Director, Program Design & Management, Cocoa Project

Who We Are

International Justice Mission (IJM) is the global leader in protecting vulnerable people from violence around the world. Our team of over 1,200 professionals are at work worldwide in over 30 offices. Together we are on a mission to rescue millions, protect half a billion, and make justice unstoppable.

We are a global community that cares for one another. We believe that the way we work is as important as the results we achieve. We provide professional excellence with joy and celebration to all those we serve.

The Need

For over 25 years, IJM has pioneered the work to protect vulnerable people from violence. 9 out of 9 times in the last decade, IJM’s Justice System Strengthening Projects have reduced slavery and violence between 50 and 85% for very large populations of people in poverty. As we grow to expand our impact to protect 500 million people from violence, we are seeking a Director, Program Design & Management to provide visionary leadership and strategic direction to advance IJM’s mission of protecting vulnerable populations from violence through justice system strengthening, partnership development, and organizational excellence. This role originates and drives project strategy, cultivates high-impact relationships, and ensures operational, financial, and cultural alignment with IJM’s global goals, while fostering a resilient and high-performing team.

This position will also receive support from a wider international team of regional and global staff, particularly in areas of program quality, governance and legal compliance, new business development, grant acquisition and compliance, safety and security management, finance, and advocacy and communications.

Occasional travel within Ghana and the Africa region is required for this role.

This position is based in Kumasi, Ghana and reports to the Director, West Africa Program.

Responsibilities:

Leadership and Management:

- Provide overall leadership, direction, and accountability for the Cocoa Project, ensuring alignment with IJM's mission, regional priorities, and strategic objectives;

- Lead, supervise, coach, and develop a multidisciplinary team, fostering a culture of excellence, innovation, collaboration, spiritual formation, and resilience;

- Establish clear performance expectations and accountability mechanisms to ensure achievement of project goals and staff development objectives;

- Champion staff wellbeing, safety, security, and professional growth, creating an environment that supports high engagement and sustainable performance; and

- Serve as a member of the country leadership team, contributing to organizational planning, risk management, and strategic decision-making.

Strategy & Knowledge Development & Implementation:

- Develop, implement, and continuously refine project strategies that strengthen justice system responses to child trafficking, forced labor, and exploitation within cocoa-growing communities;

- Translate IJM's Theory of Change into practical, evidence-based interventions that contribute to sustainable systems reform and measurable impact;

- Lead strategic planning processes and ensure project activities are aligned with national priorities, donor expectations, and regional objectives;

- Utilize data, research findings, stakeholder feedback, and lessons learned to improve program effectiveness and identify opportunities for innovation and scale; and

- Support the design and adaptation of justice system strengthening models that can be replicated and expanded across multiple contexts.

Networking & Partnership:

- Build, strengthen, and maintain strategic relationships with government ministries, law enforcement agencies, child protection actors, civil society organizations, donors, private sector stakeholders, and community leaders;

- Serve as the primary representative of the Cocoa Project with key external stakeholders, advancing collaboration and long-term systems change objectives;

- Identify and cultivate opportunities for strategic partnerships that enhance program impact, sustainability, and resource mobilization;

- Collaborate with regional and global teams to strengthen engagement with cocoa industry stakeholders and other strategic partners; and

- Advocate for effective child protection and anti-trafficking responses through strategic engagement and thought leadership.

Policies and Procedures:

- Ensure compliance with all relevant laws and regulations in Ghana and with IJM global values, standards, and policies;

- Ensure project operations comply with donor regulations, safeguarding requirements, security standards, and organizational procedures;

- Establish and maintain effective systems, processes, and controls to support quality implementation and risk management; and

- Promote a culture of ethical conduct, accountability, and continuous improvement throughout project operations.

Communication:

- Serve as a spokesperson and senior representative for the Cocoa Project with internal and external audiences, as appropriate;

- Communicate project vision, progress, impact, risks, and learning effectively to staff, leadership, donors, and partners;

- Lead development of strategic reports, presentations, briefings, and other communication products that demonstrate project outcomes and influence; and

- Collaborate with Communications and Advancement teams to highlight impact through compelling, data-informed storytelling.

Training and Development:

- Promote ongoing staff learning and leadership development through coaching, mentoring, succession planning, and professional development opportunities;

- Support the development of technical and leadership capabilities among managers and emerging leaders;

- Strengthen partner capacity through strategic knowledge sharing, technical assistance, and collaborative learning initiatives; and

- Foster a culture of learning, adaptation, and innovation across all project functions.

Research, Program Management and M&E:

- Provide oversight of project implementation to ensure achievement of strategic objectives, grant deliverables, and key performance indicators;

- Ensure robust monitoring, evaluation, research, and learning practices inform decision-making and continuous program improvement;

- Review project performance data and lead strategic adaptation efforts to improve effectiveness and impact; and

- Ensure timely and accurate reporting to donors, leadership, and other stakeholders.

Casework:

- Provide strategic oversight of project casework and survivor protection efforts to ensure alignment with project goals and best practices;

- Ensure effective coordination between investigations, law enforcement development, legal, survivor services, and community engagement functions;

- Monitor casework trends and outcomes to identify systemic issues and opportunities for justice system strengthening; and

- Support decision-making related to complex or high-profile cases and operational activities as required.

Documentation, Reporting & Data Management:

- Ensure timely collection, analysis, and utilization of programmatic and operational data to support strategic decision-making;

- Maintain high standards of documentation, reporting quality, data integrity, and confidentiality; and

- Ensure project reporting requirements are met in accordance with donor, legal, and organizational expectations.

General Accounting & Statutory Compliance:

- Lead project budget planning, forecasting, monitoring, and resource allocation processes;

- Ensure responsible stewardship of financial resources and compliance with donor, statutory, and organizational requirements;

- Review financial performance and implement corrective actions as needed to support project sustainability and effectiveness; and

- Oversee grant compliance and ensure fulfillment of contractual obligations and reporting requirements.

Fieldwork Projects:

- Provide strategic oversight and support for field-based project activities, ensuring quality implementation and stakeholder engagement;

- Monitor operational risks and ensure appropriate mitigation measures are implemented to safeguard staff, partners, and beneficiaries;

- Conduct field visits to assess project progress, strengthen relationships, and identify opportunities for improvement and growth; and

- Ensure field operations contribute to sustainable systems change and achievement of long-term project outcomes.

General Tasks:

- Participation in IJM’s community of spiritual formation.

Qualifications:

- Bachelor's Degree in law, international development, or other related field required (Master’s or Doctorate level preferred);

- Minimum of eight years of progressive professional experience in law, child protection, human rights, law enforcement, social work, or related fields;

- At least five years of senior management experience, including direct supervision of managers and oversight of multidisciplinary teams;

- Demonstrated success in strategic program leadership, including program design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation, adaptation, and partnership management;

- Proven experience managing office or departmental budgets, including financial planning, oversight, accountability, and reporting;

- Established experience partnering with government institutions, civil society organizations, and international partners in complex environments;

- Experience in justice system strengthening, anti-trafficking, child protection, and/or human rights frameworks is strongly preferred;

- Advocacy and/or policy experience with key stakeholders including governments, cultural and religious leaders, institutional donors, civil society organizations and other partners;

- In-depth understanding of programming to combat violence against women and children.  Broader experience in access to justice, Rule of Law and human rights issues in African contexts is preferred;

- Strong knowledge of child protection and safeguarding standards and demonstrated commitment to protecting vulnerable populations;

- Ability to serve as a spiritual leader and mentor;

- Demonstrated successful leadership and management experience with a multi-disciplinary team in a cross-cultural setting, including active mentoring and coaching;

- Proven ability to set and achieve significant outcomes and impact;

- Excellent communications writing and professional speaking skills;

- Proven ability to develop and manage key relationships within the highest levels of government and the development sector; and

- Strong programmatic understanding, including harnessing monitoring, evaluation, research and learning to successfully reset strategic interventions.

Critical Qualities:

- A mature personal faith rooted in Christianity demonstrated through daily life, character and service;

- Demonstrated ability to appropriately handle stress and conflict;

- Courageous, confident, servant leadership;

- Sound and disciplined in judgement and problem solving;

- Rigorously result-oriented;

- Resilient, persevering in joy through challenge and failure; and

- Fluency in written and spoken English; proficiency in a relevant local language is an advantage.

Application Process:

Upload Resume, Cover Letter & Statement of Faith* in one PDF document .

*What is a statement of faith?  
A statement of faith should describe your Christian faith and how you see it as relevant to your involvement with IJM. The statement can either be incorporated into the cover letter or submitted as a separate document and should include, at a minimum, a description of your spiritual disciplines (prayer, study, etc.) and your current fellowship or place of worship.

At IJM, we’re committed to building a diverse workforce through fair and equitable employment practices. IJM encourages people of any race, color, age, sex, marital status or political ideology to apply for employment.

IJM holds strict safeguarding principles and a zero tolerance to violations of the Safeguarding Policy, Protection against Sexual Exploitation, Abuse and Harassment Policy, and Code of Ethics. Candidate selection is based on technical competence, recruitment, selection and hiring criteria subject to assessing the candidate’s value congruence and thorough background, police clearance, and reference check processes.

IJM requires a background check, police clearance and thorough review of references with an employment offer and/or employment contract.