Maha Karahamad
Greenwich,CT
Summary
Accomplished nonprofit leader with over 8 years of experience at Save the Children Federation. Proven track record in leading global teams, managing multi-million-dollar grants, and driving donor engagement strategies. Skilled in grant compliance and risk management across diverse regions, including Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Americas. Adept at fostering cross-functional collaboration, optimizing processes, and delivering measurable impact in challenging environments. Beyond professional roles, actively engaged as a volunteer with organizations such as Junior League and IRIS, leveraging leadership skills to advance community initiatives, strengthen partnerships, and support organizational missions.
Overview
8
8
years of professional experience
1
1
Certification
Work History
Advisor, Award Compliance Operations
Save the Children Federation
07.2023 - Current
- Experienced Advisor in Award Compliance Operations with a proven track record in managing financial and compliance risks for global grants and sub-awards from major donors such as USAID, UN, Gates Foundation, USDA, and private donors
- Skilled in maintaining award records, ensuring adherence to donor and agency requirements, and supporting high-risk award monitoring
- Delivered compliance training and led agency-wide projects, including policy creation and financial process optimization
- Demonstrated expertise in compliance, paired with strong analytical and relationship management skills
- Supervised a team of four staff, overseeing diverse portfolios and ensuring effective management and compliance
Specialist, Award Compliance Operations
Save the Children Federation
04.2021 - 06.2023
- Provided compliance support and award monitoring related risks for Eastern Southern Africa region in collaboration with International Programs and other divisions to ensure compliance with donor and agency requirements and identify opportunities to build capacity
- Ensured data accuracy and compliance with donor and agency requirements
- Safeguarding consistent application of award compliance policies & procedures
- Provided SCUS staff, SCI staff, and implementing partners the support and training they need to mitigate financial, operational, and compliance risks
- Variety of academic positions in Egypt & Syria 2011 - 2016
- Employment included professorial translation in Egypt
- Prior work included school teacher of English in Syria
Specialist, Global Partnerships & Innovation
Save the Children Federation
01.2020 - 05.2021
- Supported the development and execution of sponsorship acquisition and retention strategies with corporate donors
- Adapted Save the Children's letter-writing offering to overcome Covid-19 limitations, ensuring continued donor engagement
- Cultivated and stewarded corporate partnerships, serving as the primary contact and managing all aspects of account management to drive engagement and renewals for sponsorship
- Oversaw project sponsorship offerings, including developing opportunities with country offices, driving revenue growth, and managing the lifecycle of sponsorship projects from proposal development to final deliverables
- Streamlined processes and protocols related to corporate sponsor tagging, management, reporting, analysis, project sponsorship, and letter-writing initiatives
Senior Coordinator, Strategic Foundations Partnerships
Save the Children Federation
10.2018 - 12.2019
- After proven proficiency in Coordinator position, promoted to Senior Coordinator with added responsibilities
- Supported Resource Development Director of Award Management to ensure that private fundraisers are adhering to agency policies and providing up-to-date records
- Created and managed Resource Development web pages to have the most up-to-date information and documents
- Managed all Resource Development grant reporting; Award Manager for Member-to-Member Fund Transfers
- Monitored new opportunities and managed workflows; Scheduled and supported training
Coordinator, Strategic Foundations Partnerships
Save the Children Federation
01.2017 - 09.2018
- Provided primary administrative support to AVP of Strategic Foundation Partnerships and senior team members and secondary support to the remainder of the team and Gulf Office
- Team lead on integrating Save the Children's new prospect management database, BBEC, into daily business processes
- Lead new donor research; Developed presentations, and performed all aspects of business administration, database updates, web projects, special events/projects; Worked cross-departmentally to achieve the above stated objectives with key stakeholders
Education
Bachelor of Arts - English
Damascus University
Damascus SyriaSkills
- Team-building
- Data-driven decision making
- Time management
- Training and mentoring
- Compliance requirements
- Risk assessment
- Project management
- Cross-functional coordination
- Attention to detail
- Organizational skills
- Cross-cultural intuition
Certification
- Project Management Training, PMP
- ADI Certified
- Core Training
- USG Rules & Regulations Training
Languages
English
Full Professional
Arabic
Native or Bilingual
Timeline
Advisor, Award Compliance Operations
Save the Children Federation
07.2023 - Current
Specialist, Award Compliance Operations
Save the Children Federation
04.2021 - 06.2023
Specialist, Global Partnerships & Innovation
Save the Children Federation
01.2020 - 05.2021
Senior Coordinator, Strategic Foundations Partnerships
Save the Children Federation
10.2018 - 12.2019
Coordinator, Strategic Foundations Partnerships
Save the Children Federation
01.2017 - 09.2018
- Project Management Training, PMP
- ADI Certified
- Core Training
- USG Rules & Regulations Training
Bachelor of Arts - English
Damascus University
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