Job Title: Operations Director
Organisation: Walimu
Duty Station: Kampala, Uganda
Reports to: Executive Director and the STAIRS Chief Scientific Officer
About Walimu:
Walimu is a leading health research, policy advocacy and scaling organization in Uganda. Our team of 170, all Ugandan, works with a global team of research scientists from universities such as UCSF, Yale and Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine to conduct studies that test whether interventions save patient lives. We then work with the Ministry of Health to scale successful interventions nationwide. Our work is made possible by a diverse set of funders, including Bill & Melinda Gates Foundations, World Health Organization, US Agency for International Development, US National Institutes of Health, Wellcome Trust and others. As a team, we are passionate about building a healthier Uganda, eager to take on challenges and committed to integrity in all our work.
Walimu is the directorate for the German government-funded Sub-Saharan Africa Consortium for the Advancement of Innovative Research and Care in Sepsis (STAIRS), an eight-country consortium that is conducting high-quality research to address knowledge gaps in the epidemiology, diagnosis and quality care of patients with sepsis.
Job Summary: Walimu, a Ugandan health NGO, is hiring an Operations Director. The position is based in Kampala and reports to the Executive Director and the STAIRS Chief Scientific Officer.
Working closely with the STAIRS Director and STAIRS Chief Scientific Officer, the Operations Director will develop robust governance structures for the consortium; develop and implement systems for budgeting and work planning; handle administrative responsibilities such as contract creation and policy implementation; ensure compliance with funder requirements; develop and oversee implementation of the consortium’s monitoring and evaluation (M&E) strategy; and carry out other essential functions.
In addition, outside of STAIRS, the Operations Director will play a strategic role within Walimu, advising the Executive Director on operational matters and providing support to members of the operations team.
Key Duties and Responsibilities:
STAIRS Governance – 15%
- The Operations Director will develop robust and transparent governance structures for the consortium as a whole, and support the creation of similar structures within implementing partners.
- The Operations Director will lead implementation of these structures.
STAIRS Administration- 40%
The Operations Director will be responsible for a wide range of responsibilities to ensure the effective implementation of STAIRS.
- Developing and implementing workplans and budgets across the consortium
- Monitoring the financial performance of the consortium
- Monitoring consortium deliverables
- Managing partner and consultant relationships
- Implementing consortium-wide safeguarding policies
- Developing and implementing consortium-wide policy
- Monitoring and ensuring compliance with funder requirements
- Conducting communications activities
STAIRS Monitoring and Evaluation – 15%
- The Operations Director will develop a M&E strategy for the consortium and then oversee its implementation. In addition, the Operations Director will be responsible for risk management activities, such as maintaining risk registers.
Walimu Strategic Oversight – 30%
- The Operations Director will provide guidance to the Executive Director on operational matters. In addition, the Operations Director will provide high-level oversight over the operations teams within Walimu, including finance and grants, procurement and logistics, human resources, and administration.
Qualifications, Skills and Experience:
- The applicant must hold a Bachelor’s degree
- Substantial experience working in an operational capacity for 5+ years
- Mission-driven
- Strong organizational skills and an ability to execute correctly and quickly
- Leadership skills, including a self-starter attitude
- A strategy- and systems-based approach
- A strong work ethic
How to Apply:
All prospective candidates who wish to join WALIMU in this capacity should apply online at the link below.