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Chief Operating Officer (COO)

Geneva

  • Organization: Gavi, Vaccine Alliance
  • Location: Geneva
  • Grade: Level not specified - Level not specified
  • Occupational Groups:
    • Operations and Administrations
    • Managerial positions
  • Closing Date: Closed

Position title: Chief Operating Officer
Location: Geneva
Purpose of the position: Full responsibility for Gavi’s operations across human resources, operations and procurement, ethics, risk management, compliance, monitoring, and grant-management operations, leading a team of diverse professionals across these functions.
Department: Office of the COO
Reports to: Chief Executive Officer
Career step level: 7

Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance is a public-private partnership committed to saving children's lives and protecting people's health by increasing equitable use of vaccines in lower-income countries. The Vaccine Alliance brings together implementing country and donor governments, the World Health Organisation, UNICEF, the World Bank, the vaccine industry, technical agencies, civil society, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and other private sector partners. Gavi uses innovative finance mechanisms, including co-financing by recipient countries, to secure sustainable funding and adequate supply of quality vaccines. Since 2000, Gavi has contributed to the immunisation of more than 1 billion children and the prevention of more than 17.3 million future deaths. 

THE ROLE

The COO will report to the CEO and be a member of the Senior Leadership Team. The COO will be responsible for Gavi’s operations across human resources, operations and procurement, ethics, risk management, compliance, monitoring, and its grant-management operations, leading a team of diverse professionals across these functions. They will oversee the development and implementation of key strategies and initiatives to optimize the efficiency, effectiveness, and impact in these areas. They will have proven experience in senior leadership roles and leading operations functions, ideally across a range of sectors.

MAIN DUTIES/RESPONSIBILITIES

Specifically, the Chief Operating Officer will:
  • Oversee and lead the organization’s core operational functions, including human resources, ethics, risk management, compliance, monitoring, operations and procurement, and grant management oversight. This role will involve developing and executing plans to ensure operational efficiency, manage risks, and support organizational performance in these areas.
  • Provide leadership and guidance to teams in these areas, ensuring that all processes and systems are optimized for performance and compliance.
  • Establish clear, consistent organizational policies and procedures that improve effectiveness, efficiency and accountability, and drive value.
  • Serve as a trusted colleague to the CEO and leadership team peers.
Note: The essential functions listed in this section are not exhaustive of the job responsibilities; other duties may be assigned consistently with the department needs.

QUALIFICATIONS

ACADEMIC
  • MBA (or equivalent relevant degree), preferably in a legal, commercial or behavioral discipline. 
WORK EXPERIENCE
  • Previous experience leading Operations, Procurement, Human Resources, Ethics, Risk Management & Compliance and related areas, and transforming business processes in a large and/or complex organization.
  • Proven experience of fostering a nimble, results-oriented and collaborative environment across an organization.
  • Experience of creating, nurturing, and leading multi-disciplinary teams and managing operating budgets.
  • Practice-based understanding of leadership and transformation of effective Operations and Business functions.
  • Experience in leveraging technology to design new processes for efficiency and simplified ways of working is highly desired.
  • Aptitude in setting strategy, driving implementation, and decision-making in lean, yet complex, organizations.
  • Excellent change leadership credentials, including appreciation of people, technology, processes and systems, and a record of successfully leading organization-wide change programs. Excellent team leadership credentials, developing and leading high performing teams, and creating a compelling vision and culture across the organization.
  • Experience of working as part of an executive top team and of interactions at Board-level.
  • Familiarity with international development contexts is desirable 
SKILLS/COMPETENCIES

The Chief Operating Officer will be someone of unimpeachable personal integrity. 

The role requires strong leadership, analytical, and strategic thinking skills to align operational functions with the overall goals of the organization and strong people management skills and experience managing organizations through periods of change and transformation. Critical skills and competencies include the following:

Setting Strategy
  • The ability to contribute to organizational strategy and ensure alignment of people, processes, systems, and resources.
  • Data driven decision maker with the inclination to seek and analyse data from a variety of sources to support decisions and to align others with the organization’s overall strategy.
  • The capacity to diagnose and resolve multiple, concurrent problems; a conceptual and strategic analytical capacity to understand the sometimes-competing requirements of the different areas of responsibility.
  • The ability to formulate appropriate, ambitious strategies for change, in service of the organization’s purpose.
  • Nuanced appreciation of best practices in organizational design and organizational behaviour.
  • The ability to effectively balance the desire/need for broad change with an understanding of how much change the organization is capable of handling, to create realistic goals and implementation plans that are achievable and successful.
Executing for Results
  • The ability to set clear and challenging goals while committing teams to improved performance, tenacious and accountable in driving results.
  • Comfort with ambiguity and uncertainty; the ability to adapt nimbly and lead others through complex situations.
  • A smart risk-taker who seeks data and input from others to foresee threats or unintended consequences from decisions.
  • Integrity and forethought in their approach to making decisions.
  • The ability to act in a transparent and consistent manner while acting in the best interests of the organization.
  • The ability to persevere in the face of challenges and exhibit a steadfast resolve and relentless commitment to higher standards, which commands respect from followers.
  • Able to work under pressure and for sustained periods of high intensity, effective across time zones, self-motivated, and well-organized. Powerful sense of ownership, obligation, and personal accountability; will assist Gavi in its implementation and management of flexible working practices
  • The ability to manage multiple stakeholder relationships at various stages of development, manage multiple projects, manage competing demands, follow-up on all requests and queries. Able to lead through influence, and to be decisive.
Leading Teams
  • Collaborative leadership style and ability to supervise and direct diverse teams of professionals and support staff.
  • Outstanding organizational and leadership abilities; strategic, results-oriented, with a strong commitment to Gavi’s cause.
  • The ability to identify, attract, manage, motivate, and inspire the best talent, leveraging diversity, and continuously upgrade the team by bringing new talent, keep the best and manage non-performance.
  • Creator of a high-performance culture that celebrates diversity.
  • The capacity and ability to shape a fast- paced and service-oriented organization.
  • Leads others to formulate solutions to complex problems, empowering teams to respond nimbly in a fast-changing world. A commitment to implementing Gavi core principles as articulated in Gavi’s framework documents and/or agreements.
  • A leader who is self-reflective and aware of their own limitations; leads by example and drives the organization’s performance with an attitude of continuous improvement by being open to feedback and self-improvement.
Relationships and Influence
  • Demonstrated ability to work in a multi-cultural environment and establish harmonious and effective working relationships, both within and outside Gavi.
  • Political sensitivity, strong oral, written, and interpersonal skills, with the ability to relate and work effectively and strategically with colleagues and partners at all levels.
  • An ability to inspire trust and followership in others through compelling influence, powerful charisma, passion in their beliefs, and active drive.
  • Encourages others to share the spotlight and celebrates and supports the success of the team.
  • Highly proficient manager of stakeholders of wide-ranging seniorities; adept builder of enduring relationships, able to work through difficulties to establish and achieve shared goals within complex environments and at pace.
  • Creates valuable networks within relevant sectors and leverages these to capitalise on the latest insights and practices.
  • Creates a sense of purpose/meaning for the team that generates followership beyond their own personality and engages others to the greater purpose for the organization.
LANGUAGES
  • Gavi operates in an English language environment, consequently fluency in spoken and written English essential;
  • Ability to communicate in spoken and written French is highly desirable.

CONTACTS
  • Gavi Secretariat; 
  • Gavi Partners;
  • Gavi Leadership Team (including Senior Management Team and Executive Team);
  • Board and Committee Members;
  • Other key stakeholders. 
Please send your application to Gavi_COO@egonzehnder.combefore October 18th, 2024.

Please note that as a vaccine organisation and in order to provide duty of care towards its employees, Gavi is requiring its new employees to confirm that they are fully vaccinated against Covid-19 as a condition for pursuing employment with us. You can find out more by visiting this link.              

Become part of our community and join us on Facebook and Twitter for updates about our mission to save children’s lives! You can also follow our hashtag #vaccineswork 
  
In support of Gavi’s commitment to diversity, equality and inclusion, we hire globally and welcome applications regardless of age, disability, ethnicity, national origin, family status, sex, gender identity or expression, physical characteristics, race, religion, spirituality or sexual orientation. Gavi has zero tolerance towards sexual harassment, sexual exploitation and abuse as well as any form of discrimination or harassment. Everyone at Gavi is expected to conduct themselves with integrity and respect towards each other. Gavi is committed to creating a work environment that is safe and professional, therefore all selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference checks. Read more here.

Gavi brings together the public and private sectors to save lives and protect people’s health by increasing equitable and sustainable use of vaccines against 18 infectious diseases. You will be joining an organisation at the centre of the international COVID-19 response, at the most critical time in global health in a lifetime. You will work in a culturally diverse environment with over 70 nationalities. You will collaborate with partners such as WHO, UNICEF, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the World Bank – and from business, civil society and government. And you will work in the first global health organisation to receive equal gender salary certification. Your unique experience, skills and talents can help us achieve our vision of leaving no one behind without the life-saving power of vaccines.  

This vacancy is now closed.