Organizational Context 

The Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) is a global ministry of the Society of Jesus, acting as an international non-governmental organisation with a mission to accompany, serve, and advocate for the rights of refugees and forcibly displaced people.  Founded in November 1980, JRS is now present in more than 50 countries. The organisation’s operations are currently structured across three levels: locally through project and country offices, regionally through regional offices, and globally with the support, coordination, and guidance of the International Office.

In response to a rapidly changing humanitarian context and significantly reduced funding, JRS is reshaping how to operate in a new and less favourable environment for migration and international solidarity.

Local operations, organised in functional and sustainable Country Offices, are the core of JRS’s work, ensuring needs-based interventions and accompaniment rooted in the realities of forcibly displaced migrants and refugees. 

Global support is organised through global functions that bring together the essential processes, systems and expertise that enable JRS to operate effectively as one organisation, including resource mobilisation, sound operations, and mission-driven programmatic support. These global functions will be delivered through a Virtual Global Office, in which staff working across different locations contribute as part of globally coordinated teams with shared priorities, clear mandates and an operational focus, regardless of where they are physically based. 

The Virtual Global Office is structured around five global functions: Global Management of Operations, Global Resource Mobilisation, Global Mission-Oriented Transformation, Global Strategic Leadership, and Global Office Management Support.

• Develop and maintain donor intelligence across the portfolio — tracking donor priorities, funding cycles, strategic shifts, and calls for proposals — identifying new acquisition targets and feeding analysis into GRM planning processes and income projections.

• Lead the systematic identification and screening of specific funding opportunities against JRS’s local and global funding priorities, organisational positioning, and operational capacity.

• Lead go/no-go assessments for funding opportunities, drawing on inputs from colleagues on operational feasibility and compliance requirements.

Application Development

• Lead the donor-facing elements of grant applications: crafting JRS’s positioning and narrative, ensuring overall quality and coherence, managing contributions from external partners, and aligning the submission with donor requirements and priorities.

• Work in close partnership with colleagues who develop the operational content and provide compliance oversight, to ensure that all applications are compelling in presentation and credible in substance.

Submission and Award

• Lead submission of applications and manage all donor communication through to agreement, including negotiation of grant terms and fulfilment of any eligibility requirements.

• Coordinate with relevant colleagues to ensure the finalisation and signing of subgrant and partnership agreements, confirming alignment between donor terms and internal grant arrangements.

Grant Management

• Maintain donor relationships throughout implementation: ensuring proactive and responsive communication, managing donor expectations, flagging significant risks or developments to internal colleagues, and supporting funder reviews or site visits as needed.

• Share donor feedback and intelligence proactively with relevant colleagues to support seamless fulfilment of grant obligations.

• Review and approve the content of reports from the donor perspective before submission, ensuring quality, accuracy, and consistency with agreed commitments and JRS’s positioning.

Closure and Renewal

• Manage the donor relationship at grant closure: gather donor feedback, reinforce the partnership, and position JRS for renewal or future funding opportunities.

Portfolio Development and Planning

• Lead the development of donor-specific strategies, targets, and workplans for the institutional portfolio, and contribute to GRM-wide strategic planning by providing analysis of trends and opportunities within the institutional funding landscape.

• Maintain accurate pipeline and income forecast data, and contribute to GRM evaluation and organisational learning by feeding in grant results and lessons from donor engagement.

• Contribute to the development and dissemination of best practices, templates, and tools for institutional grant-seeking and management, supporting quality and consistency across the organisation.

• Manage donor and opportunity data in organisational CRM and Grant Management Systems.

Qualifications and Competencies 

• Advanced University degree in a relevant field (international relations, development studies, public policy, social sciences, or a related discipline);

• Minimum five years of relevant professional experience in institutional fundraising, grants management, or business development within the humanitarian or international development sector;

• Demonstrated field experience with a humanitarian or development organisation;

• Demonstrated track record of managing a portfolio of institutional donors and securing grants from governments, multilateral agencies, or major foundations;

• Strong proposal writing skills, with the ability to position JRS compellingly to sophisticated institutional audiences and ensure coherent, high-quality submissions;

• Sound understanding of the full institutional grant cycle, including opportunity identification, proposal development, agreement negotiation, compliance, reporting, and closure;

• Familiarity with the compliance and contractual requirements of major institutional donors (e.g. EU/ECHO, AICS, ECW, UN agencies or equivalent multilateral or bilateral funders);

• Knowledge of the humanitarian and forced displacement funding landscape is a strong asset;

• Excellent computer skills, including proficiency in Microsoft Office; experience with CRM or grant management systems is an asset (Salesforce preferred);

• Excellent writing and verbal communication skills in English; Italian, French or Spanish is a strong asset;

• Strong organisational skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines under pressure;

• Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to collaborate effectively in a multicultural, international, and geographically distributed team environment;

• Experience and/or knowledge of faith-based organisations is a plus.

Core Values and Ethics 

• Commitment to JRS’s mission, vision and values; ability to convey with enthusiasm JRS’s role in accompanying and serving forcibly displaced people and to advocate for their right to protection and a life in dignity.

• High integrity, honesty and confidentiality; ability to deal tactfully and discreetly with people, situations and information.

• Acceptance of diversity and inclusion as a core value.

Travel 

• The position may require travel to JRS locations.

Terms and Conditions  

Please note that this position is only open to candidates who possess EU citizenship or other legal authorization to work in the European Union.

Successful candidates will be offered a regular Italian contract. The gross annual salary range for this position starts at EUR 35,000, and will be adjusted commensurate with experience and qualifications.

Workplace: Rome 

How to apply 

All applicants are requested to submit the following documents:

• A cover letter describing the candidate’s desire and motivation to work for JRS and how her/his qualifications and experience are a good fit for this position

• Curriculum Vitae (CV) in English, including two (2) professional references with contact information, phone and email address.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. 

Thank you for your interest in joining JRS