Deadline: Ongoing

Location: Abuja, Nigeria

International Rescue Committee (IRC) is seeking applications from eligible applicants for the post of Director of Design and Innovation.

The IRC is a global humanitarian aid, relief, and development non-governmental organisation. It responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises and helps people to survive and rebuild their lives.

Responsibilities

• Develop bold, early-stage innovation strategies for IRC’s four global research and innovation priorities in collaboration with priority leads
• Collaborate with priority leads to develop and source ideas, and design and evaluate solutions with high potential for impact
• Oversee reviews of the innovation landscape and scope and evaluate potential partnerships with innovation partners, hubs, startups and entrepreneurs
• Identify Airbel’s unique role and value proposition in the digital development space
• Create a digital strategy and establish internal and external partnerships to support the organisation’s strategic and tactical needs
• Oversee a talented and ambitious design team to design high impact, scalable products, services and delivery mechanisms
• Conduct workforce planning for designers with priority leads
• Scout and hire designers and consultants to build teams for Airbel projects
• Support high quality, ambitious and impactful work across ongoing innovation projects
• Ensure quality standards for early-stage innovation work across Airbel projects and portfolios and support staff in meeting them and delivering high return on investment
• Build support systems, resources and partnerships to execute and replicate high-quality innovation processes
• Build internal and external relationships and structures to support innovation processes that are locally led and partnership-driven
• Identify and improve organisational systems to increase innovation in partnership with other departments
• Collaborate with country and regional leadership to ensure strategic alignment, support innovation teams and internal capacity-building while connecting teams to local expertise
• Build design and innovation capacity within Airbel, country teams and local innovators
• Support the business development team and priority leads on high value opportunities that align with IRC’s capabilities and strategy
• Work with the innovative finance lead to identify sustainable pathways to scale solutions through a blend of grants and social impact investment

Requirement

• Ten years of experience leading innovation or R&D teams in complex organisations or systems (government, nonprofit, large company)
• Experience working collaboratively in human-centered design techniques in a wide range of product and service design projects and contexts
• Deep understanding of at least two design disciplines (e.g., product design, UX,)
• Extensive experience building and managing relationships with external partners
• Outstanding manager, mentor, and coach to people of all backgrounds and creating an inclusive culture
• Builder of a creative culture that thrives across borders and screens within a large organisation and works in synchronous and asynchronous ways
• Strong track record of scaled digital and analog innovations in low- and middle-income countries
• Experience managing multiple multi-disciplinary projects with multi-disciplinary collaborators in an inclusive way
• Ability to influence across a wide range of diverse stakeholders, utilising excellent visual storytelling and synthesis skills, including public speaking and writing
• Ability to bring people along with a stated vision and strategy
• Strong professional network and recognised expertise

To apply and for more information, click here.

Photo source: Dave McGowan