Country Director - Syria

Join INSO as the Country Director for Syria to lead the management and coordination of humanitarian safety initiatives in cooperation with local NGOs.

• Program strategy and management*
• Manage the INSO Syria team across all field locations, including direct supervision of senior management staff and general oversight of the grant, program, operations, and finance functions.
• Provide dedicated, effective leadership across the program and ensure cohesion across all functions in compliance with INSO SOPs.
• Develop overall strategy and deliver annual planning.
• Steward INSO resources effectively and transparently in full compliance with internal and donor policies.
• Responsible for the safety and security of staff, program and assets.
• The Syria CD will likely directly supervise the INSO Iraq team based in Erbil, ensuring coordination and consistency of services across the two programmes (pending formal approval).
• Representation and synergies*
• Effectively represent and protect INSO’s principles of independence, impartiality and neutrality and actively promote INSO as an integral member of the humanitarian community.
• Maintain donor engagement and actively track country-specific funding opportunities.
• Ensure compliance with donor regulations and requirements and produce high-quality, compelling donor proposals and reports.
• Engage with third parties, including local government, the UN, diplomatic missions.
• Fulfil INSO's responsibilities under the UN-NGO Saving Lives Together (SLT) framework for security collaboration, and support interagency humanitarian access coordination, including through the Humanitarian Access Working Group.
• Constructively participate in external coordination activities related to safety and security coordination and access issues.
• Program support and monitoring*
• Oversee the overall delivery of INSO services—ensuring program targets and objectives are met.
• Deliver strategic analysis to senior humanitarian leadership.
• Lead crisis management support to NGO partners during critical incidents.
• Lead grant management across the multi-donor portfolio, including supervision of the reporting officer, oversight of the drafting, review, and timely submission of narrative and financial reports, compliance with donor regulations and INSO policies, development of funding proposals and budgets, and ongoing donor engagement across the full grant cycle.

• Essential*
• 3-5 years of relevant work experience as an NGO Country Director or equivalent senior management experience in conflict/post-conflict contexts.
• Experience with management of multi-donor projects.
• Experience with budget management and monitoring, donor liaison, and reporting.
• Fluency in English, both written and verbal.
• Proven analytical skills.
• Master’s degree-level education or equivalent work experience in a relevant field
• Solid understanding of principles and practices in broad humanitarian action, NGO safety and risk management, humanitarian access, and civil-military coordination.
• Excellent networking, diplomatic, and representative communication skills.
• Nice to Have*
• Recent experience in Syria or the Middle East
• Arabic and/or Kurdish language skills.
• Direct experience and involvement in a crisis management role.
• Experience in a highly visible interagency role.
• Detailed understanding of INSO mandate and services.
• Previous INSO experience (as a team member or as a beneficiary).