Aldeas de Paz (ADP) supports and promotes sustainable development, social justice and the Culture of Peace through increased cross-cultural exchange and voluntary community service. We create additional educational and recreational opportunities for an underprivileged young generation and aim to empower young people and enable them to develop their potentials and improve their own lives, fundamental elements for a more harmonic, and just collective social reality.
ADP currently seeks a skillful Assistant Director with a minimum commitment of 18 month. The candidate is preferably from a Latin background and has extensive experience working and living in a Latin country. He/She has excellent Spanish & English language skills.
The candidate would start out with a 3 month training period. If both parties are happy after this initial period the candidate will be offered a 15 month full staff position. Therefore we are looking for candidates interested in making a 18 month commitment.
This is an excellent opportunity for those looking to pursue a career in NGO administration and management. As we are going to expand ADP into a new location within the coming year, the successful candidate will be able to become either full Country Director or partner to the Country Director in the new location (likely to be Brazil). It is entirely possible that the candidate would be able to stay on to work as Country Director full time after the initial 18 month period as a full staff.
In ADP Santa Elena the assistant director is responsible for all volunteer care and placement into Aldeas de Paz programs. Primarily a support, customer focused position, this role is critical in ensuring the success of all new volunteers assimilating into the various programs offered, as well as into social life in Santa Elena.
The Assistant Director will have a natural interest in meeting new people and living in a cooperative community setting with shared living facilities. He/She is be passionate about ensuring a positive experience for each volunteer and our beneficiaries and enjoys being called upon to assist with general administration of the foundations grounds and the community setting.
The Assistant Director position involves office work and foundation grounds based activities and in-community project support in the village. ADP normally has between 5 and 12 volunteers working in different programs and living in Aldeas de Paz facilities and host families.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
Volunteer Placement
• Host family arrangements
o Give advanced notice of arrivals with information sheet about the volunteer
o Pay host family
o Regularly check in with host family to find out how things are going or if support is needed. Find out if there are any problems with volunteer behavior that needs to be addressed.
• Chirikayen Placement
o Help with coordination of transport to and from Chirikayen Indigenous community
o Interact with Chirikayen authorities and hostfamily
o Regularly check in with Chirikayen host family to find out how things are going or any needs, support they may need. Find out if there are any problems with volunteer behavior that needs to be addressed.
• Coordinate weekly program placements meetings with volunteers
o Introduce and supervise new volunteers in the program/s of their choice
o Introduce new volunteers to the cooperative living guidelines
o Give regular talks to volunteers on subjects like volunteering, correct attitude, cultural sensitivity and behavior while working with Aldeas de Paz programs in the community
o Make sure main programs have sufficient volunteers
o Supervise fulfillment of individual work commitments volunteers have chosen to make
Oversee Household Coordination
• Cooperative Living Meetings
o Facilitate meetings, making sure there is clear resolution to each topic, and keeping people on topic
o Organize cleaning & cooking calendar and make sure everyone signs up
o Organize regular food shopping and make sure shopping lists are created and necessary food is bought
• Familiarize new volunteers with household
• Keep Cooperative Living policies updated
• Make sure parties are well organized
o Assign a person to each task (buy supplies, set up, enforcement (making sure people stay in appropriate social areas and no dangerous behavior occurs),
o Organize that somebody stays up until last guest is gone
o Organize clean-up and be the ultimate enforcement of these tasks
• Make sure assigned chores are done by inspecting and follow up as needed
• Organize the purchase of household and hardware goods
Accountability
• Hold volunteers accountable to volunteer commitments (including three-strikes rule)
• Advise volunteers on maintaining the image of the foundation in the community, appropriate attitude, cultural sensitivity and behavior while working with Aldeas de Paz programs in the community
• Ensure volunteers uphold the reputation of Aldeas de Paz within the community even when only socially interacting in their free time
Volunteer Arrivals
• Coordination with service operators (pick-up, transfer, hotel accommodation, etc)
• Make community members aware of imminent volunteer arrivals
• Produce Volunteer Starter / Induction Pack and give introduction and in-country preparation /training to incoming volunteers
• Collect necessary forms and paperwork on arrival
• Bring volunteers to placement on first day and introduce them to community members
• Conduct introduction meeting and grounds tour
• Explain the different projects that the foundation is involved in and the possible volunteer opportunities, and find out which of these the volunteer wants to be involved in
• Arrange for volunteer pickup from bus terminal
• Integrate volunteers into social activities
• Clean and prep rooms for arrival
• Adapt introduction folder materials as needed
• Hand out volunteers t-shirt
Volunteer Departures
• Collect Volunteer Questionnaires
• Invite volunteers to sign the Guest Book
• Make Volunteer Certificates and write letters of recommendation (reference) to potential employers of former volunteers
• Organize bring volunteers to terminal. Help them buy bus ticket.
• Make sure volunteers clean their room before leaving, turning in all linens.
Financial
• Collect payments from volunteers upon arrival and keep track of daily cash flow
• Keep track of food money, didactic materials spending and program budgets
• Keep track of workers weekly payments and purchase of materials
Program Support
• Check in with programs for needed support
• Supervise interns and volunteers on their assignment
• Do general supervision when beneficiaries are on the foundation grounds
o Show volunteers where needed materials are
o Make sure no dangerous activities are taking place
o Make sure there is always an optimum ratio of volunteers to children
• Coordinate on-the-grounds work
o i.e. Tree planting, gardening, compost, tree maintenance, therapeutic riding, English classes
• Research new program opportunities with local institutions, schools and daycare centers
• Give twice the week an hour of conversational Spanish language classes to volunteers and staff and always emphasize the use of the Spanish language in the cooperative living setting with volunteers and fellow staff members.
Peacekeeping
• Facilitate conflict resolution
• Coordinate needed meetings when problems arise
• Find ways to keep negativity, bullying and gossip to a minimum
• Attend neighborhood meetings and mediate conflicts / look for solutions with neighbor problems
o Advise volunteers on respectable behavior within the community and with beneficiaries
o Organize and lead social awareness and sensitivity building lectures and activities with and for volunteers during meetings and whenever possible
Public Relations
• Maintain PR with local authorities, institutions and look for new PR possibilities in the community
Administration & Office work
• Reception Duties: Answer phone calls / general inquiries
• Preparation of regular monthly newsletter
• Attend and coordinate all management and volunteer meetings including minute taking
• Administrate stationary supplies
• Look for ways to improve operational parts of the NGO e.g. setting up new systems
• Translate web page and other organizational documents
• Write monthly activity reports and attend meetings with the board of directors
Tutoring/Teaching NGO Management & Administration interns and volunteers
• Delegate work to NGO Management & Administration volunteers and interns when possible and explain important aspects of NGO Management
• Give them the opportunity to shade you during your daily work and delegate according to their skills and language abilities.
SPECIFIC SKILLS
Service Focused
• Outstanding customer rapport. Ability to make people feel at ease, cared for, and well supported
• Open-minded attitude and ability to communicate at all levels with a consistent, well balanced approach
• High level of integrity and maturity
• Happy to go above and beyond when responding to volunteer queries
Commitment
• Proactive and results focussed attitude
• Ability to multi-task and follow through with assigned tasks
• Display a high level of integrity and passion for social work + humanitarian issues
• Share views of Aldeas de Paz and contributing to shaping the future of the Foundation
• Team player - willingness to be involved and take on additional duties if required
• Strong supervisory and leadership skills
Flexibility
• Excellent Time management /organisational skills
• Tolerant and patient manner
• Ability to work occasionally under pressure and cope with sometimes stressful situations
• Capacity to enjoy living in a cooperative community setting with shared living facilities and in frequent contact with fellow community members even after work hours and on weekends
• Available to work weekends and additional hours if required
Please note: Aldeas de Paz staff work schedule includes time devoted to job tasks as well as rotating house tasks related to the fact that staff members live together and share daily life at the cooperative living setting on Aldeas de Paz grounds with volunteers, interns and fellow staff. Each staff member is free to decide how he/she will complete the job, but should also understand that this may occasionally require working on weekends. – Please also read: (
http://www.peacevillages.org/volunteering_accommodation.htm)
Language Skills and Cultural Background
• Conversational English and Spanish language skills
• Given the cultural context he/she is preferably of Latin background
Technical Skills
• Accurate typing skills
• Basic accounting skills - accuracy in preparation of monthly spending accounts (Microsoft Works)
• Some knowledge of using Access, MS office, MS FrontPage and MS Project would be advantageous
• Good understanding, knowledge and experience in budgeting, financial management and cost control are critical for success
• Research skills using internet
• Driving licence (international) and advanced driving skills (Toyota Samurai 4X4 manual gear)
WHAT WE OFFER
Please do not apply for a staff position unless you are comfortable with a large amount of responsibility in a variety of tasks. The commitment for the job is 18 months and is offered under the following conditions:
• Three months mutual trial period
• Monthly Venezuelan Bolivar 500,-
• 3 weeks unpaid holidays per year (first week holidays after six months)
• Full board and accommodation
• Use of washing machine
• Use of foundation-grounds & recreational facilities
