Jobs and Internships

Details at-a-glance

Position Title: Senior Associate, Equitable and Sustainable Systems 
Department: ACTION Secretariat
Location requirement: Washington, DC
Salary starts at: $63,000
Desired start date: April 1, 2025

Overview

The ACTION Global Health Advocacy Partnership (www.action.org), founded in 2004, leverages its locally rooted and strongly connected network to drive collective global health and nutrition advocacy while enabling country-led, market-specific priorities. Our 14 ACTION Partners advocate in seven donor markets (the U.S., Canada, UK, France, Italy, Australia, and the European Commission), five African markets (Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia, Côte d’Ivoire, and South Africa), the pan-African market (a Partner that also engages significantly with the African Union), and India.. We are driven by a shared mission to ensure equitable health outcomes for all. For two decades, we have worked in low-, middle-, and high-income countries (LMICs and HICs) to strengthen government policies and increase the scale and impact of financing to improve health in low-resource settings, netting results that are far greater as a whole than we could achieve as individual organizations.

ACTION Partners coordinate strategies, share political intelligence, and learn from each other’s approaches across three pillars of work: Ending the Epidemics, Healthy Start (which includes vaccines, MNCH+N, and Nutrition), and Equitable and Sustainable Systems, and amplify their impact across countries and regions. Using evidence from implementing countries, the Partnership makes a compelling case for donor investments and domestic resource mobilization, primarily for Global Health Institutions (GHIs) like the Global Fund, Gavi, and the Global Financing Facility, while holding governments accountable for their commitments. ACTION collaborates with donor and implementing country governments, regional bodies like the European Union (EU) and African Union (AU), multilateral global health mechanisms, multilateral development banks (MDBs), and global leadership initiatives such as the G7 and G20. This dynamic model combines local expertise with global reach, fostering aligned advocacy and maximizing influence on health policies and financing.

The ACTION Global Health Advocacy Partnership (ACTION) is a project of RESULTS Educational Fund (REF), and the ACTION Secretariat is housed in the REF office in Washington, DC.

Position summary

Reporting to the ACTION Secretariat Director, the Senior Associate, Equitable and Sustainable Systems is responsible for driving forward ACTION’s policy research and policy analysis within this portfolio of work. Relevant issues covered include health and nutrition financing, work with multilateral development banks (MDBs), and health systems.  

The Senior Associate, Equitable and Sustainable Systems will support the ACTION partners in developing and implementing country-level plans that are coordinated and complemented by joint campaigns to contribute to our global agenda. The Senior Associate will help partners achieve their strategic goals by coordinating work plans, grant reporting and donor engagement. The Senior Associate spearheads civil society engagement through the ACTION Partnership within the portfolio and will work directly with others on the ACTION Secretariat team to integrate workstreams across the various issues and coordinate Partnership efforts to meet grant objectives.

Responsibilities

Manage the “Equitable and Sustainable Systems” portfolio and associated strategic advocacy, planning, and implementation

• Drive the strategy development and coordination of the Partnership’s work on Equitable and Sustainable Systems (the “portfolio”), focusing on World Bank and multilateral development banks (MDBs); Maternal; Newborn Child Health (MNCH); health and nutrition financing; primary health care; and cross-cutting global campaigns, platforms, and major moments.
• Guide the partnership in conceptualizing and leading high-impact advocacy campaigns, setting research and analysis goals, developing joint position papers and policy reports, and tracking processes and policies to identify opportunities for ACTION to advance our objectives relevant to the portfolio priorities.
• Support partners in developing ambitious annual workplans and provide oversight for partner reporting, monitoring, and evaluation, and coordinate with the grants team on grant compliance, budget reviews, and approvals.  
• Maintain and strengthen strategic relationships and partnerships with key stakeholders relevant to the portfolio and represent ACTION in external constituencies such as committees, delegations, and working groups; present on behalf of the Partnership when needed.
• Facilitate donor engagement for the portfolio and develop monthly updates, prepare progress reports of key grant milestones, and support annual donor reporting while ensuring that donor reporting aligns with portfolio grant objectives. 
• Manage portfolio meetings and calls, including leading the Partnership’s monthly issue area call, participating in donor calls, developing and distributing agendas, and recording and disseminating notes and follow-up items.  

• Contribute thought leadership related to the portfolio and lead production of talking points, briefs, reports, blogs, and communications materials on relevant issues for the Partnership under the Equitable and Sustainable Systems.  

Global Health Resource Analysis and Assessment

• With the leadership of the ACTION Secretariat Director, conceptualize and drive the development of health financing tracking and analysis tools to help identify trends.  
• Support the development of analysis pieces in collaboration with the team and partners across portfolios to leverage advocacy opportunities and key moments.  
  
  

Qualifications

Experience and education

• Four-year college degree or the equivalent in work or life experience in global health, international advocacy and/or policy, or relevant field. 
• Undergraduate degree preferred in a related discipline such as health/science policy, international relations/development, political science, economics, sociology, social sciences, etc. 
• Two years of experience functioning at a high level in a remote/hybrid work environment and in using MS Office, file sharing and various virtual meeting platforms. 
• Experience working internationally in a developing country, or within an international network or secretariat. 

Knowledge and skills

• Familiarity and deep understanding of the focus areas of RESULTS’ and ACTION’s work in global development including issues such as women and girl’s health, health systems, health financing, COVID-19, and its linkages to all pillars of ACT-A and the Global Fund. 
• High level of proficiency in utilizing and leveraging file-sharing tools including but not limited to MS Office, Outlook, SharePoint, and various virtual meeting platforms. 
• Excellent interpersonal skills and in-depth understanding of how to effectively function, collaborate, and move forward in a remote/hybrid team-oriented work environment; understanding of appropriate use of email, text messaging and other platforms. 
• Strong writing and verbal communication skills in English. 
• Self-starter with demonstrated initiative, constructive with a commitment to being a valuable member of a team. 
• Strong presentation and meeting facilitation skills and knowledge of social media. 
• Dedication to detail, organization, and meeting deadlines in order to deliver a quality work product. 
• Reliable team player; able to work collaboratively with others as well as independently in a way that maximizes efficiency and optimizes output; knows how to be a key part in a sequential operational workflow and understand the accountability related to it. 
• Solid critical thinking and problem-solving skills. 
• Able to perform at a high level in a remote/hybrid work environment, be flexible, multi-task, stay organized and pivot on priorities when needed; can meet deadlines in a fast-paced environment. 
• Maintains a high degree of professionalism, discretion, and dependability. 
• Understanding of advocacy to sustain and expand financing, donor commitments, and political support for critical MNCH+ nutrition programs, TB, HIV, malaria, and broader PHC. 
• Able and willing to manage up and across teams to meet deadlines and drive priorities forward. 
• Ability to work effectively across cultures, time zones, and work styles. 
• Fluency in French is preferred. 

Other requirements

• Travel, evening and weekend work as needed (up to 10%). 
• Physical demands of the position include the ability to sit and work at the computer for prolonged periods. 
• Support RESULTS’ values of justice, diversity, equity, inclusion, and anti-oppression, and  demonstrate these values in everyday work. 

Benefits summary

• Health Insurance: RESULTS Educational Fund pays 100% of premiums and out-of-pocket costs for employees and their dependents for medical, dental, vision and prescription coverage. We offer flexible spending accounts to which employees may contribute with pre-tax payroll deductions.
• 401(k) Retirement Plan, with both pre- and post-tax contribution options; employees are eligible to enroll on the first day of the month following their date of hire. RESULTS will begin making an employer match on the first day of the month following an employee’s one-year service anniversary: 100% of the employee contribution up to 3% of salary, then match 50% on any additional contributions up to 5% of salary.
• Short-term disability, long-term disability, and life insurance coverage at no cost to employees.
• Paid Leave: 15 days of vacation, 10 days of sick leave, and 5 days of personal leave; in addition, offices are closed during the last week in December.

About RESULTS

Equal Opportunity Statement and Commitment to Anti-Oppression, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Justice

RESULTS is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, age, disability, religion, ethnicity, national origin, gender, or sexual orientation.

RESULTS is a movement of passionate, committed everyday people. Together we use our voices to influence political decisions that will bring an end to poverty. Poverty cannot end as long as oppression exists. 

We commit to opposing all forms of oppression, including ableism, ageism, biphobia, classism, colonialism, homophobia, racism, religious discrimination, sexism, transphobia, white saviorism, and xenophobia. 

At RESULTS we pledge to create space for all voices, including those who are currently experiencing poverty. We will address oppressive behavior in our interactions, families, communities, work, and world. Our strength is rooted in our diversity of experiences, not in our assumptions. With unearned privilege comes the responsibility to act so the burden to educate and change doesn’t fall solely on those experiencing oppression. When we miss the mark on our values, we will acknowledge our mistake, seek forgiveness, learn, and work together as a community to pursue equity. 

There are no saviors — only partners, advocates, and allies. RESULTS strives every day to make its movement a respectful, inclusive space. 

Process for applying

Please send cover letter and your resume to [email protected] with subject line: Senior Associate, Equitable and Sustainable Systems.  Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis and interviews will be scheduled with qualified candidates.

Please note all applicants must be currently authorized to work for any employer in the United States; RESULTS is unable to sponsor work visas for this position at this time.