Associate Programs Director Needed

HealthRight International is a global health organization that expands equitable access to quality health systems for marginalized communities, with particular focus on those affected by HIV and AIDS, violence, unmet mental health needs, and inadequate reproductive, maternal, newborn, child & adolescent (RMNCAH) health services. Employing a human rights-based approach, HealthRight works closely with community-based partners to build local capacity and create sustainable programs that have lasting impact. Since its founding in 1990, HealthRight has worked in over 30 countries, with current projects in Asia, Africa, Eastern Europe, and the United States.

Position Summary :

Reporting to the Country Director (CD), the Associate Programs Director (APD) will be responsible for the program’ s operational success of HealthRight in Kenya, ensuring seamless team management and development, business development, program delivery, quality control and evaluation. In this role, the APD will manage a growing staff of 20 individuals. The APD will be heavily engaged in external relations. This is an extraordinary opportunity for an individual with experience implementing public health programs and managing teams to grow and further develop a proven program. The successful candidate will lead programs, partner with the CD and work collaboratively with a mission-driven and highly effective staff and management team both in the Kenya office and the HQ team.

Major Tasks and Responsibilities

Program Leadership

• In collaboration with CD, develop a donor relationship score card for close monitoring of engagements with current and potential donors and partners.
• Be proactive and use critical thinking skills to navigate through tricky or ambiguous issues. By remaining objective, analyze the facts, evaluate options without bias and be able to solve complex problems for the organization while delivering results on time and within budget
• Business Development: With the support of the CD and HQ, the APD holds a pivotal position in ensuring programs growth and development and should make it a team sport. He / she ensures program growth and targets scanning of opportunities for business development to build a robust grant pipeline
• Financial Management: In collaboration with the Associate Director for Finance and Administration, implement systems that ensure accurate budgeting and sound fiscal management of projects.

Team Leadership

• Implement objective performance measurements across all sites, to ensure consistent, high-quality evaluation and goal setting for all employees. Conduct regular Performance Appraisals with program team members, providing constructive feedback and direction for improvement.
• Provide strong leadership to the team, build trust, develop effective coaching skills, guiding, and motivating co-workers and manage team conflict to help move projects forward and deliver positive outcome.
• Provide positive leadership to all staff and communicate effectively and continuously and create meaningful relationships with co-workers, and articulate a clearly established vision of what is to be achieved to ensure all are aware of what is expected of them.
• Direct, plan and coordinate the work of the program staff including supervision and evaluation, training and team building.
• Actively participate in the Senior Management Team, attending meetings regularly and bringing forward issues for discussion and decision related to programming
• In liaison with HR Recruit, hire, and oversee training and orientation of all project staff members.

Operations Management

• Ensure timely and quality donor reporting. Be conversant with reports review and donor report formats. Guide project managers on report drafting.
• Establish clear, time-bound performance metrics and monitor and evaluate the projects start-up and closure processes and inform the CD whenever there are any identified or potential risks.
• Scheduling and Time Management: support in the creation of well-defined project plans (costed work plans), capturing business requirements and project scope, while sequencing activities and resources.
• Ensure appropriate data management and MEARL systems for data monitoring, analysis, utilization, and reporting.

External Relations

• Grow HealthRight’s visibility in Kenya through strategic communications, publications, and conference presentations
• Cultivate relationships with external partners including donors, civil society and government in furtherance of organizational mission
• Prepare HealthRight Kenya’s Annual Report and relevant program brochures, working with the rest of the senior management team and staff members
• Represent the organization at relevant meetings, technical working groups, conferences, and events with key stakeholders

Required Qualifications

• An advanced degree in a related field (public health, human rights, medicine, nursing etc.) is required
• Understanding and commitment to equity, human rights, and intersectional approaches to health
• Seasoned experience building, mentoring and developing a happy, motivated and productive team.
• Demonstrated expertise implementing public health programs in Kenya with at least 5 years of team management experience, including financial management
• Proven track record of writing/leading winning grant proposals and partnering with donors, MOH institutions, NGOs, communities and health development partners
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with strong attention to detail
• Fluency in spoken and written English, Kiswahili

Highly Desired Qualifications

• Values flexibility and creativity and teamwork in the workplace
• Experience in at least one of HealthRight’s focal health issues
• Demonstrated experience in cultivating academic partnerships (research, grants, learning) and research in LMICs and/or low-resource settings