Country Director at John Snow Inc - JSI

Position Description

• The Nigeria Country Director will be JSI’s chief representative and head of all operations for JSI in country, reporting to the International Programs Director.
• They will provide strategic leadership and coordination to advance JSI’s efficiency, effectiveness, impact and reputation at the country level.
• The Country Director will also be responsible for advancing JSI’s impact on the national public health and education landscape, developing a country-specific strategy in alignment with JSI’s global vision and mission.
• They will provide direct day-to-day management oversight to in-country Chiefs of Party, Project Directors, other project leads, the Country Business Operations/Deputy Director, and other senior leaders across JSI and World Education projects, ensuring that those projects are implemented in a coordinated manner and to a high standard, and in compliance with donor, country and JSI requirements.
• The Country Director will ensure compliance with JSI and other requirements for the suite of JSI programs and projects in country, taking the lead to proactively manage and mitigate risk.
• This position will also play a major role in actively seeking out and positioning JSI for future work through their efforts in new business development.

RESPONSIBILITIES

The Country Director responsibilities will span multiple functional areas including those highlighted below:
Overall Operations and Project Management Oversight:

• Effectively manage senior leadership in the country, including Chiefs of Party, Project Directors, and other senior leaders, to foster an environment that adheres to JSI’s ethics and culture; ensure that JSI’s project leaders under their supervision are trained and oriented to excel in their positions as managers of JSI projects and stewards of donor funding; act as a sounding board and thought partner to these leaders, providing high level oversight and guidance, and mentoring and coaching as needed; and nurture and safeguard project-specific autonomy to facilitate continued in-project flexibility, responsiveness and impact, as well as cross-project learning.
• Ensure that all projects consistently meet donor deliverables and expectations, including adherence to donor rules and regulations as well as JSI policies and processes; supporting projects to leverage the resources required for quality implementation; providing high-level monitoring of project plans to ensure implementation is on track, including review of project deliverables; and providing timely reporting and support on any issues/challenges that may impact success.
• Lead and work to ensure seamless technical and administrative operations of the portfolio of projects in country, identifying areas for shared support services as well as necessary levels of technical assistance (internally and externally).
• Work closely with the Country Business Operations/Deputy Director to ensure there is appropriate oversight and accountability of project and organizational resources in accordance with donor and country requirements and JSI policies and program management standards. This includes management of shared country resources such as procurement, legal, human resources (including safety/security), and IT.
• Manage and mitigate risk by monitoring national and regional issues that may impact staff and project work, including understanding local labor laws and required personnel policies and processes, and to provide guidance or identify needs in collaboration with the human resources team.
• Support strategic information staff and JSI MERL staff to develop and implement a robust country M&E plan to support in-country program learning, enhance donor deliverables, and ensure a robust narrative on the impact of JSI’s work.
• Support knowledge management activities and proactively foster documentation and cross-project learning.
• Provide leadership to ensure project work appropriately feeds into JSI’s documentation, communication and publicity strategies, while ensuring compliance with donor documentation and communication requirements.
• Other operations and project management duties, as assigned.

Representation and Public Health Leadership:

• Champion and lead the vision, mission and overall strategy of JSI in country in alignment with JSI’s global vision and mission, and serve as the principal organizational representative to foster the development of strategic partnerships with national and international stakeholders that leverage resources, reputation, and expertise.
• Ensure strong relationships with donors, host country government and other stakeholders and provide support to JSI leaders during strategic meetings or activities, when necessary.
• Elevate JSI’s presence and leadership in the national public health space, actively scanning representational and thought leadership opportunities and supporting in-country JSI leaders (and other JSI leaders as appropriate) to be at the table to help to shape public health discourse, direction and impact.
• Forge a coherent organizational narrative and presence to ensure JSI’s work is visible and that JSI is viewed as unified and organized in the country. Work with project leadership in consultation with the communications team to develop and carry out strategies to allow donors, government, partners, and other stakeholders to understand JSI’s mission, expertise, and vision.

New Business Development:

• Serve as the in-country point of contact and coordination for all JSI new business development (NBD) efforts providing support throughout the lifecycle of a given NBD opportunity, as required and appropriate, including leading and directing the pursuit of strategic growth opportunities, pre-positioning and capture planning, and proposal development, in close collaboration with the central NBD team.
• In collaboration with staff from NBD, Programs, Communications, and others as appropriate, develop and oversee country-level growth plans.
• Work collaboratively with the assigned NBD regional/country point person and within global NBD processes regarding decisions and strategies for new business opportunities; liaise and/or collaborate with existing and potential donors, partners and stakeholders in country and in the region in pursuit of these opportunities (as appropriate).
• Working with COPs and other project leaders, identify and assign appropriate country staff to contribute to specific proposal efforts.
• Ensure and proactively lead the maintenance and cultivation of a strongly performing portfolio to position JSI for follow-on opportunities and other future projects.
• Maintains updated knowledge of JSI’s global areas of expertise, contracting vehicles, global projects and priority initiatives in order to fully represent JSI’s potential value add and ways to engage JSI in work at regional and country level.

QUALIFICATIONS

• Master’s degree in international development, international relations, business management, public health, education, or related field.
• Minimum of 10 years of relevant professional experience at JSI or another international NGO, preferably in the field of public health.
• Minimum of 5 years of experience as a COP, resident advisor or other senior project leadership position at JSI.
• Extensive knowledge and understanding of JSI’s management policies, administrative procedures, as well as the new business development approach.
• Excellent relationship management abilities and a proven track record of developing and maintaining strong relationships with government counterparts, donors and other relevant stakeholders.
• Proven people management and supervisory expertise, including experience coaching and mentoring senior staff and successfully leading project management leadership teams.
• Ability to monitor, track and be accountable for project and organizational financial resources.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills in English (or French, for Francophone countries) as well as in relevant local language(s).
• Outstanding organizational skills.
• Strong conflict management and negotiation skills.