operations Lead

‘Partnerships for Forests’ and ‘Covid Africa Response and Rebuild Facility’

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Project(s) Overview and Role:

• Palladium is seeking to recruit an Office Manager and Operations Lead in our office in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The successful candidate will be responsible for managing local operations and finances to facilitate the smooth running of the project office in compliance with Palladium corporate policies and procedures. This will be a key role within the East Africa projects team.
  
  
• The role will be cross-cutting, with the candidate required to facilitate the management of office finance and operations activities, for both the Partnerships for Forests and Rebuild Facility Programmes.
  
  
• P4F supports investment models in which the private sector, public sector and communities can achieve improved returns from forests and sustainable land use. The programme’s main focus is supporting the development of Forest Partnerships. These are partnerships between private sector companies, public sector actors and communities that catalyse investment in forests and sustainable land use. The programme also supports activities that strengthen demand for sustainable commodities and activities to create an enabling environment for sustainable investments.
  
  
• The Rebuild Facility sits in our Regeneration portfolio of projects. Regeneration is a platform that incubates and accelerates regenerative businesses across the tropical belt that create value of protecting and restoring nature with a fair distribution of benefits. The Regeneration objectives are to mitigate climate change, protect biodiversity, and build more climate resilient and fair value chains for forest-dependent communities. Regeneration is a partnership between Palladium and SYSTEMIQ.
  
  

​Primary Responsibilities:​

Financial management (50%)

• Oversee the management of office finances, ensuring compliance with Palladium’s policies and Standard Operating Procedures.
  
• Prepare and manage the monthly payroll for staff in the Ethiopia office, ensuring all staff are paid their salaries and benefits accurately, on time, and in accordance with local payroll laws and regulation.
  
• Work with the Human Resources team to report on payroll data to as requested by Palladium’s central Payroll team.
  
• Prepare accurate Bank and Petty Cash Field Vouchers, capturing all monthly expenditure and ensuring adherence to Palladium’s Standard Operating Procedures.
  
• Submit timely and accurate Fund Transfer Requests for upcoming expenditure requirements of the projects and office, ensuring cash balances are maintained in accordance with Palladium’s Standard Operating Procedures.
  
• Manage the financial accounts and financial documentation, ensuring all data is secure, accurate and compliant in-line with audit requirements.
  
• Oversee and facilitate all internal and external financial audits.
  
• Prepare and maintain financial budgets, forecasts and reports for the projects - working closely with the
• Regional Manager and Project Manager to provide accurate financial information when required.
  
• Support with other financial tasks as may be requested by the Regional Manager or Project Manager.

Operations management (50%)

• Support the Regional Manager and Project Management team with office resource and capacity management.
  
• Lead on local procurement, due diligence and contracting processes, in-line with Palladium’s Contracts and Compliance policies and SOP’s.
  
• Oversee IT procurement and maintenance in the office, which may include sourcing IT specialists for support.
  
• Act as the project East Africa Safety and Security Focal Point, providing advice and support on the local safety and security context for all project staff travelling to, or from, the Ethiopia office.
  
• Provide guidance on travel plans and logistics for the East Africa team or project staff travelling into Ethiopia.
  
• Manage the coordination of all office facilities, utilities and supplies, including responsibility for procurement, maintenance and repairs, supplier relations and contracts, and payment for services.
  
• Maintain an up to date asset register, detailing the status of all project equipment as per compliance and audit requirements.
  
• Ensure that all insurances and health and safety procedures are in place and maintained, in accordance with Palladium’s policy and local law.
  
• Support with the onboarding of new team members.
  
• Support with other operations tasks as may be requested by the Regional Manager or Project Manager(s)

Requirements

• Extensive experience in a similar role is essential, such as Financial or Operations Management.
  
• Experience with managing payroll in Ethiopia, with knowledge and understanding of local payroll and tax laws;
  
• Ability to organise a substantial workload comprised of diverse tasks and responsibilities and work calmly under pressure;
  
• Ability to work flexibly, and to tight deadlines, maintaining consistently high standards and attention to detail;
  
• Strong critical thinking and analytical skills;
  
• Demonstrated self-starter who thrives in a dynamic environment and able to get to grips with our business processes quickly.
  
• Experience of working in a team, with demonstrable skills in effective team coordination.
  
• Effective communication skills, with proficiency in written and spoken English is essential, knowledge of local language(s) is desirable.
  
• A degree, or equivalent, in a field relevant to the role is desirable (e.g. business, finance, accounting, project management);
  
• Experience working in operations or finance management within an international development context is desirable;
  
  

Line Management

​The Office Manager and Operations Lead may have Line Management responsibility for the any future Finance and Operations Associates based in the Ethiopia Office.

Reporting

The Office Manager, East Africa will report to the Partnerships for Forests Regional Manager, East Africa.

Other Information

The role is based in our Ethiopia office, in Addis Ababa, and applicants must be able to be based in the office on a regular basis.

We are willing to consider requests for part-time work for the right candidate, and have flexible working conditions, to enable our staff to balance their work and home commitments.

About the Organization

Company Overview:

Palladium is a global leader in the design, development and delivery of Positive Impact - the intentional creation of enduring social and economic value. We work with foundations, investors, governments, corporations, communities and civil society to formulate strategies and implement solutions that generate lasting social, environmental and financial benefits.

For the past 50 years, we have been making Positive Impact possible. With a team of more than 2,500 employees operating in 90 plus countries and a global network of more than 35,000 technical experts, Palladium has improved - and is committed to continuing to improve - economies, societies and most importantly, people's lives.

Palladium is a child-safe organisation, and screens applicants for suitability to work with children. We also provide equal employment to all participants and employees without regard to race, color, religion, gender, age, disability, sexual orientation, veteran or marital status.