Globaldev careers: The security coordinator

BARCELONA — Nour Koussaibany starts the day by catching up on regional news and checking in with team coordinators and staff members in the field. But as the humanitarian access and security coordinator for Lebanon with the International Rescue Committee, there is no typical day beyond that. Koussaibany, who has a background in economics and political science, had been working in logistics and security until the Syrian refugee crisis in 2014 created a demand for her to concentrate solely on the latter. The kind of role she has requires a deep understanding of the various functions of an organization, as well as the ability to analyze a situation from different perspectives before making a decision, Koussaibany said. And those decisions might not always be popular with the field team members who are enthusiastic to start or continue programs. Professionals from a range of backgrounds, such as international affairs or political science, can be well suited to working in security, and many of the necessary technical skills can be acquired on the job, Koussaibany said. But strong communication and interpersonal skills are critical, as well as a genuine interest in understanding different contexts and dynamics, she added. Humanitarian security also remains a male-dominated sector. Koussaibany is one of just a handful of women on the team but strongly encourages other women to consider these types of roles. Women can bring real value to security work and tend to be sensitive to risks, especially gender-related risks that men might be less aware of, she said. Devex spoke to Koussaibany about the skills that help her overcome these challenges and the highs and lows of a job in humanitarian security. This conversation has been edited for length and clarity. “I’m on the phone basically the whole time. This is very typical in complex security contexts.” --— Nour Koussaibany, humanitarian access and security coordinator for Lebanon, IRC What does a security coordinator do, and how do you see the impact of your work? Security management is about assessing the risk [of humanitarian activities] and [putting in] place a set of mitigation measures that would allow safe programming and conducting the activity with minimal risk to staff, beneficiaries, and the activities themselves. ... I see the impact of my work when we finalize the implementation of a program in a conflict setting safely and we [are able to] deliver our programs to the most vulnerable and in need. What are the biggest challenges of the job, and what lessons have you learned in overcoming these? There’s a responsibility to suspend or cancel the contract of certain activities based on the security situation [which can mean unpopular decisions]. The biggest challenge of this role is to convey the message or the advice in a way that will convince the other staff; it’s about the way I explain my idea and give out information. From working in this sector, [I’ve learned] not to take decisions alone but to adopt a more collaborative and consultative approach. And the amount of information shared must clarify any misunderstandings, any thoughts about any [alternative] decision … to build the trust between the security team and the colleagues which is much needed to perform the job. “Security is all about communicating with colleagues in a two-way flow — providing information and receiving information from them as well.” --— What is the best — and worst — part of the job? I am an extroverted person who likes to communicate with people, share information, and work out problems, and this is what I like most about my job. The worst part is that it’s a 24/7 type of job. It’s very hard to disconnect — I always need to have an eye on my phone to be monitoring the situation, see if there is anything happening that staff or management should be aware of, so I’m on the phone basically the whole time. This is very typical in complex security contexts. What skill sets have you found to be most valuable, or what skills have you focused on building to progress your career? Communication skills and report writing. Security is all about communicating with colleagues in a two-way flow — providing information and receiving information from them as well. Report writing is a very key skill in order to share accurate and confirmed information; it’s knowing how to organize and display the information to provide a clear description for [those receiving it]. The skills I’m still focusing on developing are incident management skills — technical skills and procedures, like activating incident management and performing risk analysis — and soft skills — for example, working under pressure, decision-making, and time management skills. How have you seen your work change as the sector has changed? Humanitarian security management has historically been regarded as highly operational and [about] policy and function. This is changing nowadays, as security is coming to be seen as a shared responsibility and grounded in the mission of enabling humanitarian programming. Since it’s become embedded in how we do business, by adopting highly collaborative, inclusive, and participatory approaches, we have basically demystified our work and built a culture of shared responsibility.