US Program Director

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 and delivered cash to more than 2 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, span 21 different countries and 69 languages. From software engineers to seasoned humanitarian workers, 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 high ownership, flexibility, take care of each other, have fun, and create professional growth opportunities.

Reports to: U.S. Country Director

Level: Director

Location: This role is fully remote with an option to work from our New York City office. We are unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of employment Visas in the U.S. or U.K. at this time.

Travel Requirement: Up to 4-6 trips per year for team retreats and program operations.  

Salary: $128,000

 

About this role

Since launching US operations in 2017, GiveDirectly has delivered more than $330M in direct cash to low-income Americans. We are looking for a committed team lead who can ensure excellent operational delivery across multiple programs; track and mitigate risks across domains including compliance, legal, and operations; and build and manage a high-performing team in alignment with GiveDirectly values. 

The Programs Director is responsible for two main workstreams:

1. Supporting the US program team in executing high quality, compliant programs, with an eye towards proactive risk identification and mitigation. 
2. Overseeing and leveling up the “delivery ops” of the US portfolio, including portfolio planning, KPI infrastructure, finance tracking, and grants & compliance strategy. 

The Programs Director will serve as the US program team liaison to global Compliance, Internal Audit, Safeguarding, People/HR, and Finance teams. They will support US Senior Managers to build, execute, and manage projects in line with global standards for these functions. They will work closely with the US Country Director, who sets the team strategy and leads fundraising, to inform program design and meet project deliverables.

Program Operations

• Responsible for creating robust systems to support a diverse set of projects, programs, and funding sources, and setting and maintaining standards to ensure operational excellence across delivery 
• Support Senior Managers to identify and evaluate strategic and operational risks across programs, and ideate and execute strategies to mitigate risk
• Lead internal program management coordination with global programs leads
• Flex down to directly manage US programs as needed

 Risk and Compliance

• Understand legal and regulatory context enough to triage and find appropriate solutions alongside Human Resources, Compliance, Legal teams, and external resources for portfolio hurdles (eg grant compliance)
• Ensure US portfolio maintains procurement compliance, with rigorous evaluation of new and existing vendors/subcontractors and partnerships  
• Track and manage country-level risk framework, including identifying and implementing risk mitigation strategies
• Serve as analytical support and thought partner, assisting team in clearing hurdles and bottlenecks to execution

Budgeting and Planning

• Serve as analytical support and thought partner for portfolio and program budget development and oversight, working closely with Country Director, Senior Managers, and Finance Business Partners
• Support Senior Managers to review project budgets; accountable for portfolio budget to actuals 

Team Management and Coordination

• May directly manage US team Senior Managers and Managers as needed and appropriate given program dynamics 
• Flex up to serve as representative of US team to executive leadership and senior external partners 
• Support the CD to build a strong team culture rooted in GD’s values. Cultivate and grow exceptional talent. 
• Lead internal coordination with global functional verticals (Compliance, Internal Audit, Safeguarding, People/HR, and Finance)
• With CD, plan and cost current and future country office staffing structure, and align country vision to global constraints, priorities, and needs
• Own and update team workplans to reflect current and new opportunities, incorporating data from program operations infrastructure

What you’ll bring:

We’re looking for a leader with a strong drive to take ownership, a desire to work in a fast-paced, evidence-driven team, and interest in maximizing GiveDirectly’s impact by building, managing, and scaling relationships and projects with GiveDirectly’s partners. 

• 10+ years of relevant experience - e.g. in non-profit country management, organizational leadership, partnership development, program management, social entrepreneurship or consulting - with a track record of demonstrated excellence and increasing responsibility
• 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.
• Advanced partnership capabilities, including new business, negotiation, and consortium management
• Strong understanding of the US cash and poverty reduction space, including an understanding of US social safety net and poverty reduction programs and policy
• Outstanding relationship management abilities, including ability to represent GiveDirectly at the highest levels 
• Exceptional communications skills: written and verbal, including with senior audiences 
• Strong organizational and/or project management skills, with a high degree of autonomy and resilience 
• Problem solver: you look at problems with an analytical and iterative mindset, with a strong framework for prioritization. You can run robust analyses to inform management and programming decisions 
• Language Requirement: English (Spanish or other languages a plus)
• Ability to travel ~4-6 times per year for internal and external program needs

 

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
• Unlimited PTO (that we encourage staff to take!)
• Desk allowance and flexible work location

Read more about our ongoing diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts here and about our decision to move our central support teams to remote first here.

Venue: We conduct interviews over Google Meet with camera on (unless communicated otherwise).

Accessibility: Closed captioning is available during all Google Meet interviews, and interviewers will also post interview questions in the chat box throughout the call. If you need assistance accessing either of these features, please let your interviewer know at the start of your interview! 

We’re committed to running an inclusive and accessible application process for all of our open roles. If there are questions or concerns you have about the accessibility of our hiring process, we warmly invite you to reach out to careers@givedirectly.org. 

 

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 working with communities to eliminate extreme poverty, 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 abuse or misconduct related matters involving potential new hires. We may also employ other robust pre-hire screens, including in-depth reference checks, criminal background checks, and sanctions screens.

These efforts help us continue to build and maintain trust with the communities we work with, and prevent abuse to our recipients and staff.

**GD is committed to observing all local, national and international laws that protect people and basic human rights of all. GD is committed to a policy of “zero tolerance when it comes to preventing,  reporting, or responding to any form of abuse or  exploitation.” and expects anyone who works for GD to uphold the protection and safeguarding of our recipients as a priority.**

 

Reasonable Accommodations

We are committed to fostering an inclusive and accessible work environment. If you require any accommodations during the application or interview process, or to perform the essential functions of the role, please email us at careers@givedirectly.org with the email subject “Accommodation Needed”. We will work with you to ensure reasonable accommodations are made to support your needs.

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