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Director of Programs

Salary: Based on candidate needs and industry standard
Contract: Initial contract of 6 months, contract extension contingent on performance
Location: India, preferably based in Jaipur or Delhi
Application: Please apply here by the 4th of February 

Travel: 10-20% to the pilot districts 

About Ansh

Ansh, a Charity Entrepreneurship incubated charity, is dedicated to saving newborn lives by building healthcare capacity in government district hospitals in India. Our mission is to create a scalable and cost-effective model that implements Kangaroo care and other impact focused newborn care practices such as breastfeeding counselling, monitoring of danger signs, IPC (Infection Prevention and Control) measures, counselling in best newborn care practices and closely working with the hospital on making these services long-term and sustainable.
 

Our main intervention is Kangaroo Care, a highly cost-effective and scientifically proven intervention for saving newborn lives. Kangaroo Care has three components:

  1. Skin-to-Skin Contact: Skin-to-skin contact with the mother regulates the infant’s body temperature, reducing hypothermia

  2. Close Monitoring: Monitoring mothers and newborns for danger signs

  3. Exclusive Breastfeeding: Exclusive breastfeeding provides benefits to the infant's immune system and help in weight gain
     

Currently, we have 24 on-ground full-time staff delivering our programs in two hospitals—Pali District Hospital and Baran District Hospital of Rajasthan—with the aim to replicate and adapt this model for broader implementation in public health systems.
 

We run two KMC programs in both of our hospitals:

  1. KMC in Post Natal Care (PNC) Ward Program for Stable Low Birth Weight and Preterm Newborns

  2. Early Initiation of KMC in Special Newborn Care Unit (SNCU) Program for Unstable Low Birth Weight and Preterm Newborns
     

Main model components are:

  • Repurpose some space in the health facilities and create dedicated space for Kangaroo Care

  • Recruit health workers to act as dedicated Kangaroo Care counsellors for mothers

  • Provide training to clinicians and nurses on supporting and managing kangaroo care and other components of the program

  • Follow up with mothers after discharge to ensure continued behavioural change and monitor the newborn for any danger signs
     

Please go here to know more about our values, advisors, and partners.

Position Overview 

The Director of Programs will play a pivotal role in building Ansh's pilot programs in Rajasthan from the ground up. Working closely with the Executive Director, the Director of Programs will take control of the existing programs and contribute to program iterations, program implementation and data analysis.

 

They'll liaison with our Program Coordinators (and, indirectly, our team of nurses) to contribute to program iterations and problem solving. They will also work closely with our Monitoring & Evaluation coordinators to deliver program improvements across multiple dimensions.

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We therefore require someone strong at both high-level and detail-oriented planning, who is highly organised and proactive, has excellent communication skills in Hindi and English and has a strong understanding of the basic principles of evidence-based programming.

Key Responsibilities

  • Quality Assurance: Establish and maintain quality assurance processes to ensure program activities meet established standards.

  • Ensure a rigorous and evidence-driven approach to identify and prioritise program improvement opportunities, utilising information from a range of sources including program coordinators, M&E coordinators, latest research on KMC and behavior change, best newborn care practices etc.

  • Data Analysis: Help with analysing data and assessing the effectiveness and impact of programs.

  • Team Leadership and Management: Provide guidance, support, and mentorship to program staff to ensure effective program delivery.

  • Compliance and Risk Management: Ensure programs comply with relevant laws, regulations, and ethical standards and identify and mitigate potential risks associated with program implementation.

Who Should Apply?

If you are a self-motivated systems thinker who enjoys working across a wide range of focus areas, and strongly values the importance of data-driven decision-making for impact, please consider applying.
 

Requirements

  • A Bachelor’s degree (Master’s degree or equivalent experience preferred) in an evidence-centred, quantitative field such as public policy, economics, statistics, engineering, medical sciences or similar.

  • You are a highly analytical systems thinker, able to plan excellently with a natural ability to breakdown a large project into manageable tasks. You have a tendency to identify critical tasks before they become a bottleneck.

  • You have excellent oral and written Hindi and English skills, and are adept at getting information across in simple language to different stakeholders.

  • You are a conscientious self-starter who is highly organised and able to set up your own routine, without requiring lots of supervision and oversight.

  • You are excellent at leading the work of a team. You are personable and a team player. You communicate clear context and purpose which connects individuals’ work to the organisational strategy. You ensure that colleagues have the right combination of autonomy and guidance. You help colleagues solve tricky problems whilst also nurturing their problem-solving skills.

  • You are agile, able to work flexibly and enjoy working in a startup environment where the needs are likely to change week to week.

  • You are passionate about contributing to Ansh’s mission and impact; and driven to save newborn lives.
     

Bonus qualities

These qualities are not a requirement for the role and the best candidate may have none of them, but they are nice to have:

  • Experience with running public health / behavioural economics programs in collaboration with government bodies

  • Have a strong quantitative background

  • Public Health Scientist or a Medical Doctor

  • Skills/experience in delivering quantitative/qualitative research methods (e.g. previous experience working on a randomised controlled trial or on focus groups)

  • Proficiency in STATA / R / Python or other programs for data analysis.

  • Previous experience in implementing KMC or best newborn care practices

Benefits

  • Work in a mission-driven, impact-focused organisation with strong values

  • A high-leverage role in a young organisation. Our programs in Rajasthan are poised to be scaled up to multiple districts, so there are plenty of opportunities for personal impact

  • A flexible work schedule

  • 30 days of paid holiday leave per year

  • Work closely with our beneficiaries on the ground and be able to witness your impact

Hiring Process

We will be reviewing applications on a rolling basis and progressing candidates to the next stage. The final cut-off dates for each stage beyond which we won't assess any candidates for that stage are below:

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Application Deadline: 4th February

Screening Call: 5th February - 10th February

Test Task Deadline: 17th February

Interviews: 17th February - 24th February

Expected start date: as soon as possible

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