Team Lead – FCDO Ending Preventable Deaths (EPD) Programme

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises, helping to restore health, safety, education, economic wellbeing, and power to people devastated by conflict and disaster. Founded in 1933 at the call of Albert Einstein, the IRC is one of the world’s largest international humanitarian non-governmental organizations (INGO), at work in more than 50 countries and more than 25 U.S. cities helping people to survive, reclaim control of their future and strengthen their communities. A force for humanity, IRC employees deliver lasting impact by restoring safety, dignity and hope to millions. If you’re a solutions-driven, passionate change-maker, come join us in positively impacting the lives of millions of people world-wide for a better future.

Background and Objectives of the FCDO Ending Preventable Deaths (EPD) Programme

The EPD Support Programme aims to aid FCDO central and country teams in their efforts to contribute to the achievement of the objective of ending preventable deaths of mothers, babies, and children by 2030. The programme will work towards enhancing health systems, promoting human rights, and fostering healthier environments in 11 flagship countries are Bangladesh, DRC, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, Sierra Leone, Somalia, and South Sudan, and for countries in protracted crises which are Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, and Yemen. The programme will provide long-term and short-term technical assistance (TA) through local and international consultants, as well as a strategic flexible fund, to support FCDO teams.

The primary objective of the TA is to strengthen the capacity of FCDO country teams to influence the policy, legal, and strategic environments required to make progress on EPD, in line with centrally managed and bilateral country programmes. The exact nature of the TA required in each country will be established through consultations with national governments and local partners in order to identify bottlenecks and opportunities. The TA provided will be tailored to meet the specific needs of each country and will be designed to ensure effective support to FCDO central and country teams.

Scope of Work

The Team Lead will be responsible for overseeing the delivery of program outcomes and interventions and the program’s daily operations. They will have the overall responsibility of leading and overseeing the sourcing of TA needs and the quality execution of TA activities by local teams and consultants. The Team Lead will be responsible for ensuring a strong working relationship with FCDO and coordination with governments. They will ensure appropriate performance management capabilities to deliver the program deliverables. They will also be responsible for the program’s overall contract and budget management. The Team Lead is expected to have extensive skills in complex project implementation, advocacy, and networking capabilities with international and national institutions and development agencies. Broader technical knowledge of Health Systems Strengthening, SHRH, WASH, gender and equality, climate, and nutrition is desirable.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the EPD team in deploying technical assistance to address policy, legal, and implementation challenges. Provide overall strategic, programmatic, and administrative leadership and direction, overseeing all technical, operational, and financial aspects of the programme.

• Manage the programme’s performance against objectives and key performance indicators(KPI) to ensure FCDO receives full payment based on good performance.

• Responsible for monitoring KPIs to ensure contract deliverables are delivered efficiently and effectively.

• Oversee project risk, compliance, duty of care, and security and supervise the EPD programme staff.

• Supervise and shape the TA process, ensuring clear policy/influencing opportunities are identified and addressed in collaboration with FCDO and government and counterparts.

• Oversee the recruitment, contracting, and performance management of consultants, ensuring alignment with programme objectives and country needs.

• Manage the strategic flexible fund, overseeing activities such as analysis, convening, and planning to support EPD aims in alignment with FCDO priorities.

• Oversee the development, review, and monitoring of yearly work plans, project strategy documents, implementation measures, knowledge management, and sustainability efforts to achieve long-term and short-term goals.

• Manage consortium partnerships and maintain collaborative partner relations, ensuring that all partners are aware of the project’s expectations and are actively involved in achieving the objectives while using the project management tools developed or adapted for the consortium.

• Support the Deputy Team Lead in managing partners and providing operations support that optimizes resources through sound budgets, consistent financial tracking, and timely submission of reports to the donor.

• Report to FCDO through both formal and informal debriefings, annual and semi-annual reports, ensuring timely submission of high-quality content.

• Maintain active and cooperative relationships with all key stakeholders, including government officials, project partners, other implementing agencies, and related institutions.

• Represent the project and the International Rescue Committee in national, regional, and international fora, including technical conferences and policy briefings, and share information about project achievements and lessons learned within the organization and wider development community.

Team Leader Profile & Qualifications

• Advanced degree (or equivalent experience) in health, public administration, or related field.

• A minimum of 10 years experience managing large-scale, multi-million-dollar, complex, multi-partner projects, ideally experience leading FCDO Health programs.

• Experience and ability to provide leadership and direction and harness the multi-disciplinary skills of technical personnel and consortium partners.

• Deep understanding of and experience in programming addressing critical issues related to health system strengthening; human rights, gender, and equality, including sexual and reproductive health and rights; and healthier environments, including WASH, climate and health, nutrition, and air pollution.

• Experience and ability to work with and build effective partnerships between a broad range of stakeholders, including government, civil society, the private sector, multilaterals, and donors.

• Prior experience in operating effectively within complex and high-risk environments and managing the needs of multiple stakeholders; experience with at least one of the EPD countries is strongly preferred.

• Excellent leadership, representation, organizational, and interpersonal skills.

• Prior experience in managing large FCDO commercial contracts.

• Strong analytical communication and writing skills, with the ability to articulate complex information backed with evidence to promote and persuade influential stakeholders.

• Excellent communication skills, both oral and written.

• Proficiency in English is required. Proficiency in French is ideal.

Recruitment for this role is contingent upon the successful award of the project, and the final applicant’s selection is subject to FCDO approval.

Minimum Qualifications: Update

Standard of Professional Conduct: The IRC and the IRC workers must adhere to the values and principles outlined in the IRC Way – our Code of Conduct. These are Integrity, Service, Accountability, and Equality.

Commitment to Gender, Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion: The IRC is committed to creating a diverse, inclusive, respectful, and safe work environment where all persons are treated fairly, with dignity and respect. The IRC expressly prohibits and will not tolerate discrimination, harassment, retaliation, or bullying of the IRC persons in any work setting. We aim to increase the representation of women, people that are from country and communities we serve, and people who identify as races and ethnicities that are under-represented in global power structures.