Transparency and Compliance Assistant

About ACTED

“ We go the last mile. Founded in Afghanistan, against the backdrop of a forgotten crisis, Acted’s mission is to save lives and support people in meeting their needs in hard-to-reach areas. Millions of vulnerable people around the world need humanitarian assistance today, and hundreds of millions will need it tomorrow, in the face of the growing threat of climate change. We believe that our assistance must be conceptualised and delivered within the framework of people’s natural environments, and the territories on which they depend. Therefore, Acted pursues a triple mandate as a humanitarian, environmental and development aid actor, contributing to the relief, stabilisation, and recovery of crisis-affected people in fragile areas. This vision is guided by the motto “Think Local – Act Global” - reflecting the need to rely on a deep understanding of local territories and contexts to develop and implement actions based on local knowledge, structures and capacities. This local thinking contributes to a global response - running through all Acted programming and operations - as we work together towards the building of a 3ZERO world: a world with Zero Exclusion, Zero Carbon, and Zero Poverty”.

Greening strategy:

Acted’s greening strategy aims to tackle environmental degradation and climate change while meeting the needs of the most vulnerable who are often those most affected by the deepening environmental crisis. Each Acted employee will adhere to these principles through key green programming responsibilities:

• Contribute towards the adherence and development of the greening strategy plan.
• Explore innovative green programming opportunities and/or solutions within your realm of responsibilities and roles.
• Encouraging and promoting environmental safeguarding processes and environmental programming standards in accordance with SOPs and technical guideline notes

Acted PSEAH Policy:

The T&C has the responsibility to adhere to the PSEAH Policy (Protection against Sexual Exploitation, Abuse and Harassment). The Logistics Assistant has the obligation to complete all mandatory trainings related to the Code of Conduct and the PSEA policy and report any safeguarding concern such as breaches of organisational policies or codes of conduct according to Acted’s procedures. The Logistics Assistant carries out work duties in a way that does not harm children, vulnerable adults or other staff or volunteers.

Location: Damascus – Syria

Start Date: ASAP

Duration Of the Contract: 6 Months

Job Purpose

The T&C Assistant contributes to monitoring the compliant implementation of Acted procedures in the bases assigned to him or her, using a risk-based audit approach and the guidance of his or her supervisor.

S/he is responsible for implementing the action plan and reviews defined to mitigate the risks identified, in conjunction with his/her supervisor.

S/he helps to communicate the difficulties encountered by the FLATS teams in his/her bases

S/he also provides support for external donor audits in their preparation and conducting review and analyses for investigation cases.

S/he must comply with and ensure compliance with the code of conduct.

Objectives :

Based the instructions and guidelines given by his/her direct supervisor, the T&C Assistant has to :

1. Participate in the review of the FLATS compliance process and internal audit by :

(i) Using a predetermined risk-based audit approach, contributing to the control of the implementation of Acted procedures at bases and at partner level, in compliance with:

• Acted manuals of procedures,
• Donors’ specific procedures,
• Best practices
• National legislation

(ii) Participating in action plans approved by the T&CM;

1. Participate in the preparation and follow-up of external audits of donors and due diligences;
2. Flag, draft and share lessons learned and best practices to the FLATS departments concerned;
3. Participate in reviewing investigation cases based on action plan shared by the line manager.

Key Performance Indicators:

• % of the defined sample expenses reviewed per project in the monthly compliance review (FLA-02 and FLA-05)
• # of personnel files reviewed in the monthly compliance review (FLA-06)
• # of compliance checks carried out (FLA-02, FLA-06 and FLA-05)
• % of monthly compliance reviews submitted on time.
• # of recommendations consistent with the anomaly identified during monthly review, internal and external audit
• % of unflagged risk
• # of recommendations implemented across the bases or reported as difficult to implement
• % of expense reviewed with no new irregularities identified during the 2nd review
• # of good quality contributions to ToRs and internal audit reports (based on # of feedback)
• % of investigation cases action plan implemented in timely manners.
• % of Investigation reports of good quality.
• % of relevant lessons learned developed and followed up in the AUD05.
• % of the documentation filled in each case file in timely manners.

Duties and Responsibilities:

1-Control of the FLATS and program compliance process,

• The T&C Assistant must know how to look for (and eventually know) Acted's policies and procedures and ensure that they are properly implemented.
• S/he must, on the basis of the instructions and plans given by his/her direct supervisor.
• Collect, based on the relevant sample, the necessary documents from the departments and ensure the quality of the organization of their physical and digitized filing systems, in accordance with FLA-01 guidelines.
• Complete the FLA-02 "Compliance checklist" on a monthly basis to ensure that FLATS.
• documentation is compliant, report any non-compliant issues, propose and conduct corrective action plans and improvement suggestions where necessary.
• Carry out monthly "Quotes & Invoices Investigation" (FLA-05), analyse results and report any fraud risk.
• Complete the FLA-06 "Staff files checklist" on a monthly basis to ensure that personnel files are compliant, report any non-compliant issues and propose corrective action plans and improvement suggestions where necessary.
• Ensure the implementation of compliance tasks associated with expenditure (including supply chain traceability, market survey, review of FLATS and program documentation, etc.)
• Conduct the relevant ad-hoc spotchecks for the base FLATS and program departments.
• Analyse the results of compliance reviews, flag risk and propose relevant lessons learned.
• Report risky compliance alerts to his/her supervisor or suspected fraud to the T&CM.
• Share and follow up validated recommendations resulting from lessons learned and internal audits with the departments concerned.
• Ensure information needed to consolidate the monthly compliance report and the related capital annexes (MCR) are shared (FLA-04, FLA-02, FLA-05, FLA-06, lessons learnt and AUD-05)
• Participate in partner due diligences and in monitoring the implementation of risk reduction plans.

2- Preparing, carrying out and monitoring external audits:

• The T&C Assistant will support the preparation and smooth running of external audits. Based on instructions and guidelines provided by his/her direct supervisor, s/he must:
• Facilitate each external audit, by collecting, consolidating, and reviewing the selected supporting documents, identifying and rectifying any anomalies and sending the "Compliance checklists" (FLA-02) to his/her direct supervisor;
• Identify risks and lessons learnt from the review and corrective actions to propose recommendations to his/her direct supervisor.

3- Preparing, carrying out and monitoring internal audits/internal control spotcheck:

• The T&C Assistant is responsible for assessing the level of compliance of the various departments in his/her base by implementing the internal audit and spotcheck plan defined. S/he must follow the instructions and guidelines given by his/her direct supervisor.
• Participate in drafting the Terms of Reference (AUD-03) prior to any internal audit.
• Carry out internal audit in accordance with the audit plan (AUD-06), the ToRs and the Acted internal audit methodology.
• Complete the internal audit checklists AUD-08: draft findings and flag risks based on interviews and appropriate. documented testing carried out (using the associated testing files or by developing them).
• Participate in drafting the action plan (AUD-04B) and audit report (AUD-04A) following
  each internal audit, identifying anomalies, and proposing associated recommendations for validation by his/her direct supervisor;
• In collaboration with his/her direct supervisor, participate in the monthly sharing and monitoring of the action plan for the implementation of the AUD-05 recommendations in collaboration with FLATS and program departments;
• Based on implementation feedback from department, carry out appropriate tastings to evaluate recommendation implementation.
• Report to line management any difficulties encountered by each department in implementing Acted procedures.

4- Transparency:

• Participate in minimizing risk of fraud and corruption by ensuring adherence to Acted FLATS procedures, Acted Code of Conduct and Acted Policies.
• Support on
• investigations conducted at country level, based on the approved action plan
• participate in drafting the investigation reports;
• ensure development and implementation of lessons learned from investigations
• participate in updating the cases tracker and Tline if requested
• Participate in fraud cases investigations (credibility assessment, action plan, reporting, case follow up update, report drafting, investigation action plan…);
• Participate in ensuring all allegations are appropriately forwarded, thoroughly investigated, and effectively documented.
• Draft lessons learned from investigation reports
• Participate in promoting Acted’s anti-fraud and whistle blowing policy within all Acted offices of the mission.

5- Other

• Report to line management any major problem with a potential financial or reputational impact on the mission.
• Provide regular and timely updates on task ongoing, progress and challenges to the direct line manager.
• Carry out any other tasks requested by his/her direct supervisor or the TCM on compliance and investigation.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• University degree in Audit, Finance, International Relations, Law or in relation with the position.
• Minimum 1 year of previous work experience in Audit (external and/or internal), Finance, Logistics, Administration or Law.
• Strong negotiation and interpersonal skills, and organizational terms.
• Demonstrate flexibility, dynamism, and autonomy.
• Ability to work well and under pressure.
• Good communication and writing skills in English are a plus.
• Good analytical skills.

How to apply

Interested and qualified applicants should apply by filling out the application form through this link

Transparency & compliance Assistant – Fill in form

Only the shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

By applying for this position, you certify that all the details of your current application, are true to the best of your background and knowledge. You accept the legal mentions of www.acted.org and authorize the automated processing of your personal data by ACTED for recruitment, HR management and administrative compliance control purposes, in accordance with European regulations for the protection of personal data. (http://www.acted.org/)

ACTED is committed to the prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse in the framework of its programs in Syria. The successful candidate will be required to adhere to ACTED Code of conduct and ACTED Global Policies, especially regarding the protection of children and the protection against sexual exploitation and abuse. A rigorous reference and background checks will be undertaken, and information will be requested from previous employers about any disciplinary action of sexual exploitation, sexual abuse, and/or sexual harassment during employment. By submitting an application, the job applicant confirms his/her understanding of these recruitment procedures.

ACTED is committed to gender equity and to have a balanced and diverse workforce. ACTED strongly encourages qualified women, persons with disabilities, and persons from under-represented groups to apply for the position.

ACTED offers a variety of arrangements that enable women to excel in their careers, including flexible working hours for work-life balance, maternity leave, and career coaching.

ACTED never uses external recruitment agencies and recruitment is always free of charge.

The necessity of ensuring the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity, with proper attention to promoting diversity, is the most important concern in the recruitment and employment of staff at ACTED.

Applicants must provide complete and accurate information pertaining to their personal profile and qualifications to be considered for the current job opening. No amendment, addition, deletion, revision, or modification shall be made to applications that have been submitted. Candidates under serious consideration for selection will be subject to reference checks to verify the information provided.

ACTED reserves the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role. Therefore, if you are interested, please submit your application as early as possible.