Director – Programme, Development and Quality

THE ROLE:

Save the Children works to achieve three global Breakthroughs for children by 2030: Learn, Survive and Be Protected. In Sri Lanka, Save the children work in 9 districts, both development and humanitarian context, with approximately 180 staff and over 10 million USD portfolio. Director of Program Development and Quality plays the lead role in programme designing, technical oversight, advocacy and highest standard of quality in all programme implementation. The position holder will lead the strategic and innovative program development based on rights based principles and children’s needs in Sri Lanka.

ROLE OVERVIEW:

As member of the Senior Management Team (SMT) in Sri Lanka, the Director of Program Development and Quality (PDQ) is responsible for driving the country office program strategy. S/he is leading a team of technical experts and is responsible for ensuring development of high quality, evidence based, innovative and responsive projects, strategies and advocacy initiatives. S/he collaborates closely with the Program Operations team to ensure maintenance of quality standards throughout the program implementation cycle.

S/he ensures that a robust Research, Evidence, Accountability, Learning and Monitoring (REALM) system is in place, that the country office engages in the collection and use of evidence and that this is shared across the global organization, and that reliable data is used for decision-making, donor reporting, advocacy, campaigning and communications. S/he leads on donor interface and resource development to ensure that the country office strategy can be delivered, and collaborates closely with Advocacy, Campaigns, Communication and Media (ACCM) team for policy influencing.

S/he will work closely with the country director and Head of localisation to advance the SC global/Sri Lanka agenda on localisation and shifting power to local actors. especially, shift power to children and youth led organisations to play a critical role in civic space and policy advocacy.

S/he is expected to position Save the Children in Sri Lanka as a thought leader in child rights, and technical lead in the country. The Dir-PDQ will be required to represent SC in high level platforms to lead policy dialogues, negotiations, technical leadership and resource mobilisations.

In the event of a humanitarian emergency, the role holder will be expected to work outside the normal role profile and be able to vary working hours accordingly.

SCOPE OF ROLE:

Reports to: Country Director. This position reports functionally to Regional PQEI Director, Asia.

Staff reporting to this post:

Technical Pool: Senior Advisor, CP; Senior Advisor, Senior Technical Advisor – Education

• LH/Food Security (Child Poverty); Senior Advisor, Gender and Inclusion, Senior Advisor – Education (may include an indirect reporting line, Senior Advisor, Health and Nutrition – USDA funded project)
• Head of Research, Evidence, Accountability, Learning & Monitoring (REALM)
• Head of Localisation and Advocacy
• Head of Resource Mobilization

Role Dimensions: As a senior staff in the Country Office, the Director of Program Development and Quality (PDQ) must demonstrate qualities of agile leadership. S/he plays a key role in defining and pursuing the strategic direction for Save the Children’s programs in Sri Lanka, ensuring the relevance, coherence, safety and impact of our programs for children in all contexts. This is a challenging role requiring an individual who can work with complexity and multiple tasks at one time. It is essential that the Director of PDQ builds and maintains strong relationships across functions within the CO, including with team members from Operations, Award Management, Humanitarian, Human Resources, IT and Finance, and s/he should lead by example in demonstrating this cross-functional collaboration. This role demands dedication to demonstrating outcomes for children, experience in integrated child rights programming and a highly motivated leader. S/he has specific oversight for ensuring programs demonstrate thematic excellence in contributing to Save the Children’s three Breakthroughs for children, especially for the most deprived and marginalized.

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE:

• Masters Degree in international development or relevant field and experience in relevant social science (especially in Child Development or Community Development), human rights, development studies, NGO management or equivalent fields.
• Demonstrated senior leadership and management skills, including contributing to Senior Management team and cross-functional leadership for an organization.
• A minimum of 7-10 years of progressive senior management and/ or development experience, including experience designing and implementing programs for children.
• Demonstrated senior leadership and management skills, including contributing to Senior Management team and cross-functional leadership for an organization.
• In-depth understanding of the context, challenges and opportunities in the country or experience working in a similar country context.
• Experience in one or more of Save the Children’s thematic sectors: education, child protection, child rights governance, health and nutrition, child poverty, emergencies.
• Understanding of advocacy, policy, and government systems in the host country, and particular experience with child rights programming, including UNCRC.
• Strong skills and proven experience in leading strategic planning, change management and program management processes; also, from the knowledge and learning perspective.
• Strong skills and proven experience in new program development, project design and proposal writing with corporate, foundations and/or institutional donors.
• Credibility to lobby, influence and represent Save the Children at all levels.
• Experience in developing and managing monitoring, evaluation, accountability and learning systems.
• Excellent listening, inter-personal, communication and networking skills; proven experience and effectiveness working across functional teams and in a matrixed structure; and an ability to work with diverse populations.
• Skills in training, capability building, coaching, mentorship, problem solving, and project cycle management.
• High level of self-awareness and willingness to take feedback for growth and self-development.
• Proven experience as a team player and leader in an international organisation.