Technical Director, Education

Company Overview:
About Palladium – Palladium is a global leader in the design, development and delivery of Positive Impact – the intentional creation of enduring social and economic value. We work with governments, businesses, and investors to solve the world’s most pressing challenges. With a team of more than 3,000 employees operating in 90 plus countries and a global network of over 35,000 experts, we help improve economies, societies and, most importantly, people’s lives.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion – We welcome applications from all sections of society and actively encourage diversity to drive innovation, creativity, success and good practice. We positively welcome and seek to ensure we achieve diversity in our workforce; and that all job applicants and employees receive equal and fair treatment regardless of their background or personal characteristics. These include: (but are not limited to) socio-economic background, age, race, gender identity, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disability, nationality, veteran, marital or Indigenous status.

Should you require any adjustments or accommodations to be made due to a disability or you are a neurodivergent individual or any other circumstance, please email our team at [email protected]

Safeguarding – We define Safeguarding as “the preventative action taken by Palladium to protect our people, clients and the communities we work with from harm”. We are committed to ensuring that all children and adults who come into contact with Palladium are treated with respect and are free from abuse. All successful candidates will be subject to an enhanced selection process including safeguarding-focused interviews and a rigorous due diligence process.

Purpose of Position:
The Technical Director, Education will serve as a technical lead for Palladium’s growing work in global basic education work. The position will help grow an education practice in the Americas focusing on leading strategy, business development/proposals, thought leadership, and the management of projects and staff, in the area of basic education including education service delivery, teacher training, education system strengthening, education information systems, EdTech and private sector engagement.

The role encompasses business development, technical delivery and thought leadership on projects, funded by USAID and other key education donors such as the Global Partnership for Education as well as working with education portfolio staff in our EMEA and APAC offices to help grow our global education footprint. The Technical Director is expected to have the depth and breadth of technical expertise and experience, supervisory and program management experience, and interpersonal skills to all him/her to serve as a thought leader and provide technical leadership and oversight for complex global and bilateral projects. The role reports to the Director, Education Portfolio of the Americas Business Unit of Palladium International LLC.

Primary Duties and Responsibilities:
Business Development:
Identify, assess, and lead positioning and teaming for new business opportunities;

Serve as capture manager (responsible for technical direction, teaming, staffing, and budgeting) for proposals in conjunction with technical writers, recruiters, proposal coordinator, pricing manager, and other team members;

Serve as lead writer of technical proposals drawing upon basic education approaches as applied to specific country contexts; and,

Facilitate proposal strategy development and set overall win themes and technical approaches that guide other members of proposal teams;

Technical Leadership:
Provide technical leadership, oversight, strategic direction and definition of appropriate project activities;

Conduct short-term technical assignments on topics such as curriculum development, hybrid learning (classroom, online and broadcast), in-service teacher training, education system strengthening, among other relevant topics;

Lead the design and technical direction of international development projects for USAID and other international donors;

Maintain strong and mutually respectful relationships with partners and consultants that can provide technical expertise to Palladium-managed projects;

Provide thought leadership (writing blogs and white papers, conducting speaking engagements, etc.) and work with others to promote and market Palladium’s technical capability;

Document and maintain an inventory of successful tools and approaches; and,

Author/co-author abstracts, presentations, and articles for journals and conferences;

Project Management:
Serve as Project Director on one or more USAID field or HQ projects, ensuring adherence to USAID, project and corporate policies and procedures;

Supervise either directly or indirectly education portfolio staff to carry out activities and in so doing, ensure activities are fully accomplished, meet expected technical quality standards and are delivered on schedule;

Establish and implement a system to ensure technical quality of project activities;

Provide mentoring and capacity building at the individual and organizational level in specific areas of expertise;

Develop scopes of work and oversee performance of consultants and short-term TA providers;

For assigned portfolio projects, interface with clients and other project stakeholders to plan, implement, review, and report on projects as needed and requested;

Provide technical direction to project work planning, budgeting, and progress/financial reporting;

Document successes, lessons learned and challenges in implementation as well as reports of project activities and results to the project and donor, including routine quarterly and annual reports and other reporting requirements as requested; and,

Manage partner organizations (such as subcontractors) on the contractually compliant delivery of agreed inputs and achievement of agreed outputs/outcomes.

Required Qualifications:
Fluency in English

Extensive work experience in several or all of the following topics: curriculum development, instructional design, hybrid learning (classroom, online and broadcast), in-service teacher training, education system strengthening, EdTech, education information systems, private sector engagement for education

Familiarity applying cross-cutting USAID priorities – including private sector engagement, improved governance, and inclusive planning approaches – to programs related to basic education

Thorough and up-to-date understanding of USAID programs, development objectives, model approaches, and policies

Broad and deep familiarity with developing country contexts gained through significant overseas experience

Rigorous project management training and a track record of experience overseeing USAID projects of $10 million or greater, preferably overseas, and preferably involving grants/subcontractors

Excellent written and oral communication skills, including a track record of public presentations (moderator, panelist, keynote) and published blogs or articles

Significant experience conceptualizing and writing successful bid proposals for USAID opportunities

Financial acumen and the ability to interpret and analyze financial reports, make or evaluate financial projections, and match programmatic objectives/work plans to costs/budgets

Experience developing theories of change, results frameworks, logic models, and other elements of adaptive programming for impact

Sound problem-solving and decision-making skills demonstrated in challenging or fluid circumstances

Experience managing and motivating staff and colleagues, working across bureaucratic and geographic management units

(Preferred) Proficiency in one or more of the following: Spanish, French, Portuguese, or Arabic