Compliance Coach “Joining Forces”

For ARTICLE 19 Bangladesh and South Asia

Project Title 
:
 Joining Forces: CSO’s and Media for accountability in Bangladesh
Name of Organization
:
 Article19 Bangladesh and South Asia
Application Deadline
:
 10th November 2023
Salary and Benefits
:
 Salary and benefits shall be fixed within the existing ARTICLE 19 pay scales and in line with Service Rules.
Working Hours
:
 Full-time, 37.5 hours per week (working week from Sunday to Thursday)
Location
Starting Date
End Date
:
:
:
 Dhaka, Bangladesh with field visits
15th November2023
31st December 2025

About Us

Established in 1987, ARTICLE 19 works for a world where all people everywhere can freely express themselves and actively engage in public life without fear or discrimination. Our mission is to promote and defend the universal human rights of freedom of expression and information around the world, through international advocacy and legal analysis, and regional and national projects.

ARTICLE 19 is a global organisation, with a strong presence in the Global South, recruiting local staff and establishing strong and operationally autonomous national and regional offices. These offices have helped the organisation strengthen relationships with civil society, better understand regional and national challenges, and respond more swiftly to opportunities and crises.

The Bangladesh and South Asia Regional Office of ARTICLE 19 is situated in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Its International Office is located in London.

Background

Free Press Unlimited (FPU) is currently implementing the “Joining Forces: CSO’s and Media for accountability in Bangladesh” project in collaboration with ARTICLE 19 Bangladesh and South Asia. The programme’s Overall Objective aims to contribute to strengthening civil society and media in Bangladesh in their ability to engage as actors of good governance and development at country level. The Specific Objective is to improve the ability of local civil society organizations and media to jointly promote good governance and development through strengthened capacities, networks, coalitions, and accountability mechanisms, aimed at influencing dialogue on social change and domestic policies.

The core activity of the project is The Collaboration Lab, a three-year small grants project for (alliances of) Bangladeshi media outlets and Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) -a total 20 media and 20 CSOs- spread over three years. It aims to promote collaboration on issues that are important and relevant to Bangladeshi citizens, stimulate the development of innovative solutions by providing financial assistance, and facilitate knowledge exchange and (mutual) learning. The Collaboration Lab will launch a Call for Proposals in each project year for which a number of alliances existing out of media outlets and civil society organisations can apply.

Currently, both the civil society and media sectors are heavily criticized for their lack of internal governance and financial transparency, and their lack of inclusion on the work floor and in newsrooms. To improve the level of professionalism, effectiveness and sustainability of their operations as well as to comply with due diligence standards of donors; each year’s sub-grantees will receive intensive coaching on internal governance, including the development of codes of conduct and integrity policies and organizational capacity, including project and financial management skills, and monitoring and evaluation skills. As the Consortium stimulates cross-sectoral cooperation, capacity-building via a one-size-fits-all method is not suitable and instead a coaching method is used. The coaching trajectories will be tailor-made to the specific needs of the subgrantees. A total of 20 media and 20 CSOs will be capacitated through the coaching trajectories.

As part of this exercise, ARTICLE 19 Bangladesh and South Asia and Free Press Unlimited are seeking to recruit a Compliance Coach who will liaise with the subgrantees to provide them coaching and necessary training for organizational improvements, and internal governance.

Purpose of the assignment

The Consortium specifically chooses to work through a coaching method instead of one-off trainings as coaching trajectories provide for a more tailor-made approach that includes constant dialogue that is spread over a long(er) period of time between the coach and partner and involves listening, questioning and challenging respectfully, helping the organizations to come to their own conclusions and strategies by facilitating the space to practice and stimulating ‘learning by doing’.

Core tasks of the Compliance Coach is to liaise with the subgrantees to provide them with coaching and training for organizational improvements, and internal governance. This will be done in close collaboration with the Project Officer of FPU in Amsterdam who will review and advise the Compliance Coach. The Compliance Coach will be based in Dhaka and contracted by at ARTICLE 19’s Bangladesh and South Asia office. Each years’ sub-grantees will be coached for the duration of one year (aligned to their participation in the Collaboration Lab), three years in total.

Key activities

  • Assess needs from the sub-grantees for the coaching trajectories using the assessment procedures and grids provided by Free Press Unlimited and ARTICLE 19 Bangladesh South Asia offices as well as through interviews;
  • Design of the coaching trajectories through co-creation with subgrantees to ensure that each individual organization’s ambitions and goals are achieved;
  • The coaching sessions entail constant dialogues between the coaches and partners, review and analysis of documents, assignments and workshops/presentations;
  • Co-develop documents with explanation and examples of best practices in the fields of financial management, audit requirements, monitoring & evaluation, project cycle, HR policy, code of conduct, safe-guarding policies, and anti-corruption policies;
  • Co-develop and communicate coaching plans for and with sub-grantees, with a clear output in terms of progress in fields that the needs assessment identified;
  • Oversee the implementation of coaching plans by visiting subgrantees, organizing workshops, individual communications etc;
  • Assist in project management activities beyond the coaching tasks.

Expected deliverables

  • Partner assessments;
  • Co-created coaching plans for each sub-grantees;
  • Implementation of the coaching plans;
  • Facilitation of workshops where necessary;
  • Expected deliverables diver per organisations and media outlets, however concrete results of the coaching trajectories are for instance: the creation of safe-guarding mechanisms such as an internal and external whistle-blowing and complaint procedure, integrity policies, or the production of financial management or project cycle manuals.

Profile

  • Familiar with working with media outlets and civil society organisations, preferably experience working on European Union grants;
  • Able to independently conceptualize and deliver project activities within the given timeframe;
  • International experience preferred;
  • Can establish and manage trusted contacts with media organisations and civil society organisations;
  • Excellent planning and organisational skills and are attentive to details while holding the broader helicopter view in sight;
  • Prior experience on sub-grantees’ management
  • Proficient in written and spoken English and Bangla;
  • Proficient in MS Word and Excel;
  • Are available for project travel within Bangladesh;
  • Based in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Timeline

Intended starting date 15thof November, 2023

 

Application deadline 10th November, 2023

Apply here