SAVE THE CHILDREN INTERNATIONAL
JOB TITLE: DIRECTOR OF PROGRAMME DEVELOPMENT AND QUALITY - Mozambique Country Office
LOCATION: Mozambique
Save the Children International is the world's leading independent organisation for children. We work in around 120 countries**. We save children's lives; we fight for their rights; we help them fulfil their potential.**
As a key member the Director of Programme Development and Quality shares in the overall responsibility for the direction and coordination of the Country Office programme. As a member of the Senior Management Team (SMT) in Mozambique, the Director of Programme Development and Quality is responsible for overseeing the development of high quality, innovative programmes that deliver immediate and lasting change for children and monitoring the quality of the implementation of those programmes in line with the 2016-2018 strategy. The incumbent leads a team of sector specialists that provides high-level technical assistance and capacity building to staff, partners and beneficiaries across all thematic areas in support of on-going activities, advocates for macro-political change for children, manages implementation of nationally focused projects, and communicates internally and externally on effective programming.
As the programme development and Quality Director you will ensure that the Mozambique Country Office has a first class, multi-sector and full spectrum programme reflecting all priority technical and sector aspects of the Save the Children global and country strategy, you will lead the development of an advocacy strategy for the Mozambique Country Office. Support thematic directors to articulate their top priority advocacy objectives in line with the Country Strategic Plan. The ideal person will have excellent people management skills to effectively manage the programmes team by defining expectations, providing leadership and technical support as needed and evaluating direct reports regularly.
KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY:
As a member of the Senior Management Team, contribute to:
· Leadership of the Mozambique Country Office
· Support the development of an organisational culture that reflects our full spectrum values, promotes accountability and high performance, encourages a team culture of learning, creativity and innovation, and frees up our people to deliver outstanding results for children and excellent customer service for our members and donors
· Help design and implement a coherent organizational structure that is consistent with agency practices and appropriate to programme needs
· Help establish, maintain, and improve active and regular working relationships with: host government authorities, partner agencies including humanitarian and development donors, and local and international NGOs
· Ensure Mozambique Country Office complies with all Save the Children Operating Standards Procedures
· Ensure that all required support is provided promptly, at scale and in line with the rules and principles during emergencies, working closely with the Regional Office.
Strategic Planning
· Provide strategic vision and direction to the Save the Children Mozambique programme
· Take a lead role in developing programme strategies and annual plans
· Participate in conceptualizing and designing cost effective, innovative and high quality programmes to serve the most deprived children and bring these to scale being guided by the Theory of Change
· Ensure that programmes are relevant to children in Mozambique and to the global programme and advocacy objectives of the Save the Children members
Programme Design and Technical Assistance
· Ensure that the Mozambique Country Office has a first class, multi-sector and full spectrum programme reflecting all priority technical and sector aspects of the Save the Children global and country strategy
· Ensure the design and development of child focused emergency and development programmes of a high quality that contribute to the Country Office’s strategies and plans, informed by child participation where possible
· Ensure monitoring of progress towards longer term technical goals, objectives and policies
· Ensure that the different technical sectors of the Country Office are coordinated, integrated and support each other to optimize programmes and projects
· Lead proposal development exercises while ensuring input from, and proactively and regularly communicate planned requirements for programme design and implementation to relevant CO departments/functions
· Ensure adequate resources are secured for programme activities from both grants and the private funds of Save the Children members, including identifying strategic leads and concepts
· Ensure that all sectors apply a risk lens to programme design and implementation in line with the Save the Children policy on Disaster Risk Reduction
· Ensure appropriate levels of technical assistance and capacity building is provided to partners and programs
· Work with members to seek the involvement of member technical assistance
· Ensure excellent coordination and cooperation with incoming technical advisors as well as surge teams during emergencies
Assessment, Monitoring and Evaluation
· Maintain a robust MEAL system to measure achievement and progress toward programme goals and results
· Measure achievement and progress toward programme goals and results through the M&E system
· Lead on internal and external programme/project evaluations as necessary and ensure the execution of baseline, periodic, and final evaluations as necessary in coordination with Director of Programme Operations
Advocacy
· Lead the development of an advocacy strategy for the Mozambique Country Office. Support thematic directors to articulate their top priority advocacy objectives in line with the Country Strategic Plan
· Identify key opportunities and events for Save the Children Mozambique to position itself as the leading organisation for children’s issues in Mozambique
· Ensure that Save the Children receives national recognition for achieving proven and innovative national impact from well-managed child development programmes and emergency response
· Oversee thematic directors and other programme staff in their work, including development of a plan for achieving their priority advocacy objectives in both an emergency and development context. This should include guidelines on the meaningful and safe participation of children in advocacy
Partner Management
· Ensure that every partnership is formed in the context of the Theory of Change and is designed and managed so that the partnership furthers achievement of Save the Children's global strategy and strengthens local and national capacity to deliver for children.
· Develop a Mozambique specific partnership strategy
· Analyze potential partners using documented selection methods and ensure that all partners comply with Save the Children and donor requirements and regulations
· Ensure that the Mozambique Country Office engages in mutual assessment, feedback and learning with partners and assist partners to engage in knowledge building and advocacy
· Oversee programme implementation of existing partners and ensure appropriate partners are engaged in emergency preparedness activities
Innovation
· Oversee Save the Children Mozambique's operational research programmes, deliver existing projects and develop new ones. Ensure the publication of results
· Spread information relating to the outcome of research projects widely and – in particular – to the Government and to other humanitarian and development actors
Knowledge Management
· Ensure learning by the country programme from relevant best practice and assess performance regularly against agreed programme objectives and indicators
· Ensure learning by the country programme from relevant best practice internally and externally both nationally and globally and make learning from Mozambique available for other programmes
· Engage in relevant national and global networks
· Ensure establishment and operation of an online system that will enable SC staff to access a centralized data and information system and ensure the setting up and maintenance of a resource library
Staff Management, Mentorship, and Development – Programme Development and Quality**
· Ensure appropriate staffing within Programme Development and Quality
· Ensure that all staff of the Programme Development and Quality team understand and are able to perform their role in an emergency
· Manage Programme Development and Quality team; define expectations, provide leadership and technical support as needed, and evaluate direct reports regularly
· Ensure the recruitment, training, and promotion of staff as appropriate and ensure availability of appropriate professional development opportunities for staff
· Incorporate staff development strategies and Performance Management Systems into team building process. Establish result based system and follow up
· Oversee that all technical sector staff proactively build and maintain technical skills and competencies required for leading and/or advising first class Programmes – both development and emergency Programmes
· Manage the performance of all staff in the Programme Development and Quality work area through:
o Effective use of the Performance Management System including the establishment of clear, measureable objectives, ongoing feedback, periodic reviews and fair and unbiased evaluations;
o Coaching, mentoring and other developmental opportunities;
o Recognition and rewards for outstanding performance;
o Documentation of performance that is less than satisfactory, with appropriate performance improvements/ work plans
QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE
- Recommended a minimum of five years management experience in a corporate or an NGO environment, including designing Programmes and projects for children in both emergency and development contexts, preferably with solid experience in more than one of the Save the Children priority sectors: education, protection, rights governance, HIV/AIDs, health and nutrition, and emergencies
- Recognized leadership role in relevant technical areas at both field and country level
- Master’s degree in Social Sciences, in an area of social development
- A general appreciation of the issues concerning the NGO sector, both development and humanitarian issues
- Solid experience of developing and managing monitoring and learning systems
- Good analytical skills. Effective negotiator, with the ability to positively influence cross departmental and cross sector working
- Credibility to lobby, influence and represent Save the Children at all levels
- Resource management, training , capacity building, coaching, and mentoring skills
- Ability and willingness to dramatically change work practices and hours, and work with incoming teams, in emergencies
- Commitment to and understanding of Save the Children’s aims, values and principles including rights-based approaches
- Fluency in written and spoken English, Portuguese would be an advantage
HOW TO APPLY:
We need to keep children safe so our selection process reflects our commitment to the protection of children from abuse.
To see a full a job description, please visit our website at www.savethechildren.net/jobs
Please apply in English using your CV and covering letter as a single document, including your salary expectations for this role.
