Director, Innovation, Access to Medicines and Health Technologies

Washington DC, United States
negotiable Expired 2 years ago
This job has expired.

JOB DETAIL

Qualifications

OBJECTIVE OF THE OFFICE/DEPARTMENT
This requisition is for employment at the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO)/Regional Office of the World Health Organization (WHO) The Department of Innovation, Access to Medicines and Health Technologies (IMT) is responsible for promoting, coordinating, and implementing the Organization’s technical cooperation in innovation, access and rational use of quality medicines and other health technologies. IMT works across all categories of medicines and health technologies, including medicines, vaccines, diagnostics, medical equipment, blood products and organs for transplantation. It provides technical cooperation to countries, addressing barriers to access within health systems and throughout the medical product life cycle, strengthening regulatory capacity and supporting evidence-based decision making and rational use through health technology assessment processes. It leads efforts in innovation through the regional platform to advance the manufacturing of vaccines and other health technologies, increasing regional capacity and supporting the generation of enabling ecosystems. It coordinates actions of the Regional Platform to Increase Manufacturing Capacity of vaccines and other health technologies and supports the Regional Revolving Funds in the selection and continuous assessment of quality products for priority public health programs in the Americas.
DESCRIPTION OF DUTIES
Under the general supervision of the Director (D), and the direct supervision of the Assistant Director (AD), the incumbent is responsible for, but not necessarily limited to, the following assigned duties:
Provide strategic policy and normative guidance to countries in the development of policies, plans, and strategies that promote innovation, affordable and equitable access to medicines, vaccines and other health technologies for health systems, overseeing the implementation of PAHO mandates in this area and leading the development of technical policy documents through PAHO Governing Bodies
Develop and consolidate the leadership of the Organization in the areas of access, quality and the rational use of medicines and other health technologies for health systems, and in PAHO leadership and regional action to increase manufacturing capacity for vaccines, medicines and other health technologies required for public health programs in the Americas;
Support and foster the continued growth and leadership of PAHO multi-stakeholder initiatives and networks in Health Technology Assessment (HTA), regulatory harmonization and convergence for medicines and health technologies, and the rational use of medicines and other health technologies, amongst others; provide guidance and oversight of the development of PAHO Regional Platform to Increase Manufacturing of vaccines and other medicines and health technologies to support increased manufacturing for essential medical products in the Americas and the development of enabling ecosystems
Oversee support to the Regional Revolving Funds in all aspects relating to eligibility and priority setting criteria for products and suppliers, as well in the quality oversight of products to ensure the supply of medicines and other health technologies through these pooled procurement mechanisms
Promote and support regional engagement in international mechanisms for regulatory harmonization and convergence for medicines and other health technologies, supporting country and partner participation in the Pan American Network for Drug Regulatory Harmonization, and supporting increased regional action for regulatory systems and capacity development
Facilitate high level dialogue and coordination among countries, development agencies and partners, convening stakeholders to promote the public health perspective as central to the agenda in innovation, access, quality, rational use, research and development, and the production of vaccines, medicines and other health technologies
Mobilize financial and technical resources and actively promote networking and the building of synergistic partnerships in support of the work of the Department
Identify and mobilize financial resources including multi-year predictable grants to support program implementation, in collaboration with other Departments of the Organization and partners
Develop, define and establish the objectives, strategy, plan and budget of the Department in line with programmatic priorities and in accordance with Governing Bodies’ mandates ensure that the strategies and objectives are aligned with the Organization’s mission, vision, values, policies, strategies, business needs and priorities in order to ensure continuing operations and maximize results; ensure that results and products delivered are aligned with the Organizational Strategy and make significant contributions for the achievement of the expected results and strategic objectives; report to Governing Bodies, through executive presentations and reports, on the status or results of the program of work
Identify, promote, establish, maintain, and coordinate liaison across the Organization, within WHO, with other United Nations organizations, the Inter-American System and with other partners including donor agencies, non-governmental organizations, academic institutions, and civil society in order to maximize programmatic integration, efficiency and effectiveness
Administer, allocate and monitor the Department’s financial, logistical and staff resources; prepare, and justify the program and budget proposals included in the Biennial Work Plans and contribute substantially to the respective indicators in the Strategic Plan
Perform other related duties, as assigned.
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
Education:
Essential: A university degree in a health or social science and a master’s degree in public health, health economics or any other field related to the functions of the post from a recognized institution.
Desirable: A PhD or D.PH would be an asset.
In the event that your candidature is retained for an interview, you will be required to provide, in advance, a scanned copy of the degree(s)/diploma(s)/certificate(s) required for this position.  WHO, only considers higher educational qualifications obtained from an institution accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list updated by the International Association of Universities (IAU) / United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed through the link: http://www.whed.net/. PAHO will also use the databases of the Council for Higher Education Accreditation http://www.chea.org and College Navigator, found on the website of the National Centre for Educational Statistics, https://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator to support the validation process.
Experience:
Essential: Fifteen years of combined national and international experience in progressively challenging managerial positions in health systems, including the development and evaluation of policies and programs to support innovation and equitable access to quality medicines and other health technologies.
SKILLS:
PAHO Competencies:
Overall attitude at work: Maintains integrity and takes a clear ethical approach and stance; demonstrates commitment to the Organization’s mandate and promotes the values of the Organization in daily work and behavior; is accountable for work carried out in line with own role and responsibilities; is respectful towards, and trusted by, colleagues and counterparts.
Respecting and promoting individual and cultural differences: Relates well to diversity in others and capitalizes on such diversity – Treats all people with dignity and respect. Relates well to people with different cultures, gender, orientations, backgrounds and/or positions; examines own behavior to avoid stereotypical responses; considers issues from the perspective of others and values their diversity.
Teamwork: Advocates for collaboration across the Organization – Creates and encourages a climate of team-working and collaboration across the Organization; sees cooperation as a key Organizational priority and creates collaborative systems and processes to achieve Organizational goals. Actively identifies and tackles disagreements between internal and external counterparts that compromise the Organization’s goals and mandate; diplomatically facilitates the resolution of conflicts between others and ensures strategic partnerships with a range of key stakeholders; maintains and extends an effective collaborative network of individuals inside and outside the Organization.
Communication: Share knowledge – Articulates the Organization’s strategic objectives when formulating and delivering information and presentations and adapts presentation methodology to address the needs of different audiences. Shares decisions and directives of senior management and communicates them in a manner that ensures both understanding and acceptance; shares knowledge and best practice at the three Organizational levels (country, regional and global), as necessary.
Creating an empowering and motivating environment: Provide direction/Support, motivate and empower others – Oversees and provides teams and departments with clear managerial directions which are translated from Organizational strategy. Builds a performance culture in the Organization; contributes to setting Organizational performance goals and standards; monitors Organizational performance against milestones and strategic goals; identifies and nurtures talent as appropriate. Promotes autonomy and empowerment throughout the Organization; inspires enthusiasm and a positive attitude in people towards their work and contribution to the Organization’s success.
Ensuring effective use of resources: Strategize and set clear objectives/Monitor progress and use resources well – Sets specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and timely objectives for own team and/or the Organization; systematically analyses and anticipates priority projects for own team and allocates necessary resources to achieve them; identifies the cross-Organizational resources needed for large- scale projects in line with key Organizational objectives. Anticipates foreseeable changes and adapts own and team’s projects in the face of unforeseen circumstances and/ or challenges; creates measures and criteria to monitor progress of overall projects against key Organizational objectives; creates cost-effective solutions for the Organization.
Driving the Organization to a successful future: Constructive leadership style/ Set the vision and build commitment – Leads and develops a road map for successfully achieving real progress in the Organization’s mandate, including consultation with key stakeholders; demonstrates respectful, trustworthy, transparent and accountable behavior in order to develop a reliable and coherent identity for the Organization. Creates a coherent Organizational vision of shared and successful goals; fosters a culture of vision and long term goals, recognizing and rewarding efforts to maximize the Organization’s value.
Technical Expertise:
Technical: Extensive expertise at a senior decision-making level in public policy in areas of innovation, access, quality and rational use of medicines, including considerable familiarity with other fields relevant to the Department’s responsibilities in particular in managing complex health programs/health systems at both national and international levels. Wide and varied knowledge of public health problems and health management processes, including monitoring and performance assessment in the health or social sector, and disciplines related to strategic planning.
Managerial: Extensive expertise in senior, progressively responsible positions in the management of a large public or private administration of administrative and technical matters requiring sensitive negotiation, and high-level intervention. Demonstrated ability to provide professional leadership to strategic, organizational, managerial and analytic work in health; resourcefulness, initiative, highly developed judgment and interpersonal skills to deal with difficult situations and sensitive areas. Must further possess a recognized capacity to lead, strategize, and supervise by persuasion and through consensus building. Courtesy, tact, sensitivity to manage confidential information, and ability to establish and maintain effective working relations with people of different professional levels, discipline, nationalities, and cultural background.
Administrative: Skills in resource mobilization (including fundraising and partner collaboration) and financial management for the delivery of expected results.
Languages:
Very good knowledge of English or Spanish with a working knowledge of the other language. Knowledge of French and/or Portuguese would be an asset.
IT Skills:
Demonstrated ability to effectively use current technology and software, spreadsheets and presentations, as well as Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and management information systems. Other IT skills and knowledge of software programs such as Microsoft Excel, Outlook, OneDrive, PowerPoint, Teams, SharePoint, and Word are considered essential.
REMUNERATION
Annual Salary: (Net of taxes)
US $106,023.00 post adjustment
Post Adjustment: 63.5% of the above figure(s).  This percentage is to be considered as indicative since variations may occur each month either upwards or downwards due to currency exchange rate fluctuations or inflation.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
THIS VACANCY NOTICE MAY BE USED TO FILL OTHER SIMILAR POSITIONS AT THE SAME GRADE LEVEL. Any appointment/extension of appointment is subject to PAHO Staff Regulations, Staff Rules and e-Manual. For information on PAHO please visit: http://www.paho.org PAHO/WHO is an ethical organization that maintains high standards of integrity and accountability. People joining PAHO are required to maintain these standards both in their professional work and personal activities. PAHO/WHO also promotes a work environment that is free from harassment, sexual harassment, discrimination, and other types of abusive behavior. PAHO conducts background checks and will not hire anyone who has a substantiated history of abusive conduct. PAHO/WHO personnel interact frequently with people in the communities we serve. To protect these people, PAHO has zero tolerance for sexual exploitation and abuse. People who commit serious wrongdoing will be terminated and may also face criminal prosecution. PAHO/WHO is committed to workforce diversity. PAHO/WHO has a smoke-free environment and does not recruit smokers or users of any form of tobacco. PAHO/WHO offers an attractive compensation package including an annual net salary and post adjustment, which reflects the cost of living in a particular duty station and exchange rates (subject to mandatory deductions for pension contributions and health insurance).  Other benefits include: 30 days annual leave, dependency benefits, pension plan and health insurance scheme. Benefits for internationally recruited staff may include home leave, travel and removal expenses on appointment and separation, education grant for dependent children, assignment grant and rental subsidy. Candidates appointed to an international post with PAHO are subject to mobility and may be assigned to any activity or duty station of the Organization throughout the world. All applicants are required to complete an on-line profile to be considered for this post. Candidates will be contacted only if they are under serious consideration. A written test and/or interview will be held for this post. The post description is the official documentation for organization purposes.

United States, Washington DC

location

This job has expired.