Senior Director, Learning and Impact

About Global Fund for Children
Global Fund for Children (GFC) works to build a world where all children and youth are safe, strong and valued. We partner with youth-led, community-based organizations and individual changemakers pairing flexible, trust-based funding with partner accompaniment support. Since 1997, we have invested more than $44 million in more than 700 organizations around the world.

GFC is entering a new strategic chapter, grounded in nearly three decades of learning alongside children, young people and community-based organizations, and in a clear understanding of what is needed next. Through a strategic building process, we have adopted a programmatic framework built on three shared goals for children and young people: to reduce adversity, amplify agency and deepen belonging. We are adopting an ecosystem lens, where youth-led, community-based organizations and individual changemakers remain at the core of our funding, and we will selectively support the movements, collectives, research and advocacy groups around them that shape children's and young people's lives. A life-course lens guides how we think about children and youth at different stages, and our work is organized around a small number of impact areas, including gender justice and climate justice.

Our values guide how we pursue this work and how we work with one another. We act with courage, and we pursue excellence by being thougthful, responsible and accountable. We value learning, including listening to partners and young people, reflecting on what is not working, and changing course where needed. We understand partnership as a relationship grounded in trust, respect and shared power. Kindness and passion are how we put these values in to practice by bringing care to our relationships and convinction to the work, while remaining open to learning from others.

We are committed to diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility. We recognize that racism and other forms of discrimination shape whose voices are heard, whose leadership is supported and whose communities have access to resources. We strive to identify and address these inequities, including within our own decisions and practices. This calls for ongoing reflection, listening, accountability and action. We aim to create a culture where people are treated with dignity, different perspectives are welcomed, and everyone can contribute and belong.

Position Summary
The Senior Director of Learning and Impact leads Global Fund for Children's learning function and is accountable for turning what we learn from our partners through our programmatic framework into better strategy, stronger practices and a clear account of our impact.

This is a pivotal moment to join GFC. Our new framework launches as a first version in early 2027, and we are treating its first three years as a learning phase. Because we invest broadly in groups and individuals rather than specific projects, the task is to show GFC's credible contribution to change, not to claim attribution, and to question conventional evaluation norms where they don't serve partners or young people. We are looking for a leader who finds that challenge energizing.

This leader builds and maintains GFC's learning infrastructure, stewards our Learning Agenda and Outcomes Framework and its impact area frameworks, leads the building of a learning culture across the organization, and guides and helps the Programs team capture data and stories in ways that are useful to GFC and its partners. They will also synthesizes learning across programs to share stories of impact with leadership, the Board, donors and the wider philanthropic sector.

Organizational Expectations
As a senior leader and people manager, this role is expected to model GFC’s values and DEIA commitments, support staff voice and development, and contribute to cross-organizational priorities through close partnership with colleagues. They will work across Programs, Development, Communications and Operations, bringing a trust-based, equity-centered approach to measurement that reduces burden on partners. It holds the tension between a desire for evidence and our commitment to trust-based practice, and helps GFC navigate it openly.

Given the global nature of our team, and the cross-team collaborative function of this role, expectations are to accommodate 2 to 3 meetings per month for either all-staff, senior directors, program team meetings, as well as managing a team that is based in the US Pacific Coast and oversee the work of interim consultants based in Ghana and Mozambique.

Senior Leadership and People Management

• Model GFC’s values and DEIA commitments in leadership, decision-making and collaboration.

• Build an inclusive team culture where staff have clear priorities, regular feedback and meaningful opportunities to contribute and develop.

• Set direction and expectations for the Learning and Evaluation team, support staff performance and growth, and address challenges promptly.

• Contribute the team’s perspective to relevant organizational priorities and leadership discussions, and work across teams to support shared goals.

Learning Infrastructure and Strategy

• Lead the hands-on design, implementation and maintenance of GFC's learning infrastructure: the systems, rhythms, tools and roles that make learning routine rather than occasional.

• Set the learning vision and annual priorities, aligned to GFC's strategy, programmatic framework and learning outcomes.

• Lead and manage the Learning and Evaluation team, and evolve its structure so that it aligns with the new framework; work with staff, consultants and external evaluators, and manage its budget.

Learning Agenda and Outcomes Framework

• Oversee, steward and periodically refine the Learning Agenda and Outcomes Framework, keeping it a living tool that guides decisions and programmatic work.

• In collaboration, translate the framework into practical outcome indicators, learning questions and reflection routines that Programs teams can use.

• Ensure the framework reflects partner and youth perspectives and is shaped with them.

• Lead the development and use of theories of change at the organization, strategy and impact area levels, working with Programs staff and partners to surface assumptions, pathways and evidence.

• Steward learning and outcomes frameworks for GFC's impact areas, such as gender justice and climate justice, and keep each one connected to the overall programmatic framework, GFC’s overarching lens of adversity, agency and belonging, a life-course lens and our ecosystem approach.

• Develop credible ways to show GFC's contribution to change, rather than attribution, across children and young people, partner organizations and the wider ecosystem.

• Guide the first three years of the new impact areas as a learning phase, helping GFC test what is working and refine the areas, lens and ecosystem approach based on evidence.

• Work with the Programs and Development teams to provide learning and impact input into proposal designs for new initiatives, ensuring their alignment with our learning and outcomes framework.

Research

• Guide or commission periodic research on issues affecting children and youth, in collaboration with partners and young people as relevant.

• Get into the details when needed, analyzing quantitative and qualitative data to draw lessons from partner data, learning reviews and research.

Learning Practices Across Programs

• Introduce and embed new practices for learning, such as reflection and evaluation exercises, learning conversations, strategy refreshes and emergent and participatory approaches.

• Coach and equip program team members to capture learning in the flow of their work, without adding burden on partners.

• Apply trust-based practices and principles, so partners shape what is measured and how it is shared.

Learning Culture

• Play a key role in building a learning culture across the whole organization, modeling curiosity, openness about what is not working, and the use of evidence in decisions.

• Create regular spaces for reflection and sense-making that bring together multiple teams including Programs, Development, Communications, Operations and leadership.

• Develop annual learning and reflection processes to assess organizationally our progress with our strategic direction.

• Recognize and cultivate learning behaviors, and track how the culture is changing over time.

• Build trusting working relationships across teams so planning, learning, adaptation and impact sharing happen together.

Data and Stories

• Lead how GFC captures quantitative data and qualitative stories across the portfolio, including data governance, quality and ethical use.

• Oversee and co-develop systems for data and knowledge management, using AI tools responsibly, working with Operations and Programs on tools such as the outcomes management system on Salesforce

• Collaborate with the safeguarding and communications teams, in line with GFC's safeguarding policy, to protect the dignity, consent and safety of children, youth and communities in all data and storytelling.

Synthesis and Impact Communication

• Synthesize information across programs, regions and partners into insights for senior leadership, the Board and program strategy.

• Produce impact reports and stories with Communications and Development, for donors, partners and the field.

• Share GFC's learning externally through peer networks, convenings and publications, and contribute to field conversations on power-aware, trust-based learning and evaluation.

Required

o Ability to model GFC’s values and DEIA commitments in people management and cross-functional work, including supporting staff voice and development, equitable participation, and shared accountability.

o Nine or more years of progressive experience leading learning, evaluation, research or impact functions, ideally in philanthropy, an international nonprofit or a social justice organization, with at least five years of experience managing people.

o Track record designing and implementing a learning agenda and/or outcomes framework and getting program teams to use it.

o Strong grounding in participatory, equitable and trust-based approaches to evaluation and learning, and an eagerness to challenge rather than replicate disempowering norms in evaluation, for example through feminist or decolonial approaches.

o Skill in mixed methods, including qualitative storytelling and quantitative analysis, and in synthesizing across a diverse portfolio.

o Exceptional facilitation, written and verbal communication skills, including for Board and donor audiences.

o Demonstrated commitment to equity and positive impacts on children and youth’s lives, and to ethical data and storytelling practices.

o Demonstrated expertise in developing theories of change and learning and outcomes frameworks.

o Experience training and coaching program staff to take part in learning and data practices, and building a learning culture across an organization.

Preferred

o Experience working with grassroots, community-based organizations, youth-led organizations and/or individual changemakers across regions, and in more than one language.

o Familiarity with child and youth development, rights-based, ecosystem or life-course approaches.

o Experience with change management, strategy development or organizational transitions.

o Advanced degree in a relevant field, or equivalent experience.

o Experience building or restructuring a learning, evaluation or impact team.

o Experience with data systems and knowledge management and AI tools, including grants data management or CRM platforms.

o Knowledge of Salesforce, including configuring or using it for grants, data and learning work.

o Fluency in a second language, such as Spanish or French.

o Deep knowledge of gender justice and/or climate justice, including the issues, field actors and approaches to measuring change.

We welcome applicants whose skills were gained through lived experience, community work or non-traditional paths.

Reporting and Working Relationships
The Senior Director, Learning and Impact will report to the Deputy Vice President of Programs.

The role will include supervision of team members which include a Research and Learning Manager, based on US Pacific Coast, and a Senior Learning and Evaluation Officer, based on US Pacific Coast. Additionally, the role will oversees the work of two interim Learning and Evaluation consultants (based in Mozambique and Ghana).

What can we offer you?

Our team dreams big.

We work together to build a world where all children and youth are safe, strong and valued.

GFC fosters a caring work environment that promotes collaboration, respect, and professional development. We set standards of excellence and quality in our work, firmly believing that children and youth deserve the best we can offer.

We believe that every person has equal rights, and we affirm the diversity that enriches our globalized world. In line with these core values, it is our policy to actively seek diverse candidates from a variety of backgrounds who are committed to Global Fund for Children’s mission.

Our values shape our vision, guide our daily decision making, and signal to the world what to expect when you encounter Global Fund for Children. We hold ourselves to these values to best serve our local partners and the children and youth they support. We attract talented people from all over the world because we believe deeply in living our values.

Salary Range – This is a full-time, exempt role. For US-based candidates, the salary range is $105,000 to $140,000 dependent on level of experience. International hires will be locally benchmarked dependent on location, available benefits, and experience. Candidates outside the US and UK can be contracted through an Employer of Record, with benefits in line with local law.

Learning – GFC encourages professional development as a part of our culture and values. GFC provides regular opportunities for training, collaboration, and mentorship. Employees may access professional development funds to support continued learning.

Benefits - We strive to build a culture that embraces care and wellbeing. Our global employee benefits include:

• Private healthcare insurance plan with comprehensive medical, dental and vision coverage

• Generous paid time off (annual leave, enhanced sickness leave, wellbeing days, sabbatical leave, family friendly leave)

• Flexible work arrangements - remote/hybrid/compressed work schedules

• Pension contributions

• Employee Assistance Services

• Team Building and Social Committees

*Other benefits may apply, depending on the location of the employee

How to apply

Instead of a cover letter, please upload your resume or CV and briefly answer the three questions below. You may use tools to edit your writing, but please don't use them to generate your answers.

1. Learning from a new framework: Describe a time you helped an organization test and refine a new strategy or framework in its early phase. What did you want to learn, and how did you gather evidence without burdening partners? How did you make a credible case for the organization’s contribution to change while being honest about the limits of the evidence?

2. Power-aware learning: Describe a learning or evaluation process you built that put trust-based, feminist, decolonial or other community-led principles into practice. Who shaped what was measured and how it was shared? What did you change from conventional approaches, and what trade-offs did you face?

3. Building a learning culture: Describe how you built routines for reflection and sense-making across teams such as Programs, Development, Communications and leadership, especially with teams that didn’t report to you. How did you know they were taking hold, and what did you do when they weren’t?

To apply, visit https://global-fund-for-children.breezy.hr/p/f3a1a48e0b98-senior-director-learning-and-impact and click "Apply to Position." If you need help with the application form, contact [email protected]. Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis until the role is filled, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

The deadline for applications is Friday, December 4, 2026 at 5pm US Eastern Time.

GFC is committed to safeguarding children and young people, and the successful candidate will be expected to follow our safeguarding policy and complete a background check. GFC is an equal-opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all team members.