Director of Programs, Malawi

The Role

At Last Mile Health, we work to deploy a health worker for everyone, everywhere. Are you a strategic leader experienced in working directly with governments to scale sustainable community health programs? If so, you may be our next Director of Programs, Malawi.

Under the supervision of the Country Director, the Director of Programs will be responsible for guiding the delivery of Last Mile Health’s (LMH) strategy in Malawi. Engaging with and working alongside the Malawi Ministry of Health (MOH), the Director of Programs will identify opportunities for collaboration and impact in reducing maternal and child morbidity and mortality in remote, rural areas, through a strengthened community health system. 

The Director will provide technical leadership and management to the Malawi Country Program team, bringing their own clinical and public health expertise and deep knowledge of health systems to ensure LMH’s work reaches those areas that need it most. The ideal candidate will have a strong understanding of the Malawian context and will combine this with an understanding and appreciation of Last Mile Health’s values, to design and oversee the implementation of high-quality, sustainable programs.   

Additionally, the Director will work closely with and provide technical assistance to the MOH and implementing partners. The Director of Programs will also work with LMH’s global teams, leveraging the skills, expertise, and learning from other country programs to support the government in improving health outcomes for mothers and children under 5, by strengthening the community health system. 

What You'll Do

• Continuously evaluate and identify opportunities to support the MOH in reducing maternal and child mortality in remote rural areas through community health system strengthening
• Lead future reviews and revisions of the Malawi Program Strategy, including future iterations that are in place to support the Government of Malawi
• Coordinate with LMH’s partnerships team to ensure programs are designed and funded in accordance with the Country Strategy, identifying relevant funding opportunities where possible.
• Collaborate closely with senior government officials and organizations with a shared vision to support the delivery of a strengthened community health system  
• Lead and provide strategic guidance to the Program team to provide the MOH with technical, operational guidance and support on policy development and adoption, program planning and high-quality implementation, and performance management for improvement in health outcomes for rural populations
• Identify and collaborate with other organizations with a shared vision for community health in Malawi
• Provide regular progress updates on program implementation and accomplishments within and across MOH stakeholders, implementing partners, and LMH teams 
• Coordinate with other LMH program and global technical departments to provide integrated and evidence-based design support to the MOH
• Lead the development and implementation of the Program Team annual work plan with clear and measurable objectives and priorities, deadlines, and budget requirements
• Build the technical and operating capacity of LMH’s Program team by overseeing staff recruitment, setting professional development and learning objectives, and actively identifying development opportunities for team members
• Provide weekly supportive supervision and mentorship to the Programs Team, designing and managing program budgets and annual work plans and ensure objectives and deliverables are met on time, identifying and resolving bottlenecks, and meeting internal and external reporting requirements

What You'll Bring

• A clinical Degree (medical doctor, physician’s assistant, nurse practitioner) 
• Several years  of clinical or programmatic experience in health systems design, managing, or implementing global health and public health programs in international development contexts
• Demonstrated familiarity with core issues of health systems development, especially training and performance management, monitoring and information systems, human resources for health and health financing
• Strong track record required for working effectively with a range of stakeholders in the local context, including frontline health workers and national government agencies
• Experience developing and managing key relationships with senior government stakeholders, and problem-solve to negotiate and achieve consensus with multiple influencers 
• Experience owning significant budgets and leading staff teams
• Demonstrated ability to manage high-stakes and time-sensitive projects in complex environments
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English  
• Significant team management and coaching background, with proven ability to rapidly build technical and non-technical skills among your team

You'll Impress Us If

• You have experience interfacing with senior government and NGO partners in a developing country context, with a strong preference for health systems and health policy experience
• You possess management or senior leadership experience across international development contexts especially in Africa

Benefits Information

As LMH strives to increase transparency into our compensation principles we are highlighting below more details around our compensation policy and benefits associated with this position. In line with our compensation principles, this position will pay at the 50th to 60th percentile of the market to which you are employed. We look forward to answering any questions you may have during the hiring process. 

You can read about our competitivebenefits offerings here.

Principles guiding our compensation policy:

• Data Driven: We benchmark salaries against large datasets containing compensation data from organizations with whom we compete for talent. We benchmark salaries for specific roles and specific candidate experience.
• Competitive: Candidates should be paid the most competitive salaries possible for their position given budgetary constraints. We aim to pay above market, typically between the 50th-60th percentile of the market.
• Transparent: Compensation policies should be transparent and easily understood. We want all candidates to understand how we set salaries and to know we aim to pay competitively.
• Equitable: Compensation should be implemented consistently across candidates of different identities, teams, and geographies, while keeping into account the different talent markets and economies we operate in.
• Responsible: LMH needs to operate in a sustainable way and practice good stewardship of our resources.

About Last Mile Health

Last Mile Health partners with governments to design, scale, strengthen, and sustain high-quality community health systems, which empower teams of community and frontline health workers to bring life-saving primary healthcare to the world’s most remote communities. LMH is a registered 501(c)3 non-profit organization with offices in Liberia, Boston and New York. For more information, visit www.lastmilehealth.org.We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at LMH. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.