Programme Information and Systems Team Lead

Contract: Permanent, full-time – 35 hours per week

Location: London, UK

UK hybrid working – a minimum of 40% of working time is spent face-to-face (London office, external meetings or travel). 60/40 hybrid working at WaterAid means roughly three days wherever you work best and two days together in person.

Salary: £57,415 - £60,436 per year with excellent benefits.

Change starts with water. Change starts with you. Every day, millions of people live without clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene. WaterAid exists to change that – for everyone, everywhere.

About WaterAid: We’re a global federation driven by one vision: a world where everyone, everywhere has clean water, sanitation and hygiene by 2030. Powered by our values of Respect, Accountability, Courage, Collaboration, Integrity and Innovation, we work alongside communities, partners and supporters to make change happen.

About the team: This role leads the Programme Information and Systems Team within the Programme Operations function. Programme Operations' purpose is to support and empower programme staff to undertake effective planning and delivery of programmes and projects as well as ensure high quality reporting of programme performance to the wider organisation. The Information and Systems team do this by providing programme staff with information and systems that support effective funding, project, and contract management, including effective management decision making at all management levels across the department. We also manage the programme systems, provide training and user support, as well as developing reports, dashboards, data visualisations and data analysis.

About the role: As our Programme Information and Systems Team Lead you will lead the operational delivery and service provision of the WA Programme System (WAPS), mWater and the use of Power BI for tracking and reporting on programme performance functional. You will be responsible for the strategic direction of the systems, continuous improvements and the provision of programme data to support management decision making and high-quality programme performance reporting. You require a blend of technical, leadership, and project management skills to ensure applications are aligned with organisational goals, there is strong stakeholder engagement and cross-functional collaboration, and there is a coordinated and integrated approach to data and information for programme staff across the organisation.

In this role you will:

• Provide leadership for programme systems and data
• Provide strategic and technical leadership across WaterAid on the programme IT systems (mWater, WAPS and Programme-related Power BI Dashboards/analytics), programme performance information, and projects associated with these.
• Ensure programme staff have IT platforms that supports effective funding, project, and contract management (and associated business processes) through managing, maintaining, and undertaking continuous improvement of the programme systems.
• Responsible for lifecycle management of the core programme systems, mWater and WAPS (WA Programme System).
• Ensure the joint WaterAid UK/Australia Programme System (Amp Impact) meets the needs of both members. (WAPS is Amp Impact on the Salesforce platform).
• Collaborate with the WA UK PMER and Programme Funding and Partnerships teams, and the WA Australia Business Development and Operations teams to ensure the systems support their processes and is enhanced in response to evolving organisational needs and priorities.
• Responsible for WaterAid’s overall approach and usage of mWater and for ensuring WaterAid maximises it use, integration with the WAPs and the data warehouse.
• Ensure continuous training and capability development of staff on the Programme System and mWater.
• Ensure the effective and efficient provision of programme data to all relevant stakeholders.

Lead the team:

• Manage the Programme Information and Systems Team, ensuring effective performance and team collaboration.
• As part of the Programme Operations Team Senior Management Team, provide strategic leadership across the wider team as well.
• Prepare and manage the team budget as well as the joint WA Australia/UK WAPS budget.

Champion WaterAid’s commitment to equity, inclusion, and safeguarding.

Collaborate across teams, departments and federation members:

• In collaboration with the wider Programme Operations Team, support capability strengthening on project management and programme/project design; the development of policies, process, tools, and capability for country level risk management (including Standard and Mandatory Operating Procedures), and ensure alignment of programme processes, tools, guidance (and systems) to enable effective reporting on programme performance (esp. GPMF reporting).
• Collaborate with the IT Department on technical roadmaps and standards, systems architecture, governance and integration.

Essential skills and experience:

• Degree or equivalent professional qualification (e.g. from the British Computer Society or other recognised professional bodies) in a relevant subject such as computing, business information systems, data and analytics.
• At least 5 years working in a team leadership role in a large, complex international development organisation.
• Demonstrated experience of managing IT projects and systems/platforms, at strategic and operational levels, across large and complex organisations.
• Knowledge and experience of change management processes and of successfully driving cross-organisational change.
• Strong verbal and written communication and influencing skills, and fluency in English, in order to represent the organisation credibly and at a high level and produce high quality documents communicating complex issues with clarity.
• Excellent IT skills, including productivity tools such as Microsoft Office, and technical skills related to information systems (e.g. SQL, programming languages).
• Working style that reflects WaterAid’s values of Respect, Accountability, Courage, Collaboration, Integrity and Innovation.
• Demonstrated commitment to diversity, equity and empowerment, and safeguarding in leadership and decision-making.
• Availability to undertake international travel for up to 4 weeks per year.

Although not essential, we would prefer you to have:

• Experience with the Salesforce platform and Amp Impact.
• Experience with mWater or a similar data collection tool.
• Experience in performing the above accountabilities in the water, sanitation, and hygiene development sectors.
• Working ability to communicate effectively in one or more of WaterAid’s other key languages (French, Portuguese, and Spanish).

Closing date: Applications close 12:00 PM UK time on Tuesday, 20th January 2026. Interviews may be scheduled on a rolling basis, and the role may close earlier if a suitable candidate is found.

How to apply: Click Apply to answer the pre‑screening questions and upload your CV.

Can I use Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology in my application? At WaterAid, we strongly advise against using AI technology at any stage of the recruitment process. Our goal is to ensure a fair and transparent process that provides every applicant with an equal opportunity to succeed. We value hearing about your unique experiences and perspectives in your application, and, if shortlisted, during the interview as well.

Pre‑employment screening: To apply for this role, you must be able to demonstrate your eligibility to work in the respective country. All pre‑employment checks will be carried out according to local law and WaterAid’s Safer Recruitment policy. All UK based roles require a basic Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check.

36 days’ holiday (including 8 Bank Holidays)

Option to buy an extra 5 days’ annual leave

Employer pension contribution up to 10%

Flexible and hybrid working arrangements

Season ticket loan

Free annual eye tests

‘Give as you Earn’ charitable giving scheme

Enhanced parental leave (maternity, adoption/surrogacy, shared parental and paternity)

Sabbaticals

One paid volunteer day each year

As part of our annual leave policy, all employees receive three additional days of annual leave on top of their standard allocation of 25 days. These days are designated to cover the period when our UK office closes between Christmas and New Year, allowing all UK WaterAiders to take a well-deserved break. These days are automatically scheduled and cannot be changed or moved. Annual leave is accrued based on your start date. If sufficient leave has not been accrued by the time of the closure, the 3 days will be taken as unpaid leave or pro‑rated, depending on your circumstances.

Our Global Commitment: Our people promise We will work with passion and focus to make sure everyone everywhere has clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene. WaterAid is a place of purpose – where people have a real commitment and shared responsibility for the impact we have. We are a global community with diverse backgrounds and perspectives, motivated by inspiring, stimulating work. We are determined to be a place where people feel safe and able to contribute their voice and truly live our values.

Equal Opportunities: We welcome applications from people of all backgrounds, beliefs, customs, traditions, ways of life and status. This includes, but is not limited to, race, ethnicity, caste, colour, gender, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth, disability status, neurodiversity, age, marital and family status, sexual orientation and gender identity, health status, place of residence, economic and social situation.

Safeguarding: We are committed to protecting everyone we come into contact with. We have a zero-tolerance approach to abuse of power, privilege or trust across our global work, and to any form of inappropriate behaviour, discrimination, abuse, bullying, harassment, or exploitation. Safeguarding the people and communities we work with, our staff, volunteers and anyone working on our behalf is our top priority, and we take our responsibilities extremely seriously. All offers of employment are subject to satisfactory references and appropriate screening checks (which can include counterterrorism, safeguarding and criminal records checks).

Together, we’ll change the world through water. Join us and be part of the change!