Organization: GiveDirectly
Location: Nairobi
Grade: Senior level – Senior
Occupational Groups:
Humanitarian Aid and Coordination
Project and Programme Management
Managerial positions
Closing Date:
About GiveDirectly
GiveDirectly (GD) provides cash grants directly to people living in extreme poverty. Since launching in 2011, GD has raised over $1B, delivered cash to more than 1.5 million recipients, launched operations in 15 countries, and continues to expand its reach across the Global South. GD has also grown the research base supporting unconditional cash with 20 randomized control trials from its programs, generating rigorous evidence across countries and contexts. As a result, GD has been celebrated as one of the most innovative non-profit companies byFast Company, while the growing cash transfer movement (and GD’s leading role within it) has been featured in theNew York Times Magazine,This American Life,Foreign Affairs, andThe Economist.
Across our global offices, our culture is candid, analytical, non-hierarchical, and agile. We work alongside 750+ individuals who come from 21 different countries and speak 69 different languages. Team members at GiveDirectly attest that diversity, equity, and inclusion are not just buzzwords, but a fundamental part of our culture and values. We actively seek to recruit individuals from the communities we serve, and use DEI as a lens in our hiring practices, programs, and initiatives. Our goal is to maintain a workplace where everyone can bring their authentic selves to work, and feel valued and respected for who they are. We strive to be inclusive of all cultures and experiences while upholding our values globally. In the spirit of our “Know Yourself and Grow” value, we recognize there is always room to improve our team’s working experience. But day to day, we aim to “Create Positive Energy” – we take care of one another, have fun, aim to maximize flexibility and accessibility in roles, and pursue professional development opportunities to stay challenged & engaged in our work.
We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer, and we do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other status protected by law.
Location: Nairobi, Kenya
Role Overview:
You will be leading all aspects of the GiveDirectly Kenya country office. Your role will build, fundraise and execute the Kenya Country Strategy. You will lead the projects teams, fundraising, and external relations to achieve both short-term goals (i.e. funding targets, annual KPIs) and drive long-term growth. You will be able to draw on resources from the partnerships, data & tech, finance and operations verticals, but will ultimately be accountable to both recipients and donors for delivering a gold-standard product. We are particularly interested in candidates with demonstrated success driving growth, as measured by dollars raised.
This is an outstanding opportunity for an experienced professional, hungry for their next big challenge. The ideal candidate is motivated, big picture thinker, innovative, passionate about addressing poverty in Kenya, and not afraid to roll up her or his sleeves to get the job done.
Reports to: Regional Director
Responsibilities:
Fundraising/Partnership Development
Develop and maintain strong strategic partnerships with donors, including private foundations, government agencies, and individual donors, to secure funding for GiveDirectly programs
Develop and implement a comprehensive fundraising strategy for the Kenya office as well as own revenue targets, drive opportunities and maintaining a robust pipeline to sustain year over growth
Design ambitious cash transfer programs and accompanying budgets
Represent GiveDirectly to the public, media, government, and other stakeholders, and serve as a spokesperson for the organization in the Kenya office
Work with the global fundraising team to develop compelling fundraising materials and messages that resonate with donors in Kenya
Lead the country team in the development and implementation of fundraising activities, such as events and campaigns, to raise awareness and support for GiveDirectly’s work
Work with national and local government officials to secure permissions for maintenance and expansion of programs
Communicate about GiveDirectly to donors, the media, and other partners
Team Management
Motivate and coach a large team, including direct management of the country management team
Build capacity of managers at all levels by ensuring that they have clearly defined metrics for success, regular feedback on progress, and exciting growth opportunities
Promulgate practices and norms that animate GD’s core values
Take reasonable steps to ensure the safety and security of the GD team
Identify key areas in need of hiring / redundancy planning and buffer to increase the resiliency of the team
Strategic Planning and Program Management
Lead strategic planning for GiveDirectly in Kenya
Set and manage towards country goals, that create a roadmap for our success in Kenya Ensure operational excellence across all programs
Backstop, manage, and guide an operations team in overcoming challenges, staying on schedule, and delivering quality results
Be accountable for Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) associated with recipients paid, recipient experience, and operational efficiency
Internal Audit
Create and maintain a strong culture of safeguarding across the country office and all project activities, including working closely with GD’s global safeguarding team to build best practices into project design and implementation
Proactively mitigate fraud and operational risks through close coordination with the Internal Audit team to prevent misconduct and protect our recipients, including designing appropriate controls
Lead coordination between program operations and GD’s risk management teams, including internal audit, compliance and safeguarding personnel
If necessary, provide leadership and oversight of investigations of alleged misconduct, ensuring zero tolerance for fraud and best in class safeguarding standards.
Required Skills and Experiences
10+ years of relevant experience – e.g. in non-profit country management, organizational leadership, partnership development, program management, social entrepreneurship or consulting – with a track record of demonstrated excellence and increasing responsibility
Experience leading government and external stakeholder partnerships
Proven track records of securing significant funding from major institutional and trust donors (e.g. USAID, FCDO, World Bank, or EU) and/or private sector sources
Demonstrated ability to lead and set strategic vision at a national level
Enthusiasm for fast-paced, innovative environments whilst maximizing the long-term sustainability of the GiveDirectly country presence
Team management experience, including hiring and building teams
Outstanding relationship management abilities, including ability to represent GiveDirectly at the highest levels
Exceptional communications skills: written and verbal, including with senior audiences
Strong organizational and/or project management skills
A high degree of autonomy and resilience
Problem solver: you look at problems with an analytical and iterative mindset, with a strong framework for prioritization. You can run robust analyses to inform management and programming decisions
Alignment with GiveDirectly Values, including the ambition to pursue industry-changing success
Active demonstration of our core competencies: emotional intelligence, problem solving, project management, follow-through, and fostering inclusivity.
Desired Skills and Experiences
Experience working in Kenya and understanding of the Kenyan context is highly desired
We welcome and strongly encourage applications from candidates who have personal or professional experience in the low-income and/or historically marginalized communities that we serve – as well as candidates from under-represented genders, ethnicities, and other groups. You can read more about our diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts here.
Compensation
At GiveDirectly, we strive to pay our employees generously and equitably. We use an accredited third party salary aggregator to ensure that staff’s total compensation package (base compensation + bonus) falls within the 75th percentile of similar roles, at similar organizations. We also have a no negotiation policy to ensure we are paying staff equitably across roles.
The annual base salary for this role is $120,000 USD
The bonus index is 15%
Why work at GiveDirectly?
At GiveDirectly, we work to ensure that you have everything you need to excel in your role and on your team, including:
A positive and supportive team with opportunities for advancement
A demonstrated commitment to helping all staff develop and grow
A competitive salary
A monthly benefits allowance that covers health, dental, and vision monthly premiums
Unlimited PTO (that we encourage staff to take!)
Desk allowance.
**GD is committed to observing all local, national, and international laws that protect children, vulnerable adults, and the basic human rights of all. GD is committed to a policy of “zero tolerance for sexual exploitation, abuse, and harassment (SEAH)” and expects anyone who works for GD to uphold the protection and safeguarding of our recipients as a priority.**
Read more about our ongoing diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts here and about our decision to move our central support teams to remote first here.
GiveDirectly is an Equal Opportunity Employer that values the strength diversity brings to the workplace. All qualified applicants are considered for employment without regard to the person’s race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, disability, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.
US applicants only: We invite you to “Know Your Rights” as an applicant.
Commitment to Safeguarding
As a global organization serving some of the world’s most vulnerable communities, GiveDirectly takes the safeguarding of its recipients, staff, and partners seriously. To that end, GiveDirectly is a member of the Misconduct Disclosure Scheme, and will systematically check with previous employers about any sexual exploitation, abuse, and harassment issues relating to potential new hires. We may also employ other robust pre-hire screens, including in-depth reference checks, criminal background checks, and sanctions screens.
GD is committed to observing all local, national and international laws that protect children, vulnerable adults, and basic human rights of all. GD is committed to a policy of “zero tolerance for sexual exploitation, abuse, and harassment (SEAH)” and expects anyone who works for GD to uphold the protection and safeguarding of our recipients as a priority.
These efforts help us continue to build and maintain trust with the communities we serve, and prevent harm to our recipients.
Venue and Accessibility
We conduct interviews over Google Meet with camera on (unless communicated otherwise).
Closed captioning is available during all Google Meet interviews, and interviewers will also post interview questions in the chat box throughout the call. If you need assistance accessing either of these features, please let your interviewer know at the start of your interview!
We’re committed to running an inclusive and accessible application process for all of our open roles. If there are questions or concerns you have about the accessibility of our hiring process, we warmly invite you to reach out to careers@givedirectly.org. Please include the word “Accessibility” in the email title.
Want to put your best foot forward on your GiveDirectly application? Take a look at our Candidate Application Prep Guide!