Senior Strategic Initiatives Lead

The Organisation

Plan International is an independent development and humanitarian organisation that advances children’s rights and equality for girls. We believe in the power and potential of every child but know this is often suppressed by poverty, violence, exclusion and discrimination. And it is girls who are most affected.

Working together with children, young people, supporters and partners, we strive for a just world, tackling the root causes of the challenges girls and vulnerable children face. We support children’s rights from birth until they reach adulthood and we enable children to prepare for and respond to crises and adversity. We drive changes in practice and policy at local, national and global levels using our reach, experience and knowledge.

For over 85 years, we have rallied other determined optimists to transform the lives of all children in more than 80 countries.

We won’t stop until we are all equal.

Role Purpose

The Senior Strategic Initiatives Lead will provide senior-level strategic, analytical and delivery capacity to the Executive Office and the Leadership Team. The role will lead and support a defined portfolio of priority initiatives, with an initial focus on global strategy extension and reframing, future strategy development approach, governance/stakeholder engagement required, and other cross-organisational priorities requiring dedicated senior attention.

This is a fixed-term role designed to provide additional capacity during a critical transition period. The role will not replace functional ownership or existing leadership accountabilities, but will work across teams to connect work, strengthen coherence, develop high-quality strategic outputs, and support timely decision-making.

Dimensions of the Role 

• Lead or coordinate a portfolio of time-bound strategic initiatives on behalf of the CEO and Executive Office.
• Support Leadership Team strategic coherence across major organisational change initiatives, including strategy, operating model, financial sustainability and leadership priorities.
• Drive the development of key strategic outputs, papers, engagement materials and decision products for senior leadership and governance audiences.
• Support the CEO and Chief of Staff in preparing complex issues for Leadership Team, International Board, Members’ Assembly and other senior forums.
• Work across Leadership Team functions, regions, National Organisations and Country Offices to gather insight, test thinking and support alignment.
• Ensure that strategy-related processes are efficient, inclusive, proportionate and responsive to the external environment.
• Bring external insight, peer benchmarking and sector practice into internal strategic thinking and process design.

Accountabilities

1. Lead priority strategic initiatives for the CEO and Executive Office

• Lead and coordinate a portfolio of time-bound strategic initiatives agreed with the CEO and Chief of Staff and other Leadership Team members as required.
• Translate broad leadership priorities into clear workplans, milestones, deliverables and decision points.
• Ensure that complex cross-organisational issues are progressed with clarity, discipline and appropriate senior engagement.
• Identify dependencies, risks and sequencing issues across related organisational initiatives.
• Support timely decision-making by developing clear options, recommendations and next steps.

2. Strengthen strategic coherence, engagement and decision-making

• Work across strategy, operating model, financial sustainability, programme, funding, governance and leadership priorities to secure alignment.
• Connect related initiatives so they reinforce each other and support the organisation’s wider direction.
• Bring external insight, peer benchmarking and sector practice into strategic thinking.
• Develop high-quality papers, briefings, options analyses and recommendations for leadership and governance audiences.
• Synthesise complex inputs into clear, accessible and actionable products.
• Design focused and proportionate engagement approaches, involving the right stakeholders at the right moments.
• Use digital tools, and where appropriate AI-enabled synthesis, to support efficient insight gathering, broader participation and timely decision-making.
• Surface strategic choices, trade-offs, risks and tensions requiring Leadership Team or governance attention.

3. Contribute to Executive Office effectiveness

• Work closely with the Executive Office team to align strategic initiatives with CEO priorities, governance moments and leadership communications.
• Support stronger ways of working for managing cross-cutting strategic priorities, including tracking, follow-up and coordination.
• Provide flexible senior capacity on emerging priorities requiring rapid strategic re-framing or revised narrative.
• Operate with discretion, sound judgement and strong political awareness in a complex global organisation.

Indicative deliverables

The role will be expected to deliver a defined portfolio of outputs over the fixed-term period. This will include, but not be limited to, the following:

1. Global strategy extension decision pathway

Lead the work required to support a clear organisational and governance recommendation on whether Plan International should extend the current global strategy or move directly into development of a new global strategy. Indicative outputs may include:

• Stakeholder engagement plan aligned with governance timelines.
• Options paper setting out whether an extension is advisable, including rationale, risks, implications and alternatives.
• Materials for Leadership Team, International Board and Members’ Assembly discussions.
• Synthesis of stakeholder input and recommended decision pathway.

If a strategy extension is agreed, this deliverable will include development of a concise global ambition or guidance paper for the bridge year. Indicative outputs may include:

• Global ambition paper building on the current strategy and emerging medium-term vision pillars.
• Practical guidance for Country Offices, National Organisations, Regional Hubs and Global Hub teams during the extension period.
• Narrative framing that clarifies continuity with the current strategy while preparing the organisation for the likely direction of the next strategy cycle.
• Governance-ready drafts and final materials for endorsement or approval.

2. Future global strategy development approach

Lead a review of Plan International’s approach to global strategy development and propose a future-fit model. Indicative outputs may include:

• Lessons review from previous global strategy cycles.
• Peer benchmark and sector practice review, including more agile, phased, rolling or layered strategy models.
• Assessment of whether Plan should continue with traditional five-year strategy cycles or move toward a different strategic framework.
• Recommended strategy development approach, including principles, sequencing, consultation model, digital tools, governance milestones and accountabilities.

This would also include development of a clear governance and engagement approach for the next global strategy cycle. Indicative outputs may include:

• Proposed governance architecture and decision timeline.
• Stakeholder roles and engagement approach for LT, IB, MA, NDT, CDs, RDs, NOs, COs, youth, partners and relevant functional leads, keeping mind accelerated timelines, balancing effective and meaningful input
• Practical approach to digital participation and AI-enabled insight gathering where appropriate.

3. Other strategic initiatives: Lead or support additional CEO or Leadership driven strategic initiatives as agreed during the fixed-term period.

Technical expertise, skills and knowledge required

Essential

• Solid experience in strategy, organisational transformation, policy, executive advisory or senior programme/business leadership roles.
• Strong understanding of international development, humanitarian affairs, global civil society or federated international organisations.
• Proven ability to lead complex, cross-organisational strategic initiatives from concept through to decision and delivery.
• Strong analytical and synthesis skills, with the ability to translate complex information into clear options, recommendations and decision products.
• Experience developing strategy papers, board materials, executive briefings, options papers or organisational guidance documents. Excellent communication skills.
• Strong understanding of governance processes, stakeholder engagement and senior decision-making in complex organisations.
• Strong facilitation and engagement skills, including the ability to design focused and efficient consultation or input processes.
• Ability to connect strategic, operational, financial and organisational considerations into coherent advice.
• Ability to work at pace, manage ambiguity and exercise sound judgement in a high-pressure environment.
• Strong interpersonal skills, diplomacy and discretion, with the confidence to work effectively with senior leaders.

Desirable

• Experience in global strategy development, strategy refresh or organisational planning processes.
• Experience working in a complex, networkd, and multi-entity international organisation.
• Familiarity with peer benchmarking, foresight, digital engagement or AI-enabled synthesis tools.
• Experience with operating model change, financial sustainability or organisational transformation initiatives.
• Understanding of feminist leadership, anti-racism, localisation, youth participation and power-shift agendas.
• French, Spanish or Arabic language skills.

Location: The location of this role can be flexible where Plan International has an office* that can employ on behalf of the Global Hub and you have the pre-existing right to work and live. Working hours that align with the UTC timezone are preferred.  

Type of Role: Fixed term 12 – 18 months

Reports to: Chief of Staff (with close day-to-day collaboration with the CEO)

Closing Date: Monday 17 August 2026 at 23.59pm UK 

Equality, diversity and inclusion is at the very heart of everything that Plan International stands for.

We want Plan International to reflect the diversity of the communities we work with, offering equal opportunities to everyone regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation.

Plan International is based on a culture of inclusivity and we strive to create a workplace environment that ensures every team, in every office, in every country, is rich in diverse people, thoughts, and ideas.

We foster an organisational culture that embraces our commitment to racial justice, gender equality, girls’ rights and inclusion.

Plan International believes that in a world where children face so many threats of harm, it is our duty to ensure that we, as an organisation, do everything we can to keep children safe. This means that we have particular responsibilities to children that we come into contact with and we must not contribute in any way to harming or placing children at risk.

A range of pre-employment checks will be undertaken in conformity with Plan International's Safeguarding Children and Young People policy. Plan International also participates in the Inter Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. In line with this scheme we will request information from applicants previous employers about any findings of sexual exploitation, sexual abuse and/or sexual harassment during employment, or incidents under investigation when the applicant left employment. By submitting an application, the job applicant confirms their understanding of these recruitment procedures.

Please note that Plan International will never send unsolicited emails requesting payment from candidates.