Senior Project Finance Manager

Job Description

Opportunity

The fulltime Senior Project Finance Manager (PFM) will be based in our Rockville, MD office, and will serve in a leadership role on a USAID-funded bilateral contract for a large-scale integrated health service delivery program in the Democratic Republic of Congo. This $314 million, seven-year project will transform the way health care is delivered in the DRC – from introducing innovations like using drones to get essential medicines to conflict-affected areas, to using digital data dashboards to improve decisions about how health services are managed, to providing truly integrated service delivery in a gender and conflict sensitive way. The USAID Integrated Health Program in the DRC will be implemented in nine provinces and 178 health zones. The Senior PFM will work closely with the in-country Director of Finance and Administration as well as interface with eight sub-contractors to bring strong financial and contractual compliance to all aspects of the program. S/he will play a pivotal role in the success of USAID IHP, work with the Portfolio Manager and Regional Managing Director on big picture strategic thinking, ongoing financial analyses, risk mitigation, and, importantly, managing to budget and plan.

The Sr. Project Finance Manager will supervise the home office-based Senior PFA and provide significant support, coaching and oversight to the Kinshasa-based Director of Finance & Administration. USAID contract management expertise is required, as is proficiency (FS3) in spoken and written French. The successful candidate must be willing and able to travel to DRC, including locations outside of Kinshasa, for extended periods of time as required.

Key Roles and Responsibilities

• Lead on internal, company-facing financial management, including setting targets and tracking actuals for direct labor, gross revenue, and fee and working with project team to meet or exceed goals; if required, work with team to develop corrective actions
• Lead on assuring timely and correct quarterly reporting to the client
• Work with project team to regularly assess risks to the project, including reviewing non-pricing risk factors, and proactively develop mitigation strategies when required
• Manage subcontractor budgets, monitoring burn rates by activity, track obligations and expenditures against ceiling by activity, process requests for funds, and review invoices
• Collaborate with procurement team to ensure policies are being adhered to and that standard levels of performance are being achieved with regard to handoffs and turnaround time to complete procurement activities and actions
• Ensure work assignments are level loaded and staff productivity levels are being achieved. Drive compliance with project and company policies and procedures; Manage and develop staff
• Develop consistent objectives for staff based on level and conduct performance reviews including providing regular feedback on performance
• Provide strategic direction to the team that aligns with company objectives

Preferred Skills / Prerequisites

• Experience with Oracle and TM1 based systems preferred
• Skilled with excel for data manipulation and analysis such as pivot tables, lookups, etc.
• Experience with USAID Cost Plus contract financial management
• Experience supporting and balancing multiple streams of activities of a large and complex project, preferable >$50 million
• Experience managing people and direct responsibility for objective setting, performance reviews and disciplinary actions
• French language skills (reading, writing, speaking) at the FS3 level
• Willingness and ability to travel to DRC, including locations outside the capital city, for period of at least three weeks, no fewer than three times a year

Minimum Qualifications

• 15 years of experience and BA degree or the equivalent combination of education and experience

About the Organization

Abt Associates is a mission-driven, global leader in research and program implementation in the fields of health, social and environmental policy, and international development. Founded in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1965, Abt Associates was built on the concept that sound information and empirical analysis are the best foundations for effective decision making. The firm blends the subject matter expertise of our staff with technical capabilities in applied research, program implementation, and data collection to shape policy, strengthen systems, measure performance, and deliver other solutions to our public and private sector clients. Examples of Abt Associates’ work include nationally recognized research, evaluation, and technical assistance to improve the efficiency of healthcare systems, the effectiveness of government housing programs, the production of food, and the measurement of public opinion. Abt’s staff of more than 2000 includes national and international experts who are known for their understanding of communities and governments worldwide, innovative research techniques, and insightful—and often groundbreaking—analyses and recommendations. Approximately 51 percent of our staff has graduate degrees; one in six has a doctorate. Our staff’s educational and professional disciplines include economics, engineering, environmental analysis, epidemiology, food security, health, housing, international development, psychology, social science, statistics, and survey methodology. Abt’s research staff is experienced with prominent statistical software packages, including SPSS, SAS, and STATA, along with qualitative software such as NVIVO and Atlas. In 2011, Abt Associates was ranked among the top 20 global research firms and one of the top 40 development innovators. Abt has offices in Atlanta, Ga.; Rockville, Md.; Cambridge, Mass.; Chicago, Ill.; Durham, N.C.; and New York City and program offices in nearly 40 countries in Africa, Central and Southeast Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, and the Middle East and North Africa. www.abtassociates.com