Vacancy: Administrator and Grants Manager

THE ROLE

This important position offers a great degree of flexibility in contributing to Safeguard Defenders’ overall strategic, administrative and management development. You will have ample space to advance professionally within the role while helping a small yet vocal human rights organization grow and have a greater impact in the fields of human rights, rule of law and countering transnational repression by authoritarian states.

Download the vacancy ad as PDF here:

 

 

ABOUT US

Safeguard Defenders (SD) is a decentralized pan-Asian human rights organization that supports local activities that contribute to the protection of human rights, promotes the rule of law, and enhances the ability of local civil society and human rights defenders in some of the most closed political environments in Asia. It also undertakes field work and online research and releases cutting-edge reports and briefings, and utilizes such reporting as the basis for advocacy campaigns, targeting UN organs, governments, parliaments, and beyond.

Safeguard Defenders has core staff and partners spread across East and South East Asia, and includes teachers, lawyers, independent media, and small-scale civil society organizations. It is a registered foundation with head offices in Madrid, Spain, with a Representative Office in Taipei, Taiwan.

 

WORKING ENVIRONMENT

The position is location independent, but applicants must have the right to work in either the European Union or in Taiwan. All staff, including those in central management, research and advocacy positions, are based in a number of different countries. Regular on-site meetings can be expected, but day to day work is carried out independently; communication is via online channels.

 

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

You will play a key role in allowing Safeguard Defenders to grow, and will be responsible for administration, human resources policies and procedures, and some accounting work. You will also be responsible for developing policies and routines related to these issues, to ensure compliance with best practices.

You will be involved in the grant application aspect of program development, undertaking and preparing grant-based reporting, and providing oversight on existing programs and grants. You will coordinate with staff to ensure that reporting meets timeline and quality targets.

From the outset, this role carries important responsibilities -- you will be working at the very core of Safeguard Defenders’ entire operations. Candidates with experience and aptitude may quickly take on a higher overall management role.

You will be working directly with Safeguard Defenders’ director, and, to a lesser extent, the program managers, and its accountant.

This is a full-time position, starting with a one-year contract, with the possibility to transfer to an indefinite contract thereafter.

Because of time zone differences, you may occasionally need to work outside of normal hours to accommodate staff in Taiwan or Europe. Europe-based staff are on GMT +/-0 and +1 hours, Taiwan-based staff are on GMT +8 hours.

 

QUALIFICATIONS

 

Essential

• Educational and professional background in administration AND project management, accounting or human resources management.
• Able to thrive in what can best be described as a ‘start-up’ environment. This means you must be able to work independently, manage your own time, and handle an uneven workload.
• Knowledge of best practices/international standards related to these issues.
• Ability to multitask and coordinate others. You will be responsible for keeping track of a large number of reporting deadlines and ensuring quality of work submitted.
• Fluent English.

 

Strongly preferred

• Experience in the above within the non-profit sector, or small business sector.
• Experience in developing guidelines and procedures in the above areas.
• Experience in QuickBooks (QB), to allow for smoother cooperation with accountant.
• Experience in preparation for audits.

 

Helpful

• Safeguard Defenders is a dual language organization, using English and Mandarin. Mandarin knowledge is not required, but certainly helpful.
• An understanding of China.
• Knowledge of human rights and human rights.
• Proficiency in IT security.

 

EXAMPLES OF WORK DUTIES

• Drafting future budgets with program development staff.
• Reviewing program grant proposals against grant requirements.
• Developing and ensuring compliance with internal policies (procurement, travel reimbursement, collection of supporting documents, etc.).
• Develop and maintain a system to track reporting deadlines; working with staff to ensure compliance; and ensuring quality standards outlined by grant and/or internal policies are met.
• Processing monthly entries for QB (actual entries into QB managed by accountant), including “coding” for expenses, income etc.
• Reviewing, reconciling and controlling monthly and/or quarterly financial reports based on QB data.
• Preparing grant-specific financial reports.
• Managing time-sheets for core staff.

 

Applicants should be aware that taking this position will mean you will likely no longer be able to safely travel to mainland China, Hong Kong or Macau.

 

HOW TO APPLY

Interested candidates should send a one-page (maximum) cover letter explaining your interest and why you think you would be able to do this job, contact information of two references, and a CV detailing relevant professional qualifications.

For submissions or inquiries, contact info@safeguarddefenders.com, and if submitting application, use subject line “Vacancy: Administrator and Grants Manager”