United States of America: Program Director, Integrated NTD Control

Established in 1915 with Helen Keller as a founding trustee, Helen Keller International

(HKI) is dedicated to saving the sight and lives of the world’s most vulnerable and disadvantaged. Headquartered in New York City, HKI currently conducts programs in 21 countries in Africa and Asia, as well as in the United States. Renowned for its reliability, efficiency and high level of technical expertise, HKI promotes the development of sustainable, large-scale programs that deliver effective preventative and curative services for nutrition, eye health and neglected tropical diseases (NTDs). The hallmark of the organization’s work is its proven success in developing, testing and scaling-up health interventions, and integrating them within government and community structures to support and build local capacity and sustainable solutions.

Background

HKI has established itself as a leader in integrated NTD control/elimination efforts at the national, regional and global levels and has strong NTD expertise throughout the organization. The overarching approach guiding HKI’s integrated NTD programs involves preventive chemotherapy (PCT) through mass drug administration (MDA) at the national scale to address onchocerciasis, schistosomiasis, lymphatic filariasis, soil transmitted helminths and trachoma. HKI is also a global leader in morbidity management efforts to mitigate the disability and disfigurement caused by trichiasis, hydrocele and lymphedema.

For our PCT work, HKI supports MDA in 6 countries in Africa (Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Guinea, Mali, Niger and Sierra Leone) as a subgrantee within two USAID centrally funded projects, ENVISION and END in Africa. HKI also serves as the prime for a Conrad N. Hilton Foundation (CNHF) grant to eliminate blinding trachoma in Mali and Niger through a multi-prong effort that includes surgery, provision of antibiotics and community education to promote better hygiene and environmental sanitation (“SAFE” strategy. In this latter project, HKI works in close coordination with other CNHF funded trachoma partners, The Carter Center, Sightsavers and projects funded by the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (DFID) and the Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Trust (QEDJT) in Nigeria and Tanzania.

HKI is seeking a Program Director to lead and participate in the successful implementation of a project portfolio that currently includes the two USAID funded PCT projects and the CNHF funded trachoma project.

Functional Relationships

The Program Director reports to the Vice President, NTDs, and will work closely with the Africa Regional NTD Advisor, Regional Directors, and Country Directors. The position directly supervises a team of professional level program and finance staff at headquarters who provide support to country office teams. Country office teams report directly to their Country Director and indirectly to the headquarters program team. In this matrixed structure, everyone must develop and maintain strong relationships and communication protocols to ensure alignment of goals and mutual accountability for country level program implementation.

Scope of the Position

The Program Director is responsible for overall management, planning, implementation, technical oversight, personnel, budget and financial oversight of the portfolio. S/he builds partnerships and relationships and works with donors and/or prime partners, ensuring technical and programmatic quality, achievement of planned results, and accurate and timely reporting to the donors.

The Program Director also contributes to HKI’s ongoing efforts to strengthen program quality and planning, strategic planning and growth within the NTD sector. S/he collaborates with colleagues at all levels to foster harmonization of approaches and lessons learned across countries, representing these projects in particular, both internally and externally with global, regional and national level partners.

Specific Responsibilities:

Program Planning, Management, and Leadership

• Lead and manage all aspects of assigned portfolio, and serve as key point of contact with donors/prime partners and partner organizations.
• Lead development of all country work plans ensuring they include strong implementation plans, monitoring and evaluation plans, quality assurance and supportive supervision protocols.
• Lead support team in the:
• reporting for all projects, ensuring high quality donor reports and project data;
• preparation and signature of sub-grants; and
• ensuring compliance with donor regulations and HKI policies and procedures.
• Appoint, manage and evaluate team of professional-level staff. Delegate authority, consult with and guide staff to achieve goals and ensure accountability to beneficiaries, partners, colleagues and donors. Provide ongoing feedback in a context of mutual respect.
• Contribute to proposal development to generate new funding.

\*Technical Leadership*****

• Collaborate closely with Africa Regional NTD Advisor to mobilize timely and regular technical support to country level teams, particularly pertaining to high quality programming, data management, and survey implementation.
• Facilitate country level and regional linkages with other organizations and technical institutions, as needed.
• Contribute to development of quality, evidence based technical tools and guides at the global level (e.g. through the International Coalition for Trachoma Control) and promote the use of these materials in HKI programs.

Program Monitoring

• Take overall responsibility for ensuring that HKI country offices provide accurate and timely reporting of project results, and the development and implementation of appropriate monitoring and evaluation tools for different activities.
• Ensure compliance with standard quality assurance and supportive supervision protocols related to program implementation.
• Work with team to consolidate country office reports for reporting to the donors.

\*Research and Dissemination of Information*****

• Working closely with Africa Regional NTD Advisor, document, publish and present key programmatic findings and lessons learned.
• Facilitate regular virtual/face-to-face meetings between country and regional level staff to promote institution learning and knowledge management by sharing of best practices and lessons learned within portfolio countries and across NTD projects.
• Contribute to PCT and trachoma technical information on HKI website and coordinate dissemination of information through HKI’s NTD Community of Practice.

Grant Compliance and Budget Control

• Working closely with Accounting, Finance, Grants & Contracts units, lead team efforts to ensure donor funds are allocated and managed in accordance with HKI and donor policies and good financial standards.
• Ensure HQ support team work closely with country teams to:
• contribute to development of effective financial monitoring and budget tracking systems that link activity implementation to budget monitoring;
• adhere to HKI’s financial monitoring tools; and
• track budget expenditures over time to ensure budget compliance.
• Review financial reports for the projects and monitor the project budgeting, activities, and spending.

Representation

• Represent portfolio at appropriate global and regional meetings and support representation of HKI’s NTDs expertise at regional and country level events, as assigned.
• Facilitate linkages between civil society, government, and international agencies that promote and build awareness of evidence-based approaches to PCT and trachoma programming.

Qualifications

• Minimum of a master’s degree in public health, tropical medicine, epidemiology, health management, or related field; plus
• A minimum of 10 years’ experience successfully managing international projects similar in scope and complexity related to infectious diseases (at least 3 of which must be NTD projects; and 5 in a leadership role); or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Significant experience working with USAID funded projects and knowledge of relevant rules and regulations.
• Demonstrated effectiveness in project planning, high attention to detail, and managing teams for high productivity while promoting team work and partnership.
• Experience with
• quality assurance approaches and essential tools required;
• relevant social and behavior change communication approaches and tools essential; and
• gender relevant programming highly desirable.
• Scientific and research skills, as evidenced by track record of peer-reviewed publications and presentations at international conferences preferred.
• Effective interpersonal skills and demonstrated ability to create and maintain effective working relations with international organizations, NGO partners, and host country governments.
• Ability to foster a creative, professional, “open door” management culture; to empower senior staff, managers and staff members to fulfill their potential; and to encourage staff to challenge assumptions.
• Knowledge and experience of the implementation environment in diverse African settings, including a minimum two years’ experience managing complex project activities at the country level.
• Demonstrated commitment to serve field offices to enhance their capacity to design and implement quality programs.
• Proven track record contributing to successful business development and proposal efforts that have secured funding from government, non-government and private foundation sources.
• Full professional proficiency in English with excellent oral and written communications skills. French a distinct advantage;
• Ability to undertake extensive field travel (approximately 40%).

Qualified candidates should submit a cover letter and resume to hki.recruitment@hki.org

noting the job title in the subject line. Applications will be accepted until the position is filled.