Senior Managing Director, Humanitarian Portfolio (M4)

Save the Children

For over 100 years, Save the Children has been fighting for the rights of children. The right to a healthy start in life. To have access to education. To be in a safe environment, protected from harm. We work in some of the world's hardest-to-reach places - over 100 countries, including the U.S. No matter what your role is, when you join Save the Children, you're creating positive, irreversible change for children, and the future we all share.

The Role

As the Senior Managing Director, Humanitarian Portfolio you will lead and oversee Save the Children US's (SCUS) portfolio of humanitarian awards (domestic and USG PHFFA funded) ensuring high-quality, compliant, on-time, and on-budget delivery. In this role, you will provide strategic oversight, capacity building, and accountability, fostering operational excellence, innovation, continuous learning, and an inclusive work environment.

Reporting to the Head of Program Implementation and serving on the Program Implementation Senior Leadership Team, you will oversee the performance and growth of SCUS's humanitarian portfolio and team, directly supervise Project Directors/COPs, and strengthen donor engagement in partnership with Program Quality & Impact (PQI). You will also partner closely with Save the Children International (SCI) country, regional, and Centre teams to ensure effective coordination and high-quality emergency response programming. A significant focus will be setting up international implementation for USG PHFFA funded projects, in addition to supporting the existing domestic humanitarian team and portfolio.

Location

Hybrid - Washington DC, Fairfield, CT or Lexington, KY office locations

What You'll Be Doing (Essential Duties)

*not inclusive of all role responsibilities. May be subject to change

Portfolio Leadership/Management (35%)

• Lead the team ensuring high quality projects are delivered on time, within budget, and in full compliance with organizational standards and policies.
• Lead partner-led program/project implementation
• Ensure program interventions are aligned with technical best practices, humanitarian standards, and emerging national and local policies, as well as country and global strategic priorities
• Lead and implement rapid, effective responses to emergencies affecting children, including building relationships with key humanitarian and development stakeholders and partners in-country
• Lead operational and programmatic adjustments in response to the evolving humanitarian, economic, and security context, including displacement dynamics and access constraints
• Ensure that effective monitoring, evaluation, accountability, and learning (MEAL) systems are implemented in line with organizational policies and guidelines and program learning is effectively captured, documented, and shared.
• Monitor programs and services to ensure excellence, adapt services to community needs, provide effective training and technical assistance, and improve program quality and data management, including KPIs
• Inspire and promote innovation across the team and with partners
• Collaborate with SCUS leaders, technical colleagues (including SCI) to standardize and continuously improve processes, and strengthen strategic linkages and interdependencies between technical colleagues, program implementation, portfolio managers, and account managers.
• Set direction for operational design/modality as well as organizational structure for USG PHFFA funded proposals/projects with proposal design/development teams.

Program Results, Compliance, Risk Management and Accountability internationally (USG PHFFA compliant) and domestically (25%)

• Accountable for achieving project deliverables, annual goals, and long-term strategic objectives, including development and emergency response in the recovery phase.
• Hold team accountable for executing with excellence and meeting high standards.
• Identify and mitigate internal and external risks to program implementation, ensuring teams' operations are risk-aware and nimble.
• Reinforce the advancement of risk management and compliance priorities as identified through internal reviews and global assurance processes
• Ensure compliance with all host authority requirements in relation to registration, taxation, labor law, auditing, fraud prevention, and related areas
• Ensure effective cross-functional collaboration for financial management, donor compliance, and award/grant management.
• Oversee engagement with SCUS and SCI technical teams to ensure adequate and appropriate technical support for program delivery.

Lead a High-Performing Team (30%)

• Collaborate closely with the Head of Program Implementation, stepping in to manage senior responsibilities when necessary.
• Deliver clear, timely, and constructive feedback to support managerial excellence and team performance.
• Champion the professional development and career growth of direct and indirect reports through targeted coaching and skill-building initiatives.
• Ensure robust Child Safeguarding measures are in place to protect children across all activities, promoting awareness and prevention.
• Train, develop, coach, lead, and supervise staff, clearly communicating organization, division and department priorities, and how their work contributes to our mission and supports Save the Children values.
• Proactively budget for and in partnership with the People and Culture team, recruit permanent and temporary staff, and consultants to meet workforce and professional development needs.
• Actively lead new hire onboarding, as well as retention, leadership development, succession planning to meet strategic goals.
• Model and uphold a team culture of knowledge management and sharing. Advise, guide, and mentor team members, including managers, as they troubleshoot challenges and develop plans to proactively address issues.

Financial and Administrative Management (10%)

• Ensure effective financial budgeting, management systems, processes, and controls are in place and compliant with organizational standards and local legal requirements
• Ensure effective, compliant procurement and asset management systems are established and maintained
• Ensure that partner organizations are assessed against financial management and governance standards and are supported to address capacity gaps

Required qualifications for the role

• Minimum of a bachelor's degree or equivalent experience, plus at least 13 years of relevant experience
• Proven experience within humanitarian context with responsibility for overseeing and direct oversight of large and complex USG project implementation development and award management

• Strong knowledge of USG humanitarian funding modalities and compliance.

• Successful experience leading, managing and developing high-performing teams, including strong managerial knowledge and skills to provide direction and support staff professional development and retention
• Proven ability to manage ongoing change in external and internal environments in an effective and transparent manner, while promoting staff engagement and morale
• Demonstrated ability to think and act strategically and proven ability to exercise independent judgment and discretion on significant matters with minimal guidance
• Willingness and ability to travel domestically and internationally up to 30% as required, including to humanitarian response settings
• Demonstrated ability to successfully communicate and collaborate with individuals and teams at all levels, both internal and external

• Professional proficiency in MS Office suite
• Professional proficiency in spoken and written English

Preferred qualifications for the role

• Professional proficiency in a second language (Spanish, French, or Arabic preferred)
• Ability to manage by influence internally and to work in a federated structure
• Experience with Save the Children

Compensation

Save the Children is offering the following salary ranges for this position, dependent on candidate location:

• Geo 1 - NY Metro, DC, and other locations with labor costs significantly above national average: Target Salary for this position is $170,850 - $190,950 base salary

• Geo 2 - Locations around the US National Labor Cost Average: Target Salary for this position is $154,275 - $172,425 base salary
• Geo 3 - Locations significantly below the US National Labor Cost Average: Target Salary for this position is $138,975 - $155,325 base salary

The salary ranges listed above are for US based candidates. For candidates located outside of the US, salary ranges will be based on the salary scales of the local employer of record. Actual base salary may vary based on, but not limited to, relevant experience, base salary of internal peers, business sector, and geographic location (more information on job structure is available here).

About Us

We are looking to build an inclusive team at Save the Children. We offer a range of outstanding benefits to support this goal:

• Flexible schedules and time off: Flexible schedules, generous PTO, 11 paid holidays plus 2 floating holidays and hybrid working opportunities
• Health: Competitive health care, dental and vision coverage for you and your family
• Family: A variety of paid leaves: caregiver, parental/adoption, critical child illness and fertility benefits
• Employee Rewards Program: Annual merit increases and/or additional incentives for eligible employees
• Retirement: A retirement savings plan with employer contributions (after one year)
• Wellness: 15 safety and wellness days annually (if hired on or after July 1, safety and wellness days prorated to 8 days), mental health benefits and support through Calm and company-hosted events
• Employee Assistance Program: free and confidential assessments, short-term counseling, referrals, and follow-up services
• Learning & Growth: Access to internal and external learning & development opportunities and mentorships

Click here to learn more about how Save the Children US will invest in you.

Save the Children is committed to conducting its programs and operations in a manner that is safe for the children it serves and helping protect the children with whom we are in contact. All Save the Children representatives are explicitly prohibited from engaging in any activity that may result in any kind of child abuse.

Save the Children is committed to minimizing safety and security risks for our valued employees, ensuring all are given training, support and information to reduce their risk exposure while maximizing the impact of our programs for children and families. Our shared duty, both agency and individual, is to seek and maintain safe working conditions for all.

If you require disability assistance with the application or recruitment process, please submit a request to applicantsupport@savechildren.org.