Director - Health Facilities and Systems Strengthening

Reporting to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), the Director of Health Facilities and Systems Strengthening (DHFSS) will play a pivotal role in supporting the organisations mission to transform healthcare delivery in under-resourced communities in rural and urban areas. This position focuses on enhancing Reproductive, Maternal, and Newborn Health, addressing Communicable Diseases, and fortifying Health Systems in these areas. The ideal candidate will have a strong background in clinical services and health systems strengthening, with proven leadership experience in complex healthcare environments in rural and urban areas. S/he will excel at navigating healthcare policies and regulations, driving impactful improvements in patient care and health system performance, and fostering strategic partnerships.

The DHFSS will work closely with the Director of Community Health and Outreach, providing strategic direction and leadership to ensure the highest quality of patient care. The incumbent will work across various states, offering technical collaboration and support for ongoing programs, and work closely with organisations Senior Management Team, cross-functional teams, and the government. Areas of collaboration will include developing and implementing supportive supervision and quality assurance mechanisms; monitoring, reporting, evaluation, and documentation efforts to inform course corrections and strengthening representation with program/ sector partners and the government. Additionally, the DHFSS will foster public-private partnerships, build sector and donor relationships, and lead/ support resource mobilization efforts.

Key Responsibilities:

A. Technical Leadership:

(1) Review legal, regulatory, health sector policies and provisions, and quality assurance benchmarks to strengthen public and private healthcare facilities;

(2) Collate and consolidate the organisations initiatives for supporting the improved delivery of healthcare services, adopting program science and systems strengthening approaches;

(3) Develop program strategies and provide strategic and technical inputs for health services strengthening for Reproductive, Maternal, and Newborn Health, and related Health Systems Strengthening initiatives;

(4) Direct the development and implementation of the organisations strategy for improving the quality of health services/ clinical care in rural and urban settings;

(5) Develop internal and external outreach and influencing strategy for increased resource allocations, scaling of technical interventions, and policy influence, positioning clinical interventions as significant contributors to achieving national and global health indicators;

(6) Ensure new programs and ongoing initiatives incorporate interventions to strengthen clinical care based on principles of health equity, addressing barriers to the optimal health of girls and women;

(7) Identify potential innovations and approaches to replicate/ upscale.

B. Program Coordination and Administration:

(1) Collaborate with stakeholders, including donors and government at the national level, in consultation with project teams, effectively representing the organisations work in healthcare services strengthening;

(2) Provide direction and guidance for the development and management of an integrated work plan aligned with health facilities and related systems strengthening work plans;

(3) Oversee strategic and annual operating budgets, providing supportive supervision for implementation, and monitoring consolidated budgets vs. expenditure statements with concerned team members;

(4) Collaborate with teams to review project/ program progress, effectiveness, and impact; implement mid-course corrections as necessary and share regular updates with the Senior Management Team, technical working groups, and external stakeholders:

(5) Support project teams and the MERL team during the development of donor reports, to ensure program progress, output, and outcome indicators are effectively presented.

C. Guidelines, Protocols and Capacity Building:

(1) Develop and implement policies, SOPs, technical updates, and procedures to maintain compliance with healthcare regulations and standards, ensuring quality services;

(2) Develop service delivery guidelines for various programs as per national guidelines and lead implementation of the organisations clinical service delivery;

(3) Develop the training curriculum based on program requirements and ensure trainings are conducted as per schedule in all facilities;

(4) Conduct regular training sessions to ensure adherence to standardized protocols and emerging best practices, providing facilitative supervision;

(5) Provide technical inputs for developing projects/ interventions for international/ national funding and support their implementation;

(6) Lead documentation of key initiatives and participate in conferences, seminars, and workshops at national/ international levels to support the organizations mission.

D. Monitoring, Evaluation, Research and Learning:

(1) Conduct regular reviews of clinic performance, patient satisfaction, and clinical outcomes to drive continuous improvement;

(2) Contribute to the development of needs assessments, baselines, monitoring and evaluation, and research initiatives, for the organisations projects/ programs in collaboration with sector players, research, academic institutions, and the government;

(3) Oversee the use of monitoring and evaluation data to guide program improvements and ensure high standards of quality and effectiveness;

(4) Implement mechanisms for supportive supervision and quality assurance;

(5) Lead/ support the development of knowledge products based on primary and secondary data analysis, program learning, and MIS data.

E. Strategic Leadership and Collaboration:

(1) Work closely with organisations Senior Management Team, cross-functional teams, and government entities, to drive strategic initiatives;

(2) Build and maintain robust partnerships with sector partners and the government to support the organisations mission;

(3) Represent organisation in external forums to advocate for and advance the organizations objectives.

F. Resource Mobilization:

(1) Develop relationships with sector players, technical and academic institutions, donors, and the government, to resource health facilities improvement initiatives;

(2) Engage in developing technical/ non-financial and financial MoUs/ Agreements with government and non-government actors for joint/ consortium initiatives, complementarities, and representation;

(4) Initiate and lead new fundraising opportunities with technical leads, advisors, relevant geographic and program managers, and develop/ support the development of high-quality program and funding proposals;

(5) Develop/ support the development of technical and financial bids for multi-laterals, bi-laterals, corporates, and the government;

(6) Collaborate with the resource mobilization team to track grants acquired and support project inception, periodic reporting, monitoring, and donor interface for acquired grants.

G. Representation:

(1) Support leadership in creating an interface with the Central and State Governments, and their agencies, academic institutions, and national organizations for the MNCH, Communicable Diseases, and Health Systems Strengthening initiatives of the organisation;

(2) Strategize, develop, manage, and prepare required briefs on relationships with government departments, sector players, and organisation offices and teams;

(3) Delegate, oversee, and review the management of national relationships along with the Senior Management Team; Manage sub-state relationships by the team;

(4) Oversee/ delegate the engagement of senior experts and consultants for specialized areas of programming.

H. Team Leadership and Development:

(1) Demonstrate the organisations core values through exemplary behavior;

(2) Ensure a common understanding and vision of different programmes among all team members, along with clear communication and structured responsibilities;

(3) Delegate responsibilities to team members, ensuring quality outputs and regular feedback, coaching, and mentoring to develop professional capacity and performance;

(4) Monitor and provide objective feedback on staff performance, completing evaluations to promote growth and development;

(5) Ensure team performance objectives are well-defined and timely monitored using organisations performance management system and other tools. Ensure team objectives are known by all relevant entities and progress reported to stakeholders;

(6) Ensure team members are adequately supported in their work, and their development needs are identified and met;

(7) Ensure the team budget is developed, implemented, and monitored in a timely manner.

I. Commitment to Safeguarding and PSHEA Compliance:

(1) Collaborate, uphold and promote organisations organizational principles of Safeguarding and Protection from Sexual Harassment, Exploitation, and Abuse (PSHEA);

(2) Ensure compliance with organisations Safeguarding and PSHEA policies in all program activities and interactions with stakeholders;

(3) Lead awareness initiatives to reinforce safeguarding and PSHEA practices within the organisation and its programs.

J. Other Responsibilities: Perform any other work assigned by the line manager.

4. QUALIFICATIONS, EXPERIENCE AND COMPETENCIES:

Qualifications and Experience:

(1) MBBS/ MD or MPH. A PhD in a related field is preferred;

(2) Minimum of 15 years of relevant experience, of which at least seven must be in senior managerial roles, preferably in RMNCH, community health improvement models, and approaches for non-communicable diseases, as well as infectious disease surveillance, prevention, and control. Experience in both rural and urban settings is desirable;

(3) Prior experience in Health Care Services Improvement and Related Systems Strengthening Initiatives with a proven understanding of financial management in these areas (facilities and human resources);

(4) Prior experience of working with the government and international organizations/ bilateral agencies. Experience of working with Foundations, Trusts, and Corporates shall be an advantage.

Skills and Competencies:

(1) Proven ability to conceptualize, analyse, innovate, plan and execute ideas;

(2) Ability to build programmatic capacity of an organization;

(3) Knowledge of program planning and management, and proven understanding of organizational financial management and business planning;

(4) Ability to lead large teams, of diverse configuration;

(5) Ability to contribute to the strategic planning process;

(6) Excellent written and oral communication skills accompanied by strong presentation and persuasion skills and report writing ability;

(7) Ability to deliver complex messages to a variety of audiences.