Save the Children is the world's leading independent organisation for children. We work in 120 countries. We save children's lives; we fight for their rights; we help them fulfil their potential.
We work together, with our partners, to inspire breakthroughs in the way the world treats children and to achieve immediate and lasting change in their lives.
We have over two million supporters worldwide and raised 1.9 billion dollars last year to reach more children than ever before, through programmes in health, nutrition, education, protection and child rights, also in times of humanitarian crises.
Following a major transition, our international programmes are now delivered through a merged operation with c15,000 staff, managed through seven regional hubs and reporting to a relatively small, central office. We're changing to become more efficient, more aligned, a better partner, a stronger advocate, a magnet for world-class people and relevant for the 21st century.
Contract length: 02 Years
The role
Save the Children delivers immediate and lasting change for children in need in all contexts.The Director of Programme Development and Quality (PDQ) is a senior position and a member of the Senior Management Team (SMT). The Director of PDQ is responsible for overall implementation of SC's Theory of Change, and for development of high quality, innovative programs. S/he will ensure our learning is translated into stronger and more impactful programmes, lead our dissemination of results, manage the research uptake, manage and support advisors who are responsible for programme design and programme quality standards, and assist in annual planning and reporting.
As a member of the Senior Management Team:
- As a senior member of the Niger Country Programme, demonstrate behaviours that are consistent with Save the Children's Mission, Vision and Values and ensure their broader application by staff across the programme.
- Contribute to a conducive and productive work environment in a way that promotes accountability and high performance, encourages a team culture of learning, creativity and innovation, and frees up our teams to deliver outstanding results for children and excellent customer service for our members and donors.
- Contribute to the 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 Niger Country Office complies with all Save the Children Management Operating Standards and Standard Operating Procedures.
- Carry out the responsibilities of the role in a way which reflects Save the Children's commitment to safeguarding children, in accordance with our Code of Conduct and Child Safeguarding Policy.
- Ensure that relevant technical support is provided promptly, at scale and in line with humanitarian principles and standards during emergencies.
Strategic Planning
- Develop strategic vision and direction to the Save the Children Niger program
- Lead the development of program strategies and annual plans, ensuring apporpriate stakeholder involvement and input
- Participate in conceptualizing and designing evidence based, cost effective, innovative and high quality programs to serve marginalized and deprived children
- Ensure that programs are relevant to children in Niger and to the global breakthroughs: ensuring all children survive, learn, and are protected.
Program Design and Technical Assistance
- Ensure that the Niger Country Office programming is: high quality, evidence-based; relevant in emergency, chonic crisis, and development contexts; informed by child participation where possible; contributing to our global breakthroughs of child survival, learning, and protection.
- Ensure programming builds on SC's theory of change, including innovation around what works for children; advocacy on behalf of children; partnership to further develop innovations and advocacy; and scaling up or institutionalizing programming to ensure immediate and lasting change, for all children.
- Ensure sectoral and project integration for a programme approach which maximizes impact.
- Support the Director of Program Operations to ensure quality in programme implementation.
- Drive the technical content of proposal development, in collaboration with other departments.
- Coordinate progamme planning and fundraising with SC members and the Awards team.
- Ensure that all sectors apply a risk lens to program design and implementation in line with Child Safeguarding and Disaster Risk Reduction.
- Ensure appropriate levels of technical assistance and capacity building is provided to partners and field staff.
Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning
- Maintain a robust MEAL system consistent with SC's global MEAL framework.
- Measure achievement and progress toward program goals and results through the M&E system
- Ensure coordination between the technical advisors in establishing integrated impact of programming
- Lead on internal and external program/project evaluations as necessary and ensure the execution of baseline, periodic, and final evaluations as necessary in coordination with Director of Program Operations
- Ensure that rigorous beneficiary accountability mechanisms at the national and sub-national level
- Ensure learning by the country program from relevant best practice and assess performance regularly against agreed program objectives and indicators
- Ensure meaningful and safe participation of children in monitoring, and ensuring child-sensitive accountability mechanisms
Advocacy & Campaigns
- Ensure Save the Children is the voice of children in Niger, and that advocacy and campaign work is fully integrated, consistent with the theory of change, in our programming.
- Support the SMT and Technical Advisors to articulate priority advocacy objectives, particularly as relates to the changing humanitarian context.
- Develop strategic partnerships and engage with national/international platforms to ensure children's voices are heard, and children's needs are addresssed.
- This should include guidelines on the meaningful and safe participation of children in advocacy.
Innovation
- Facilitate conceptualization of and oversee operational research, to develop scalable methods that help children survive, learn and be protected.
- Ensure dissemination of research results to key stakeholders
- Develop strategic partnerships for innovation and for scaling up successful innovations.
Staff Management, Mentorship, and Development
- Manage Program Development and Quality team; define expectations, provide leadership and technical support as needed, and evaluate direct reports regularly
- Ensure appropriate staffing within Programme Development and Quality
- Ensure the recruitment, training, and promotion of staff as appropriate and ensure availability of appropriate professional development opportunities for staff
- Ensure that all staff understand and are able to perform their role in humanitarian crises
- Incorporate staff and career development strategies and Performance Management Systems into team building process. Establish result based system and follow up
- Manage the performance of all staff in the Program Development and Quality work area through:
- Effective use of the Performance Management System including the establishment of clear, measureable objectives, ongoing feedback, periodic reviews and fair and unbiased evaluations;
- Coaching, mentoring and other developmental opportunities;
- Recognition and rewards for outstanding performance;
- Documentation of and corrective action towards poor performance.
Child Safeguarding
- Champion child safeguarding internally and externally.
- Identify advocacy, training and communication activities that can contribute to CSG, and ensure inclusion in new programming.
- Comply with local procedures of the "CSP" and ensure that officers under his/her responsibility comply as well.
- Ensure all our programming is "safe" for children.
Qualifications and experience
- Master's degree in Social Sciences or other relevant field
- 10 years progressively responsible management experience in a programming environment, including experience implementing programs 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, child rights governance, health and nutrition.
- Experience in both development and humanitarian contexts preferred.
- Recognized leadership role in relevant technical areas at both field and country level
- A general appreciation of the issues concerning the NGO sector, both development and humanitarian issues
- Solid experience of developing and managing monitoring, accountability and learning systems
- Excellent 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 English and French
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 or French using your CV and covering letter as a single document, including your salary expectations for this role.
HOW TO APPLY:
Application Email: Please apply with a covering letter and up-to-date CV to: 'Fsy.19631.3830@savethechildrenint.aplitrak.com'
