Senior Manager, Humanitarian

Open to multiple locations: New York, London, Nairobi, Lilongwe, Kampala, Kigali, Rabat or Monrovia

About GiveDirectly

GiveDirectly (GD) aims to reshape international giving -  and millions of lives - by allowing donors to provide capital 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 which is allocated to evidence-free interventions. GiveDirectly wants to change that, establishing a benchmark, and in the process accelerate the end of extreme poverty. GiveDirectly has raised over $400M in revenue (>$150M in 2020 alone), while being recognized as one of the most innovative non-profit companies by Fast Company. The growing movement toward cash transfers and GD’s role in that movement have also been featured in This American Life, Foreign Affairs, The Economist, and  Business Insider.

Cash transfers are at a potential inflection point:  COVID-19 has amplified the challenges of bulkier in-kind aid models, and governments are deploying cash as their most common tool of assistance to vulnerable populations. GiveDirectly has an opportunity to leverage its strong track record (i.e. operations across 9 countries, >$250M transferred to over a million individuals, 13 randomized control trials), to both deliver immense impact and position itself as the premiere cash implementation vehicle globally.  

We’re looking for exceptional talent to grow our team. Our culture is blunt, analytical, non-hierarchical, and fast-paced. We recruit candidates from top organizations across all industries - our team has hailed from consultancies, investment banks, start-ups, non-profits, and government to name a few. We value ability and willingness to learn over years of experience. We offer competitive salary and benefits and performance-based bonuses. 

About the role 

GiveDirectly’s field organization is growing fast: we recently doubled our country office footprint and are experimenting with a range of research and design questions from “How do you deliver cash in a country that has 1 bank for a district of 400,000 people?” to “What’s the impact of providing a universal basic income to 10,000+ individuals?” 

We’ve defined a core “big bet” around expansion into the humanitarian response domain. Our value proposition focuses on speed, flexibility, innovation and rigor. We’re looking for candidates who will be able to deploy on short notice to respond to a range of humanitarian crises. As part of GD’s humanitarian team, you will hone your operational expertise with responsibilities that include: building new capabilities for targeting beneficiaries, deploying payments, and rapidly setting up in emergency settings; hiring and managing teams of field officers; and hitting quality and efficiency targets in a novel operational context. In addition to building readiness and providing boots on the ground, you will create new growth opportunities and  partnerships to expand our reach, expand our operational methodology, and source funding from a range of donors.  

Reports to: Director, Humanitarian 

Responsibilities:

• End-to-end project management

• Assess trade-offs of different design decisions (e.g. targeting, payments, customer service) and define suitable model 

Coordinate with internal stakeholders for excellent project execution Define, track, and report operational and efficiency metrics  Build operational protocols that will enable rapid legal set-up, hiring, and community entry  Hire, onboard, and manage high-quality field teams Own a rich project management plan to ensure successful end-to-end execution Dynamically identify operational vulnerabilities (e.g. fraud, brand risk etc)  and create solutions to de-risk 

• New business development 

Scope new countries and target communities for expansion Identify, evaluate, and drive growth opportunities, supporting end-to-end deal cycle from pitching to launch Conduct operational diligence, feasibility, and risk assessments for pilots and inbound proposals

• Partnership management

Establish and maintain high quality relationships with funders and operational partners Drive overall alignment across external  researchers, government agencies, and payment providers Collaborate with partnerships team to create content to drive donor conversations and position GiveDirectly as a thought leader in the Humanitarian space

Qualifications:

Working proficiency in a second language required. French or Arabic desired 3-5 years of work experience in a problem-solving heavy role (field management, consulting, analytics) at a high performing organization Strong alignment with GD values (see below) Exceptional ability to logic through complex operational questions & run robust analyses to inform management and programming decisions Preference for candidates with a strong partnership and relationship management background Strong communications skills: Skilled in speaking, writing, presenting, and negotiating across multiple stakeholders Enthusiasm for fast-paced environments, which may lack pre-defined playbook for success and involve significant “learning by doing” Prior humanitarian/emergency experience is a plus

GD Values

Recipients first. We prioritize recipient preferences over donor preferences or our own.

Team Next. We do what is best for the success of the organization - not the individual.

Be proactively candid. We say what we believe and are honest in sharing information.

Create positive energy. We strive to be a source of energy - not drain it - for our colleagues.

Think rigorously. Act Quickly. We are intellectually rigorous and oriented towards action - not debate.

Know yourself and grow. We recognize and accept our imperfections with a focus on growth

Accept reality. Propose solutions. We don't dwell on problems. We are actively working to create solutions.

Be productively ambitious. We take the risk of pursuing industry-changing successes, not marginal advancements.

**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.**