Director, Impact Intelligence at Save the Children

Director, Impact Intelligence at Save the Children – Save the Children Kenya Job Details

About the Role

Save the Children is recruiting a Director, Impact Intelligence to lead the organisation’s evidence, learning and accountability functions across all operations. This is a full-time senior leadership position based in Nairobi, reporting to senior management and responsible for shaping how the organisation uses data and research to improve programme outcomes and influence policy. The role sits at the intersection of monitoring, evaluation, research, ethics and economic analysis — bringing these functions together as a cohesive intelligence system rather than separate departments.

The Director will oversee a movement-wide evidence and learning strategy aligned with Save the Children’s global priorities and theory of change. You will establish governance structures that embed evidence as a core organisational function, ensure MEAL (Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning) frameworks are standardised and connected across country offices, and lead teams tasked with translating data into actionable insights for programme design, adaptation and advocacy work.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and implement a unified evidence and learning strategy that integrates Insights and Learning, MEAL, Research and Evaluation, Ethics and Evidence Generation, and Economic Evaluation into a coherent system aligned with organisational strategy.
• Establish clear governance, roles and accountability measures for senior leaders on evidence use, ensuring impact intelligence is resourced and treated as a strategic function rather than a compliance activity.
• Design and oversee the implementation of connected impact intelligence systems that reduce data duplication, improve data quality and surface timely insights for country offices, members and global teams.
• Ensure MEAL frameworks, standards, policies and tools are consistent across Save the Children entities and integrated with core systems such as global indicators and digital platforms to enable real-time learning.
• Lead the prioritisation of evidence efforts to focus the organisation on decisions that matter most, right-sizing monitoring and evaluation requirements to avoid unnecessary data collection burden.
• Build collaboration mechanisms between evidence units and across programme, operations, governance, funding and ethics functions to connect insights and eliminate silos.
• Oversee the Insights and Learning unit to translate data into timely, actionable recommendations for country offices and global leadership, with emphasis on synthesis and decision-readiness.
• Champion capacity strengthening in MEAL, research and cost-informed programming across country offices and locally-led partners, promoting learning behaviours such as reflection cycles and adaptation.
• Ensure high-quality monitoring, evaluation and accountability architectures are embedded in all country programmes, including appropriate staffing models and career pathways for MEAL professionals.
• Lead the Research and Evaluation unit to deliver a coherent portfolio of studies and evaluations that respond to priority learning questions and strategic evidence gaps.
• Oversee the Ethics and Evidence Generation unit to maintain robust ethical governance, data protection and safeguarding in all research and data collection activities.
• Lead the Economic Evaluation unit to integrate cost-effectiveness and value-for-money analysis into programme design, adaptation and scale-up decisions.

Requirements & Qualifications

• Master’s degree (MBA, MSc, MA) or PhD/Fellowship qualification in a relevant discipline such as evaluation, economics, public health, international development or research methodology.
• Minimum 10 years of professional experience in evidence, monitoring and evaluation, research, learning or related functions within international development, NGOs or similar sectors.
• Proven experience leading organisational strategy and change, managing multiple teams or units, and establishing systems and processes at scale across multiple country offices or geographic regions.
• Demonstrated expertise in MEAL frameworks, evaluation design, research ethics, data management and learning systems within development or humanitarian contexts.
• Strong understanding of monitoring and evaluation architecture, global indicator frameworks, evaluation methodologies and approaches to translating evidence into programmatic decisions.
• Experience establishing governance structures, managing cross-functional collaboration and embedding evidence use across organisational functions.
• Ability to communicate complex data and research findings to diverse audiences including programme staff, senior leadership, donors and external partners.
• Experience working in or with international NGOs, and familiarity with donor accountability requirements and global development agendas.

What to Expect

• You will lead a team spanning insights, MEAL architecture, research and evaluation, ethics and economic analysis, working across multiple country offices and global functions.
• The role requires travel to country offices and participation in cross-organisational forums, governance meetings and learning platforms.
• This Director, Impact Intelligence at Save the Children position in Nairobi is open to qualified candidates. Click Apply below to submit your application.