Cash Impact at Scale Strategy Consultant at International Rescue Committee

1. Background and Strategic Context

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises, helping people survive, recover, and gain control of their futures. Cash and Voucher Assistance (CVA) is a cornerstone of IRC’s programming approach, enabling clients to meet their basic needs with dignity and agency.

As part of the IRC’s Strategy100 Phase 2 workplan, unconditional basic needs cash assistance has been identified as a scaling priority across international country programs. IRC is committed not only to expanding the volume and quality of cash assistance it delivers, but to fundamentally reshaping how cash is delivered, how the sector operates, and how the IRC positions itself globally as a leading voice and practitioner in CVA.

IRC’s ambition is to be recognized among the top-tier agencies globally for cash assistance – known for innovation, strategic clarity, operational excellence, and the ability to positively disrupt a sector that too often defaults to ‘business as usual.’ This consultancy sits at the heart of that ambition.

To achieve cash impact at scale, IRC requires sharp strategic thinking on two fronts: (1) identifying the most promising innovations that could drive more cash to more clients faster and more efficiently; and (2) determining how IRC can catalyze meaningful sector-wide change – reshaping norms, attracting additional resources, and counterbalancing entrenched power dynamics within the humanitarian architecture.

2. Scope of Work

This consultancy has two closely linked but distinct components. The consultant will work collaboratively with IRC’s Quality in Emergencies and Economic Recovery and Development Technical Units and senior leadership, producing iterative and actionable strategy products throughout the engagement – not simply notes or synthesis documents, but polished outputs that IRC can directly use.

Component 1: Cash Innovation Scoping and Pathway Analysis

The consultant will support IRC to identify and prioritize the most promising innovations and new ways of working that could drive greater cash impact at scale. This is not an exercise in cataloguing what others are doing – it is about helping IRC make bold, evidence-informed bets on where to invest.

This component will involve:

• Working with the cash team to understand IC’s existing CVA programming, including technology infrastructure, working contexts, key policies, recent /ongoing pilots, and partnerships to establish an accurate internal baseline.

• Undertaking Key Informant Interviews (KIIs) and targeted desk research to map the innovation landscape, including innovative delivery mechanisms, responsible AI and technology applications, alternative client identification and targeting approaches including social protection systems, and emerging financing models.

• Deliberately seeking out non-traditional actors – including fintech companies, social protection specialists, private sector players, academic institutions, governments and actors from the Global South – to ensure this scoping yields fresh thinking rather than reproducing conventional humanitarian perspectives.

• Presenting interim findings to the IRC team, followed by a collaborative session to agree on 2–3 priority innovation pathways for deeper analysis that align with the IRC’s cash scale ambitions and operating contexts (including key country programs IRC is focusing on to ‘go big’).For each selected pathway, developing a full ‘pathway model’ that describes: the core proposition; the operational and strategic investment required; the prize if IRC leans in (including projected reach to clients, funding attractiveness, and market positioning impact); key risks and mitigations; and concrete first steps.

• Preparing pitch materials, supporting statistics, and talking points for each pathway model, ready for use with internal decision-makers, donors, and external audiences.

Component 2: Positive Disruption Strategy for Sector Change

The consultant will advise IRC on how to drive ‘positive disruption’ to the broader humanitarian CVA sector – moving decisively away from business-as-usual approaches and toward a future where cash assistance is better resourced, more equitably governed, and more impactful for clients.

This component will involve:

• Analyzing IRC’s current positioning and influence within the CVA sector, including relative to UN agencies, peer INGOs and LNGOs, CALP, nationally delivered cash systems, and other coordination bodies, and identifying the levers available to IRC to shift sector dynamics.

• Developing 2–3 distinct ‘disruption models,’ each articulating: the change theory; what positive transformation it would bring to clients and to agencies; how it would reshape market incentives or power structures; and how IRC would catalyze and sustain the shift.

• Assessing how each disruption model would position IRC to attract additional funding, deepen partnerships, and establish IRC as a top-tier global CVA actor.

• Producing a written strategy report (~10–15 pages) detailing IRC’s recommended positive disruption approach, with clear rationale, prioritized actions, and a sequenced implementation roadmap.

• Producing supporting materials: an executive summary for senior leadership; a one-page ‘case for change’ for external stakeholders; and pitch-ready presentation, talking points and statistics.

3. Deliverables and Timeline

The consultant will produce the following deliverables in two phases, with an iterative approach that allows IRC to review, provide input, and shape outputs before they are finalized. Products should be polished and ready for use – not draft notes requiring significant further development by IRC staff.

4. Payment Rate and Schedule

The daily rate for this consultancy is to be agreed upon contract award, commensurate with the seniority and expertise required.

• Payment 1 (50%): Released upon satisfactory completion of Deliverables D1, D2, and D3 (KII notes, desk research synthesis, and interim findings brief), as confirmed by the IRC focal point.

• Payment 2 (50%): Released upon satisfactory completion of Deliverables D4, D5, and D6 (innovation pathway models, disruption strategy report, and supporting materials), as confirmed by the IRC focal point.

All deliverables are subject to an IRC review and feedback process. The consultant will be expected to incorporate reasonable revisions at no additional cost.

5. Required Qualifications, Skills, and Experience

IRC is seeking an exceptional senior consultant with a combination of deep CVA expertise, strategic acumen, and experience/confidence to challenge conventional wisdom. We are looking for someone who has not only worked within the humanitarian system but who understands its limitations and has the vision and experience to help reshape it.

Essential Requirements

• Minimum 10 years of senior-level experience in cash and voucher assistance in humanitarian contexts, with a demonstrable track record of influence at strategic level, but also practical field-level CVA implementation.

• Proven experience in developing CVA strategy and translating strategy into operational reality, ideally within or alongside large-scale INGO programming.

• Strong grasp of the global CVA sector architecture, including the roles of key actors (UN agencies, INGOs, CALP, donors, national governments, and private sector), and the political economy that shapes sector decision-making.

• Demonstrated expertise in CVA themes and innovation, with a focus on at least one of: new delivery mechanisms, digital financial services, responsible AI and technology applications, social protection linkages, financial inclusion, or alternative targeting and identification models.

• Experience engaging non-traditional actors in CVA design or delivery (e.g., fintech companies, mobile money providers, private sector, academic or think-tank partners).

• Documented public thought leadership in CVA (e.g., published research papers, evaluations, guidance notes, blog posts, conference presentations, advisory roles).

• Exceptional analytical and synthesis skills, able to distil complex landscapes into clear strategic choices and well-evidenced recommendations.

• Strong written communication skills, with demonstrated ability to produce polished, professional strategy documents for senior audiences.

• Ability to facilitate and drive collaborative decision-making processes with senior stakeholders.

• University degree at Master’s level or above in a relevant field (international development, economics, public policy, or related discipline).

Highly Desirable

• Experience advising or working with large INGOs (comparable in scale and complexity to IRC) on CVA strategy, scaling, or transformation.

• Experience in sector-level advocacy, norm-shaping, or coordination including through platforms such as CALP, cluster and consortia coordination forums, Grand Bargain cash workstreams, or donor-level engagement.

• Knowledge of humanitarian financing trends and donor priorities as they relate to cash assistance, including flexible and multi-year funding mechanisms.

• Experience with private sector engagement in humanitarian response.

• Familiarity with humanitarian architecture power dynamics and the role that coordination bodies, UN agencies, and donor policies play in shaping outcomes at scale.

• Experience in Global South contexts and/or strong networks among CVA practitioners, researchers, and innovators outside traditional Western/northern hubs.

• Experience applying human-centred design or systems thinking approaches to humanitarian programming challenges.

• Demonstrated ability to work with and challenge senior stakeholders constructively, including advocating for bold or unconventional approaches.

Working Arrangements

• This role is fully remote; no travel is required.

• The consultant must be available for regular check-in calls and a structured mid-point working session with the IRC ERD Technical Unit.

• The consultant must be willing to work flexibly, including some calls outside standard business hours to accommodate staff across time zones.

• The consultant will be expected to work with a high degree of autonomy, managing their own workload to meet agreed milestones.