Risk, Governance and Compliance Manager
Kenya
Trending
Job Description
ROLE PURPOSE:
Reporting directly to the Country Director, the Risk, Governance, and Compliance Manager (RGCM) is responsible for leading the strategic oversight and implementation of risk management, governance frameworks, and compliance systems across the Kenya and Madagascar Country Office. The RGCM ensures that Save the Children International (SCI) operates within a robust control environment, adheres to SCI policies, donor requirements, and local legal frameworks, and maintains high standards of accountability, transparency, and ethical conduct.
This role provides expert guidance and leadership in identifying, assessing, and mitigating internal and external risks, ensuring compliance with SCI policies, donor requirements, and local laws, and supporting in local governance management and structure. The RGCM also plays a key role in strengthening governance structures, supporting internal audits, and promoting a culture of integrity and continuous improvement.
SCOPE OF ROLE:
Reports to: Country Director
Staff directly reporting to this post: TBC
Geographic scope: Kenya and Madagascar
Risk Management Leadership:
- Participate in all SMT meetings to provide strategic risk, governance and compliance inputs, ensure decisions are compliant with SCI policies and Scheme of Delegation (SoD), record discussions for compliance purposes, and monitor follow-up of compliance and risk-related actions from the action tracker management.
- Lead the development, implementation, and monitoring of the Country Office Risk Management Plan and other relevant risk mitigation strategies and SOPs.
- Advise the Country Director and Senior Management Team (SMT) on emerging risks internally and externally and mitigation strategies.
- Facilitate regular risk assessments and ensure integration of risk management into strategic and operational planning.
- Liaise with relevant colleagues at the Global Team to align country-level risk practices with global standards and to fully meet all compliance and risk management requirements.
- Promote a proactive risk culture across all departments and field offices, ensuring risk awareness and accountability are embedded in team performance objectives and reviews.
Governance Oversight:
- Strengthen governance structures and ensure effective oversight mechanisms are in place for SMT, Country Office Advisory Board, and statutory compliance requirements.
- Support SMT and Local Board governance processes, including risk reporting, compliance dashboards, Board meetings and compliance processes, and internal control reviews.
- Ensure alignment of country office governance practices with SCI global policies and donor expectations.
- Champion ethical leadership, transparency and integrity in decision-making across the organisation.
- Ensure partners governance systems are reviewed and supported to meet SCI standards
Compliance and Internal Controls:
- Design and implement a comprehensive compliance framework covering SCI policies, donor regulations, partners requirements and local legal requirements.
- Lead internal reviews and audits of mission-critical business areas, producing high-quality, solution-focused reports and ensuring follow-up of audit findings.
- Monitor compliance across departments and provide tailored capacity-building support to ensure adherence.
- Coordinate external and internal audit processes, ensuring timely resolution of audit findings.
- Lead and provide oversight on investigations into fraud, corruption, and ethical misconduct, ensuring timely and transparent case management in collaboration with HR and the Business partners.
- Provide oversight of partners compliance and sub-grant management, ensuring accountability and donor alignment.
- Produce quarterly Compliance Dashboards and reports for SMT.
Ethical Standards and Organizational Integrity:
- Champion a culture of ethical leadership, integrity, and accountability across all levels of the Country Programme.
- Ensure full implementation of SCI’s Code of Conduct and related ethical policies, including anti-fraud, anti-corruption, and whistleblower protection.
- Lead the development and delivery of training and awareness sessions on ethical behavior, professional conduct, and organizational values.
- Monitor adherence to ethical standards and report concerns or violations through appropriate channels, ensuring confidentiality and protection from retaliation.
- Promote transparency, fairness, and respect in all internal and external interactions, including with partners, vendors, and beneficiaries.
- Collaborate with HR and other departments to embed ethical standards into our ways of working and disciplinary processes.
- Ensure good integration of safeguarding into risk and compliance assessments, in coordination with Safeguarding Coordinator and HR Director
- Ensure oversight of whistleblowing /hotline case handling, working with safeguarding and HR teams to maintain confidentiality and accountability.
Partnership and External Engagement:
- Maintain strategic relationships with local authorities and regulatory bodies that govern I/NGOs and the work of I/NGOs as well as and peer organisations, to stay abreast of legal and operational changes affecting I/NGOs.
- Monitor the external regulatory environment and advise on implications for SCI operations.
- Participate in partner assessments and monitor compliance and risk in partner relationships.
- Support due diligence, compliance monitoring, and risk management for partner organizations.
- Provide capacity-strengthening support to partners on compliance, governance, and risk management.
- Represent SCI in donor audits, compliance reviews, and risk-related missions, ensuring confidence in SCI’s control environment.
- Participate in national and sectoral forums on governance, compliance, and localization.
SKILLS AND BEHAVIOURS (our Values in Practice)
Accountability:
- Holds self-accountability for making decisions, managing resources efficiently, achieving and role modelling Save the Children values.
- Holds the team and partners accountable to deliver on their responsibilities – giving them the freedom to deliver in the best way they see fit, providing the necessary development to improve performance and applying appropriate consequences when results are not achieved.
- Promotes transparency and responsible stewardship of resources.
Ambition:
- Sets ambitious and challenging goals for themselves (and their team), takes responsibility for their own personal development and encourages others to do the same
- Widely shares their personal vision for Save the Children, engages and motivates others
- Future orientated, thinks strategically
- Thinks strategically and inspires others to achieve shared goals.
Collaboration:
- Builds and maintains effective relationships, with their team, colleagues, members and external partners and supporters
- Values diversity, sees it as a source of competitive strength
- Approachable, good listener, easy to talk to
Creativity:
- Develops and encourages new and innovative solutions
- Willing to take disciplined risks
- Adapts to changing environments with agility.
Integrity:
- Honest, encourages openness and transparency
- Promotes a culture of openness, trust, and integrity.
QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE
- Relevant professional qualifications (CPA/CA/ACCA) – preferred but not mandatory
- Minimum 7 years of progressive experience in risk, compliance, or governance roles, with at least 3 years at management level in an NGO or donor-funded environment.
- Experience in fraud risk management, investigations and case handling.
- Experience in partner compliance oversight and capacity strengthening.
- An unquestionably high level of integrity and ethics
- Computer fluency; highly competent using MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint and experience working in complex financial systems
- Understanding of strategic finance issues with strong influencing skills, sharp business acumen and sound judgment
- Experience of working effectively, independently and with minimal supervision
- Strong relationship builder with a proven track record in forming good business partnerships and utilising collaborative approaches
- Excellent communication skills, initiative, the ability to meet tight deadlines and work independently is essential
- Strong analytical, problem-solving skills.
- Available to travel frequently to all operational locations.
- Fluent in written and spoken English and Swahili
Desirable
- Experience with Save the Children award management and financial systems (AMS and Agresso)
- Experience in audit management
Sound understanding of critical SCI policies
THE ORGANIZATION
We employ approximately 25,000 people across the globe and work on the ground in over 100 countries to help children affected by crises, or those that need better healthcare, education and child protection. We also campaign and advocate at the highest levels to realise the right of children and to ensure their voices are heard.
We are working towards three breakthroughs in how the world treats children by 2030:
- No child dies from preventable causes before their 5th birthday.
- All children learn from a quality basic education and that,
- Violence against children is no longer tolerated.
Save the Children is an equal opportunity employer and seeks to employ and assign the best-qualified talent.
Female Candidates are encouraged to apply.
Disclaimer:
Beware that there are individuals who may take and use SCI’s name in an attempt to solicit fees from interested job-seekers. We do not use recruiting persons or agencies to help us identify candidates for employment. If you’re contacted by a person promising you recruitment or placement at SCI for a charge, do not accept, and please get in touch with us at [email protected].
Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
