Director, Higher Education Strengthening

THE OPPORTUNITY

The Director, Higher Education Strengthening is responsible for leading the delivery of the HECSI platform objectives, overseeing the design and implementation of an assigned portfolio of collaboratives.

Collaboratives bring university partners together with the aim to accelerate transformation of a particular sector (or area of work) where there is a critical need for advanced human capital development in Africa and contribute to our Young Africa Works Goals.

Reporting to the Executive Director of HECSI, the Director drives growth, impact, and strategic execution. Working closely with other sub-platform leaders, the role ensures alignment with the platforms integrated strategy and roadmap. The Director will lead the development and execution of initiatives that strengthen

higher education collaboratives and partnerships driving institutional strengthening agendas. They protect and support the building and promoting of HECSI and the overall Foundation brand.

Universities are well-positioned to advance Young Africa Works due to their unique concentration of talent, ability to train the leaders of the future, mission to develop and leverage knowledge to spur innovation, and imperative for community service. The Foundation has an opportunity to leverage the power of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) as sites of knowledge exchange, community collaboration, and cross-sector partnerships to collectively address shared challenges.

WAYS YOU CAN CONTRIBUTE

Stewardship and Leadership of the Collaboratives

• Ensure success and impact of each collaborative through supporting partners with implementation, collaboration, integration, and innovation across strategic priorities / thematic areas:
• Serve as an ambassador of the work, internally and externally and represent the Foundation;
• Support the development of a robust monitoring framework to assess impact and synthesize learning by working closely with Impact Colleagues;
• Building and ensure timely execution of communication strategies by working closely with our Public Affairs and Communications team;
• Establish shared learning venues for organization-wide learning by working closely with Directors and Sector Heads;
• Support partners in reviewing and managing the budgets and ensure spending
• adjustments or budget modifications are done as necessary.

Partnership and Collaborative Management

• Build proposals with universities and research institutions to enable the outcomes and objectives of the Collaboratives;
• Support partners with ongoing reporting, feedback, and learning;
• Develop, build, and maintain relationships with cross functional teams and other countries;
• Establish and strengthen relationships with leadership in each partner organization;
• Facilitate integration, collaboration, and convening relevant actors to drive impact at scale;
• Enable a strong governance structure and learning framework – as the Collaboratives move from proposal development to implementation, a key next step is to develop and agree to a governance structure and impact framework. This includes an Executive Steering Committee, a Network Implementation Committee, and additional facilitation and learning roles to support with day-to-day activities, monitoring, and learning.

People Leadership

• Effectively leading colleagues ensuring a high quality of work, safeguarding and alignment with Foundation values;
• Drive oneness by building a supportive and collaborative work environment;
• Support a team of program and operation staff within a matrixed environment;
• Support performance management for the team and for direct and indirect reports;
• Maintain high levels of engagement amongst team driving oneness and deepening the culture of the Foundation and growing team members.
• Embedding and clarifying the Foundation's performance management system, rewards, capacity and career management.
• Foster an inclusive work environment that values diversity and promotes equal
• opportunities.
• Create strategic insights for action.

Policy and Thought Leadership

• Support the shaping of policy and participate in influencing decision makers across the ecosystem, drawing on our expertise and insights, with a particular focus on strategic priorities and target groups as necessary
• Contribute relevant perspectives to the Foundation's thought leadership priorities based on the body of work under one's purview
• Disseminate learnings from HECSI and the portfolio of collaboratives

WHO YOU ARE

• BSc./ Master's/MBA or PhD in a relevant field such as international development, education, public policy or another related field.
• At least Fifteen (15) years' experience in the private/ development sector, passionate about education and Africa who has demonstrated experience in building a new initiative or transformed an existing initiative into something even more impactful.
• Extensive leadership experience in managing complex programs or initiatives, preferably in the field of education or youth development.
• Proven ability to think in a strategic, transformative way, able to conceptualize initiatives/processes that will drive large scale change.
• Proven experience effectively engaging with technical experts to build communities of practice.
• Possess excellent verbal, written, and presentation skills with the ability to articulate information to a variety of constituents across cultures.
• French language and/or local language skills are an asset.
• Proven track record of building and managing strategic partnerships.
• Strong understanding of higher education systems, particularly in Africa.
• Demonstrated commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
• Innovative and entrepreneurial individual who can develop new or creative approaches to problems while inspiring others on the team.
• Drive to continually experiment and innovate, building and leveraging best-in-class expertise and learnings.
• Commitment to the value of co-creation, employing deep listening and authentically inclusive approach.
• Demonstrated success in building and managing high performing teams.
• Expertise working with development, political and social issues across Africa.
• Demonstrated financial management experience including preparation and management of budgets and contracts.
• Skilled communicator and influencer, from executive through to technical levels and external constituencies, know how to navigate ambiguous environments and are comfortable at managing up and beyond hierarchy.
• Ability to build and engage teams.
• Effectively develop, lead, and provide strategic direction to a diverse team of leaders across multiple countries.

The Mastercard Foundation values the unique skills and experiences each individual brings to the organization and we are committed to creating and maintaining an inclusive and accessible environment for everyone.

Completion of satisfactory business references and background checks are essential conditions of employment.

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