Country Director - Yemen, Sana'a

Overview

The Country Director provides strategic leadership to DRC's country operation in Yemen, driving a comprehensive approach to displacement in a challenging humanitarian context. The role is accountable for all aspects of the organization's operations, including programme quality, safety, people management, financial stewardship, and external relations.

Key Responsibilities

• Providing overall leadership, strategic direction, and management of DRC's country operation.
• Leading, supporting, and developing the Senior Management Team.
• Establishing clear objectives, expectations, and accountability across the country operation.
• Exercising delegated budget and management authority.
• Ensuring effective recruitment, performance management, staff development, and succession planning.
• Fostering staff wellbeing, engagement, and professional development.
• Addressing performance, conduct, and Code of Conduct matters.
• Representing DRC at national, regional, and international levels.
• Strengthening DRC's strategic positioning, reputation, and influence.
• Ensuring effective and constructive relationships with stakeholders.
• Promoting DRC's integrated and solutions-oriented approach.
• Providing overall management oversight of the country programme.
• Directly line managing designated senior staff.
• Ensuring appropriate organizational structures, systems, and resources.
• Maintaining regular engagement with field operations.
• Ensuring compliance with internal governance, risk management, and reporting requirements.
• Leading donor engagement, strategic partnerships, and resource mobilization.
• Ensuring strong donor relations and high-quality donor engagement.
• Leading the implementation of DRC's advocacy priorities.
• Promoting principled humanitarian action.
• Holding overall accountability for safety, security, and duty of care.
• Ensuring effective security management systems and procedures.
• Overseeing security analysis, risk management, preparedness, and crisis response.
• Holding overall accountability for the financial health, sustainability, and compliance.
• Working closely with the Head of Support Services on financial planning, budget management, and risk management.
• Ensuring effective and responsible management of resources.
• Ensuring support functions provide timely, efficient, and compliant services.
• Promoting capacity development and continuous improvement across support functions.
• Leading the development, implementation, and review of the country strategy.
• Ensuring programmes are evidence-based, responsive, and contribute to strategic objectives.
• Promoting innovation, learning, and adaptive management.
• Supporting the development of integrated, multi-sectoral programming.
• Ensuring adherence to DRC policies, standards, and procedures.
• Promoting accountability to affected populations.
• Ensuring consistent application of DRC's Programme Cycle Management framework.
• Fostering a culture of accountability, compliance, learning, and continuous improvement.

Required Experience

• Minimum five years’ management experience in emergency/development contexts as country director/senior manager of a humanitarian or development organization or similar.
• Experience as a people manager.
• Experience representing a large and leading organization to donors, external partners and authorities.
• Experience with networking, advocacy and coordination.
• Experience in managing staff in insecure/stressful locations.
• Experience with conflict related displacement issues.
• Experience of managing budgets and multiple donor contracts.
• Experience in donor contact, fundraising and networking.
• Experience of Humanitarian Mine Action (preferred).
• Experience working in the Middle East region and Yemen (preferred).
• Proven leadership skills and competence in people management.
• Proven communicator with all types of stakeholders.
• Proven commitment to accountable practices and knowledge of quality assurance systems.

Qualifications

Master’s degree in relevant field

Other Details