Regional Fraud and Corruption Investigator - Ethics and Compliance Department - Remote

Description

Location: United States, Africa and Middle East (Remote)

This position is open to any Mercy Corps office location. Valid unrestricted work authorization in the country in which you will be based is required at the time of application for this position.

Position Status: Exempt, Full-time, Regular

Salary Level:

• US: Starting salary for this role will be $64,000 - $76,000 commensurate to experience.
• Based on local benchmark for candidates outside of the United States.

About Mercy Corps

Mercy Corps is powered by the belief that a better world is possible. To do this, we know our teams do their best work when they are diverse, and every team member feels that they belong. We welcome diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be stronger and have long term impact.

Program / Department Summary

Mercy Corps’ global fraud and corruption team is a key part of the Mercy Corps Ethics and Compliance Department (ECD) and leads our organizational efforts to prevent, detect, deter and respond to fraud and corruption issues. The team reports to the Senior Director, Fraud and Corruption Investigations, who reports to the Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer (CECO). The global fraud and corruption team is bolstered by a global network of investigators and focal points working at the country level to investigate fraud and corruption and raise awareness about ethics and fraud and corruption.

The Position

Under the direction of the Senior Fraud and Corruption Investigator, the Regional Fraud and Corruption Investigator will serve as the focal point for ensuring compliance with Mercy Corps’ ethics policies and procedures in either the Middle East or Africa. They will ensure that Mercy Corps takes all reports of misconduct seriously and investigates allegations of fraud and corruption thoroughly and impartially consistent with sector-wide best practices and donor expectations. The Regional Investigator will plan, conduct and prepare reports for assigned fraud and corruption investigations. They may be supported by Integrity Focal Points, who are field-based team members trained to support but not lead investigations. Investigations will be conducted in the field and remotely, working in diverse cultural contexts and time zones.

Essential Responsibilities

STRATEGY AND VISION

• Deliver quality results even under difficult or changing conditions.
• Ensure that lessons learned are captured from fraud and corruption investigations for the agency to consider when revising policies, procedures, and training.
• Understands ethics related compliance requirements and what it takes to ensure a culture that takes ethical issues and obligations seriously.

INVESTIGATIONS

• Ensure investigations are conducted in a manner that considers the safety and security of all involved
• Effectively plan and execute impartial, thorough, timely and confidential investigations into allegations of fraud and corruption
• Develop and draft timely investigation plans that identify risks
• Conduct whistleblower, witness, and subject interviews, both in-person and remotely
• Identify, collect, and review documentary evidence needed for investigations
• Prepare comprehensive investigation reports, which may be subject to third-party (donor) review, on a timely basis, working with other functions to provide clear recommendations for internal control improvements
• Discuss findings and recommendations with country-level senior management and other team members as required
• Coordinate with Integrity Focal Points to support investigation efforts when possible
• Maintain knowledge of Mercy Corps’ internal policies and procedures
• Ensure investigation files are organized, thorough, and maintained in a confidential manner Maintain appropriate confidentiality within the agency and with third parties

TRAINING AND AWARENESS

• Help build trust and confidence in Mercy Corps’ reporting, investigation, and follow up systems, and foster a climate where team members feel confident and comfortable coming forward with issues
• In coordination with established onboarding processes, assist with the onboarding of new team members to ensure awareness and understanding of Mercy Corps’ ethics policie
• Conduct and/or coordinate regular anti-fraud and anti-corruption trainings for team members

PERSONAL LEADERSHIP

• Consistently strive to exceed expectations and demonstrate flexibility, resilience and the ability to maintain positive relationships and composure, even under difficult circumstances
• Maintain high ethical standards and treat people with respect and dignity
• Demonstrate an awareness of personal strengths and development needs, modeling non-defensive behavior and openness to feedback; builds a culture of feedback and learning
• Identify a robust personal Work Plan that reflects Mercy Corps’ performance expectations, including development objectives that contribute to Mercy Corps’ objectives

SAFEGUARDING RESPONSIBILITIES

• Actively learns about safeguarding and integrates it into their work, including safeguarding risks and mitigations related to their area of work.
• Practices the values of Mercy Corps including respecting the dignity and well-being of participants and fellow team members.
• Encourages openness and communication in their team; encourages team members to submit reports if they have any concerns using reporting mechanisms e.g., Integrity Hotline and other options.

Supervisory Responsibility

The Regional Fraud and Corruption Investigator has no supervisory responsibilities.

Accountability

Reports Directly To: Senior Fraud and Corruption Investigator

Works Directly With: Senior Director, Fraud and Corruption; Integrity Focal Points; country-level senior management teams

Accountability to Participants and Stakeholders

Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our program participants, community partners, other stakeholders, and to international standards guiding international relief and development work. We are committed to actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.

Minimum Qualifications & Transferable Skills

• Bachelor's degree (or equivalent) and 4+ years of professional experience; including at least 3 years as a trained and practiced investigator.
• Experience working in the Middle East or Africa is preferred.
• Experience working in humanitarian aid or development, either living overseas or spending a significant amount of time in foreign countries, is preferred
• Proven investigative skills and the ability to act as a lead investigator, including the interviewing of subjects of complaints and witnesses, the collection of potential evidence, and other related investigative procedures.
• Demonstrated ability to produce detailed investigation reports.
• Demonstrated knowledge and interest in ethics, fraud, and corruption, and a sensitivity to cultural diversity and gender issues.
• Solid understanding of a wide-range of ethics violations, including fraud and corruption
• Strong verbal and written communication skills.
• Fluency in English (both written and verbal) is required. Proficiency in Arabic (for Middle East roles) or French (for Africa roles) is preferred and considered a plus for the role.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, effective organizational and interpersonal skills
• Ability to navigate difficult circumstances with a calm demeanor and in a methodical, analytical manner.
• Additional experience as an ethics officer, attorney, or similar position is preferred

Success Factors

The successful Regional Fraud and Corruption Investigator will have (or quickly develop) knowledge of the INGO environment; deep knowledge of best practices in conducting fraud and corruption investigations; a proven ability to analyze complex situations with varying cultures, languages and education levels; the ability to objectively document and prioritize findings and to develop workable recommendations for improvement. This person will have an utmost understanding of and appreciation for the confidential nature of this work. Effective, positive communication is essential to success in this position.

Living Conditions / Environmental Conditions

This position is open to any Mercy Corps office location. Applicants must have a valid, unrestricted work authorization in the country where they will be based. The role may also require up to 15% travel per year, which may include travel to insecure locations where freedom of movement is limited and areas where amenities are limited. Travel for investigations is occasionally urgent, resulting in travel departure within days of notice.

Mercy Corps team members represent the agency both during and outside work hours when deployed in a field posting or on a visit/TDY to a field posting. Team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and MC's policies, procedures, and values at all times and in all in-country venues.

Ongoing Learning

In support of our belief that learning organizations are more effective, efficient and relevant to the communities we serve, we empower all team members to dedicate 5% of their time to learning activities that further their personal and/or professional growth and development.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges. We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives.

We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening and evolving to become more diverse, equitable and inclusive than we are today.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Mercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer that does not tolerate discrimination on any basis. We actively seek out diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be collectively stronger and have sustained global impact.

We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunities are available to all. We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status or any other protected group in the locations where we work.

Safeguarding & Ethics

Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work, whether team members, community members, program participants or others, are treated with respect and dignity. We are committed to the core principles regarding prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary General and IASC and have signed on to the Interagency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. By applying for this role an applicant confirms that they have not previously violated an employer’s sexual misconduct, sexual exploitation and abuse, child safeguarding or trafficking policy. We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members. As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and to adhere to Mercy Corps Code of Conduct Policies and values at all times. Team members are required to complete mandatory Code of Conduct e-learning courses upon hire and on an annual basis.

As an applicant, if you witness or experience any form of sexual misconduct during the recruitment process, please report this to Mercy Corps Integrity Hotline (integrityhotline@mercycorps.org).

Covid-19 Vaccine Policy for US-Based Employees

Mercy Corps has determined that, in an effort to protect the health, safety, and well-being of all Mercy Corps employees working in the United States, all U.S.-based employees must be fully vaccinated for COVID-19, regardless of prior COVID-19 infection status. This policy is necessary to ensure not only the safety of our workforce, but the ongoing functionality of the organization.

This policy will be revised as needed to comply with federal, state, and local requirements, and to respond to changing guidance from public health authorities.

For new employees this requirement goes into effect within 10 business days of employment.  Team members that travel are expected to comply with host-country requirements, including vaccinations.  Failure to comply may impact your employment.  Proof of vaccination or exemption must be provided.

Keywords

FraudCorruptionInvestigatorEthicsComplianceInvestigationsTrainingAwarenessLeadershipSafeguarding