Deputy Director, Strategy, Planning

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; Johannesburg; On-site; ZAR 500 000 - 600 000; Full time

Job summary

A prominent global health organization is seeking a Deputy Director for Strategy, Planning & Management to oversee HIV and TB delivery efforts. The ideal candidate will lead strategic planning, financial management, and team development within an integrated Africa Business Team. Responsibilities include enhancing regional and global collaborations to eradicate infectious diseases. This role requires an MBA or equivalent and over 15 years of relevant experience, ensuring high-level engagement with senior leaders and stakeholders.

Qualifications

• 15+ years in business strategy, public health, or management.
• Proficiency in financial matters and strategic decision-making.
• Experience with pharmaceutical product development and global health.

Responsibilities

• Lead strategic planning and decision-making for HIV/TB delivery.
• Oversee management of TB/HIV team and financial processes.
• Collaborate globally to enhance strategies and implementation.

Skills

Strategic thinking

Leadership

Financial acumen

Analytical skills

Collaboration

Education

MBA or equivalent experience

Job description

Job title : Deputy Director, Strategy, Planning & Management - HIV / TB Delivery

Job Location : Gauteng, Johannesburg

Deadline : November 17,

This is an exciting DDSPM role that is uniquely scoped to balance program-specific leadership, regional integration, and cross-geography collaboration to maximize the Foundation's impact on eradicating infectious diseases :

Program Strategy Team (PST) : The DDSPM will specifically focus on HIV and TB delivery within the PST, engaging closely with colleagues to ensure seamless integration of delivery and R&D strategies.

The role anchors the team's planning, execution, and investment decisions, and supports delivery priorities with strong strategic and operational leadership.

The DDSPM provides the link between the Delivery team's technical expertise, strategy and business operations.

Responsibilities include leading the strategic, financial, operational, and human resource aspects of the TB & HIV Delivery team; providing senior business, investment, and management expertise to portfolio, domain, and investment-level decision-making; and overseeing annual strategy reviews, annual planning, reporting processes, and investment pipeline management.

The DDSPM also leads a team of business and operations professionals.

Africa Business Team : As part of the Integrated Africa Business Team, this role will anchor the Foundation's second priority i.e., eradicating the deadliest and most persistent infectious diseases ensuring delivery efforts in Africa are central to this global commitment.

Global Collaboration : The DDSPM will actively collaborate with colleagues in Seattle, India, and China, and other regions where HIV and TB strategies are underway.

This includes aligning planning, reporting, and execution across geographies, harmonizing strategies, and fostering a "one team" culture that enables shared learning and coordinated global action.

The DDSPM will have dual reporting to the Director, TB & HIV Delivery and the Africa Director.

What You'll Do: Strategy development, refinement and management

Direct planning process, establish annual priorities with DDSPM for TB&HIV R&D, ensure alignment with Africa Business Team and global counterparts.

Serve as a strategic partner and thought partner with the Director and program staff to provide ongoing strategy development, process monitoring, and evaluation of function and core processes.

Drive alignment of team's work to strategy and implementation plans.

Design analytical model to define strategy metrics, progress metrics and setting targets and goals.

Continuously refine data, metrics, and models.

Lead or co-lead complex strategic projects that are often cross-functional in nature.

Cultivate insights and story to communicate portfolio allocation, progress, and Africa's contribution to the Foundation's second priority of eradicating infectious diseases.

Team development and people management

Partner with support functions (including Human Resources) and program / functional team management to lead, recruit, develop and train staff who support the activities needed to plan, execute, and achieve the strategic plan.

Responsible for overall Rhythm of the Business and meeting structure across the team.

Promote culture, values, and team effectiveness, including regular team health checks.

May design organization structure, facilitate retreats and cross-organization collaboration.

Monitor succession planning, team performance and development.

Support the Director with workforce planning

Play an active role in shaping and strengthening the Integrated Africa Business Team, anchoring TB / HIV delivery within broader regional infectious disease eradication priorities, and facilitating learning across multiple disease areas.

Portfolio and financial management and advising on investments

Partner with DDSPM R&D, Finance to develop PST budgets and forecasts and maintain PST's grant and contracts pipeline.

Core team member and critical advisor in making data-driven investment decisions (provide complementary strategic and investment acumen to the scientific / technical expertise of the Program Officers).

Develop and execute portfolio and advisory support to program team(s) on development and management of major grants; including identifying success metrics for strategy, portfolio, and individual grants and developing processes / tools to ensure alignment of activities with strategy success.

Ensure portfolio decisions and investment pipelines reflect both PST HIV / TB priorities and regional Africa Business Team perspectives, while integrating learning from global programs Serving as a trusted advisor to the Directors:

Serving as a trusted advisor to the Directors

Act as "sounding board" and thought partner to the Director on broad set of topics impacting the overall management of the Programs and Functions (e.g., team effectiveness, management issues, addressing broader Foundation requests, relationships with other Functions / Programs, alignment with leadership, etc.)

Provide insight on how PST HIV / TB delivery priorities connect with Africa Business Team strategies and global collaboration efforts.

Cross-foundation / cross-division improvement initiatives

Lead development and execution of PST's Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Action Plan in alignment with division and foundation-wide DEI priorities.

Contribute to continuous improvement efforts as part of cross-foundation and cross-GH DDSPM community of practice.

Contribute to cross-foundation initiatives with a focus on embedding infectious disease eradication as part of the Africa Business Team.

Collaborate with global colleagues to identify and spread standard methodologies across regions, ensuring coordinated global action.

Support implementation of new processes

Support continuous improvement and change management initiatives including contribution to the design of processes, policies, and organization to improve efficiency and impact of team's activities.

Your Experience

MBA or equivalent experience, 15+ years in business strategy, development, public health, life sciences, or general management

Demonstrating proficiency in technical and financial matters; effectively conveying data and results to enable informed strategic and tactical decision-making.

Experience developing, evaluating, managing, and monitoring business plans, budgets and financial reports

Deep knowledge of strategy development and implementation and the design of performance management system(s) of goals, targets and monitoring processes

Experience with pharmaceutical product development and introduction, and understanding key issues in health program delivery, such as planning, implementation and monitoring of outcomes.

Experience in global health is a plus.

Proven strength in structured problem solving and strategic business planning, with the ability to easily identify and communicate frameworks to analyze issues and synthesize disparate information.

Intellectual quickness, curiosity, discipline, resourcefulness and resilience

Demonstrated ability to lead people and teams to optimally achieve clear, yet complex goals and objectives

Vast experience collaborating effectively with senior decision makers and a diverse range of partners with different styles and cultures

Other Attributes

Extensive experience in working effectively with senior decision makers and (matrix) stakeholders with wide variety of styles and cultures

Ability to communicate clearly and concisely

Ability to travel up to 30% domestically and internationally.

Must be able to legally work in the country where this position is located without visa sponsorship.

South Africa based