Location: Pristina, Kosovo 

Reports to: Chief of Party 

Please Note: This position is contingent upon award and USAID approval with an anticipated start date of March 2024. 

Global Communities works at the intersection of humanitarian assistance, sustainable development and financial inclusion to save lives, advance equity and secure strong futures. We support communities at the forefront of their own development in more than 35 countries, partnering with local leaders, governments, civil society and the private sector to achieve a shared vision of a more just, prosperous and equitable global community. We work with government, non-government, private sector, and community stakeholders to promote transparency, foster accountability, and access the channels they need to make their voices heard, promote change, and realize their full potential.  

Global Communities seeks a Deputy Chief of Party (DCOP) candidate for the anticipated USAID Kosovo Youth Activity. USAID supports and empowers Kosovar youth to develop workforce skills to drive Kosovo’s economic development, soft skills to help them grow into engaged citizens, and entrepreneurship skills to support those youth who wish to build their own businesses or organizations. USAID’s youth programs support USAID’s economic growth portfolio in Kosovo.  

Under the direction of the Chief of Party, the DCOP will manage programs, systems, and staff ensuring that all deliverables meet or exceed the expectations of the donor and our local development partners. The DCOP will be a development entrepreneur who maximizes opportunities for collaboration, learning, and adaptation based upon rigorous assessment of program effectiveness and outcomes supported by data and other evidence.   

The Deputy Chief of Party will manage multiple technical interventions and support staff teams responsible for generating optimal outcomes.  The DCOP will liaise with development partners, including USAID, other implementors, Kosovo public sector actors, civil society, business leaders, and, of course, youth. S/he ensures that the project’s implementation is aligned with its approved workplan and budget and meets or exceeds all targets.  S/he provides thought leadership, establishes program quality guidelines and develops detailed pathways to impact. The DCOP will be responsible for:   

Technical Leadership: 

• Manage and support technical staff in design of technical activities and approaches, supervising programs and staff, subcontractors, and consultants, and ensuring performance. 
• Oversee and support staff and partners’ planning, execution and documentation of project activities and outcomes, ensuring timely and high-quality achievement of targets and deliverables. 
• Model strong leadership by collaborating, learning, listening to youth voices, adapting to stakeholders’ needs, and co-creating innovative solutions.  
• Model and practice the Positive Youth Development approach.  
• Travel to communities across Kosovo to observe project implementation, assess effectiveness, supervise data quality assessments, and gather feedback from participants and stakeholders. 

• Use principles of adaptive management and data-driven continuous quality improvement, developing appropriate responses to solve challenges, meeting all deadlines, and ensuring operational integrity and impact. 
• Lead staff and partners to periodically assess and improve project performance against workplan and targets. 
• Build and maintain a sense of shared ownership and unified team effort among staff and local and international partners, as well as strong working relationships with key internal and external stakeholders. 
• Engage with, listen to, and support Kosovo government actors who support youth 
• Partner with informal and civil society leaders and advocacy groups whose vision and mission align with the project.  

Operational Management: 

• Act as Chief of Party when the COP is not available, representing the project to USAID, subgrantees, and any other partners. 
• Manage and support staff to ensure that all reports to USAID effectively and accurately communicate project progress, achievements, challenges, and utilization of funds. 
• Represent Global Communities and the project at meetings with multiple local stakeholders (other NGOs, government officials, private sector institutions, etc.) as needed and necessary. 

• Ensure compliance with all USAID, GoK, and other rules and regulations.  
• Communicate and model Global Communities’ values (purposeful, committed, genuine, and connected) ensuring that all project staff understand and live by these values.  

• Master’s degree or equivalent experience in a related discipline. 

• A minimum of 5 years of experience managing projects with increasing responsibilities and duties in some combination of the following fields: active citizenship, community development, workforce development, leadership, economic development, and/or providing relevant technical expertise to such projects.  
• Experience in Kosovo, with preference for recent work in Kosovo. 
• Proven experience in a leadership position involving the administration of a USAID-funded program with demonstrated skills in strategic planning, management, supervision, and budgeting strongly preferred. International NGO or for-profit contractor experience is strongly preferred. 
• Knowledge/Experience with USAID contract rules and regulations strongly preferred.  
• Demonstrated experience and understanding of Kosovo’s laws, regulations and policies.  

• Management/supervisory experience. 
• Strong understanding of the local context and culture.   
• Experience building connections between Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) government entities, business, and other community development actors.   
• Proven ability to communicate a common vision among diverse partners and the ability to lead multi-disciplinary teams is desired.  
• Evidence of effective communication skills, both oral and written, to fulfill the diverse technical and managerial requirements of the agreement is desired. 

• Languages: Full Professional Proficiency in spoken and written English and Albanian.  
• A passion for the mission and values of Global Communities. 

Global Communities positively welcomes and seeks applications from all sections of society.  We are committed to a work environment that respects the dignity and worth of everyone and offers equal opportunity.  All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment. 

Global Communities holds strict safeguarding principles and has a zero-tolerance policy for conduct of sexual exploitation, abuse, and harassment. In the process of recruitment, selection, and appointment, Global Communities will conduct robust reference and background screening checks, including international vetting as a signature of the Global Misconduct Disclosure Scheme to ensure children and vulnerable adults are safeguarded, and abuse is prevented.  The incumbent is required to carry out their duties in accordance with Global Communities Safeguarding policy and the Standards of Conduct.