Company Overview :

Palladium is a global leader in the design, development and delivery of Positive Impact – the intentional creation of enduring social and economic value. We work with foundations, investors, governments, corporations, communities and civil society to formulate strategies and implement solutions that generate lasting social, environmental and financial benefits.

For the past 50 years, we have been making Positive Impact possible. With a team of more than 2,500 employees operating in 90 plus countries and a global network of more than 35,000 technical experts, Palladium has improved – and is committed to continuing to improve – economies, societies and most importantly, people’s lives.

Palladium is a child-safe organisation, and screens applicants for suitability to work with children. We also provide equal employment to all participants and employees without regard to race, color, religion, gender, age, disability, sexual orientation, veteran or marital status.

Project Overview and Role :

The Senior Quality Improvement Advisor is a full-time position for an upcoming award in Burkina Faso and Niger to strengthen and improve the quality of health, family planning and nutrition services provided by local clinics and referral centers. It will also strengthen government systems of support and oversight for village health workers, community engagement in health service delivery accountability, and assist in developing linkages among health services and with other development sectors. The mechanism will provide a means of involvement and collaborative ideation by a wide spectrum of participants from family planning, maternal child health, nutrition, communities, and the health sector.
Palladium is seeking a Senior Quality Improvement (QI) Advisor who will provide leadership, direction, and content to QI policy development and implementation in for the project. Responsibilities require knowledge and experience in QI as well as of state-of-the-art innovations in the domain area.

The QI Advisor has overall technical responsibility for the project quality improvement and quality assurance portfolio. Primary responsibility will be to assist country teams to develop technical strategies, approaches and plans, implement activities and monitor progress towards outlined project milestone/deliverables/ approved workplans. The Advisor will also develop technical documents, provide technical oversight to team, manage the technical aspects of outsourcing any technical services, review and finalize technical products (studies, reports, briefers, slide decks) and provide overall capacity building support and mentoring to the country teams.

This position will be based in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso and is contingent upon award to Palladium.

Reports to : Technical Director
Duration : 5 years
Location : Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso

The upcoming award will be a 5-year USAID-funded activity is designed to improve access to quality health care through traditional and non-traditional approaches to health programming and build the resilience of the populations in Burkina Faso and Niger. The Activity will focus on addressing critical gaps in the continuum of healthcare that result in reduced access to needed MCH/FP and nutrition services, with emphasis on addressing the immediate and proximate barriers to delivering services. The integrated nature of the RISE II platform presents strategic opportunities to integrate maternal child health/ family planning (MCH/FP) and nutrition services through « smart » integration – strategic and cost-effective approaches that maximize opportunities for impact.

Responsibilities :

• Participates in the design and implementation of technical support activities related to QI policy development and implementation in project areas in Burkina Faso and Niger ;
• Stays abreast of key developments in QI innovations and interventions in project areas to inform technical activities under the RISE II Health Services Delivery Activity. This includes frequent interaction with the health sector stakeholders (public, NGO, and private) as well as multilateral partners and donor agencies ;
• Prepares QI analyses, recommendations, briefing notes, and assessments for internal and client use ;
• Provides assistance to others on matters related to topic area of research and evaluation and applies relevant methodologies to programmatic issues of importance ;
• Supervises short-term local consultants in assigned to QI activities ;
• Represents the project, company, and programs in the QI area in Burkina Faso and Niger, as well as with others in the professional community ;
• Interacts with internal and external resources and other experts to bring new and « cutting edge » ideas into approaches ;
• Conducts all work to accepted standards of research ethics ;
• Performs other related duties and responsibilities as assigned.

Requirements :

• MPH, MBA or MA in public health, international development, international relations, public policy, or related field ;
• At least 10 years of experience in international health and development, with at least 5 years of providing or managing technical assistance within large complex health projects ;
• Experience working with USAID-supported projects in Africa is preferred. Familiarity or experience with Burkina Faso and/or Niger health system is a plus ;
• Must have sound knowledge of methodologies and best practices in quality improvement, supportive supervision and mentoring approaches ;
• Considerable experience in health systems strengthening, universal healthcare, private sector engagement is highly desirable ;
• Appropriate computer skills necessary to conduct research, and to conduct analysis of study data ;
• Strong analytical and computer skills (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, web-based research) – this includes data analytics ;
• Ability to multi-task and keep track of concurrent activities and deadlines ;
• Strong written and oral communication skills for high-level policy audiences ;:
• Must be willing to live and travel within Burkina Faso and Niger ;
• Fluency in English preferred.