Events and Communications Internship

PHAP - International Association of Professionals in Humanitarian Assistance and Protection

Brussels, Belgium

Summary

The International Association of Professionals in Humanitarian Assistance and Protection (PHAP) is recruiting an Events and Communications Intern to start in March 2013 at its headquarters in Brussels, on a full-time basis, for a period of 3-6 months (negotiable). As an integral part of a small and dynamic professional team, the Events and Communications Intern will contribute significantly to the operations of the association, assisting in the planning and production of training activities and other events; communications with current and prospective PHAP members; and the production of web content.

About PHAP

The International Association of Professionals in Humanitarian Assistance and Protection (PHAP) is the world’s only member-governed, non-profit association of professionals engaged in humanitarian assistance and protection with a global member network encompassing the full spectrum of institutional affiliations and professional backgrounds in the humanitarian sector. Established in mid-2010, PHAP’s mission is to enhance the humanitarian sector’s ability to respond to current and future crises in a professional manner. To this end, it pursues the following strategic objectives: build capacity of professionals to assist and protect vulnerable populations; distill professional knowledge and disseminate good practices for humanitarian action; create a space for reflection and exchange on policy issues within the humanitarian sector; cultivate networks and provide services to further the professional, social, and personal development of its members. For more information about PHAP and its activities, see http://phap.org.

Conditions

• Starting date: 25 March 2013 (or potentially earlier);
• Based in Brussels (legally able to work in Belgium for the entire duration of the internship);
• Full-time schedule of five days (38 hours) per week;
• 3-6 month duration (negotiable).

Employment will be under the Belgian “convention d’immersion professionnelle,” and the intern will thereby be covered by the Belgian social security. Compensation will be according to Belgian law for a maximum of 736,20 € per month. Please note that this type of internship cannot be given to students with an internship as obligatory requirement in their study program (bachelor or master).

Duties

• Assist with various aspects of the organization of training activities and other onsite and online events, including:
  • Correspondence with and support to prospective and registered applicants;
  • Editing, proofreading, formatting, and production of written materials;
  • Event logistics and coordination with suppliers;
  • Processing and analyzing of participant evaluation forms;
  • Marketing of events.

• Assist with various aspects of PHAP’s member engagement efforts and external communications, including:
  • Correspondence with and support to prospective and current members;
  • Processing of new membership applications and payments and maintenance of the membership database;
  • Drafting content for the PHAP website (for example, Featured Member Profiles, News Stories, Articles);
  • Maintenance of PHAP’s social media presence;
  • Potentially (if possessing the necessary knowledge of HTML and CSS) newsletter layout and preparation of newsletter-specific content.

• Contribute to other tasks and projects as assigned by the Executive Director.

Qualifications

• At least one year of prior relevant work experience (including prior internships);
• Legal ability to work in Belgium;
• Excellent English language skills, including both written and verbal communication skills (professional fluency in French, in addition, is a significant advantage);
• Demonstrated ability to draft clear and concise texts for external communication (writing sample welcome but not required);
• Strong IT skills (Word, Excel, databases) together with a demonstrated aptitude and enthusiasm for learning how to use new IT tools and systems;
• Knowledge of HTML and CSS is an advantage; knowledge of PHP is also an advantage;
• Prior experience working with contact relationship management databases (in particular CiviCRM) is an advantage;
• Prior experience working in a membership organization/ professional association is a significant advantage;
• Demonstrated interest in and knowledge of the field of humanitarian affairs is an advantage;
• Experience with treating and analyzing statistical data is an advantage;
• Strong organizational skills, resourcefulness, flexibility and ability to efficiently handle multiple tasks;
• Ability to work independently, with attention to detail;
• Entrepreneurial spirit.

Application Procedure

DEADLINE: 5 March 2013 (applications are reviewed on a rolling basis; interested candidates are advised to apply as soon as possible)

• By Tuesday, 5 March 2013, applicants should send their cover letter and CV (and, optionally, writing sample) by email to jobs@phap.org (applications sent by email will be acknowledged automatically upon receipt). Please note that all application materials must be written in English;

• In addition, in order to be considered for the internship, all applicants MUST register and complete an online skills assessment and brief questionnaire before close of business on Tuesday, 5 March 2013. (Instructions and the registration link for the online skills assessment will be included in the automated email reply that applicants receive after they submit their cover letter and CV to jobs@phap.org. The online skills assessment is not a timed test. Candidates are advised to schedule up to 2 hours to complete it.);

• Short-listed candidates will be invited to complete a further assessment in the form of a writing exercise. This will take place during the week of 4-9 March 2013 and will be administered via email. Candidates should schedule 3 hours to complete the writing exercise;

• Interviews will take place on 12 and 13 March, either in person in Brussels or via phone/Skype.