Operations Assistant

Focus of the Role

TBI continues to grow its work in MENA. As a result of this growth, we are searching for an outstanding candidate to provide effective and efficient support to the TBI teams in Morocco and to ensure smooth administrative and operational delivery. This includes administrative, operational and business setup support to the TBI management and other staff members.

The role reports in to the Country Head of Morocco, will also work closely with central teams, including the Global Security and Operations Team and will be part of a wider cohort of Operations Assistants. The postholder will deliver excellent logistical, operational and administrative support to our people and work closely with our teams on the ground.

Key Responsibilities

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­The Operations Assistant will be either directly responsible for implementing the tasks below or will provide oversight of staff and departments that perform these functions.

Business setup support

• Support business and operational setup in Morocco, including financial management; support with problem solving issues that arise, supporting setting up bank accounts and management of cash in-country. Ensure we maintain minimum cash levels in case of security evacuation
• Support in seeking out and setting up appropriate office locations and relocated staff accommodations, and support maintenance of TBI managed properties. Conduct and document security assessments of new buildings. Ensure a facilities list is kept up to date for your area of responsibility
• Liase with Legal and Finance teams to ensure adequate documentation and support with ad-hoc requests related to the setup of the TBI entity in Morocco

Ongoing business support functions

• IT: liase with central IT support and HR onboarding teams, to ensure that all staff have adequate IT equipment
• HR and staffing: liase with central HR teams to manage onboarding of new staff, advise country staff on HR and staffing policies, ensure team members in country have the correct right to work permit/visas
• Admin: support the Country Head and country leadership team with logistics support
• Travel: Ensure the consistent use of and adherence to the TBI travel management system and procedures
• Coordinate in country moves outside of core locations
• Support visa applications and arrival procedures of international staff and visitors to the programme
• Ensure that all international staff and visitors have a working means of communication within 24 hours of arrival in country

Office operations

• Onboard and oversee local vendors including cleaners, local IT etc.
• Ensure Moroccan government and company policies are being followed regarding protocols and procedures
• Liase with the Global Security and Operations Team to ensure protocols are followed and identify and flag operational risks to the Country Head
• Support projects with leadership visits and events as needed in the region with the logistics coordination between the teams involved
• Monitor and send country security updates to the Head of Security and Operations
• Participate in the crisis management team in the event of a medical or security emergency

Finance

• Maintain location monthly finance tracker and petty cash
• Manage financial activities in compliance with TBI policy and procedures
• Support the Country Head and team in central financial management including preparing requests for advance of funds and/or direct payments; monitoring budget expenditures and maintaining a proper record of budgets and spending

Safety, security and access

• With support from the Global Operations and Security team, develop country level security SOPs that are contextually appropriate to the risk to TBI staff and activities in country
• Maintain an active network with other agencies as well as key interlocutors to ensure that TBI understands the security context. Notify the Country Head and Global and Security and Operations Team when the political or security situation may impact TBI’s staff or activities
• Ensure that any violation of safety and security rules as well as security incidents are reported to the Country Head and Global Operations and Security team
• Work with the Country Head to enable safe access for TBI staff to new areas and identify key stakeholders and interlocutors relevant to the area of operation
• Ensure that all TBI locations are compliant with fire regulations and equipped with firefighting equipment where necessary
• Act as the point of contact in country to carry our security tasks as directed by the Global Security and Operations team
• Maintain an up to date country Flap sheet and communications tree

It is also expected that the postholder will cover any other duties as required where capacity and availability permits. These duties will be communicated in advance and agreed with the Country Head where possible.

Person Specification

The individual should work to the highest standard with a keen attention to detail delivering workable solutions to various teams with competing priorities.

They should proactively enagage with the business and be bold in their approach, working to make change for the better and improve operational efficiency and reduce the threat to our people, assets and reputation. They should be an ambassador for the team and build trust with those with whom they engage. They should be solution orientated.

In addition, the postholder should be able to demonstrate more than three years’ of experience of:

• Programme management
• Security, operations, logistics and administration

Fluency in written and spoken English and French is required. The successful candidate will be a citizen of Morocco.

About The Institute

The Tony Blair Institute (TBI) is a mission-driven not for profit organisation. We exist to equip political leaders and governments to build open, inclusive and prosperous societies. We work hard, every day, to make a difference. When governments work well they are able to create economic and social change in a way that promotes fairness, social justice and opportunity. We work relentlessly to support leader and governments with the challenges they face. Giving them practical solutions and actionable insights, that once implemented, can be transformative for their people.

We do this within two connected divisions:

Government Advisory

Our Government Advisory teams work directly with political leaders and governments around the world to implement reforms that improve the lives of their citizens. It has a variety of partners and  its outputs cover a range of disciplines and projects across countries in Africa, the Middle East, Eastern Europe and Asia.

Policy Futures

Our Policy Futures work encompasses three broad areas:

• Renewing the Centre: developing a bold and innovative domestic policy programme to help renew the centre ground of British politics;
• Tech and Public Policy: exploring the policy challenges and opportunities presented by the technological revolution; and
• Extremism Policy Unit: creating solutions designed to tackle the threat of extremist ideologies in the UK and around the world.

As an organisation the core beliefs we all embrace are:

• Open and Progressive: you’ll believe in the value of teamwork
• Bold and Pragmatic: you’ll approach everything you do with integrity and authenticity
• Optimistic Changemakers: you’ll be focused on results