Operations Associate, Namati (DC)
Kim Stiens
Operations Associate
Washington, District of Columbia, United States
A detail-oriented logistics whiz with a passion for justice who will provide our DC office with critical administrative support.
About the position
Namati is searching for a dynamic, detail-oriented Operations Associate to join our DC office. Reporting to the Global Systems and Recruitment Officer, you will be a key member of the Global Operations team, providing a wide range of support from booking complex flight itineraries for our Namati-wide retreat in early 2018, to conducting a supply audit, to researching the latest in video conferencing software for our multi-country team-wide calls. This is a challenging and exciting position which will afford a unique view into the running of an international non-profit organization.
Illustrative responsibilities include -
Support to Namati-wide retreat planning process – 60%
- Conduct thorough research related to visa requirements, health insurance coverage, and multi-lingual translation services for international staff traveling abroad.
- Book staff travel - domestic and international.
- Collect updated biographical information from Namati staff for use in the planning process.
- Provide on the ground logistical support during the retreat, currently slated to be held in South Africa.
Finance, Administration and Office Management – 40%
- Assist Director of Finance and Administration with research for financial projects.
- Log and submit disbursement requests to the DC office Accountant.
- Assist in annual audit process and tax filings.
- Oversee Namati DC office petty cash, and financial instruments.
- Maintain financial records and files.
- Maintain inventory of Namati equipment and office supplies, working with the Director of Finance and Administration to prepare purchase orders as needed.
- Liaise with vendors on issues related to procurement, reporting, and dissemination of information.
- Maintain phone and internet systems in DC office.
- Serve as the primary point of contact for Namati property, including for maintenance issues.
Here are some of the tasks you might have tackled last week -
- Added a newly purchased laptop computer to the active equipment log, including creating a new internal tracking number label, noting the location of the item, and who is using it.
- Worked with the Global Systems Officer to compile South Africa visa application instructions for all staff for the upcoming team-wide retreat.
- Troubleshot a wifi connection issue in a breakaway meeting venue during the team-wide retreat.
- Submitted a ticket and scheduled an on-site visit with our phone service provider because a long distance call wouldn’t go through on our COO’s line.
- Booked three international flights for US-based staff attending an upcoming land conference in Kenya.
- Conducted the April bi-monthly office supply audit, during which you determined a need for new paper towels, post-it notes and paperclips -- and prepared to place the order online.
- Deposited a check in person at Namati’s local bank branch.
About you/must-haves for the position
- Exceptionally organized and attentive to detail: You’re hyper-organized and detail-oriented by nature and take pleasure in letting no ball drop as you deftly juggle multiple tasks. As a basic practice, you check and double check your work to ensure it is free of errors, and feel a sense of deep satisfaction upon successful completion of every task you tackle. You consider the ability to manage numerous complex logistical details to be a key strength of yours.
- Nimble, creative, proactive problem-solving: Although careful planning and execution define your work, you are positive and graceful when unexpected challenges arise. You quickly reorient and identify the best new course of action.
- Sound judgment: You’re well-regarded for your ability to make reasoned decisions, even in the face of limited or conflicting information.
- Ease with technology: You’re a technophile; when working with a new program or application you quickly become fluent.
- Mission-driven: It’s in your nature to work tirelessly on a problem until you’ve seen through the solution that will best advance the ultimate aim of the project.
- Growth mindset: You’re always seeking to better yourself and your work, and you will push yourself to the peak of performance to help fulfill our mission. In service of that growth, you welcome and delight in feedback from supervisors, peers, and anyone else.
About Namati
Namati is dedicated to placing the power of law in the hands of people.
For billions of people around the world, the law is broken. It’s an abstraction -- or worse, a threat -- but not something we can use to exercise our basic rights.
Namati is building a global movement of grassroots advocates who empower people to understand, use, and shape the law. These “barefoot lawyers” form a dynamic, creative frontline that can squeeze justice out of even broken systems.
In the past four years, Namati and our partners have worked with over 40,000 clients to take on some of the greatest challenges of our times: protecting community lands, enforcing environmental law, and securing basic rights to healthcare and citizenship.
We track data on every case and use that information to advocate for systemic changes, like better policies for land governance in Liberia, environmental regulation in India, and healthcare delivery in Mozambique.
And we're joining forces for change. Namati convenes the Global Legal Empowerment Network -- over 950 groups from 150 countries learning from one another and bringing justice to communities in every part of the world.
Our work has gained recognition. Namati and the Global Legal Empowerment Network were recognized with the prestigious Skoll Award in 2016. Honoring CEO Vivek Maru as a fellow, Ashoka called ours the “best law-for-all model we’ve seen.” We’ve been published and featured in the Guardian, the New York Times, and Forbes. And we’ve had some hefty supporters, including an advisory board with leaders like Amartya Sen, Mo Ibrahim, Fazle Abed, and Madeleine Albright.
As we move into our next phase, we’re growing our global team of passionate, results-oriented, big-hearted advocates, united by a common mission and a strong culture:
- Our mission is our North Star. It’s why we all wake up every day. We pour our hearts into this work.
- We’re innovators and changemakers. We are a young, energetic social enterprise and we know that our work is urgent. We believe in being nimble and doing what works.
- Our work makes real, tangible, measurable progress in people’s lives. We take abstract concepts – rule of law and human rights – and make them concrete, helping people find solutions that improve their lives every day.
- We walk our talk. Our movement is about legal empowerment and we bring this spirit of empowerment and collaboration to all our partnerships. We hold humility as a core value: we lead when necessary and follow when necessary.
- We are a truly global organization. Our offices are located in Delhi, Freetown, Maputo, Oakland, Washington DC, and Yangon, and our staff come from all corners of the world. We are united by our common mission.
- We see our people as our most valuable resource. We bring on individuals of the highest caliber and character and we mentor, train, and support our staff.
- We hold one another in the highest esteem. Our work relationships are built on deep abiding respect and love.
For more about what it’s like to work at Namati, please see our Cultural Principles.
We would love to have you on our team. Please join us.
Location
Washington, D.C. Please note you must already be eligible to work in the United States to be considered for the position.
Compensation
Commensurate with experience. This is an initial one year position with the potential for extension based on performance.