Interim Director, Program Quality

Organization: Right To Play International

Department/Division: Program Quality and Impact (PQI)

Reports to: Vice President, Impact and Quality

Work Location: One of Right To Play offices (Burundi, Canada, Ethiopia, Ghana, Jordan, Lebanon, Mali, Mozambique, Pakistan, the Palestinian Territories, Rwanda, Senegal, Tanzania, Uganda or United Kingdom)

Work Arrangement: A combination of in-office and remote-working in accordance with Right To Play’s work arrangement and the operational needs of the department

Authorized to work in: One of the countries listed above (eligible to work legally without visa or work permit sponsorship)

Target Hiring Range: Local salary scale applies (Grade 10). Hiring range and benefits will be shared with applicants as part of the recruitment process.

Target Start Date: As soon as possible

Contract Duration: Full-time, 12 to 15 months fixed term contract

Application Closing Date: July 14, 2024 23:59 EDT – Please note that applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis so you are encouraged to apply as soon as possible.

ROLE SUMMARY:

Reporting to the Vice President (VP) Impact & Quality, the Interim Director, Program Quality, drives excellence in Right To Play’s programming and is responsible for the leadership, oversight and management of the Program Quality (PQ) team, who support the implementation of global program strategies and theories of change.

You will facilitate internal and external learning for continuous improvement and lead and mentor the PQ team to deliver programs that improve learning and wellbeing outcomes for children and young people.

You will lead and guide technical and training and resource development specialists in the design and delivery of play based learning and wellbeing focused programs, including those focused on education, psychosocial support and gender equality and girls’ wellbeing. Central to this role is providing leadership and strategic direction to strengthen program quality by supporting country offices and staff in designing, managing and implementing programs and projects that utilise play based approaches to improving children and young people’s learning, wellbeing and social emotional skills.

You will work with the Impact Director and VP, Impact & Quality to provide programmatic insights to support and steer organisational priorities. They also work closely with country teams, national offices and Global officers (in London, UK and Toronto, Canada) to identify and implement key program development initiatives.

Up to 10% travel is anticipated, but this is negotiable based on the candidate’s circumstances.

ABOUT US:

Right To Play is a global leader in delivering play-based programs that promote children and young people’s learning and well-being. Established in 2000, Right To Play reaches children through experiential programming in 14 countries in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and North America. These programs are supported by our global offices in Toronto, Canada; London, UK and seven national offices across Europe and North America.

OUR MISSION:

To protect, educate, and empower children to rise above adversity using the power of play.

OUR PROGRAMS:

Our fourcore programs focus on:

• Early Childhood Care and Education
• Primary Education
• Psychosocial Support
• Gender Equality and Girls’ Wellbeing

Our Theory of Change places children and young people at its heart. We aim to improve their learning, wellbeing, and socio-emotional outcomes to catalyze transformative change. The full details are available in our Global Strategic Plan 2024 – 2026.

For more information on our work and impact, please read our Annual Report.

OUR CULTURE:

With a shared passion for our mission, our Culture Code guides how we act and interact based on five core pillars:

• Accept Everyone – Be intentional about inclusion
• Make Things Happen – Seek opportunities to lead and innovate
• Display Courage – Act with integrity
• Demonstrate Care – Look after yourself and one another
• Be Playful – Have fun at work

Please also watch this video to find out about the five pillars of our Culture Code.

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WHAT YOU’LL DO:

#1: Team leadership, management and coaching (40% of Time):

• Maintains a clear and compelling vision for the global Program Quality (PQ) team’s work, engaging them to develop and deliver against ambitious but achievable goals and supporting them to integrate and collaborate effectively within the whole organisation
• Leads and nurtures a collaborative, high-performance culture within the PQ team, adhering to and promoting wider Program Quality & Impact (PQI) Team principles in ways of working and interacting
• Collaborates with technical specialists to develop and manage strategic and operational plans for the PQ team
• Ensures appropriate resourcing of the global PQ team and tracks levels of effort to ensure timesheets are kept accurately across the team
• Provides ongoing leadership and mentorship for the team including core management duties (regular 121s, performance management, supporting professional development)
• Assesses organisational programming capacities and works closely with Country Directors and country-based programs teams to provide strategic and technical capacity strengthening, mentorship and support
• Establishes and maintains knowledge of key programmatic capacity building priorities and guides the development of professional development support plans to ensure relevant technical specialism is developed across Right To Play countries in collaboration with Training & Skills Lead
• Oversees and supports the delivery of thematic communities of practice to share learning across the organisation
• Contributes to development of annual departmental budget and oversees and tracks spending of global portfolio budget

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#2: Strategic program development (20% of Time):

• Ensures alignment of core programs to the goals set in the global strategic plan and global Theory of Change, including integrating Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) responsive considerations across strategies and programs
• Drives the development and socialisation of core program strategies and portfolio implementation plans for wellbeing and learning, ensuring broad involvement of colleagues across country offices
• Takes a lead in decision making related to the go/no go process for new programs/ projects, involving technical specialists in decisions as needed
• Collaborates with the Impact team to align program and project ToCs and strategies with appropriate indicators and measurement approaches
• Provides programmatic inputs to support decision making by executive team on funding priorities
• Works with Advocacy and Policy team to analyse trends and changes related to organisational programmatic priorities within the international development sector and communicates these to ensure Right To Play (RTP) strategy and programs integrate current thinking and international best practice
• Works with the Lead, Training & Skills, Training and Play Specialists to develop systems and processes to ensure effectiveness and efficiency in development and delivery of resources and trainings both internally and with external stakeholders
• Provides leadership and technical advice, in collaboration with Policy and Advocacy specialists, on country efforts to influence Ministries of Education and other GESI and wellbeing stakeholder policies, plans and position related to play based learning

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#3: Program Quality (20% of Time):

• Leads the development and implementation of tools to assess program quality, which may include quality checklists, program audit tools and updated program development and design processes
• Tracks program and project quality in collaboration with Impact team and Global Country Office support team, regularly feeding back learning to improve standards, make evidence-based decisions and improve quality of delivery in country
• Advises the Global Partnership Team in developing high quality project proposals
• Collaborates with Global Partnership Team to identify appropriate consortium partners for major grants
• Reviews and involves Specialists in the design of major proposals to ensure they align with programmatic strategies and organisational priorities, as well as quality standards
• Contributes to the development of global learning agenda with Impact team to identify best practices and programs
• Collaborates with Research & Innovation Specialist to support pilot projects through R&D framework

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#4: Internal and External Representation (15% of Time):

• Serves as a member of the Senior Management Team of the PQI Unit, ensuring quality, evidence and learning are at the core of decision-making for the team
• Leads on the development of strategic partnerships and networks with key universities, research institutions, and international NGOs for the purpose of advancing RTP’s program quality strategy and contributing to a broader sector-level knowledge base
• Organises RTP representation in key strategic working groups and networks
• Represents team in the development of strategic organizational initiatives
• Represents PQ team in building and stewarding strategic partnerships to raise revenue
• Represents the voice of PQ team in presentations to Executive Team and the International Board of Directors

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#5: Performs Other Duties as Assigned (5% of Time)

• Promotes and upholds high standards of safeguarding, participation and accountability across all of RTP’s work
• Understands and embeds the principles of gender equality and social inclusion into project and program design, implementation and quality assurance
• Upholds a commitment to learn about, promote and embed play-based approaches to learning
• Engages in ongoing learning and upskilling related to gender equality and social inclusion through play-based learning

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WHO YOU ARE

You’re a compassionate team leader with an ability to communicate and collaborate with colleagues across various disciplines. You’re enthusiastic about our mission to transform children and young people’s learning and wellbeing through play and motivated by working in a values driven organisation. You have a combination of strategic and practical skills, ideally related to one of RTP’s core programs (Early Childhood Care & Education, Primary Education, Psychosocial Support, and Gender Equality and Girls’ Wellbeing) and use your experience to drive the quality and impact of evidence-based programs. You create and maintain an inclusive, supportive and happy team and are able to inspire and motivate those you manage.

QUALIFICATIONS AND COMPETENCIES:

• A passionate advocate for the power of playful learning and an ability to communicate this passion and impact to inspire others
• 7 years of relevant professional experience in role(s) with progressively senior levels of leadership in international development at a global level
• Master’s degree in subjects related to education, gender equality, social inclusion and children and young people’s protection and psychosocial wellbeing or equivalent practical experience
• Strong knowledge of issues related to education, gender equality and wellbeing in development and humanitarian program design, planning and implementation
• Strong analytical and conceptual skills to think and plan strategically and the ability to translate this into practical and feasible operational program planning
• Proven record of effectively leading high performing, diverse teams, including in mentoring and coaching
• Lived experience working in a country context relevant to RTP’s strategy
• Strong understanding of international education, gender equality and wellbeing bodies and policy
• Experience with planning and implementation of multi-country education, gender equality and wellbeing projects funded by governments and foundations
• Strong affiliation or engagement with relevant global/local development networks
• Demonstrates leadership and models RTP’s culture code
• Consistently communicates a compelling vision that generates excitement, enthusiasm and commitment to the organisation’s mission, purpose and goals
• Champions the culture of continuous improvement that promotes organisational learning, innovation, achievement and support
• Demonstrates ability to work flexibly and navigate change management processes
• Program design and management
• Funding proposal development
• Advanced Microsoft Excel, Word, PowerPoint and Outlook and Teams
• Coaching and mentoring experience
• Financial management
• Fluency in spoken and written English; fluency in Arabic, French or Portuguese is an asset

WHAT YOU’LL GET:

The opportunity to collaborate with an innovative global team who are passionate about working with children and youth. You will gain experience working for a globally recognized organization with a healthy culture premised on our Culture Code (accept everyone, make things happen, display courage, demonstrate care and be playful). You will be immersed in an environment where learning and development is encouraged and valued, and “play” is appreciated as a core avenue to building community.

• Flexible work arrangements (e.g. work from home and flex hours)
• 5 personal learning and development (L&D) days per year
• Annual learning week
• Annual staff recognition awards
• Opportunity to connect with employees across our offices (e.g. Facebook Workplace)
• Opportunity to engage in global projects and initiatives
• Wellness programs
• Playful activities and events