An experienced international director in communicable diseases control. The Technical Director is responsible for the technical oversight of Malaria Consortium programmes and activities worldwide and for the quality of the technical input into all Malaria Consortium’s work.
Scope of work
The Technical Director will chair the Senior Technical Team (STT) and will sit as a member of the Global Management Group (GMG). In addition to technical oversight, technical quality assurance, thoughtleadership and global positioning, the postholder will ensure effective planning and management of activities of the UK-based members of the technical team.
Key working relationships
The Technical Director works internally with Chief Executive, (CE), Regional Programme Directors, (RPD), Finance Director, (FD), Human Resource Director (HRD), Programme Director for SMC, the Senior Technical team, (STT), Heads of Business Development andExternal Relations, the Senior
Technical Support Officer, the Technical Operations Coordinator and the Technical Writing Specialist. Externally the Technical Director works closely with partners, key health organisations, academic institutions, and donors globally.
Key accountabilities
Strategic Management
Work with the CE, the Global Management Group (GMG) and Technical teams to develop and keep current the organisation’s overall technical strategy
Develop specific strategies for key areas of research and technical activity
Recommend to the Chief Executive the key technical staffing requirements to deliver the agreed strategy
Provide the Board of Trustees with advice on strategy for control of diseases, especially malaria and updates on project progress as appropriate
Contribute fully to wider organisation decision making as part of the GMG
Provide stewardship to the Board of Trustees’ Research Advisory Group (BoT-RAG) to support thinking on Research strategy, opportunities, and priorities
Technical Oversight and Strategic Input
Provide technical guidance, sign off and oversight to Malaria Consortium’s projects
Respond to queries from partners, clients, and staff about key issues in Malaria Consortium’s areas of activity and expertise
Provide the technical framework and strategic lead on public health for all current business areas (Burden reduction to Elimination, Data-informed decision-making, Influencing policy and practice, and Supporting health sector resilience to achieve Universal Health Coverage), Communities of Practice (Social and Behaviour Change, Capacity Development, Monitoring and Evaluation, Digital Health solutions), disease areas (including: Malaria, NTDs, Dengue, Pneumonia, and Malnutrition) and Child and Maternal Health more generally, for Malaria Consortium to achieve its objectives
Work closely with the Global Technical Team (GTT) and the External Relations team to ensure the consistent availability of technical content for organisational publications
Facilitate and foster the writing of quality and impactful peer-review publications and thought-leadership pieces
Be Principal Investigator (PI) on selected high-impact projects
Performance Management and Quality Assurance
Provide technical leadership in developing and implementing quality assurance mechanisms to ensure there is a coherent and consistently high standard of advice and content in all Malaria Consortium programmes and products (includes documents, website, consultant briefings)
Establish and coordinate technical training, orientation, updates, and briefs to improve the capacity of Malaria Consortium offices, staff, and partner organisations
Develop, and keep current, policy and strategy frameworks and briefs on key aspects of disease elimination and health system effectiveness and efficiency
Provide oversight to experiential and lessons learning for technical quality improvement
Work with the Senior Technical Support Officer to see that targeted project management support is provided to selected projects and activities based out of the UK office
Foster relevant cross-function collaborations at the UK office to achieve high technical quality and strategy implementation
Support and supervise key technical staff
Financial and Resource Management
Support the management and monitoring of financial resources appropriately and ensure application globally
Ensure effective and efficient management of the financial resources of programmes and projects, in close collaboration with the CE and FD including the review with GMG of monthly management accounts and those for the organisation as a whole
Review annual budgets and quarterly forecasts of the technical team working closely with the Technical Operations Coordinator and ensure timely submission to and approval by CE and FD
Review technical assistance forecasts working closely with the Technical Operations Coordinator and ensure timely allocation of experts
Work closely with the Senior Technical Support Officer on effective resource management to achieve optimal resourcing of the STT to priority activities
Representation and Partnerships
Participate in global policy development, lead Malaria Consortium’s contributions and represent Malaria Consortium in international fora
Propose establishment of, and develop and maintain strategic partnerships with, relevant technical organisations and groups
Maintain strong links with academic and research organisations
Business Development
Provide input and market information related to Malaria Consortium’s business areas on funding strategies for the CE that will help Malaria Consortium win new business and meet its objectives
Guide the technical positioning of Malaria Consortium, identifying opportunities for future development and work
Contribute to the development of fundraising concepts and proposals and lead the development of technical strategies, inputs, and partnerships
Allocate key staff to lead technical input to proposals, reprioritising workload as needed
Propose and be involved in donor engagement activities to achieve the objectives of the organisational strategy
Person specification
Qualifications and experience:
Essential:
Substantial and extensive experience in global health with a focus on communicable diseases control and universal health coverage
A PhD, or equivalent experience, in a scientific area relevant to Malaria Consortium’s mission
Senior leadership experience in an international NGO, academic institution, multilateral agency or relevant private sector business
Strategy implementation experience at regional or global levels
Strong experience in mentoring senior, high-calibre technical staff
Demonstrable experience of representation at government-agency level on behalf of an organisation
Significant experience of writing/reviewing proposals targeted at major government development partners and foundations
Desirable:
A medical qualification
Experience living and/or working in South-East Asia and/or Sub-Saharan Africa
Demonstrable experience of working alongside WHO and other multilateral agencies in the international health arena
Strong network in the International academic community
Extensive experience in health systems strengthening
Clear understanding of the opportunities emerging from digitisation and the use of big data
Experience communicating technical content through social media
Right to work in the UK
Work-based skills:
Essential:
Is an inspirational leader with excellent leadership skills and a growth mindset
Able to think strategically and transfer that thinking into practical implications
Able to develop and present evidence-based arguments and impact/influence others
Able to derive trends from potentially complex analytics
Highly capable communicator with excellent writing and presentation skills
Highly organised with excellent management and planning skills
Is capable of systems thinking, with ability to see end-to-end from programme design to implementation
Excellent verbal and written English
Track record of publications
Committed to the mission and values of Malaria Consortium
Desirable:
Is open to consider innovative ways to achieve goals
Able to think on one’s feet and handle requests from the Media
