Regional Director - Latin America and Carribean (LAC)
Mexico

Oxfam will be seeking a dynamic Regional Director from May/June 2008 for our newly created LAC region.  In addition to the role profile and person specification attached, the following provides a brief description and background information.

Oxfam is seeking an inspirational Regional Director to realise the vision of a newly created LAC region. You will be a visionary leader with a depth and range of strategic leadership experience enabling you to lead the region’s talented and motivated staff in a complex development organisation undergoing internal change.  You will have experience of living and working in Latin America, a good understanding of the development challenges of the region.  Ideally you may be a national from within the LAC region with international experience.  You may come from any sector, but some relevant experience of community development, policy influencing and/or humanitarian work will be expected.

An adept communicator you will enjoy a team approach, be able to foster a collegial supportive spirit across geographic distance, cultural diversity and through change management processes. You will have a track record in being outcome focussed. A natural networker, you will also be externally facing, seeking opportunities to realise the LAC vision to ensure Oxfam is an innovative change agent to realise its vision – “By 2020 women and men in LAC are realising their basic rights and through active citizenship and effective States are building a more inclusive and equal society.”  As a member of the International Division Senior Management Team you will play a key role in ensuring Oxfam’s experience in LAC both shapes our organisational agenda and that learning is shared more widely.

Background

Oxfam has been working in some parts of South & Central America and the Caribbean since the 1950’s.  Up until June 2008, Oxfam has managed its activities and programmes in over 10 countries across this area through two regional centres (Lima and Mexico).  In August 2007 we took the decision to merge the two regions of South America and CAMEXCA (Central America, Mexico and the Caribbean) into one.  This was primarily for strategic reasons.  With more similarities between country programmes than differences we felt we could be more effective in using our grassroots experience in a wider variety of countries to give us a strengthened Oxfam GB presence, with a greater opportunity for development, campaigning and advocacy work, and enable us to learn more from Latin America, especially in development of social movements and tackling inequality.  The location of the new Regional Centre will be decided in February 2008.  We will then publicly advertise the Regional Director post as soon as possible in March and recruit the new Regional Director in time so that she/he can play a role in appointing their senior team.  The structure of the Regional Centre is also being reviewed through a participatory process.  Conclusions from this process will be finalised in May/June 2008 and the implementation of these processes will be completed by end of 2008.

Also see

• Oxfam Corporate Strategy 2007-2010 (PDF, 941KB)
• Regional Director Job Profile
• Latin America and Carribean Vision Dec 07 (PDF, 793KB)
• Role of Regional Centres (PDF, 34KB)