Impact Communications Specialist Full Time NEW

About Mercy Corps

Mercy Corps is a leading global organization powered by the belief that a better world is possible. In disaster, in hardship, in more than 40 countries around the world, we partner to put bold solutions into action — helping people triumph over adversity and build stronger communities from within. Now, and for the future.

Mercy Corps has been operating in Ethiopia since 2004. In partnership with civil society organizations, academic institutions, private sector, and the government, Mercy Corps Ethiopia has reached more than five million Ethiopians with interventions to save lives and build secure livelihoods. Our programs emphasize market-driven solutions, reinforce social bonds, and help communities build resilience to the impacts of climate change. Currently in six regional states (Afar, Amhara, Gambella, Oromia, Somali, Tigray and the capital city of Ethiopia, Addis Ababa) Mercy Corps Ethiopia is driven by the mission to contribute the emergence of a peaceful, resilient, and prosperous Ethiopia which is inclusive of youth and women.

Location: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Position Status: Full-time, Regular

Salary Level: (Refer to the relevant salary scale)

• Risk Level: ☐ Level 3 ☐Level 2 ☐Level 1

Level 3: Frequent contact with participants, direct contact with children, access to sensitive data, and/or high level of accountability.

Level 2: Some contact with participants; unplanned non-direct contact with children.

Level 1: Likely to have no contact with participants or sensitive data)

The Program / Department / Summary

The Economic Recovery for Conflict-Affected Populations (ER-CAP) Program is a SIDA-funded, multi-partner initiative led by Mercy Corps in collaboration with DRC and First Consult, aimed at supporting resilient and inclusive economic recovery in conflict-affected regions of Tigray, Amhara and Afar in Ethiopia. Operating in a fragile context, the program focuses on strengthening livelihoods, market systems, and community resilience through evidence-based, adaptive, and conflict-sensitive approaches. It integrates learning, accountability, and stakeholder engagement to drive sustainable change, ensuring that recovery pathways, systems strengthening, and resilience-building processes are well-documented and communicated. By aligning program delivery with a strong Theory of Change, ER-CAP emphasizes collaboration across partners, promotes dignified and ethical engagement with communities, and contributes to broader sector learning and influence while meeting donor visibility and reporting requirements.

The Position (General Position Summary)

The Impact Communications Specialist will lead to the day-to-day implementation of the ER-CAP communications strategy, ensuring that program visibility, learning, accountability, and stakeholder engagement are delivered in a coherent, high-quality, and conflict-sensitive manner.

The role is responsible for transforming program evidence, field realities, and learning into clear, compelling, and ethically grounded communications outputs that support donor reporting, stakeholder engagement, and sector influence.

Working closely with program, MRM and MEL, and field teams across the consortium, the Impact Communications Specialist will ensure that communications is fully integrated into program delivery and adaptive learning processes.

Essential Responsibilities

STRATEGY, PLANNING AND COORDIANTION

• Create and operationalize the ER-CAP Communications Plan across all program locations and partners
• Translate communications strategy into actionable workplans and content pipelines
• Coordinate communications activities across Mercy Corps, DRC, and First Consult teams
• Ensure alignment between communications outputs, program priorities, and donor requirements
• Contribute to development of program-wide impact narratives for donor and strategic reporting
• Provide insights to inform adaptive management and program decision-making

CONTENT DEVELOPMENT AND STORY TELLING

• Lead development of high-quality communications products including human-interest stories, success stories, case studies, and learning briefs
• Document recovery pathways, systems change, and resilience-building processes
• Produce multimedia content (photo, video, digital assets) in collaboration with field teams and partners
• Ensuring storytelling reflects dignity, agency, and conflict sensitivity

LEARNING AND EVIDNECE COMMUNCATION

• Work closely with MEL teams to translate evidence into accessible communications products
• Support documentation of adaptive management, lessons learned, and program innovations
• Contribute to learning briefs, technical notes, and annual learning reports
• Ensure learning products are relevant for both operational and external audiences
• Support synthesis and communication of program outcomes and impact-level results
• Ensure alignment of communications with program Theory of Change

STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT AND VISIBILITY

• Support donor visibility and reporting requirements, including SIDA communications needs
• Develop content and messaging for government, donor, and sector engagement forums
• Contribute to learning/evidence briefs, presentations, and external positioning materials
• Support preparation of communications for events, workshops, and stakeholder dialogues

DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS

• Manage and support program digital communications channels (websites, LinkedIn, etc.)
• Develop digital content including posts, infographics, short videos, and evidence snapshots
• Ensure consistent messaging and branding across consortium partners
• Monitor digital engagement and adjust content strategy accordingly
• Analyze communication performance to assess influence and uptake

WORKING RELATIONSHIP

The role works in close collaboration with MEL teams to ensure effective integration of evidence and learning into communications outputs. It engages regularly with field teams to identify relevant content and support meaningful community engagement. The position also coordinates with consortium partners to maintain alignment and coherence across program communications, while working with technical teams to ensure accuracy and contextual relevance of all materials. Additionally, the role liaises with external stakeholders, including donors and government counterparts, to support visibility, reporting, and strategic engagement.

KEY PERFORMANCE EXPECTATIONS

Success in this role will be measured by the consistent production of high-quality communications outputs that clearly reflect program impact. It includes effectively integrating learning and evidence into communications products to support informed decision-making and adaptive management. The role is expected to strengthen stakeholder engagement and enhance program visibility, while strictly adhering to safeguarding and conflict sensitivity standards. Additionally, performance will be assessed based on meaningful contributions to program learning processes and the timely delivery of donor-facing communications in line with requirements.

RISK AND QUALITY ASSURANCE

• Ensure all communications comply with conflict sensitivity and Do No Harm principles
• Manage informed consent processes for all human-centered storytelling
• Review content for protection, privacy, and reputational risks

SAFEGUARDING RESPONSIBILITIES

• Actively learns about safeguarding and integrates it into their work, including safeguarding risks and mitigations related to their area of work.
• Practices the values of Mercy Corps including respecting the dignity and well-being of participants and fellow team members.
• Encourages openness and communication in their team; encourages team members to submit reports if they have any concerns using reporting mechanisms e.g., Integrity Hotline and other options.
• Support safeguarding review processes for sensitive content

Supervisory Responsibility

None

Accountability

Reports Directly To: Consortium Manager

Technical reporting: Country MEL Manager

Works Directly With: Program team, Country GEDSI advisor, Technical Sector Advisors, and other support functions (Operations and Finance), Consortium Members

Accountability to Participants and Stakeholders

Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our program participants, community partners, other stakeholders, and to international standards guiding international relief and development work. We are committed to actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.

Minimum Qualification & Transferable Skills

• Master’s degree in communications, Journalism, Development Studies, or related field
• At least 4–6 years of experience in communications in humanitarian or development contexts
• Strong storytelling, writing, and editing skills
• Experience producing multimedia content (photo/video/digital)
• Understanding of conflict-sensitive and ethical communications approaches
• Familiarity with donor-funded programs and reporting requirements (especially Sida or similar donors)
• Experience working with consortium or multi-partner programs is an advantage

Success Factors

The role requires strong analytical capacity to translate complex program evidence into clear, accessible communication while maintaining high ethical standards, safeguarding, and data protection. It demands the ability to operate effectively in complex, fast-paced, and politically sensitive environments, coupled with strong coordination and stakeholder management skills across diverse partners. The position also calls for creativity balanced with disciplined, structured delivery of communications outputs, alongside a solid understanding of learning-focused and evidence-based approaches to ensure communications contribute to program adaptation, accountability, and impact.

Living Conditions / Environmental Conditions

The position is based in ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA and it requires up to 60% travel to support country programs, which may include travel to insecure locations where freedom of movement is limited and areas where amenities are limited. Housing for this role is in individual housing and staff will have access to good medical services and the living situation is of a high standard.

Ongoing Learning

In support of our belief that learning organizations are more effective, efficient and relevant to the communities we serve, we empower all team members to dedicate 5% of their time to learning activities that further their personal and/or professional growth and development

Team Engagement and Effectiveness

Achieving our mission starts with how we build our team and collaborate. By bringing together individuals with a variety of experiences, backgrounds, and perspectives, we strengthen our ability to solve complex challenges and drive innovation. We foster a culture of trust and respect, where every team member is valued for their contributions, empowered to reach their full potential, and motivated to do their best work.

We recognize that building a strong and effective team is an ongoing process, and we remain committed to learning, improving, and growing together.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Mercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all employees and qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, sex, sexual orientation, religion or belief, national origin, age, disability, marital status, veteran status, or any other characteristics protected under applicable law.

Safeguarding & Ethics

Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work, whether team members, community members, program participants or others, are treated with respect and dignity. We are committed to the core principles regarding prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary General and IASC and have signed on to the Interagency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members. As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and to adhere to Mercy Corps Code of Conduct Policies and values at all times. Team members are required to complete mandatory Code of Conduct elearning courses upon hire and on an annual basis.

As an applicant, if you witness or experience any form of sexual misconduct during the recruitment process, please report this to Mercy Corps Integrity Hotline (integrityhotline@mercycorps.org).

Minimum Qualification & Transferable Skills

• Master’s degree in communications, Journalism, Development Studies, or related field
• At least 4–6 years of experience in communications in humanitarian or development contexts
• Strong storytelling, writing, and editing skills
• Experience producing multimedia content (photo/video/digital)
• Understanding of conflict-sensitive and ethical communications approaches
• Familiarity with donor-funded programs and reporting requirements (especially Sida or similar donors)
• Experience working with consortium or multi-partner programs is an advantage