Director, Programming Excellence at Mastercard Foundation - NAIJA STICK

Director, Programming Excellence at Mastercard Foundation

Mastercard Foundation is a global foundation based across four hubs in Kigali, Rwanda, Nairobi, Kenya, Accra, Ghana and Toronto, Canada. 

• Our programs promote financial inclusion and advance education and learning in Africa, primarily for young people, and in Canada for Indigenous youth. 
• The Foundation was established in 2006 through the generosity of Mastercard when it became a public company. 
• From inception, the Foundation was designed to be a separate entity and independent from Mastercard. Our policies, operations, and funding decisions are made by our President and Board of Directors.
• The Foundation believes that youth employment is key to unlocking prosperity, both for youth and their societies. 

Enabling young women and men from disadvantaged communities to secure dignified and fulfilling  work will ensure inclusive development and economic growth in Africa.

Location: Nigeria

Employment type: Full-time

The Opportunity 

The Director, Programming Excellence provides strategic leadership to embed consistent, high-quality, inclusive, and adaptive program delivery practices across the Foundation.

• This role drives the design and implementation of standards, processes, and systems that enable operational excellence in how we work with partners - from selection and onboarding, through implementation and learning, to offboarding.
• By aligning tools, policies, capacity-building efforts, and partner feedback mechanisms, the Director ensures the Foundation’s programming reflects our values of respect, co-creation, accountability, and continuous improvement.
• This role acts as the institutional custodian of the partner journey and the architect of a holistic programming framework that supports Country and Technical teams in delivering transformative outcomes for young people. 
• Through deep collaboration with other enabling functions - including Strategy & Learning, Research, Foundation Academy, and Knowledge Management - the Director will ensure that programming excellence is not only a technical imperative, but also a cultural and relational one.

Way You Can Contribute

Programming Standards, Processes, and Quality Assurance:

• Develop, refine, and maintain the Foundation’s programming processes, standards, toolkits, and templates to ensure consistency, coherence, and alignment across platforms and countries.
• Lead quality assurance efforts across the partner lifecycle, from due diligence through implementation to exit, ensuring alignment with Foundation values and intended outcomes.
• Govern and manage revisions to programming policies, guidelines, and processes in collaboration with Program Operations and other Functional Excellence teams.

Who You Are

Master’s Degree in Organizational Development, Education, Public Administration, Social Innovation, or a related field.

• Professional certifications in Facilitation, Project Quality Management, Learning Design, or Operational Excellence are an asset.
•  12 - 15 years of work experience in Planning, Strategy and/or Project/Program management in both the private and public sectors.
• Proven track record in strategic planning, portfolio management, and large-scale program implementation across multiple countries or functions.
• Deep experience managing operational systems, processes, and tools to drive program performance and governance.
• Demonstrated ability to influence senior leaders, manage cross-functional stakeholders, and lead strategic initiatives with high degrees of complexity and ambiguity.
• Experience in designing and facilitating high-impact learning, planning, or review sessions involving diverse stakeholders.
• Strong knowledge of inclusive development principles and experience integrating gender, youth, or marginalized group lenses into operational frameworks.
• Systems Thinking: Ability to design scalable, integrated solutions that promote coherence and continuous improvement.
• Inclusive Leadership: Builds trust, invites multiple perspectives, and engages partners as co-creators.
• Execution Excellence: Balances high standards with pragmatism; skilled at managing complexity.
• Collaborative Influence: Works effectively across teams and functions; facilitates alignment and shared ownership.
• Learning Orientation: Embraces experimentation, reflection, and agility in service of impact.
• High emotional intelligence, professional maturity, and cultural sensitivity.
• Deep commitment to the Foundation’s mission, values, and youth-centered approach.
• A highly analytical problem-solver and critical thinker who can define root cause, evaluate alternatives and find solutions effectively.
• Service mindset for responsiveness to requests and striving towards becoming trusted business partners to drive common Foundation goals.
• A team player with strong self-direction balanced with a collaborative and creative approach, with the ability to  work under minimal supervision.
• Agile, adaptable, and able to execute a range of  job duties and changing priorities.
• Possess excellent verbal, written, and presentation skills with the ability to articulate information to a variety of constituents across cultures and support a culture of change.
• Possess professional maturity, sensitivity with different cultures, and impeccable integrity.
• Alignment and commitment to Foundation mission and values.

Aptitude for and keen interest in learning new information design and communication technology.

Deadline:

• 24th July, 2026.

How to Apply 

Interested Applicant can apply via this link 

Apply Now