Program Development & Quality Assurance (PDQA) Director At Action Against Hunger USA

Action Against Hunger-USA is part of the Action Against Hunger International network, which provides humanitarian relief in over 50 countries worldwide in the sectors of nutrition, health, water/sanitation, food security & Livelihood and protection. Action Against Hunger-USA, an independent NGO, currently manages operations in 8 countries: Ethiopia, Somalia, South Sudan, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia & Haiti. Action Against Hunger-USA has over $110 million in programs, and approximately 2500 staff based in the various country offices, headquarters in Washington DC and Operational Centre in Nairobi. Additional growth is anticipated.

About the Country Program in Zambia

Action Against Hunger has been operational in Zambia since 2021 implementing both development and humanitarian programmes through a multi-sectoral strategy where Nutrition, Health, Food Security and Livelihoods, WASH and Protection, Gender and psychosocial support are integrated to have a meaningful impact on people’s resilience.

Summary of position

Action Against Hunger in Zambia is seeking a dynamic and results-oriented Program Development and Quality Director (PDQA Director) to lead resource mobilization, spearhead program design, and champion continuous quality improvement. Through collaborative leadership and capacity building, S/he will ensure efficient program design, strong partnerships, and adherence to global standards, ultimately contributing to a lasting reduction in hunger in Zambia. This role will be responsible for driving collaboration across various teams to ensure the success of the Country Strategic Plan (CSP). S/he will develop Annual Operating Plans (AOP), report on results, and oversee the delivery of high-quality, evidence-based programs that align with Action Against Hunger’s 2021-2025 International Strategic Plan (ISP). As a senior leader, the PDQA Director will play a crucial role in capacity building, coaching and mentorship. S/he will coach technical heads of departments to maintain program quality in line with global standards and key performance indicators. Besides, s/he will represent Action Against Hunger in meetings with government officials, donors, partners, and other stakeholders. Working in collaboration with the Regional and headquarters Business Development Units and the respective technical departments, s/he will spearhead the design and delivery of high-quality programs.

Purpose: The PDQA Director spearheads the development of impactful programs that address hunger and malnutrition in Zambia. This role champions towards ending hunger and translation of ACF’s mission and vision.

Engagement: The PDQA Director cultivates a collaborative environment that fosters innovation and high performance. This involves building capacity through mentorship and knowledge sharing, while forging strategic partnerships with government agencies, donors, and other stakeholders. A strong emphasis is placed on advocacy and influencing policy to create sustainable, locally driven solutions.

Delivery: In close collaboration with program leadership, the PDQA Director ensures the effective and efficient delivery of high-quality programs through meticulous design, robust monitoring, evaluation, and continuous improvement processes. This includes securing sustainable funding, implementing innovative approaches, and effectively communicating program impact to stakeholders. The goal is to contribute to a lasting reduction in hunger and malnutrition through ACF’s interventions.

1. Resource Mobilization and Sustainable Partnerships:

Develop a comprehensive resource mobilization strategy and work plan to secure funding for the Country Strategy.
Engage in donor/business intelligence and prepositioning with major donors, consortia and alliances. Ensure that the Country Office has up-to-date knowledge of donor strategies frameworks and funding mechanisms
Identify both solicited and unsolicited funding opportunities and develop high-quality proposals aligned with donor priorities and the country office strategy.
Build and manage strong relationships with government entities, donors, and partners.
Secure funding for innovative and sustainable program initiatives that address critical needs
Play a leading role in designing compelling and competitive concept notes and proposals, including:
Alignment with our ACF-US strategy and ACF’s Theory of Change – innovating, building on and generating evidence, identifying strategic ways of partnering; supporting broader change in policy and practice
Engaging with technical experts as needed to ensure high quality, evidence-based designs that draw on needs assessments, learning from past programs and ACF’s vision, principles and mission.
Ensuring partners are identified, facilitate partnership brokering, and are appropriately engaged in program design and proposal development as well as promote a system strengthening approach as the overarching framework, that supports working in collaboration and partnership with governments and local partners and working towards impact, scale and sustainability
Ensuring proposal designs and their budgets include robust MEARL plans that are aligned with our Results Framework, incorporate Common Approaches as relevant, and build in critical learning questions.
Ensuring the project budget will enable the project to be delivered as designed.
Manage the country Business Development (BD) team and technical teams
Ensure appropriate budget ownership from proposals development to approval in alignment with grant requirements and compliance.
Ensure timely and accurate reporting to donors on program progress and impact.

2. Strategic Program Leadership and Alignment:

Support the development of the Zambia Country Strategy Plan (CSP), ensuring alignment with Action Against Hunger’s ISP3 goals and global SDG objectives.
Foster synergy and cross-functional collaboration between program departments (Nutrition & Health, FSL, WASH, MEARL, Advocacy, Gender & Protection).
Oversee the identification of needs and gaps in fighting hunger and undernutrition across Tanzania, informing strategic program direction.
Develop innovative and evidence-based program concepts that address priority needs in Tanzania.
Develop program strategies that integrate Nutrition, health, WASH, and FSL, gender protection, social protection for better outcomes.
Identify and assess potential risks to program implementation and develop mitigation strategies to ensure program sustainability and resilience.
Develop and implement the annual operating programme framework that optimizes project portfolio alignment with organizational objectives, ensuring resource allocation and risk management are balanced.
Incorporate thematic and cross-cutting strategic priorities in line with the CSP considering localization, disability, humanitarian-development-peace nexus, SBCC, gender and protection mainstreaming, social protection, refugee and IDPs.

3. Enhance program effectiveness and impact through robust quality assurance, monitoring, evaluation, research and learning.

Establish a robust Earned Value Management (EVM) system to measure project performance, enable proactive decision-making and continuous improvement
Ensure standardization of Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, Research and Learning (MEARL) framework aligned with Action Against Hunger’s global strategy, incorporating quality improvement methodologies and project models.
Conduct regular program reviews, compliance and audits to identify areas for improvement to ensure data quality assurance.
Embed risk management and contingency planning into the project lifecycle, building organizational capacity to withstand and adapt to challenges.
Participate in the development/updating of the hunger and undernutrition country context analysis taking into consideration the hunger hotspots, IPC, SMART+ and gender issues.
Lead the development of a comprehensive program quality assurance and accountability framework in collaboration with HEARO and HQ advisors and harmonize a system for capturing and addressing beneficiary feedback and complaints through implementing harmonized Accountability to Affected community (AAP) at country level.
Promote the use of data-driven decision-making to improve program effectiveness as well as identify areas for improvement and best practices to scale up.
Advocate for and invest in continuous learning and capacity building for program staff on quality improvement approaches/models and methodologies in line with the ACF guidelines.
Support the design, piloting and implementation of digital data collection tools, including mobile devices for field staff, to streamline monitoring, evaluation, and reporting processes aligned with Project management tools (PMI) DHIS2, PIMS systems.

3. Build and manage a High-Performing Program Team:

Provide strategic leadership and direction for the PDQ team and head of departments, setting clear goals, objectives, and performance expectations.
Foster a culture of innovation and experimentation within the program team.
Lead the team for the development and execution of a strategic portfolio management office to optimize resource allocation and balance risk across projects.
Establish standardized Work Breakdown Structures (WBS) templates and guidelines for teams’ efficient project planning and execution.
Lead, mentor, and coach a team of technical leads in Nutrition & Health, FSL, WASH, MEARL, Advocacy, Gender & Protection, and Knowledge Management & Capacity Building to develop clear sectoral plan and consolidate country AOP in line with regional and HQ annual operational plan (AOP)
Recruit, retain, and develop a highly skilled and motivated program team with relevant expertise.
Establish a culture of continuous learning and professional development within the program team and maintain a robust quality assurance system.
Empower program staff to lead program design, implementation, and evaluation activities as well as fostering a collaborative and results-oriented work environment within the program department.
Ensure adherence to Action Against Hunger’s safeguarding policies and procedures within the country office team.
Conduct regular performance reviews and provide constructive feedback to program staff.
Lead change management initiatives to ensure successful adoption of new project management tools, processes, and technologies.

4. Knowledge Management, Capacity Building, and Learning:

Implement knowledge management systems to capture, document, and share best practices, lessons learned, and program outcomes to promote organizational learning and adaptation.
Invest in staff development through targeted training and data analysis using data science tools to foster a culture of continuous learning and improvement.
Share best practices and lessons learned on program quality with Action Against Hunger regional office and globally and foster a culture of learning, innovation and continuous improvement.
Capture, document, and disseminate lessons learned from program interventions both internally and externally through key platforms e.g. government meetings, donor forums, among others.
Conduct research and analysis to inform future program strategies and interventions.

5. Leading Emergency Response and preparedness in collaboration with the government and partners:

Develop and implement comprehensive emergency preparedness and response plans for disasters, public health emergencies, and nutrition crises.
Lead rapid response teams to effectively manage and mitigate the impact of emergencies, ensuring timely and appropriate assistance to affected populations.
Coordinate with relevant stakeholders, including government agencies, UN agencies, and other humanitarian organizations to optimize emergency response efforts.
Ensure the integration of sectoral interventions within emergency response plans of the cluster to address the specific needs of vulnerable populations.
Advocate for increased investment in emergency preparedness and response capacity to enhance the organization’s ability to respond effectively to crises.
Develop and implement anticipatory action for early warning systems to enable timely detection and response to potential emergencies.
Ensure adequate staffing, equipment, and resources are in place to support effective emergency response operations.
Conduct regular emergency response simulations and training exercises to build staff capacity and improve operational readiness.
Monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of emergency response activities to identify areas for improvement and inform future planning.
Develop strategies for post-emergency recovery and rehabilitation, focusing on building community resilience and long-term development.

6. Lead strategic efforts to enhance program impact through advocacy, gender mainstreaming, visibility, and sustainability by strengthening policy influence and partnerships.

Map key technical engagements and participate in discussions in high level working groups to represent the country office, and the voice of the community in strategy design and policy development.
Coordinate action, research and analysis to identify key policy gaps and opportunities for advocacy related to fighting hunger and undernutrition.
Develop clear policy asks and advocacy messages aligned with Action Against Hunger’s global, regional and country priorities.
Advocate for integrating safeguarding principles throughout the Country Strategic Plan and collaborate with local partners to ensure culturally appropriate and sustainable program designs.
Engage with government officials, policymakers, and parliamentarians to raise awareness of critical rights issues, nutrition sensitive programming and advocate for policy reforms.
Partner with other NGOs, SUN movement, clusters and local civil society organizations to strengthen collective advocacy efforts.
Monitor policy developments and mobilize action in response to relevant legislation or policy proposals.
Advocate for increased government investment in fighting against hunger and malnutrition including social protection programs and essential services.
Secure sustainable funding to support Action Against Hunger’s long-term actions towards fighting against hunger and malnutrition
Participate in regional policy dialogues and advocacy campaigns to promote nutrition-sensitive programming.

Supervisory Responsibilities

Human resources management and coaching of the technical and program teams

Direct management of the program team, technical specialists and MEAL teams
Set the job objectives of all direct subordinates, hold monthly regular conversations, organize appraisals and conduct the annual performance review for his/her staff
Hold regular program follow up meetings, coordinate action points and monitor progress
Coaching and mentoring of programme and technical specialists and MEAL teams
Initiate disciplinary measures where needed in accordance with the HR regulations
Ensure program staff are motivated and committed to the Action Against Hunger charter and programs
Contribute to the career development for program staff in collaboration with the HR department to identify needs of training
Collaborate with Regional PDQA director, Country Director, Finance & Admin Manager, HR lead, US Business Development Unit and Horn & East Africa Regional Office.

Gender Equality Commitments

Foster an environment that supports values of women and men, and equal access to information.
Provide a work environment where women and men must be evaluated and promoted based on their skills and performance.
Respect women, men, children (boys and girls) regardless of gender, sex orientation, disability, religion. race, color, ancestry, national origin, age, or marital status.
Value and respect all cultures.

Fiscal Responsibility

Provide high level oversight in the coordination of project startup, implementation and close out including budget management, MEAL and donor reporting.

Physical Demands

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is required to sit for long periods and to concentrate on work, including typing, and turn out heavy volumes of work accurately, within short time frames under stressful situations in the context of a moderately noisy office with many interruptions. Must be able to proofread own work accurately so that only minor corrections are needed on an infrequent basis.
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Working Conditions, Travel and Environment

The duties of the job require regular job attendance at least five days per week. Must be available to work outside normal office hours or on the weekends as required.

Must be able to travel as required for standard domestic and international business purposes. While performing the duties of this job in the field, the employee may be exposed to precarious settings under high security risks and/or very basic living conditions and outside weather conditions, as well as to infectious diseases. Expected to perform any duties as assigned by Line Manager.

Required Qualifications and Professional Experience

A Master’s degree in International Development, Social Sciences, Public Health or other relevant field.
Experience working with a diverse range of donors.
Solid track record in fundraising and meeting revenue targets
At least 10 years of related experience with an INGO including senior management program positions
Experience in at least one of Action Against Hunger’s core technical sectors: FSL, Nutrition and Health, WASH, Agriculture/climate in development and/or emergencies.
Experience in managing complex development and resilience building projects for donors such as USAID, FCDO, GIZ, GAC and the European Commission

Required Skills & Competencies

Familiarity with project design methods and tools (including assessments, logical frameworks and theory of change) and strong appreciation for innovation, digitalization and partnership as part of project development.
Good analytical skills with ability to positively influence cross-departmental and cross sector working.
Strong results orientation, with ability to meet deadlines and produce high-quality products.
Strong cultural awareness and ability to work well in an international environment with people from diverse backgrounds and cultures.
Ability and willingness to change work practices and hours, and work with the proposal development teams to meet deadlines.
Substantial experience and skills in establishing and maintaining external relations with government, donors, community stakeholders and civil society.
Fluency in English (business level), both verbal and written
Proficiency in computer e.g. MS Word, MS Power Point and Excel.