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The Union is a global membership, technical and scientific organisation. We were established in 1920 and are led by people who are committed to our vision, mission and values. Our members are organisations and individuals from all parts of the world. We are made up of government and non-government agencies, charities, donors and funders, professional groups, patient groups and civil society organisations. We bring together clinicians, managers, policy makers, front-line workers and implementers, scientists, patients and survivors, advocates and civil society.
The Union’s Vision
The Union’s Mission
The Union’s Values:
Quality
Transparency
Accountability
Respect
Independence
Job Summary
Work closely with the Chief Science Officer (CSO) to align with The Union’s mission and global and regional science strategy and ensure coherence between scientific direction and programme implementation.
The Head of Programme holds a pivotal role overseeing programme operations across TB and Lung Disease in India, receiving guidance, support and supervision from the CSO, Country Director and technical staff from The Union’s Global Office.
The mission of this position is to support the successful implementation of The Union’s TB and Lung Health portfolio, which presently encompass technical assistance, thought-leadership and community-based projects for active case finding initiatives within and outside India, and other Lung Disease Programmes. A key focus is placed on ensuring the quality and effectiveness of all TB and Lung Disease Programmes, ensuring alignment with national goals and The Union’s scientific strategies.
In India, the Union’s Head of Programme will assume responsibility for strategic and programmatic oversight, steering the development of innovative initiatives, coordinating essential activities, overseeing all monitoring and evaluation and representing the program at the national level. The role also ensures the effective and timely implementation of donor-funded projects, with a strong emphasis on quality, compliance, learning and cross-departmental coordination.
Based at the Country Office in India, the Head of Programme will regularly conduct visits to field sites.
Key Responsibilities
Strategic Leadership and Scientific Alignment
- Ensure all programme strategies and designs align with the scientific direction, quality standards, and technical priorities set by the CSO and Global Scientific Team
- Collaborate with the CSO and Country Director to identify programme development opportunities, strengthen scientific positioning, and co-develop strategy for India and the South-East Asia region
- Provide leadership in translating scientific evidence and emerging research into programme models, policy contributions, and implementation guidance
- Support the CSO with field intelligence to inform scientific agendas, innovation priorities, and evidence-to-policy pathways
Program Development
- Lead grant development and resource mobilization efforts in line with organizational strategy, ensuring alignment with scientific and programmatic priorities
- Provide direction to The Union’s contribution to India’s public-policy focused activities
- As part of the Senior Management Team, contribute to decision-making and management of country and regional programmes
- Ensure effective collaboration across all departments within the India Office
Programme Oversight and Management
- Apply risk, change, and resource management principles in collaboration with the leadership team
- Supervise and support project teams nationally and regionally, ensuring effective priority setting, delegation, development, and engagement
- Provide strategic and operational oversight to ensure timely, high-quality programme implementation and adaptive management
- Responsible for the development and implementation of a knowledge management and learning agenda that supports scientific integration and continuous improvement
Stakeholder and Donor Relationship Management
- Collaborate with all departments, both within the Union’s India branch office and with the global Union, in donors and partners relationship management
- Provide leadership, in engagement with key government stakeholders and relationship development with other critical stakeholders
- Serve as the primary programme-level liaison with donors, NTP, state governments, and technical agencies, ensuring accurate communication of programme progress and challenges
- Participate in The Union global learning forums, as well as other communities of practice to reinforce skills and knowledge on the job
- Support Country Director-India office to represent The Union at the meetings, workshops and ceremonies.
- Work closely with Global Scientific team in progressing the work of The Union.
- Ensure harmonized programme work plans across TB and Lung Disease portfolios, maintaining alignment with organizational strategies
Monitoring, Evaluation, Quality and Learning
- Oversee M&E systems, data governance, data quality, and timely reporting, ensuring data is fit for scientific, programmatic, and donor-use.
- To monitor, review and modify the way of implementations and programme activities to be in line with the programme’s goals and objectives and the organization’s missions as well as with the the National TB Programme (NTP)
- Monitor implementation, conduct field visits, troubleshoot challenges, and review progress and work quality.
- Liaise with program support to ensure HR, finance, administrative procedures, and policies are adhered to among program staff.
- Participate in periodic reviews to upgrade internal systems and take swift actions to resolve non-compliance issues, budget utilization issues or any potential financial risk or other risks
- Identify operational and strategic risks early and implement mitigation plans
- Oversee production of high-quality technical, scientific, and operational documentation, including reports, SOPs, policy briefs, and IEC materials, in collaboration with relevant teams.
- Work closely with the Grants team to ensure high-quality budget development, monitoring and reporting
- Ensure achievement of key performance indicators and support course-correction as needed
- Lead review meetings and ensure integration of action points into plans
Team Leadership and Organizational Culture
- Provide essential supervision, coaching and development to support team members
- Act as a positive example for internal collaboration and uphold The Union’s values
- Promote a high-trust, high-performance, and equitable team culture with strong emphasis on accountability and learning
- Conduct other duties as required by the CSO, Country Director or Global Office.
Eligibility Criteria
Education and Technical Expertise
- Master's degree in public health/ Health Economic/ Public Administration/ Health Social Science/ Epidemiology
- In-depth understanding TB epidemiology, prevention, care, and treatment frameworks;
- Knowledge of national TB strategies, guidelines, and service delivery systems;
- Experience working with Ministries of Health and public health programs
- Experience aligning programme operations with scientific/technical leadership (e.g., CSO, technical director).
Experience
- Proven capabilities in leadership, management and programme development at national and regional level.
- Strong negotiation and advocacy skills
- Experience with donor agencies (USAID, Global Fund, BMGF, WHO) and host-country governments
- Significant experience in sustainability, capacity building, project monitoring and evaluation
- Experience in resource-limited countries, mainly acquired in South-East Asia and the Pacific
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Leadership and Management competencies
- Strong business acumen, financial oversight and resource optimization
- Excellent leadership qualities managing a wide and diverse team.
- Ability to motivate, collaborate, and retain staff
- Capacity to manage high volume workloads in fast-paced environments
- Display of personal integrity, honesty and positive mindset
Values and Behavioral Competencies
- Fluency in written and spoken English; local language an advantage
- Identifies with The Union’s vision and mission and demonstrates its core values
- Commitment to neutrality and integrity in alignment with The Union’s Code of Conduct
- Willingness and ability to travel nationally and internationally
To apply
Please send your CV and a covering letter explaining how your skills and experience fit the position to: career@theunion.org. Interviews will be held remotely. Deadline for applications: 31 December 2025.
The Union is an equal opportunity employer. For more details about the organisation please refer to our website
