Team Lead, National Level Verification

About the Role

ThinkWell Uganda is recruiting a Team Lead for National Level Verification to be stationed in Kampala. Reporting directly to the Deputy Chief of Party/Technical Director, this role will provide technical, managerial, and strategic leadership supporting health financing and system strengthening initiatives in Uganda. The incumbent will demonstrate exceptional analytical thinking, communication, mentorship abilities, and represent ThinkWell's interests effectively.

The position involves supporting a five-year government-to-government readiness and verification project intended to facilitate Uganda's transition to increased direct donor funding and performance-based financing for health sectors.

Key Responsibilities

• Collaborate with senior leadership to create and implement a comprehensive Verification Master Plan covering scope, methodologies, tools, and acceptance criteria targeting public financial management (PFM) modules.
• Develop and oversee the verification strategy for Ministry of Health entities concerning PFM, human resources for health (HRH), and health management information systems (HMIS), ensuring regulatory and donor compliance.
• Lead assessments of national ministry financial workflows and service delivery processes to validate functionality, compliance, and audit standards including segregation of duties and data integrity.
• Authenticate integration points among PFM components such as IFMIS, HR systems, and procurement portals.
• Draft and review verification protocols addressing functional, integration, performance, and security testing for national health entities.
• Ensure adherence to ALCOA+ data integrity principles for all verification documentation.
• Direct defect management efforts, collaborating with developers and stakeholders, and design capacity-building initiatives to address verification gaps.
• Act as liaison among verification teams, subject matter experts, auditors, and government partners.
• Lead preparation and distribution of analytical publications tailored for government, academic, and public audiences.
• Participate in knowledge-sharing and learning initiatives across ThinkWell's global teams.
• Respond promptly with technical and politically informed guidance to inquiries from various stakeholders.
• Advise senior management on strategic and operational planning and foster strong relationships with national government officials and relevant agencies.
• Represent ThinkWell in Uganda to promote project goals and results.
• Engage with funders and partners to support portfolio growth, including prospecting and proposal development.
• Mentor and develop project staff capabilities in research, writing, presentation, and facilitation.
• Contribute to effective project execution by assisting project leadership in work planning, monitoring, compliance, and reporting.
• Support recruitment and management of technical team members in coordination with leadership.
• Carry out other assignments as directed.

Organizational Culture and Competencies

ThinkWell's core values include visionary thinking, influence, empowerment, excellence, inquiry, authenticity, and continuous learning. The ideal candidate is entrepreneurial, results-driven, innovative, collaborative, culturally sensitive, open to feedback, and committed to personal growth.

Qualifications and Experience

• A bachelor's degree in health economics, public health, public policy, or a related field; a master's or doctoral degree is preferred.
• A minimum of 12 years of relevant experience in health systems within NGOs, government, or development agencies; 10 years acceptable with an advanced degree.
• Proven ability to provide rigorous technical advice and build capacity in government agencies regarding health financing, PFM, strategic purchasing, or private sector engagement.
• Knowledge of various research methodologies, analytic tools, and data visualization, along with expertise in some research methods.
• Thorough understanding of Uganda's health financing landscape and established relationships with stakeholders at multiple levels.
• Excellent English communication skills, both written and oral, with aptitude to translate technical information for varied audiences.
• Strong interpersonal skills with a focus on consensus building.
• Experience in training, coaching, and mentoring junior professionals.
• Demonstrated success in business development, proposal writing, and fundraising.
• Exceptional cross-cultural communication competency, engaging respectfully across diverse settings.
• Proficiency with standard computing applications including Microsoft Outlook, Word, PowerPoint, and Excel.
• Willingness and ability to travel up to 25% within Uganda, including occasional weekend travel.