The aim of the position of DD, Family Health, is to advance the foundation’s Family Health goals in India. India bears a large and disproportionate share of the global maternal, neonatal, infant, and under-5 mortality and morbidity burden. Interventions under the National Health Mission (NHM) have led to improved outcomes over the last decade, but many barriers remain, especially around health systems and quality of care issues. In addition, India high unmet need for modern contraception and high rates of malnutrition and stunting, which must be addressed.
DD, Family Health, oversees three strategic initiatives, comprising altogether 4-6 direct reports: MNCH, Family Planning, Nutrition. Each initiative has its own Initiative Lead, whose responsibility is to translate the foundation’s global strategy into India country strategy for said vertical. DD, Family Health, will help with that translation. As well, DD, Family Health, will identify synergies and trade-offs among Family Health strategies in India and will identify opportunities to leverage foundation investments in upstream discovery, science, surveillance, and data & analysis.
This position reports to Director of Health, India, and is considered an integral part of the leadership team for the foundation’s health strategy in India. This position partners closely with Deputy Directors and Program Officers across the Health, Policy, and Poverty Alleviation Teams based in India and in Seattle.
Key Responsibilities:
- Provide value-adding guidance to MNCH, Family Planning, and Nutrition Initiative Teams, ensuring each is pursuing robust, data-driven, results-oriented, innovative strategies.
- Provide expert input on foundation investments in upstream and downstream science and efforts to improve family health in India.
- Liaise closely with UP and Bihar Initiatives and with Channel Initiatives in order to recommend opportunities for synergy or necessary trade-offs among interventions targeting similar channels and/or beneficiaries.
- Own relationships, support advocacy efforts, and liaise as needed with government bureaucrats and officials, to provide data and expert opinion on questions on policy in MNCH, family planning, and/or nutrition space.
- Review, approve, scope, propose, shape, and/or manage investments (grants and/or contracts) to execute activities in support of programmatic and policy goals.
- Establish and nurture the external partnerships that will contribute to the success of our investments, including senior bureaucrats and officials in government, donors, multi-lateral agencies, NGOs, private sector organizations, etc.
- Recruit and develop talent, act as mentor and coach to direct and indirect reports
- Serve as a partner and resource to grantees and foundation program teams to facilitate accomplishment of strategic objectives.
- Synthesize and document results and lessons from grants and contracts, including preparation of briefings and portfolio reviews for presentation to leadership.
- Contribute to writing background documents, briefs, and presentations, including carrying out relevant literature reviews, landscape analyses, and data analysis.
- Plan and coordinate partner consultations and meetings to advance understanding of key issues for the strategy.
- Undertake and lead special projects, as requested.
Qualifications
We are looking for people who are extraordinary strategists, problem-solvers, and leaders
- People who enjoy solving complex problems, using hypothesis- and data-driven approach and working through matrixed teaming to deliver break-through solutions
- People who can nurture people and build great teams
The qualified candidate should have the following competencies and experience:
- Superior skills in critical thinking and strategic planning
- Senior leadership experience in a global health organization, either public or private, including responsibility for program strategy, design, and implementation
- Deep, technical knowledge of family health domains, in Indian and global context
- Demonstrated experience building and leading strategic partnerships with key stakeholders from diverse sectors including NGOs, government, and the private sector
- Proven success using evidence and data to inform policy, programming, and management decisions.
- Strong ability to work with efficiency and diplomacy, particularly as part of a multi-disciplinary team effort. Demonstrated ability to work in productive collaboration with diverse teams including scientists, business analysts, program implementers, and developing country stakeholders, from various cultures, over multiple time zones
- Demonstrated curiosity and comfort in areas beyond current areas of expertise with proven ability to rapidly acquire knowledge and execute good judgment in a variety of scientific and political areas.
- Masterful ability to plan, organize, and prioritize work of self and others in fast-paced environment with multiple and competing demands, which requires ability to see critical path, measure and mitigate risk, make trade-offs
- Proven ability to structure and manage high-return, well-risk-mitigated grants, with clear milestones and outcomes; with experience in developing this skill in others.
- Success in nurturing people and building great teams
- Role model for courageous inquiry and intellectual integrity
- Willingness to prioritize collective success over self
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
- Excellent interpersonal, negotiation, and collaboration skills, with the ability to solve problems with energy and optimism
- Ability to travel locally and internationally, up to half time.