Plan International was founded over 75 years ago with a mission to promote and protect the rights of children. The organisation was set up by British journalist John Langdon-Davies and refugee worker Eric Muggeridge in 1937, with the original aim to provide food, accommodation and education to children whose lives had been disrupted by the Spanish Civil War. Langdon-Davies conceived the idea of a personal relationship between a child and a sponsor – a model that puts the child at the centre, and remains the core of what we do. Today, Plan International is a global organisation that is active in over 70 countries to advance children’s rights and equality for girls. Who We Are We work with communities around the world to end the cycle of poverty for children. We work with communities around the world to end the cycle of poverty for children. Founded over 70 years ago, Plan is a nearly $800 million organization often ranked among the top 10 international development agencies by reputation, size and scope. We work side-by-side with communities in 50 developing countries to end the cycle of poverty for children, developing solutions to ensure long-term sustainability. Our level of community engagement, long-term outlook and constant focus on the needs and priorities of children is unique among international development organizations. Our solutions are designed up-front to be owned by communities for generations to come and range from clean water and health care programs, to education projects and child protection initiatives. Community by community, Plan works to promise futures that are worthy of all children’s potential. Our Vision Our vision is of a world in which all children realize their full potential in societies that respect people’s rights and dignity. Our Mission Plan strives to achieve lasting improvements in the quality of life of vulnerable children in developing countries by: Enabling children, their families and their communities to meet basic needs and to increase their ability to participate in and benefit from their societies; Fostering relationships to increase understanding and unity among peoples of different cultures and countries; and Promoting the rights and interests of the world’s children.
- Job Type Contract
- Qualification BA/BSc/HND
DIMENSIONS OF THE ROLE
This role will provide critical leadership, management, and oversight of the AGIP Secretariat, working across member organisations and with external partners at CEO and senior technical level to implement AGIP’s the final year of AGIP’s strategy ‘Girls on the Agenda and at the Table’. This role will be responsible for leading technical meetings, shaping agendas and coordinating meetings for the AGIP Board, collaboratively leading and developing AGIP project plans and resourcing strategies, and ensuring key project milestones are met.
The post-holder will also be responsible for leading on coalition sustainability, including securing grants to cover core project costs and develop the next project strategy. You will also be responsible for leading on AGIP Project outputs and managing the development and delivery of an annual project plan in collaboration with partners as well as maximising engagement for AGIP at key global and/or regional events.
To succeed, you will enjoy working in a fast-paced team environment, have strong strategic project leadership, research and communication skills and a proven ability to work proactively, autonomously and maintain effective relationships with multiple external stakeholders at the highest level. The postholder will be working across at least 14 organisational structures, working with people, including girls and youth, in different time zones and diverse organizational cultures. They must be able to plan and communicate clearly and efficiently with senior leaders of all partner organisations, ensure that tasks are delivered on time, manage multiple demands, initiate activities, and be personally committed to the goals of AGIP and the principles and approach of the supporting organisations.
The postholder will be an experienced professional able to play a central role in establishing momentum; creating accountability for delivery; identifying opportunities for partnership and innovation; and anticipating and solving problems.
You will work with the Board which comprises of CEO-level representatives of partner organisations to determine allocation of AGIP resources to key activities and monitor and manage budget expenditure against agreed project deliverables and you will be required to work independently in leading and implementing agreed AGIP activities.
You will be responsible for advising chairs, agenda setting, drafting pre-reads, and coordinating logistics for the AGIP Board, and have oversight on engagement with AGIP’s Adolescent Girls Advisory Committee.
You will oversee safe and meaningful girl and youth engagement within AGIP’s internal structures and external events. You will also be responsible for matrix line management of the AGIP MGYE Specialist and Communications & Engagement Officer in collaboration with the host partners. Management of consultants is expected on an ad-hoc basis.
TECHNICAL EXPERTISE, SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE
Knowledge
- Knowledge of Civil Society & research organisations is an advantage
- Experience of working in multicultural environments, participation in networks and coalitions, and working effectively in non-hierarchical setting
- Knowledge of Research, Advocacy, Policy and/or Fundraising
- Knowledge of current issues and trends in international development and the Girls’ Rights space
Skills
- A high level of written and spoken communication skills – including persuasive writing and editing skills and ability to facilitate appropriate information flow amongst members
- Strong research, organisational abilities, and presentation skills
- Ability to work independently to prioritise tasks and meet deadlines
- Effective relationship management and communications, within a complex international environment
- Extensive project management experience in a complex organizational setting
- Experience of convening networks and/or working groups desirable
- Understanding of multi stakeholder funding processes, and an ability to manage them and transparently report on them (in cooperation with finance experts from member organisations if required)
- Experience in resource mobilisation and fundraising is an advantage
Behaviours
- Excellent collaboration and interpersonal skills
- Capacity to independently manage complexity and demanding workloads, prioritise tasks, work independently and to deadlines
- Ability to build and manage relationships with a wide range of high-level stakeholders
- A team player; open, able and willing to work collaboratively as part of a team deliver on shared objectives
