Response Director, Syria Response at World Vision

With 75 years of experience, our focus is on helping the most vulnerable children overcome poverty and experience fullness of life. We help children of all backgrounds, even in the most dangerous places, inspired by our Christian faith.

Come join our 31,000+ staff working in nearly 100 countries and share the joy of transforming vulnerable children’s life stories!

Employee Contract Type:

International Assignment (WVI – Paid via GCLA) Fixed Term (Fixed Term)

Job Description:

JOB PURPOSE

World Vision is seeking an exceptional humanitarian leader with a strong track record and demonstrated excellence in leading large-scale responses, someone who combines strategic vision with execution, inspires high-performing teams, and brings outstanding capability in partnerships, communication, and risk leadership.

The Syria Response Director will lead and shape World Vision’s humanitarian and recovery response across Syria and Jordan, while maintaining strategic oversight of evolving opportunities in Türkiye. This pivotal role will drive a high-impact, well-resourced, and innovative response in a highly dynamic humanitarian context—ensuring excellence in both program quality and scale.

The Director will also spearhead the next phase of the whole of Syria approach, strengthening coherence across response areas and progressively aligning capacities and functions into Syria where feasible. As leader of the Syria Response Senior Leadership Team, the role will energize and steer delivery of the FY27–28 strategy, fostering strong collaboration, integration, and accountability across all response contexts.

The position will oversee a diverse and multi-country portfolio, unlocking efficiencies, leveraging cross-border synergies, and optimizing resources to deliver a unified, agile, and cost-effective response. As a senior representative, the Director will actively engage and influence key external stakeholders, while upholding the highest standards of risk management, operational integrity, and accountability in line with World Vision’s Disaster Management Standards and Enterprise Risk Management framework.

Key Job Responsibilities:

(a) Strategy & Planning

• Lead the development and implementation of the Syria Response (for the Syria and Jordan programs and Turkiye “watch the context”) strategy that aligns with the overall World Vision Global Strategy, Our Promise.
• Ensure strategic and operational alignment of all functions to meet humanitarian needs while taking into account operational feasibility and technical quality
• Lead in assessment and implementation of enterprise risk management and business continuity contingency planning.
• Working with Resource Development Unit (RDU), Finance and Operations, ensure proper cost recovery in all grants and other funding streams.
• Lead in the planning and acquisition of diverse funding to implement the strategy.
• Monitor appropriateness and implementation of strategy and operational plans.
• Ensure that clear scenario plans are established for each of the country programs within the Response as required.
• Review the way forward for WV in Turkiye prior to the expiry of the current registration (April ’27): decision to renew or not renew.

(b) Leadership & Management

• Promote World Vision’s vision, core values and key global Partnership standards and practices across offices and partner agencies.
• Lead the Senior Leadership Team in a manner that facilitates a high-performance culture, accountability, openness, strong relationships, integrity, decisiveness and fosters a spirit of team unity and synergy between program offices of the response.
• Ensure that the World Vision Response and its implementing partners have adequate implementing capacity, appropriate systems and processes, and proper risk management requirements are in place, including standards for monitoring, escalating to and managing incidents.
• Ensure an organizational structure that results in optimal efficiency and effectiveness, minimizing duplication and leveraging synergies between program offices.
• Model a high standard of Christian leadership, maturity and integrity as an example to staff, and provide overall spiritual leadership for the Response team.
• Ensure each program office implements World Vision’s performance management standards and principles for all staff.
• Ensure internal communications mechanisms are in place so policies, information and decisions are shared with staff as appropriate.

(c) Collaboration & Networking

• Establish and maintain collaborative relationships and partnerships with host government, bilateral donors, other NGOs, UN agencies, civil society and diverse faith-based organizations,
• Prioritize high-level external engagement with donors, UN Agencies, humanitarian community, UN Cluster system, other NGO’s and INGO’s, Support Offices and other stakeholders to stimulate resource acquisition, maximize impact, foster coordination and partnering and profile raising for WVI.
• Priority engagement with the Syria NGO based out of Damascus. Coordinate with the Programs Director for ongoing engagement and participation in meetings
• Ensure that World Vision leadership receives timely information about areas of conflict that potentially affect World Vision’s presence and effectiveness.
• Actively engage in relevant Response-wide and Syria-related coordination mechanisms and, where relevant, consortium meetings, and UN Clusters.
• Ensure a strong advocacy capacity, in particular child-focused themes aligned with strategy and organizational priorities.

(d) Ministry Standards/Accountability

• Ensure each office/country’s programme development and implementation are meeting World Vision priorities and standards, and are of the highest quality and impact possible within the context.
• Ensure all programmes reflect WV’s environmental stewardship policy.
• Ensure that feedback and complaint mechanisms for beneficiaries, communities, other stakeholders and World Vision staff are in place and acted on in each country.
• Ensure that all programmes are implemented, monitored and evaluated according to agreements with donors and other stakeholders.
• Ensure (where applicable based on country programs) that a contextually relevant remote partner management system is in place, including monitoring, evaluation, reporting and accountability, to achieve maximum impact while doing no harm.

(e) Finance & Compliance

• Ensure financial resources are managed according to agreements with donors and standards approved by World Vision.
• Ensure that audit reports are responded to and recommendations implemented within approved/agreed timeframes.
• Ensure efficient and effective organizational practices that would result in successful financial and operational audit scores.
• Ensure a close, effective and supportive relationship is developed with the Business Support functions’ (Finance, Supply Chain, People & Culture and IT) Directors to improve efficiency and eliminate unapproved organisational obstructions.
• Exercise good stewardship over all resources by maintaining sound internal controls, risk register, procedures and records according to WVI accountability standards.

(f) Human Resources (People & Culture)

• Ensure that P&C policies are adapted and aligned with those of World Vision International
• Ensure that the quality of staff recruited and retained is at a level to meet the organization’s overall performance expectations.
• Promote a culture of learning and development, employee engagement and good stewardship of human capital in the office
• Ensure P&C establishes a staff care function and mechanism that supports staff well-being.

(g) Safety & Security

• Ensure that World Vision’s security policies and protocols are implemented and monitored on a regular basis
• Ensure ongoing monitoring of the external security environment
• Ensure experienced, high-quality staffing of the safety and security function

(h) Reporting & Knowledge Management

• Ensure that all internal and external reporting requirements are planned for, and quality reports are submitted on time. This will include regular reporting on the situation, potential impact and risk, progress and development of the programme.
• Ensure that communication products are developed and disseminated to internal and external audiences.
• Ensure internal coordination & information sharing mechanisms result in improved staff awareness and performance.
• Ensure each country office in Syria Response has a structured approach to meeting WV minimum quality standards and supporting programme improvement, reflection, learning and innovation.

Required Education, Professional Experience, Training/Skills for the Role

• A minimum of 5+ years in leadership roles with International NGOs in emergency relief, rehabilitation and transition programming.
• University degree or qualification in a relevant subject with a focus on team management, project management or other relevant skills.
• Experience in working in a large matrixed organization, combined with a good understanding of how mutual accountability and collaboration work in such environments.
• Demonstrated understanding of humanitarian principles, standards and best practices.
• Excellent communications and relationship management skills, with the ability to express ideas and concepts clearly and persuasively with senior internal and external stakeholders.
• Proven track record of leading multi-cultural teams in complex, culturally and politically sensitive contexts.
• Extensive experience in program management and implementation of multi-sectoral emergency response projects
• Proven track record of growing and managing multi-million-dollar budgets.
• Politically astute and well-developed diplomatic skills (dealing with host governments, donors and staff).
• Experience working in high-pressure, rapid-response environments with multiple risks

Required Language, Travel and/or Work Environment

• Based in Damascus with 35-40% travel to the field where Syria Response’s programs operate and Jordan.
• The role is demanding and at times highly stressful, requiring the Syria Response Director to lead and manage in situations of high pressure and stress. Hostile Environment Awareness Training is needed for this position.
• The ability to work and lead multinational/multicultural teams is essential.

Applicant Types Accepted: