Director, Mothers & Babies (Remote)

GiveDirectly•New York, NY

11h•Remote

About The Position

GiveDirectly (GD) aims to reshape international giving – and millions of lives – by providing cash grants directly to the world’s poorest. The Brookings Institution estimates that $70B of cash transfers would be required to eliminate the poverty gap; the aid sector currently spends $135B each year, much of it on evidence-free interventions. GiveDirectly wants to change that, establishing cash transfers as a benchmark for foreign aid – as the index fund is a benchmark for the financial industry – and in the process accelerating the end of extreme poverty. GD has raised over $1B since launching in 2011 and delivered cash to more than 2 million people in 15 different countries. We’ve also supported large-scale, experimental research that indicates strong recipient impact of our programs. As a result, GD has been celebrated as one of the most innovative non-profit companies by Fast Company, while the growing cash transfer movement (and GD’s leading role within it) have been featured in the New York Times Magazine, This American Life, Foreign Affairs, and The Economist. Our culture is candid, analytical, agile, and non-hierarchical. Our global team of ~150, and country operations teams of ~650, span 21 different countries and 69 languages. From software engineers to seasoned humanitarian workers, management consultants to public servants, researchers to field operations -- it’s an incredible group of people. Our values are central and deliberately opinionated. We genuinely center the people we serve in our decision-making, and strive to build an ambitious, dynamic and high-performing environment. We strongly encourage you to read through our values carefully, if they reflect how you like to work and energize you, this could be a great fit. We work hard to create an environment in which all our team members can thrive, succeed, and grow. We support high ownership, flexibility, take care of each other, have fun, and create professional growth opportunities. GiveDirectly has established a Product team responsible for identifying new program areas for exploration and implementation, as well as deepening our impact in existing program areas. Products at GiveDirectly are double-sided - serving the needs of our recipients on one side, and donors on the other - and include large technology components as well as the careful design of in-person operations. They range from our flagship large lump sum cash work to highly targeted support for specific populations or locations; the Product team works across fundraising, program implementation, and Research and Technology to build end-to-end programs and bring them to market. This role is responsible for assembling and leading cross-functional teams to drive product development, optimization, and scale. They may oversee single products, if large and/or complex, or a portfolio of products at different stages of development. Product leads must: Be entrepreneurial generalists… with capabilities/experience across at least 2 of 3 following areas: software & technology, development research & evidence, and humanitarian or development program delivery Demonstrate strong go-to-market instincts, with track record for mobilizing resources around big ideas and opportunities Be data driven with excellent altitude awareness - Product leads should be able to flex between big picture vision across multiple contexts and “in the weeds,” data-driven problem solving Show discernment and conviction in ambiguity, making the hard decisions to say no to things and drive focus Have track record of driving big results without direct formal authority (strong influence and high follow through) Building on recent evidence that large, unconditional cash transfers can significantly reduce infant mortality, GiveDirectly is building a “Mothers & Babies” product that provides large cash transfers to expectant mothers to improve maternal and newborn outcomes. The demands on this product are two-sided: it must deliver a high-quality, dignified experience for recipients and build durable donor conviction that this is a top-tier use of philanthropic and (eventually) public funds. This role will lead the end-to-end product strategy and execution across multiple countries and partnerships, assembling and driving a cross-functional team spanning Programs, Research/M&E, Partnerships, and Safeguarding. You’ll set the learning agenda, pressure-test and iterate on program design, and translate evidence and delivery performance into a compelling case and readiness for scale.

Requirements

Exceptional alignment to GD values, passion for our mission, and commitment to recipient dignity and empowerment
8+ years of professional work experience in similar role or function (product, programs, business development, partnerships)
Proven leadership ability and management experience in building high performing teams
Experience working with a distributed team in a multicultural environment
Interest in working as part of a growing company, with awareness about the opportunities and challenges that come with a highly adaptive environment
Strong, succinct communications: Skilled in speaking, writing, presenting, and negotiating across multiple stakeholders
Analytical problem solver: Looks at problems w/ analytical and iterative mindset, with strong framework for prioritization

Responsibilities

Set strategy, define the hypotheses, and drive focus
Own the product vision and multi-year strategy, translating it into annual and quarterly goals and clear “go/no-go” decision points.
Define and maintain the core “hypotheses” that ground GiveDirectly’s investment in this product (impact/value, feasibility/delivery, and growth/fundability), including what evidence would change our confidence.
Build a crisp roadmap that separates (a) what must be proven, (b) what must be built, and (c) what must be scaled—then ruthlessly prioritize to match the year’s goal.
Design and iterate on program model and recipient experience
Lead program design choices (e.g., transfer size, timing/cadence, etc), grounded in evidence and operational realities.
Ensure the program meets a high bar for recipient dignity, safeguarding, consent, and clarity - especially given the sensitivity of pregnancy and newborn outcomes.
Partner closely with programs teams to identify where reality diverges from our plans, diagnose root causes, and implement adaptations quickly and thoughtfully.
Build scalable delivery and partnership models
Identify, evaluate, and manage partners critical to targeting and outcomes (e.g., community health NGOs, health facilities, government health systems, digital maternal health platforms).
Define the operating model: what GiveDirectly must do vs. what partners can do better (and cheaper), and how responsibilities, incentives, data flows, and accountability work.
Develop playbooks for recipient targeting/verification, enrollment of pregnant women, payment timing, troubleshooting, and issue escalation—then standardize across countries where appropriate.
Define the tech needs for delivery and scale (e.g., digital identification/enrollment pathways, system integrations with health registries where feasible, 2-way messaging for consent/verification, automation to reduce delays/failures).
Drive the learning agenda and evidence narrative
Set the measurement strategy and learning agenda: leading indicators, qualitative insight loops, and (where appropriate) the path to rigorous evaluation.
Work with research/MEAL to ensure we’re collecting the “decision-grade” evidence we need (not just reporting metrics), including how findings translate into product decisions.
Package evidence into a narrative that is legible and persuasive to donors, partners, and policy stakeholders—without overselling or handwaving uncertainty.
Support fundraising and go-to-market
Build the product’s “go-to-market” posture: positioning, target donor segments, proof points, and the pitch narrative that unlocks scale.
Partner with fundraising to shape pipeline strategy and support key conversations—especially where product credibility and evidence are decisive.
Establish a cadence of tight updates and materials that make it easy for relationship owners to sell the product confidently.
Lead cross-functional execution without formal authority
Assemble and run a high-performing cross-functional team, setting operating rhythms, decision forums, and clarity on ownership.
Build alignment across stakeholders (country leadership, research, fundraising, tech) and “cleanly escalate” when tradeoffs need senior resolution.
Create an environment of candor, high standards, and rapid learning—while operating with care in a sensitive domain.