Senior Global Director of Country Operations

About GiveDirectly

GiveDirectly (GD) aims to reshape international giving – and millions of lives – by providing cash grants directly to the world’s poorest. The Brookings Institution estimates that $70B of cash transfers would be required to eliminate the poverty gap; the aid sector currently spends $135B each year, much of it on evidence-free interventions. GiveDirectly wants to change that, establishing cash transfers as a benchmark for foreign aid – as the index fund is a benchmark for the financial industry – and in the process accelerating the end of extreme poverty.

GD has raised over $1B since launching in 2011, delivered cash to more than 1.5 million people in 15 different countries. We’ve also supported large-scale, experimental research that indicates strong recipient impact of our programs. As a result, GD has been celebrated as one of the most innovative non-profit companies by Fast Company, while the growing cash transfer movement (and GD’s leading role within it) have been featured in the New York Times Magazine, This American Life, Foreign Affairs, and The Economist.

Our culture is candid, analytical, agile, and non-hierarchical. Our global team of ~150, and country operations teams of ~650, together come from 21 different countries speaking 69 different languages. From software engineers to seasoned humanitarian workers, former management consultants to public servants, researchers to field operations -- it’s an incredible group of people.

Our values are central and deliberately opinionated. We genuinely center the people we serve in our decision making, and strive to build an ambitious, dynamic and high performing environment. We strongly encourage you to read through our values carefully, if they reflect how you like to work and energize you, this could be a great fit.

We work hard to create an environment in which all our team members can thrive, succeed and grow.  We support flexibility, take care of each other, have fun, and create professional growth opportunities.

Location: This role is remote. Regular working hours must be in Africa time zones (EAT, CAT, WAT). Preference to be based in Sub-Saharan Africa, ideally in Nairobi, Lilongwe, Maputo, Kigali, Kampala, or Goma.

Priority application deadline: Sep 5, 2025

Level: Senior Director (We may reconsider the leveling for a senior enough candidate.)

About this role:

The Global Director of Country Operations (GDCO) oversees and strengthens  the infrastructure and effectiveness of GiveDirectly’s country offices. They serve as the primary point of contact for Global Shared Services (GSS) functions across countries and backstop Country Directors (CDs) to ensure high-quality implementation of global standards. This leader will ensure country back office operations—including finance, compliance, HR, procurement, IT, and risk management—are aligned, efficient, and adaptable to local contexts, ultimately enabling the organization to scale impact and operate with excellence. The ideal candidate should be able to identify and advance macro level improvements in country office management across the org while also being able to roll up their sleeves and work with country offices to implement changes directly. They should be able to work with Country Directors on the journey of maturing GiveDirectly country offices to be effective, well functioning, and excellent in a way that respects, empowers, and holds accountable Country Director leadership while maintaining org wide norms and cross country standards that are simple, streamlined, and effective. 

What you’ll do:

Strengthen Country Operations

• Oversee financial management across country offices, both directly and via setting up the right mechanisms for CDs to better manage their country operating budgets ($150M+ per year across all country offices). 
• Ensure country offices are well-structured, compliant and able to deliver impact at scale, in partnership with CDs
• Provide operational support to CDs across financial management, people/HR, compliance, procurement, administration, IT, security.
• Lead new country and project office setups, and responsible wind-downs. 
• Facilitate evolution of country office organigrams and talent management systems to strengthen leadership and long-term sustainability.

Ensure Global Standards & Compliance

• Partner with GSS departments and CDs to embed global standards, systems and policies in country operations and adapt them for local context.
• Coordinate with Legal & Compliance to keep country registrations and statutory requirements  up to date; support sourcing of legal counsel when needed.
• Develop and implement a compliance certification process for country offices, that clarifies  CD’s accountabilities and provides assurance, through periodic verification, that county offices are meeting core operational and compliance standards. 
• Run periodic spot checks to identify risks early and support CDs in addressing them. 

Coordinate with Global Shared Services (GSS)

• Serve as primary contact for GSS functions (People, Compliance, Procurement, Corporate Audit, Security, IT, Risk).
• Define and refine responsibilities and R&R between GSS and country offices.
• Facilitate cross-office information flow and best-practice sharing.

Lead Risk & Crisis Management

• Oversee risk monitoring and mitigation across countries. Manage and maintain cross country risk dashboard
• Partner with GSS on ensuring CDs are monitoring and managing country-specific risks and maintaining a global risk register
• Backstop, lead, or participate in crisis management 
• Facilitate a culture of proactive risk management across all country offices

Other Responsibilities

• Join and represent Programs in regular GSS/country office coordination meetings.
• Lead or contribute to org-wide initiatives to advance and evolve country office management.
• Take on special initiatives and projects as assigned
• Any other responsibilities as required

Example Deliverables

• Design and implement an operational quality/compliance checklist across all country offices, via which CDs understand and certify country standards on an annual basis
• New offices go live and old offices are sunsetted smoothly, compliantly, and within target timelines
• Drive measurable improvements in country back office processes - in terms of speed, cost, and/or senior headspace required for run rate tasks
• Synthesize and streamline our model for replicating and scaling operations at 85% budget efficiency (or higher) in key country contexts

What you’ll bring:

• Deep experience managing and maturing country offices, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa
• Comfort in a fast paced and changing environment that lacks predefined playbooks and requires “figuring things out” where needed
• Adept at financial and budget management. Bonus points for knowledge about financial modeling 
• Strong risk management experience, including crisis management
• Expertise in HR, compliance, procurement, corporate audit, risk, IT, and country registration processes
• Strong cross-cultural communication, stakeholder management, and comfort with matrixed organizations
• Proven ability to create clarity and structure within evolving systems that can work in diverse contexts
• Demonstrated ability to make data-driven decisions 
• Highly analytical and able to grip the details of country office management for ongoing rigorous systems building and cross country oversight. 
• Ability to get things done with limited resources and implement scalable solutions
• Experience and aptitude leveraging new technologies and AI to advance organizational and country office effectiveness. Comfort taking an agile and iterative approach
• Familiarity with INGO standards, donor compliance, and internal controls
• Exceptional alignment with GiveDirectly Values and active demonstration of our core competencies: emotional intelligence, problem solving, project management, follow-through, and fostering inclusivity. We welcome and strongly encourage applications from candidates who have personal or professional experience in the low-income and/or historically marginalized communities that we serve.
• Language Requirement: English. Additional Language Preferences: French, Portuguese, or Swahili

Compensation

At GiveDirectly, we strive to pay our employees generously and equitably. We use an accredited third party salary aggregator to ensure that staff’s total compensation package (base compensation + bonus)  falls within the 75th percentile of similar roles, at similar organizations. We also have a no negotiation policy to ensure we are paying staff equitably across roles. 

• U.S. base salary: $145,000
• Kenya base salary: $120,000

This role is fully remote, so if you are not based in the US or Kenya, we will share an estimated salary benchmark for the country you are based in during the hiring process. 

Why work at GiveDirectly?

At GiveDirectly, we work to ensure that you have everything you need to excel in your role and on your team, including:

• A positive and supportive team with opportunities for advancement 
• A demonstrated commitment to helping all staff develop and grow
• A competitive salary, including bonus
• A robust health benefits plan (exact details will vary by country)
• Flexible paid time off
• Allowances for desk set-up and learning and development

 #LI-REMOTE

Working at GiveDirectly

GiveDirectly is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants are considered for employment without regard to the person’s race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, disability, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.

Flagging for US applicants: We invite you to "Know Your Rights" as an applicant.

Commitment to Safeguarding

As a global organization serving some of the world’s most vulnerable communities, GiveDirectly takes the safeguarding of its recipients, staff, and partners seriously. To that end, GiveDirectly is a member of the Misconduct Disclosure Scheme, and will systematically check with previous employers about any sexual exploitation, abuse, and harassment issues relating to potential new hires. We may also employ other robust pre-hire screens, including in-depth reference checks, criminal background checks, and sanctions screens.

GD is committed to observing all local, national and international laws that protect children, vulnerable adults, and basic human rights of all. GD is committed to a policy of “zero tolerance for sexual exploitation, abuse, and harassment (SEAH)” and expects anyone who works for GD to uphold the protection and safeguarding of our recipients as a priority.

These efforts help us continue to build and maintain trust with the communities we serve, and prevent harm to our recipients.

Want to put your best foot forward on your GiveDirectly application? Take a look at our Candidate Application Prep Guide!