Senior Advisor Government Liaison & Executive Coordination-National-Damascus

TITLE: Senior Advisor: Government Liaison & Executive Coordination Syria
TEAM/PROGRAMME: Syria Response OfficeLOCATION: Damascus
GRADE: 2 CONTRACT LENGTH: 1 year
CHILD SAFEGUARDING:

Level 3: the post holder will have contact with children and/or young people either frequently (e.g. once a week or more) or intensively (e.g. four days in one month or more or overnight) because they work country programs; or are visiting country programs; or because they are responsible for implementing the police checking/vetting process staff.
ROLE PURPOSE:

The Senior Advisor: Government Liaison & Executive Coordination provides high-quality strategic political and administrative support to the Syria Country Director and Senior Management Team (SMT). The role strengthens SCIs engagement with Government authorities at national and sub-national levels ensures SCI maintains strong acceptance and principled operational space and ensures the effective functioning of the Country Directors office through executive coordination action tracking and internal communication management.

The role ensures SCI is informed of contextual and policy developments maintains strong relationships with Government stakeholders and supports internal decision-making and strategic follow-up. The post holder must demonstrate discretion professionalism and the ability to operate in a fastpaced complex humanitarian setting.

SCOPE OF ROLE:
Reports to: Country Director Syria
Budget Responsibilities: (TBC)
Role Dimensions: This role will liaise regularly with SMT members operations project and thematic leads.
KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY:

Contextual Analysis

Ensure that Syria policy-making and context is understood applied and embedded across all of SCs operations and partners.
Drive Syrias acquaintance for SC staff and partner organizations.
Lead on the Contextual Analysis for Syria and monitor any developments in the process.
Improve SC Syria understanding of the Governmental structures

Governmental and External Stakeholder Relationship Building

Strengthen SCIs acceptance and engagement with national and local Government authorities.
Support the Country Director in high-level representation and formal engagements.
Map and track key Government and external stakeholders identifying cooperation opportunities.
Monitor and analyse political policy and regulatory developments impacting SCI operations.
Maintain updated contextual analysis and briefing notes for senior leadership.
Ensure SCI is informed of relevant legislation administrative changes or Government requirements.
Coordinate reporting and information-sharing channels with Government bodies.
Prepare presentations talking points and briefing notes for external engagements.
Support programme and operations teams on Government-related risk mitigation.

Executive Support to the Country Director
Provide proactive executive support to the Country Director including complex calendar and travel management.
Ensure the Country Director is fully briefed and prepared ahead of meetings and external engagements.
Draft edit and prepare letters reports talking points and official correspondence.
Coordinate communication on behalf of the Country Director with internal and external stakeholders.
Support strategic planning and prioritisation of the Directors workload and engagements.

SMT Coordination & Follow-Up
Coordinate SMT meetings all staff meetings annual reviews strategic planning sessions and emergency meetings.
Maintain and update SMT action trackers ensuring timely follow-up with responsible leads.
Facilitate cross-departmental coordination to support effective leadership decision-making.
Organize and document key management processes ensuring information is accessible and wellstored.

Internal & External Communication
Draft communication materials for the Country Director including speeches and social media content.
Liaise with internal departments and external partners during visits missions and senior delegations.
Ensure the Country Directors office maintains timely and professional communication with all stakeholders.

Information Management & Confidentiality
Maintain well-organised digital and physical filing systems for the Country Directors office.
Ensure strict confidentiality of sensitive information related to personnel safeguarding or operations.
Uphold SCIs standards for data protection and responsible information handling.

Additional Responsibilities
Support emergency response duties as required including extended hours during crises.
Undertake any other tasks assigned by the Country Director that align with the roles purpose.

Collaboration & Networking

Strengthen coordination with local and national associations and other organizations providing government support.
Support mitigation of potential reputational risk and escalate if SC risks are not being managed or addressed.

BEHAVIOURS (Values in Practice)
Accountability:
holds self-accountable for making decisions managing resources efficiently achieving and role modelling Save the Children valuesn the field when collecting proposal
holds the team and partners accountable to deliver on their responsibilities - giving them the freedom to deliver in the best way they see fit providing the necessary development to improve performance and applying appropriate consequences when results are not achieved.
Ambition:
sets ambitious and challenging goals for themselves and their team takes responsibility for their own personal development and encourages their team to do the same
widely shares their personal vision for Save the Children engages and motivates others
future orientated thinks strategically and on a global scale.
Collaboration:
builds and maintains effective relationships with their team colleagues Members and external partners and supporters
values diversity sees it as a source of competitive strength
approachable good listener builds trust and confidence in others.
Creativity:
develops and encourages new and innovative solutions
willing to take disciplined risks.
Integrity:
honest encourages openness and transparency; demonstrates highest levels of integrity
QUALIFICATIONS
Diploma level Undergraduate or Masters in Social work Gender Child Protection Child Rights Human Rights Humanitarian Action Anthropology Development Deplmacy and Public Administratin Political Science Conflict or related degree

SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE
Essential
10 years of experience of work in local/central government or experience in a similar field.
Knowledge and Experience in Syria Government systems and framework
Knowledge/familiarity in data protection and confidentiality measures
Excellent presentation and collaborative skills
Good analytical skills
Previous experience in networking and external representation.
Strong verbal and written communication skills and command of Arabic and English.
Proficiency in using Microsoft Office applications including Excel Word and PowerPoint

Desirable
Previous experience in Government sector
Previous experience in external relations
Strong verbal and written communication skills and command of one additional language Kurdish French Spanish.

Additional job responsibilities
The duties and responsibilities as set out above are not exhaustive and the role holder may be required to carry out additional duties within reasonableness of their level of skills and experience.
Equal Opportunities
The role holder is required to carry out the duties in accordance with the SCI Equal Opportunities and Diversity policies and procedures.
Safeguarding:
We need to keep children and adults safe so our selection process which includes rigorous background checks reflects our commitment to the protection of children and adults from any form of abuse exploitation harassment and harm.
Safeguarding our Staff:
The post holder is required to carry out the duties in accordance with the SCI anti-harassment policy
Health and Safety
The role holder is required to carry out the duties in accordance with SCI Health and Safety policies and procedures.