ICRC personnel perform a difficult and demanding job. They must endeavour to act efficiently and professionally, in contexts in which violence and suffering are rife: countries stricken by war and the devastation it leaves in its wake, post-conflict situations in which society is still nursing the scars of the fighting.

ICRC staff members work in sensitive, tense and sometimes dangerous situations, and in a wide range of settings, from government offices to the rudimentary facilities of camps for displaced persons. They move without pause from distributions of food rations to high-level negotiations with the military authorities. They are in constant contact with people of all kinds: the powerful and the powerless, the victims and their aggressors, diplomats and humanitarian volunteers.

The job requires human qualities that at first glance appear contradictory: ICRC staff must be tenacious yet flexible, creative but methodical, at one and the same time curious and discreet, sensitive but able to control their emotions. The job allows them to make a profound personnel commitment. It affords a unique human experience, enabling staff to make a direct contribution to humanitarian action by exercising a profession that is based on knowledge and experience and is constantly being reshaped by events.

In the field

In the field, staff work from a delegation, which is the ICRC's office and its operational arm in the country. The delegation's significance and size vary from one context to another, depending on the scope of the conflict and the activities it conducts.

Each delegation has a head of delegation, who coordinates all activities and contacts in the country. The head of delegation stays in touch with ICRC headquarters and with the ICRC's other offices in the country (the sub delegations). Day-to-day operations and any problems encountered are discussed and dealt with in the delegation, in close liaison with Geneva.

At headquarters

The role of headquarters is to provide support for activities in the field and expertise in a variety of areas. Headquarters obtains the political support required for ICRC action from international players.

Several hundred people work at headquarters. They are, with few exceptions, experienced staff who are familiar with conflict situations and the ICRCÕs activities. They have been on at least three to five field missions and have already shouldered major responsibilities or have specific skills.