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Background
Women for Women International invests where inequality is greatest by helping women who are forgotten — the women survivors of war and conflict.  

 

Purpose

The Chief Programs & Partnerships Officer is a member of the Executive Leadership Team and the senior leader responsible for Women for Women International's global program strategy, program quality, program design, evidence and learning, institutional business development, strategic programmatic partnerships, and program delivery coherence. The CPPO acts as the International CEO's principal strategic partner on mission alignment, program model coherence, program expansion and geographies, delivery continuity, and institutional and strategic partnerships.

The CPPO does not hold permanent line-management responsibility for Country Offices once regional reporting lines are in place. To protect program quality during and after the transition to the regional structure, the CPPO holds a formal matrix role with Regional Directors and Country Directors for program strategy, technical standards, program design, evidence, delivery feasibility, and programmatic commitments. The role may retain or delegate interim line management of designated Country Directors during the phased transition, as agreed by the International CEO.

This matrix role gives the CPPO clear authority on program quality and programmatic decision rights without duplicating regional line management. Regional Directors lead regional strategy, relationship building, coordination, regional representation, and agreed regional revenue contributions. The CPPO leads global program direction, program-quality standards, institutional program alignment, and final programmatic sign-off.

The CPPO leads the Global Programs team in the Global Support Center through direct supervision of the Deputy CPPO, the Global Director of Business Development, the Crisis Response Fund Manager, and the GPU Coordinator. The Deputy CPPO directly leads program planning, country planning and budgeting, and coordinated execution across the technical program functions, including Program Design and Development, MERL, Grant Management, and Country Office Support.

The CPPO works in close collaboration with the Chief Research, Policy, Advocacy & Strategic Communications Officer to ensure WfWI's advocacy, communications, and thought leadership are grounded in program evidence and country realities. The CPPO also works closely with the COO to ensure programs and country offices are enabled by strong operational systems, compliance, risk management, procurement, contract management, finance, IT, safety and security, and people support.

•   Master's degree or equivalent in international development, social sciences, public policy, gender studies, humanitarian studies, or another relevant field.
•   Minimum 15 years of senior leadership experience in the international nonprofit, development, or humanitarian sector.
•   Substantial experience leading complex program portfolios across multiple countries, preferably including fragile or conflict-affected settings.
•   Strong track record in program strategy, program quality, country or regional program oversight, delivery coherence, and organizational change.
•   Strong experience with institutional business development and donor engagement, including the ability to translate strategic opportunities into funding commitments.

•   Strong track record of leading large, diverse, and geographically dispersed teams in matrixed structures.
•   Right to work in one of the specified locations and willing to relocate at own expense if currently located elsewhere