Regional Director Europe/Americas & Global Public Engagement & Supporter Growth

ActionAid is a global federation working for a world free from poverty and injustice.

We want to see a just, fair and sustainable world, in which everybody enjoys the right to a life of dignity, and freedom from poverty and oppression.

So we work to achieve social justice and gender equality, and to eradicate poverty.

Our strategy is to build international momentum for social, economic and environmental justice, driven by people living in poverty and exclusion.

In practice, this means working closely with people living in poverty and exclusion, civil society organisations, social movements and supporters. Together, we deliver grassroots programmes, provide emergency relief and campaign for things such as women’s economic rights, tax justice and climate justice.

Our work falls into four broad areas: women, politics and economics, land and climate, and emergencies. We have a particular focus on women’s rights; it’s a thread that runs through all our work.

Role overview

Action Aid International (AAI) has been going through a period of organisational transformation resulting in a newly defined Global Secretariat (GS) Leadership Team reporting directly to the AAI Secretary General.

This position will hold a dual regional (Europe and Americas) and global functional role (Global Public Engagement and Supporter Growth).

It is a very strategic role essential for the success of ActionAid’s Global Strategy. Alongside three (03) other director positions, this role will be part of a Global Management Team that provides leadership to achieve internal coherence and external impact.

The Director will harness the capacities and energy of both the regional and functional teams reporting to him/her to jointly drive transformation of country impact and sustainability in collaboration with other Global Secretariat teams.

In the capacity of Director for Public Engagement and Supporter Growth, the role will drive co-creation and implementation (along with interested AAI countries) of a public engagement strategy to revitalise and expand AAI’s popular base in both Global North and Global South countries, encompassing communications; campaigning, organizing, and movement building; and public giving.

The role will collaborate closely with the Director for Political and Programmes Strategy to ensure that public engagement strategy and influencing strategy are mutually reinforcing, and that we better integrate community programmes, policy advocacy, and public engagement to achieve more impact and attract more supporters at local, national and global levels. The Director will also oversee AAI’s flagship public-facing global campaigns, and champion and oversee the transformation of ActionAid’s child sponsorship product and the renewal of AAI’s global identity and brand narrative.

Key Activities and Areas of Responsibility

Strategic Impact and Contribution

• Advance our 2nd Strategy Implementation Framework (SIF2) goal of expanding our popular support base as a key pillar of our theory of change. Together with the Director responsible for Political and Programme Strategy, lead and coordinate the external strategy of the Federation, including through promoting a more joined-up approach to public engagement (communications, campaigning and organising, public fundraising) and renewal of AAI’s global identity.
• Oversee and champion the transformation of Child Sponsorship as well as innovation in other Individual Giving products, acting as AAI’s leading internal advocate for the renewal of Child Sponsorship.
• Sponsor and lead Federation-wide co-creation of a global campaign strategy that is aligned with our overall theory of change, achieves tangible impact, and delivers measurable results in terms of supporter mobilisation and popular organising, brand identity and media visibility. Together with other regional directors and the Global Management Team, convene and effectively engage Country Directors to mobilise the action and resources needed to win campaigns and elevate ActionAid’s voice and identity globally and nationally.
• Play an important political convening role with Country Directors in the region to deliver ActionAid’s internal and external change goals. Builds unity, trust and ensures active and meaningful engagement of members and countries in the region in federation processes.
• Works closely with other Directors and the wider Global Management Team to oversee and drive an integrated cross-functional strategic plan for increasing the transformation, sustainability, and impact of AAI countries across all regions. Plays an important political convening role with Country Directors in the region to deliver country transformation and financial sustainability goals.

System, Policies and Procedures and Product Management

• Work closely with the Director of Political and Programme Strategy to drive development of innovative approaches integrating community programmes, policy advocacy, movement-building and public engagement to achieve more impact and attract more supporters at local, national and global levels.
• Oversees modernisation and innovation in Federation policies, systems and ways of working on Child Sponsorship, and champions their adoption by all countries.
• Work closely with the Director of People, Finance and Operations to resolve challenges around equitable and sustainable resourcing of our Child Sponsorship model in both implementing and fundraising; contribute to the development of a new Resource Allocation Framework and related policies.
• Oversee any global rebranding or brand refresh projects that may be agreed in future in line with the recently completed Niche and Identity project, and ensure the continuing decolonisation of AAI’s campaigning and fundraising methods, content and visual imagery.

Issue Resolutions, Crisis/Risk Management

• Working with regional team and other directors, provide the essential leadership to detect and resolve tensions and manage crisis at country and regional level that impact ActionAid’s mission.
• In collaboration with other regional and functional directors, ensure a constructive balancing of power within the Federation and ensure that ActionAid walks the talk on Feminism, decolonialisation and anti-racism
• Manage and creatively resolve tensions within the GS and Federation around campaigning and communications priorities, positions and approach, as well as conflicts that arise in partnerships between Child Sponsorship marketing and implementing countries – working closely with the Directors responsible for Political and Programme Strategy or People, Finance and Operations when appropriate.
• Acts as the ultimate owner of reputational, liability, data protection or other risks in AAI’s global campaigns and communications work, and oversees management of these risks when needed (escalating from Head of Campaigns and Communications). Supports risk-owners to manage fundraising and child sponsorship-related risks with cross-border implications.

Communications, Influencing and Coordination

External:

• Represents ActionAid in key external engagements and international campaigning spaces.
• Contributes to enhancing the regional and international profile of AAI in the key areas of our work as an organisation

Internal:

• Ensures Federation members participation, ownership and meaningful alignment and buy-in with the Global Strategy and strategy implementation frameworks (SIF)
• Plays an important political convening role with Country Directors in the region to deliver ActionAid’s global political and programme strategy as well as country transformation and financial sustainability goals.
• Builds unity, trust and ensures active and meaningful engagement of members and countries in the region in federation processes.

People Management

• Build and nurture a highly motivated team that fully realises their potential to contribute to ActionAid’s mission.
• Specifically responsible for recruiting, developing, coaching and performance managing high-performing Heads.
• In collaboration with the primary reporting managers, support the regional team members that have matrixing reporting obligations to the Regional Director to succeed.
• Deliberately work to break silos and foster cross-functional ways of working that harness the collective potential of different teams within the cluster and across regions
• Models and nurtures a feminist and anti-racist leadership culture within own cluster and whole of GS, with consistent and dedicated attention to building trust; dismantling bias and promoting equity, diversity and inclusion; promoting effective and accountable collaboration; encouraging courageous innovation; and caring for self and others.

Person Specification

Education and Qualifications

• Masters degree in relevant field.
• Other relevant post-graduate trainings

Essential Experience

• 15 or more years’ experience in senior leadership roles in global non-profit organisations, including significant experience in international leadership roles, preferably in the development, social justice or environmental justice sectors.
• Experience managing large multi-country, cross-cultural teams (including substantial remote management) and budgets of at least £2m annually.
• Experience with and networks for engaging with relevant regional decision-making bodies, donors and civil society movements.
• Experience in working with Boards
• Experience in leading communications, campaigning, and/or voluntary fundraising strategy, portfolios and teams globally.

Essential Knowledge

• Deep understanding of intersectional gender, economic and environmental justice struggles globally and in the region. Understanding of and passion for ActionAid’s theory of change that poverty and injustice can only be overcome by strengthening the individual agency and collective power of oppressed groups to win systemic change.
• Good understanding of the roles that popular mobilisation, organising, communications and fundraising play in building and expanding collective power for systemic change. Knowledge of new trends in online and offline public engagement and movement-buidling.
• Understanding of how brand identity helps to build values-based connections with potential supporters.

Essential Skills

• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills with the ability to inspire and motivate staff and partners across the Federation.
• Proven skills in multi-stakeholder management and crisis resolution.
• Skilled in driving clear, measurable objectives and key results, including in cross-departmental and cross-functional settings.
• Feminist leadership skills and attributes, including self-awareness, a positive growth mindset, ambitious drive for collective results, excellent collaboration and team-building skills, and strong commitment to dismantling bias and promoting equity and inclusion.
• A “big picture” thinker and leader with the ability to build consensus around and drive organisation-wide vision and goals, overcoming functional and regional silos.

Language Requirement

• Excellent written and spoken English.
• Working knowledge of another major language spoken in the AAI Federation is an added advantage.

Action Aid Culture, Values and Feminist Leadership

It is part of every staff member’s responsibility to contribute to ActionAid International culture and comply with organisation’s values and practice, which are:

• Leading Innovation and Change: Establish a culture of excellence in respective team that values experimentation and continuous improvement
• Feminist Leadership: Championing feminist leadership principles and values including commitment to diversity and inclusion (race, gender, power)
  • Click on the following link to access Top-Ten-Basics-of-Feminist-Leadership—one-pager
• AAI Values Practice: Ensure personal and team culture that demonstrates all of AAI values including: Mutual Respect, Equity and Justice, Integrity, Solidarity with People Living in Poverty and Exclusion, Courage of Conviction, Independence and Humility

Appointment details

Location: Europe- ActionAid Global Secretariat (GS) Hubs

Contract Type: Permanent

Direct Reports: Region Head of Country Engagement and Transformation, Public Fundraising Lead, Head of Campaigns and Communications, Executive Coordinator, Country Directors for CPs

Matrix Reports: Finance Advisor, HR and Change Management Advisor, CMR Advisor