S/he will lead all health (PEPFAR, PMI, FH, other) financial and programmatic reporting to the HPN Office Director and other relevant stakeholders (Deputy Directors, Team and Sub-Team Leaders, PEPFAR Coordinator, and the Strategic Planning and Analysis, or SPA Office) and to Washington. The incumbent ensures that the entire HPN Office is following detailed programmatic and technical guidance from Washington.
The Partnerships role will include engaging and maintaining contacts with the myriad of stakeholders the HPN Office engages with throughout the portfolio. This includes national and county governments, private and public sector entities, civil society organizations including NGOs and CBOs, regional organizations, multilateral and bilateral donors and organizations, among others.
Planning and Reporting: 30%
● Ensure the effective and efficient development, implementation, and reporting of the HPN program.
● Assess the effectiveness and efficiency of project management efforts across the seven technical teams within HPN.
● Advise and support the HPN leadership regarding HPN portfolio adherence to the Foreign Assistance (F), Agency, Africa Bureau, State/Africa and Mission policies and directives.
● Ensure adherence of the HPN portfolio to USAID and Mission-specific processes and requirements for design and formal approval of all new and amended projects and activities.
● Prepare and disseminate process and procedural advice and guidance, both written and verbal, to HPN staff on cross-cutting programming and operations issues.
● Contribute to HPN’s preparation of the PEPFAR Country Operational Plan (COP), the Presidential Malaria Initiative (PMI) Malaria Operational Plan (MOP), the Mission’s annual Operational Plan (OP), and its Performance Plan and Report (PPR), as well as Portfolio Reviews and other processes as required.
● Lead Portfolio Reviews of activities consisting of central (i.e. USAID/W) and bilateral projects or activities and programs, with multiple program elements and sub-elements, through development, implementation and closeout.
Budgeting and Procurement: 25%
● Provide overall direction, quality control and oversight of HPN’s budgeting and procurement efforts through the Budget Specialist.
● Lead HPN’s preparation of the Mission’s Quarterly Financial Reviews, accrual reporting, and the annual obligation of funds processes.
● Assure rigorous monitoring and analysis of financial outlays against planning levels and reprogramming in conjunction with the PEPFAR Coordinator’s Office and the Mission’s SPA Office.
● Coordinate and stay abreast of all procurement actions in HPN, primarily through the Mission’s Office of Acquisition and Assistance (OAA), but also through USAID/Washington-led and other procurement mechanisms in order to provide updates to HPN leadership.
● Provide HPN leadership with routine and ad-hoc requests for information on HPN’s budget and procurement plan for current management and planning for out-years, including providing recommendations for budgetary and procurement related decisions.
● Contribute to the narrative design of activities (projects), amendments and related statements of work.
● Leads and coordinates the reviews or arranges for the review of proposals for new activities as well as for commitments, obligation and de-obligation actions.
● Lead and coordinate the HPN Office procurement planning including annual planning and longer-term procurement planning
● Outline timeline and track progress toward procurement of new awards and amendments to existing awards.
Outreach and Communications: 20%
● Maintain an HPN repository of publications, fact sheets and briefers and work with the DOC to ensure periodic publications are completed and submitted on time.
● Provide overall direction, quality control and oversight of HPN’s outreach and communications efforts through the Communications Advisor.
● Provide quality control of communications products and services to ensure consistent and high-quality messaging and engagement.
● Improve HPN internal coordination with East Africa bilateral USAID missions and Embassy Staff to ensure all parties are well informed of HPN activities and programs and are effectively coordinating implementation activities.
● Coordinates internal communications and requests for information in support to the HPN leadership, through drafting and providing comments on various documents, such as position papers, talking points, concept papers, activity progress reports and evaluations, briefings checklists (BCLs), newsletters, etc.
General Management and Partnerships: 25%
● Proofread and edit HPN materials to provide quality control.
● Directly supervise up to four members of the 15-member HPN Partnerships and Operations Team.
● Leads the development, implementation, and monitoring of MOUs with Counties, Regions, and other entities as relevant
● Oversee planning and management of logistics for HPN and USAID/KEA health conferences, training events, press interviews, VIP visits, launches of project activities, or other events to ensure events run smoothly and meet USAID messaging goals.
● The HPN Partnerships and Operations Manager will oversee the Partnerships Team, which includes five Regional Liaison Specialists who will support these efforts in specific regions, a Health Regional Intergovernmental Organization (RIGO) Specialist who will focus on regional linkages inside and outside of Kenya, and a Health and Civil Society Specialist who will strengthen already existing linkages with NGOs and CBOs, and establish new partnerships
● Convene and lead meetings as needed to address activity (project) issues.
Skills and Qualifications
The incumbent must meet the following requirements in education and professional experience:
Education: A Master’s degree in a relevant professional discipline such as International Development/Affairs, Political Science, Public Administration, Business Administration or a related discipline is required.
Professional Experience:
The candidate is required to have a minimum of ten (10) years of progressively responsible international development experience, which includes a combination the following: effective leadership of teams, strategy design, activity management, communications, budgeting/financial management, human resource development, and procurement, preferably related to HIV/AIDS, child survival, reproductive health/family planning, tuberculosis, health systems and/or policy, food security, water/sanitation/hygiene (WASH), or nutrition.
The candidate must also have significant experience in program development and implementation; a broad and in-depth experience in implementing technical programs and strategies; experience in consultations and facilitation of various teams with diverse backgrounds and development perspectives;
Experience in Kenya and/or East Africa is preferred.
Skills and Abilities:
Leadership skills that demonstrate a focus on professional growth, inclusiveness, and collaboration across a diverse workforce to promote unity and teamwork are essential.
Demonstrable high-level management and coordination skills to lead fast-paced, results-driven, multiple technical teams are required, as is the ability to work under pressure to meet project or event deadlines.
The incumbent must have proven skills in capacity building and mentoring local staff in a developing country context, including excellent interpersonal, facilitation, and team building skills.
The Contractor must have a clear understanding and demonstrated skills in developing, implementing, and reporting on international assistance activities, a demonstrated capability for complex analysis, and the ability to obtain, analyze, and evaluate complex data on a variety of programs.
The incumbent must also possess skill in conceptualizing programs, policies, and plans, and developing strategies for their management and implementation.
The candidate must be able to integrate short and long range objectives of the USAID/KEA HPN office and the Global Health Bureau with cultural/organizational needs.
The ability to exercise considerable ingenuity, as well as tact and diplomacy skills, are required to establish and develop sustainable working relationships at the highest level and different settings within the GoK and private sector as well as within USAID’s internal environment.
The ability to navigate and manage politically sensitive issues, and a demonstrated ability to lead meetings and presentations with internal and external stakeholders, are also needed.
