Director of Global Program Management

PSI - Population Services International

Washington, D.C. or Nairobi, Kenya

PSI seeks an experienced Director, Global Program Management to provide overall leadership, accountability, and process ownership for the program management functions within PSI’s Delivery cone. The Director will oversee the staffing, structure, processes, and policies needed to ensure PSI projects are delivered on time, within budget, and to high standards, while mitigating risks and maintaining compliance.

The Director will work collaboratively across the Delivery cone and the wider organization to drive a standardized approach to program management, nurturing a culture of operational efficiency and continuous improvement.

The Director will work closely with leadership to ensure project metrics and insights are being used to guide decisions, resources, and talent allocations. The Director will serve as a primary liaison between program management staff, Delivery teams, and Global Services to resolve challenges, manage change, and help foster collaboration and effective communication.

The Director will provide delivery teams and global network members with program management leadership, strategic guidance, practical resources, training, and skills-coaching. This role will lead and model deep collaboration, partnership, and problem-solving among internal and external stakeholders.

What You'll Do

Project Oversight (30%)

Maintain and lead improvements to program management processes, workflows, and standard operating procedures (SOPs) across the project life cycle in collaboration with other PSI departments, and align these with standard program management training curriculum.
Ensure cohesion between project execution and organizational strategy, ensuring that program management is aligned with strategic goals and delivering tangible business value.
Develop, monitor, and regularly report on metrics to measure program management. excellence, including for project targets and key deliverables, technical quality, financial forecasting, labor tracking, and subrecipient performance.
Collaborate with Delivery teams to monitor project performance and adherence to SOPs, addressing issues proactively, and raising red flags as needed.
Drive effective project start-up and closeout processes, including surge capacity and temporary project coverage as needed.

Compliance (25%)

Conduct periodic project reviews to ensure quality standards are met, escalating issues as appropriate, and collaborating with teams to resolve challenges.
Ensure compliance and project quality in subrecipient management in partnership with stakeholders, covering the full lifecycle from due diligence to monitoring to close-out.
Ensure program management standards are aligned to donor requirements, PSI’s corporate risk management, and appetite levels.

Training and Continuous Improvement (25%)

Ensure Project Leads are equipped with adequate tools, training, and project management resources to perform.
Foster a culture of knowledge management, ensuring lessons learned are documented and shared widely.
Consistently gather feedback from stakeholders on the entire project lifecycle process and work collaboratively to identify opportunities to improve efficiency and effectiveness in a timely way.

Leadership and People Management (20%)

Plan, organize, prioritize, monitor, and manage the day-to-day operations of the Program Management Department.
Ensure synergies across program management areas through planning, coordination, deployment of resources, and intra-team communication.
Lead, mentor, and develop program management staff. Provide coaching, guidance, direction, and leadership to department or project teams. Supervise and develop team members. Set team and individual goals.
Foster a culture of operational excellence, continuous improvement, and professional growth.

Other

Embody PSI’s values: Measurement, Pragmatism, Honesty, Trust, Collaboration, and Commitment.
10%-25% international travel.

What You'll Bring

Bachelor's Degree (or international equivalent) in a related field.
Master’s Degree (or international equivalent) in a related field (e.g., MBA, MPA, MPH) preferred.
At least 15 years of related experience.
At least 7 years of supervisory experience.
Deep understanding of the full award life cycle management (start-up to close-out) and supporting country operations in a donor funded environment, preferably in global development.
Extensive program management experience, with expertise across finance, compliance, sub-recipient management, human resources, procurement, and in-country operations.
Experience in developing program management standard operating procedures preferred.
Extensive knowledge of USG and other non-USG donor regulations.
Previous country leadership experience is preferred.
Knowledge of best practices and use and implementation of program management tools and frameworks.
Project DPro or other Professional Program Management certification preferred.
Demonstrated experience in government and donor relations and collaboration.
Significant demonstrated leadership and passion for building high performing teams, and organizational change management.
Fluency in English with excellent writing skills. French language skills preferred.