Head, Transformation Project in London

The Transformation Development team drives Save the Children’s organisational change agenda by delivering high-impact, global transformation initiatives that strengthen our ability to achieve more for children. The team works across a broad and evolving portfolio – spanning systems implementation, process reengineering, target operating model design, data, and artificial intelligence – adapting its focus in response to organisational priorities and emerging needs. Members of the team are assigned to a specific project and are expected to dedicate their full effort to delivering it. However, as the portfolio evolves – whether a project concludes, priorities shift, or an urgent need arises elsewhere – team members may be redeployed to a different initiative. This flexibility is core to how the team operates, ensuring Save the Children can direct the right capability to the right priorities at the right time.

The Head, Transformation Project provides senior leadership and accountability for a complex, global transformation initiative within the Transformation Development team. The specific project will be allocated upon joining and will focus on one of two priority areas: the application of Artificial Intelligence to support and enhance programme delivery across Save the Children, or the design and implementation of a new technology solution to strengthen programme delivery capabilities. The role holder is responsible for the full lifecycle of a major transformation initiative – from inception and feasibility through to delivery and embedding – ensuring a clear strategy, robust governance, and measurable outcomes aligned to Save the Children’s mission. They will provide direct leadership to the project team, drive senior stakeholder engagement up to and including Board level, and ensure delivery is aligned with organisational priorities and the broader Transformation Development portfolio. The Head will also play an active role in shaping the team’s approach, coaching and developing team members, and ensuring the project is run to the highest standards of project and change management.

Principal Accountabilities

• Project Leadership: Including direct and indirect management of team members and accountability to the CTO and TSG on delivery of the Project
• Governance and Senior Stakeholder Engagement: Define, implement and manage Governance and Engagement with wider Senior leaders, including setup and management of reference groups (to ensure SME input into design and delivery), design authorities (to sign off design decisions) and a Management Review Group (MRG) acting as the ultimate decision makers for the project
• Planning and Reporting: Including ensuring alignment with standard Project and Change Methodologies and associated Portfolio management requirements
• Budget management: Define and monitor ongoing management of the Budget for the Project, ensuring compliance with required processes and any issues are escalated and managed effectively in a timely way
• Future State Definition: Lead the detailed definition of the future operating model and actions required to achieve the required change, including all impacts on people (programme participants, partners and staff), processes, data and technology. Where relevant, ensure AI or technology solutions are evaluated and embedded in a way that is sustainable, scalable, and aligned to programme delivery needs
• Dependency management: Working effectively with wider initiatives and functions to ensure dependencies are understood and actively managed with clear owners and accountability ensured
• Problem Solving: All projects face challenges along the way and the Project Lead will need to take a hands-on role to identify issues and ensure they are effectively managed through to resolution and any subsequent impacts are reported to Governance in a timely way.

Essential Experience and Skills

• Considerable experience in the leadership, management and deployment of large, global, transformation projects within Save the Children or an additional equivalent scale organisation across both system and non-system change.
• Demonstrates direct accountability for issue resolution and capacity building to empower others in problem-solving.
• Experience leading the setup of large-scale Global Transformation initiatives including recruitment of key roles, governance setup and functional alignment.
• Familiarity with industry project (agile and waterfall) and change management standards including evidence of completing formal training, with the ability to hold project teams accountable to those standards.
• Demonstrated experience leading engagement with Senior Leaders up to Board level and partnering with functional leaders across multiple functions.
• Ability to lead the resolution of complex project issues with a balanced approach of pragmatism and rigour including experience leading others to deliver the required interventions and managing associated governance.
• Extensive Line Management experience, including leading teams with multi-layered hierarchies. As part of this, demonstrable coaching skills to develop others' capabilities in project management, change management, project feasibility, and initiation.
• Proven ability to operate successfully within a matrix organisation structure, overseeing resource without direct line management accountability and being experienced working across multiple different functional areas.
• Operational expertise working with digital technologies in a transformation context, including familiarity with the application of Artificial Intelligence to support programme delivery and/or the design and implementation of technology solutions to strengthen organisational and programme delivery capability.

Desirable

• Non-profit sector knowledge/experience.
• Proficiency in a second core language of Save the Children (French, Spanish, Portuguese or Arabic).

Essential Education and Qualifications

• Educated to degree level or equivalent work experience.
• External Project and/or Change Management accreditation.

Save the Children is the world’s leading organisation for children, employing ~25,000 staff. We save children's lives. We fight for their rights. We help them fulfil their potential. Through our work in 116 countries, we put the most deprived and marginalised children first. We know that great people make a great organisation, and that our employees play a crucial role in helping us achieve our ambitions for children. We value our people and offer a meaningful and rewarding career, along with a collaborative and inclusive environment where ambition, creativity, and integrity are highly valued. The work here is challenging but is also immensely rewarding. At Save the Children, you will be in good company, working with talented, like-minded individuals who are determined to ensure that all children survive, learn, and are protected. Your contribution will help ensure children's voices are heard at the highest levels, and that we achieve our global strategy, Ambition for Children 2030, and reach every last child.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and Equal Opportunities

DEI is core to our vision, values and global strategy. Save the Children is committed to creating a truly diverse, equitable and inclusive organisation, and one which will support us in our vision to ensure every child attains the right to survival, protection, development, and participation. We are committed to equal employment opportunities, regardless of gender, sexual orientation, race, colour, ethnic origin, nationality, disability, marital or civil partnership status, gender reassignment, pregnancy and maternity, caring or parental responsibilities, age, or beliefs and religion. We are committed to diversifying our staff to better represent the communities we serve and actively welcome underrepresented groups to apply. Reasonable adjustments will be made should any candidate invited to interview require this.

Our Recruitment Process

• Application review by our recruiting team based on your CV and cover letter.
• Two-stage competency-based interviews with the hiring team.
• Some recruitment may include an additional assessment or case study stage, or a third stage interview.
• If successful, you will receive a conditional offer of employment, followed by your contract subject to passing background checks.

We need to keep children and adults safe so our selection process includes rigorous background checks and reflects our commitment to the protection of children and adults from abuse. All employees are expected to carry out their duties in accordance with our Code of Conduct and all policies and procedures relating to Anti-Harassment, Health and Safety, Safeguarding, and DEI and Equal Opportunities. Save the Children does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process.