Global lead, Gender Transformative Program

ABOUT ORBIS

Orbis is an international nonprofit delivering sight-saving programs in over 200 countries and territories worldwide so that individuals, families, and communities can thrive. Currently, around 1 billion people across the globe live with completely avoidable blindness and vision loss. For over four decades, Orbis has been tackling this challenge by building strong and sustainable eye care systems that leave a lasting legacy of vision. Orbis runs dedicated country programs in Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, and Latin America; develops and implements innovative training and technology, including an award-winning telemedicine and e-learning platform, Cybersight; and operates the world’s first and only Flying Eye Hospital, a fully accredited ophthalmic teaching hospital on board an MD-10 aircraft.

JOB SUMMARY
The  Global Lead, Gender Transformative Program provides global technical leadership[AW1] , strategic direction, and quality assurance for Orbis International’s gender-responsive and gender-transformative programming across all countries and project portfolios. This senior role is responsible for driving, and updating Orbis’s Global Gender Transformative Programming Strategy and ensuring that gender equality and social inclusion (GESI) are systematically integrated into program design, implementation, MEL, partnerships, and fundraising across the entire organization.

A key component of the role includes providing global leadership to Orbis’s flagship Women Leaders in Eye Health (WLEH) initiative; [AW2] however, this sits within a broader mandate to advance gender equality, women’s leadership, and social inclusion across all Orbis programs. The Global Lead serves as Orbis’s principal global technical expert, working closely with country teams, regional and global leadership, and external partners to strengthen the quality, effectiveness, and impact of gender-transformative approaches in eye health.

The Lead is expected to champion and model equity, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility while advancing Orbis’s mission, values, and strategic priorities.

REPORTING & WORKING RELATIONSHIPS
Reports to the Director, Global Programs and collaborates closely with country teams, global technical units, and cross-functional departments to provide organization-wide gender-transformative leadership[AW3] [ES4] .

ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS / KEY AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITY

1. Global Strategy & Technical Leadership

• Lead the implementation, and continuous refinement of Orbis’s Global Gender Transformative Programming Strategy.
• Establish global standards, tools, frameworks, and evidence-based guidance for integrating gender equality and social inclusion across all Orbis programs and country portfolios.
• Serve as the primary subject matter expert on gender equality in eye health, advising senior leadership, program teams, MEL staff, and fundraising units.
• Translate global trends, evidence, and emerging best practices into organization-wide guidance, learning tools, and program enhancements.
• Ensure WLEH aligns with, contributes to, and benefits from Orbis’s broader gender-transformative agenda.

2. Technical Advisory Support to Country Programs

• Provide direct advisory support to country offices to strengthen gender analyses, program design, implementation quality, MEL integration, and partnership engagement.
• Support country teams to adapt global gender-transformative standards to their specific context while maintaining quality and consistency.
• Build capacity of Orbis staff, partners, and government counterparts through tailored training, mentorship, and coaching on gender equality in eye health.
• Lead or support equity assessments, gender analyses, and design of gender-transformative interventions across country portfolios.

3. Program Quality, Evidence & MEL Integration

• Collaborate with the MEL team to ensure gender and equity considerations are embedded across MEL frameworks, indicators, dashboards, evaluations, and learning agendas.
• Promote systematic use of sex-, age-, and other equity-disaggregated data for analysis and decision-making.
• Support synthesis and dissemination of evidence, learning, and insights from Orbis’s gender-transformative programming.
• Lead the development of global knowledge products such as guidance notes, case studies, toolkits, and learning briefs.

4. Leadership of WLEH 

• Provide strategic vision, technical guidance, and oversight for the Women Leaders in Eye Health (WLEH) initiative.
• Coordinate the WLEH Advisory Group, Technical Group, and Gender Champions, ensuring meaningful cross-country exchange and leadership development.
• Ensure high-quality implementation, monitoring, communication, and global positioning of the WLEH initiative.
• Strengthen pathways for women’s leadership and representation in global eye health systems.

5. Partnerships, Representation & Thought Leadership

• Cultivate strategic partnerships with gender equality organizations, global health networks, academic institutions, and donors.
• Represent Orbis in global platforms, conferences, working groups, and panels on gender equality and eye health.
• Position Orbis as a global leader in gender-transformative eye health programming through publications, thought leadership, media engagements, and high-level advocacy.
• Lead strategic communications and storytelling that highlight Orbis’s gender-transformative work, including Op-Eds, blogs, peer-reviewed publications, and digital content.

6. Resource Mobilization & Donor Engagement[AW5] 

• Provide technical input into donor concept notes, proposals, budgets, reporting, and strategic positioning documents to ensure a gender transformative approach is incorporated from the outset of program design.
• Identify and cultivate opportunities for funding expansion related to gender-transformative programming.
• Strengthen donor confidence and organizational visibility through compelling evidence, narratives, and results.

SKILLS & ABILITIES

• Deep expertise in gender equality, gender-transformative programming, and social inclusion.
• Strong strategic thinking, vision setting, and systems thinking abilities.
• Outstanding communication and writing skills.
• Ability to influence and collaborate with senior leaders and diverse global teams.
• High cultural competence, diplomacy, and emotional intelligence.
• Strong project management and prioritization skills.
• Ability to work independently in a remote environment.
• Willingness to travel internationally.

QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE

• Masters degree [AW6] in gender studies, public health, international development, social sciences, or related discipline.
• Minimum 10 years of senior technical experience in gender equality, gender-transformative programming, and/or social inclusion in international development.
• Demonstrated experience developing global strategies, frameworks, and tools for gender integration.
• Experience advising multi-country programs and virtual, multicultural teams.
• Strong track record in gender capacity building, training, and mentorship.
• Experience integrating gender across MEL systems, evaluations, and research.
• Extensive network in gender equality, global health, and/or development communities.
• Demonstrated thought leadership through publications, panels, or contributions to the sector.
• Experience collaborating with bilateral/multilateral donors and preparing high-quality proposals.

How To Apply

Apply though this link https://workforcenow.adp.com/mascsr/default/mdf/recruitment/recruitment.html?cid=bbc6438a-eec3-4707-a46e-7d9f09b481aa&ccId=19000101_000001&jobId=532106&source=CC2&lang=en_US