We seek an experienced professional to act as a strategic advisor and integral thought partner to the Director, Africa, oversee the management of the Director’s office and how it supports the South Africa country office, the Africa team leadership, staff and the foundation. The focus of the Africa team is to enable collective impact for the foundation in Africa by influencing policy and finance towards key development priorities, strengthening capacity and enabling systems for delivery, and innovating and leveraging cross-cutting enablers for impact at scale. The Senior Advisor will work collaboratively with programmatic, functional and cross-division stakeholders to advance the vision, program priorities and deliverables of the Director, Africa and his team to support execution against goals. The Senior Advisor will also work closely with internal staff across the Africa team and Global Development (GD) division, with Chiefs of Staff from other offices/divisions and with external stakeholders to maintain key connections with people at all levels. The Senior Advisor will be based in Johannesburg, South Africa and will report to the Director, Africa.
Act as a strategic advisor and integral thought partner to the Director, Africa supporting priority initiatives, projects and topics.
- Support the Director, Africa with priority/agenda setting, managing the execution of those priorities, and monitoring and communicating progress towards those priorities both internally and externally.
- Lead strategic projects for which the Director, Africa is taking direct ownership/co-ownership. Manage and/or engage in initiatives/projects that are top priority of the Director, Africa.
- Work with Africa, GD and foundation leadership to address cross-cutting issues and improve functions and performance.
- Provide analytical support to answer critical program and business questions, resolve issues and provide advice on key issues.
- Advise and support foundation colleagues and their grantees in the design, enhancement and execution of projects, initiatives and engagements. May help to manage partner/grantee relationships to achieve impact (e.g. by conducting site visits, convening stakeholder meetings, monitoring and evaluating components of grants, etc.).
Oversee the management of the Director’s office and how it supports the Africa team leadership, staff, and the foundation.
- Manage the workload of the Director, Africa and his office by setting priorities and time allocation, developing and managing annual plans, developing and managing “rhythm of the business” calendar, managing information flow, etc. – help identify opportunities for prioritization, collaboration, and delegation.
- Serve as secretariat for the Africa Director’s Forum (ADF) including setting the agenda for weekly meetings, capturing/sharing meeting minutes, supporting and tracking the execution of action items, etc.
- Actively participate and support the Africa Leadership Team (ALT).
- Advise on coordination/collaboration, support, and communication models between the Africa regional team, the Nigeria Country Office and Ethiopia Country Office.
- Support the management of relationships with other teams and Directors and help maintain Seattle-Johannesburg communications.
- Support the development of the Africa team, including recruiting, on-boarding and efforts to improve culture and performance.
Oversee the management of the Director’s office and how it supports the management of the South Africa country office.
We believe that energized people, working well together, fueled by great leadership in an inclusive environment in which they thrive, will do phenomenal things.
Core Knowledge and Skills
- We are looking for people who enjoy the challenge of working on complex problems and collaboratively creating solutions that have the potential for transformational change in the lives of people around the world. The Senior Advisor must have an outstanding track record of achievement and leadership in roles of increasing responsibility. S/he must be prepared to work across a diverse set of disciplines, bridging a wide range of expertise all the while being a solid team player, with a demonstrated ability to work with flexibility, efficiency, and diplomacy in a fast-paced, challenging environment. S/he should have:
- Demonstrated ability to achieve results and drive complex work to conclusion; including driving results through others.
- Experience with strategy implementation, measurement, and course-correction.
- Strong analytical skills -- demonstrated ability to use quantitative and qualitative data to present options for decision making, highlight trade-offs and propose recommendations.
- Strong collaboration skills. Ability to question and challenge colleagues including managers, partners, and clients in a constructive manner.
- Demonstrated ability to work with efficiency, diplomacy, and flexibility particularly as part of a team and with external partners.
- Proven ability to lead and influence others.
- Strong communication skills including excellent oral, facilitation, listening skills and empathy with a broad and diverse audience.
- Experience working in a matrix environment strongly preferred. Ability to function successfully in a politically demanding environment.
- Excellent organizational skills. Demonstrated ability to lead teams through a complex and ambiguous task.
- Ability to be self-guided and work effectively and with sensitivity across barriers such as language, culture and distance.
- Excellent software skills with Microsoft Office applications. Ability to quickly learn new software modules.
- A sense of humor.
- Ability to travel up to 25% domestically and internationally.
- Broad understanding of global health/development issues and some global health/development experience is preferable.