TITLE: Head of Program and Quality and Impact -Damascus (National)
TEAM/PROGRAMME: Impact and Influencing LOCATION: Damascus, any field office
GRADE: CONTRACT LENGTH:
CHILD SAFEGUARDING:
Level 3 – the responsibilities of the post may require the post holder to have regular contact with or access to children or young people.
ROLE PURPOSE:
The Head of Program Quality and Impact under the leadership of the impact and Influence director plays a critical role in driving the Syria RO’s program strategy and fostering a culture of impact and innovation. This role ensures the design and implementation of high-quality, evidence-based, and contextually relevant programs that align with Save the Children’s global Breakthroughs: Learn, Survive, Be Protected.
The Head of Program and Quality is responsible for upholding program principles and standards, ensuring the integration of strong monitoring, evaluation, accountability, and learning (MEAL) systems to generate reliable data for evidence-based decision-making. They provide leadership in strengthening technical expertise across thematic areas, ensuring continuous capacity building, mentoring, and coaching of technical advisors to enhance program quality and impact.
A key focus of this role ensures the monitor and manage the SCI quality benchmarks, risk mitigation and Compliance into the program and update SCI related tools and standards. He/She will work to develop and nurture strategic partnerships, contributing to the organization’s commitments to localization and strengthening local capacities. The Head of Program and Quality also plays a vital role in donor engagement, business development, and resource mobilization to ensure the successful delivery of the country office’s strategy and humanitarian response plans
SCOPE OF ROLE:
Reports to: Director of Impact and Influencing
Staff directly reporting to this post: Technical advisors and MEAL manager.
Technical dotted lines to: support technical program manager and coordinators at field offices.
Role Dimension: This is a senior leadership role requiring collaboration with a wide range of internal and external stakeholders, including Save the Children members, the Country Office Programme team, Area Offices, Partners, SC Global Advisors, donors, and technical working groups.
As a senior leader with I&I department, the Head of Program and Quality plays a key role in shaping and driving Syria RO’s program strategy, ensuring relevance, impact, and coherence across all contexts. This role requires strong leadership, the ability to manage complexity, and a commitment to delivering measurable outcomes for children. The role ensures thematic excellence in programming, contributing to Save the Children’s Breakthroughs: preventing child deaths from preventable causes, ensuring quality education, and protecting children from violence.
Strategic Leadership & Impact
• In collaboration with I&I director lead the development and implementation of the Country Office program strategy, ensuring alignment with Save the Children’s global priorities.
• Drive the organization’s impact agenda by ensuring that programs are evidence-based and contribute to key breakthroughs for children.
• Establish and strengthen strategic partnerships with donors, government agencies, civil society, and other key stakeholders to enhance program reach and effectiveness.
• Ensure effective planning, monitoring, and reporting of the Country Strategic Plan (CSP) and annual operational plans and lead on the programmatic refreshment exercise to update the country strategic plan.
• Contribute to the development of funding strategies, ensuring alignment between programmatic needs and available financial resources.
• Promote localization efforts by supporting local partners in leading and implementing quality programs.
Program Quality & Learning
• Oversee program design and implementation to ensure adherence to Save the Children’s program quality principles and international best practices.
• Strengthen Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, and Learning (MEAL) systems to ensure data-driven decision-making and continuous improvement.
• Ensure programs integrate cross-cutting themes such as gender equality, child protection, and resilience-building and ensure the integration of conflict sensitivity and climate change.
• Promote the use of innovative approaches, including digital solutions and technology for development, to enhance program impact.
• Ensure that learning from program evaluations and research is systematically captured and applied to improve program design and implementation.
• Support field teams in upholding humanitarian principles and core standards in program execution.
• Conduct regular field visits to assess program quality, provide technical support, and facilitate adaptive learning.
Program Design & Business Development
• Ensure that all new programs and projects are designed based on strong evidence, best practices, and participatory needs assessment and exploring new innovative approaches based on the need in the ground.
• Lead the technical design of high-value, complex, and multi-sectoral proposals, ensuring alignment with Save the Children’s strategic priorities.
• Provide oversight on strategic donor engagement, ensuring program proposals reflect donor priorities while maintaining quality and impact focus.
• Work closely with operations teams to ensure the successful integration of new projects into existing portfolios.
• Ensure that new programs have clear sustainability plans and pathways for scaling up impact.
• Lead strategic discussions on emergency preparedness and response to ensure the CO is well-positioned to respond to humanitarian needs.
Technical Expertise & Capacity Building
• Lead and mentor technical national advisors, ensuring continuous professional development and strong technical leadership across all program areas.
• Foster a culture of learning, innovation, and collaboration within the technical team to enhance program effectiveness.
• Ensure that technical teams engage in global and regional learning networks to stay updated with emerging trends and best practices.
• Promote the adoption and scaling of Save the Children’s Common Approaches in program design and implementation.
• Strengthen the technical workforce planning process, ensuring the right expertise is available to deliver high-quality programs.
• Provide guidance and oversight on technical aspects of emergency response programming to ensure rapid and effective responses.
Representation & team capacity
• Represent Save the Children in key national and international forums, advocating for policies and programs that benefit children.
• Engage with government authorities, donors, and peer organizations to influence policies and secure support for Save the Children’s priorities.
• Foster an organizational culture that values accountability, innovation, and high performance.
• Find opportunities for capacity building for technical advisor, technical support, and technical networking.
• Promote a cross-functional, collaborative working environment, ensuring seamless coordination between program, advocacy and communication, operations, and support teams.
• Lead on talent management, including recruitment, performance management, coaching, and succession planning for the program quality team.
• Ensure effective budget planning and resource allocation for program development and quality functions.
• Uphold Save the Children’s safeguarding policies and ensure that all staff and programs adhere to the highest standards of child protection
BEHAVIOURS (Values in Practice)
Accountability:
• Holds self-accountable for making decisions, managing resources efficiently, achieving and role modelling Save the Children values
• Holds the team and partners accountable to deliver on their responsibilities – giving them the freedom to deliver in the best way they see fit, providing the necessary development to improve performance and applying appropriate consequences when results are not achieved.
Ambition:
• Sets ambitious and challenging goals for themselves and their team, takes responsibility for their own personal development and encourages their team to do the same
• Widely shares their personal vision for Save the Children, engages and motivates others
• Future orientated, thinks strategically and on a global scale.
Collaboration:
• Builds and maintains effective relationships, with their team, colleagues, Members and external partners and supporters
• Values diversity, sees it as a source of competitive strength
• Approachable, good listener, easy to talk to.
Creativity:
• Develops and encourages new and innovative solutions
• Willing to take disciplined risks.
Integrity:
• Honest, encourages openness and transparency; demonstrates highest levels of integrity
The post holder must commit to work in an international agency that promotes diversity, equity and
inclusion and fights racism, gender inequality and discrimination in all forms; and to model positive behaviours that demonstrate a commitment to equality and respect to all colleagues, partners and communities.
QUALIFICATIONS
Master’s degree in project management, development studies, research or other areas relevant to the role and scope of work – Bachelor degree and relevant work experience (at least 6 years) can be considered as well.
EXPERIENCE AND SKILLS
Essential
• Master’s Degree in relevant social science, human rights, development studies, NGO management or equivalent fields, or equivalent experience
• A minimum of seven years of progressive senior management and/ or development experience in an NGO environment, including experience directing and implementing programmes for children; humanitarian experience is desirable
• Experience in more than one of Save the Children’s thematic sectors: education, child protection, child rights governance, health and nutrition, child poverty, emergencies
• Experience or understanding of fundraising (unrestricted funds) or business development (programme/restricted funding), particularly strong program development and project design skills
• Experience working with high level government agencies and academics on issues related to children
• Strong skills and proven experience in leading strategic planning, change management and program management processes; also from a knowledge and learning perspective
• Developing and managing monitoring, evaluation and learning systems
• Excellent listening, inter-personal, communication and networking skills; and an ability to work with diversified populations
• Skills such as training, capacity building, coaching, mentorship, problem solving, and understanding of project cycle management and coordination
• High level of self-awareness and commitment to growth and self-development
• Ability to research, write and represent well, manage time, multi-task and delegate tasks
• Proficiency in English; local language working knowledge desirable
Desirable
• Experience or knowledge of working and living in relevant regions/contexts.
• Experience in utilizing gender and disability sensitive indicators and measures.
• Experience managing MEAL systems in humanitarian settings.
How to Apply:
Please submit your CV: https://hcri.fa.em2.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/CandidateExperience/en/sites/CX_1/job/12249/?utm_medium=jobshare&utm_source=External+Job+Share
