Deputy Chief Executive Officer, GPE

VPU Context:   The Global Partnership for Education (GPE) is a shared commitment to end the world’s learning crisis. It is the only global partnership and fund dedicated entirely to helping children in lower-income countries get a quality education, so they can unlock their potential and contribute to building a better world.

We bring together governments, teachers, civil society, donors, United Nations agencies, development banks, businesses and private foundations to transform education systems so that every girl and boy can have hope, opportunity and agency.

What We Do

GPE helps low- and lower-middle-income countries build stronger education systems so that all children can get the education they need to thrive. We support more than 90 countries where the needs are greatest and focus on reaching the children who are the most vulnerable, including girls, children with disabilities, and those affected by extreme poverty or conflict. Our unique approach works. Between 2021 and 2025, GPE supported 372 million children in partner countries to get a better education through grants and co-financing.

How We Work

GPE is working to help governments transform their education systems to get the most vulnerable children in school, improve teaching and learning, and build equitable, inclusive and resilient education systems fit for the 21st century. Transforming education is about creating lasting changes and achieving impact on a scale. GPE sets out to deliver this transformative change by convening partners, mobilizing funds and catalyzing reforms to help partner countries accelerate access, learning outcomes and gender equality.

Multiply Possibility – Financing GPE 2030

GPE launched its 5th financing campaign for 2026-2030, co-hosted by Italy and Nigeria, to mobilize $5 billion for inclusive, high-performing education systems in the world’s most challenging contexts. This funding will unlock $15 billion in total education investment through co-financing and multiplier effects. A fully funded GPE will transform education systems and multiply possibility for 750 million children in 96 countries.

Governance And Organizational Arrangements

The GPE Board of Directors includes ministerial-level board members and alternates representing 20 constituencies that reflect the partnership’s breadth. The Board Chair is H.E. President Jakaya Kikwete and the Board Vice Chair is Ms. Christine Hogan. The Board of Directors, with its standing committees, provides policy and strategic oversight and approves or delegates funding decisions.

The GPE Secretariat, with 160 employees and hosted by the World Bank, is responsible for translating the policies and strategies set by the Board into practical support for partner countries, coordinating with diverse stakeholders and galvanizing global support for SDG 4. The Secretariat’s headquarters are in the World Bank’s offices in Washington, D.C., with a European office in Paris, an African office in Nairobi, a satellite office in Brussels, and a support office in Chennai.

ABOUT THE JOB

Description

The Deputy Chief Executive Officer (DCEO) reports to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and shares with the CEO responsibility for leading, managing and representing GPE. The role sits between strategy and execution, translating Board direction and CEO vision into a functioning, coordinated system across a complex partnership model. The DCEO is accountable for making the system work end-to-end, ensuring countries, grant agents, and partners operate coherently, and turning strategy into results.

The DCEO directly supervises all managers, including the COO, CFO and CTO, who oversee the full breadth of GPE operations. The DCEO also serves as the manager of the Executive Office and the Governance Team that supports the Board of Directors. The DCEO is an ex-officio member of the Board of Directors and the Board’s Executive Committee.

The DCEO represents GPE in various international fora, coordinates high level relationships, and manages a diverse body of work. He/she also oversees the GPE management team and is responsible for ensuring organizational coherence.

Duties And Accountabilities

Provide Strategic and policy direction:

• With the CEO, helps shape and approve strategic direction and policy development.

• Advises strategic, policy and operational matters before the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee.

• Under GPE2030, ensures programs and organizational units are aligned with and maximizes the impact of the three strategic objectives on education reform, finance and partnership.

• Champions gender equality and inclusion in all aspects of GPE’s work.

Represent GPE to external audiences and partners:

• Represents GPE in international fora, including the Sherpa committee of the SDG4 High-level Steering Committee

• Engages with senior government officials of donor and partner countries, and leadership in INGOs, foundations and private firms.

• Provides leadership to GPE’s efforts to raise critical resources for the GPE Fund and for co-financing.

Lead Secretariat operations:

• Oversees the breadth of Secretariat functions and operations related to regional/country programs, governance, personnel and organizational development, finance and grants, external relations, evaluation, monitoring and data management.

• Ensures internal alignment, cross-team coordination, clear workflows, and efficient processes.

• Oversees and drives efforts to improve the coherence, efficiency and cost-effectiveness of Secretariat operations.

Manage Corporate Governance:

• Manages the governance team

• Manages governance operations related to the Board of Directors and its committees.

• Supports and advises the Chair and Vice Chair in their Board duties.

• Ensures the Secretariat provides strategic, high-quality and timely documentation to facilitate Board and committee deliberations.

• Supports the Vice Chair in their role as Chair of the Executive Committee.

Oversees portfolio performance and delivery:

• Ensures the grant portfolio is on track, and corrective action is taken as needed.

Ensures quality and timeliness of partnership compacts, grant applications, and implementation progress. Intervenes when programs stall; grant agents underperform or country processes break down.

Orchestrates the GPE operating model:

• Ensures clarity on roles, decision rights and escalation pathways.

• Encourages partner alignment behind country priorities

• Ensures coherence across funding windows

• Strengthens the effectiveness of the model by reducing fragmentation, improving clarity and efficiency, and reducing competing incentives.

Oversee results, data, and performance management:

• Holds partners accountable for delivery timelines, quality of implementation, results reporting.

• Ensures strong monitoring frameworks, reliable data flows from countries and grant agents, and performance tracking across the portfolio.

• Provides data and reporting to shape Board discussions and make strategic adjustments.

Manage risks:

• Identifies and mitigates political risk, operational risk, governance risk, financial risk, PSEAH and reputational risks to GPE.

Education

• Master's degree with at least 12 years of experience in increasingly responsible management roles.

Experience

• Previous managerial experience is desirable.

• Multi-year leadership experience in a growing, globally funded, operational entity with multiple donor, partner, and international trust fund relationships, and the comfort to recognize and interpret cultural nuances in language and action in such settings.

Competencies

Ability to operate effectively in a matrix management environment, both as a team leader and a team member.

Accountability & Results Focus - Proven track record of leading organizations and/or teams to achieve results. Ensures group efforts to produce clear actions and decisions and tasks to conclude. Ensures staff have needed clarity to move work forward and work within and across teams to remove obstacles and resolve issues. Adapts to changing circumstances by innovating and altering plans and communicating and ensuring understanding of new courses of action. Anticipates risks and plans to mitigate or minimize impact. Demonstrates the confidence to make bold decisions quickly, balancing speed and thoroughness even in the face of ambiguous circumstances.  Takes ownership of own and team mistakes, failures or oversights, and shares credit for team accomplishments.

Collaboration & Teamwork - Views the whole of the Secretariat as greater than the sum of the parts and works collaboratively with colleagues with shared goals in mind. Acts as a teammate; steps in to support teammates and colleagues across teams as needed, regardless of organizational boundaries. Recognizes, values and reinforces the role of each team in delivering on GPE’s mission. Approaches challenges and obstacles as shared challenges to be overcome and leads groups to this outcome. Fosters productive group dynamics and actively seeks and considers diverse ideas and approaches. Supports and acts in accordance with final group decisions, even when decisions don’t reflect their own position.

Communication & Interpersonal Skills - Has extensive experience & success working in multicultural environments. Speaks and writes clearly and effectively, adapting language, tone, style and message to diverse, multicultural audiences, internally and externally. Skilled at communicating complex information in succinct and digestible ways; coaches others to develop this skill. Shares information and keeps people informed; Operates with transparency, in a way that builds trust in a culturally diverse environment; Within and across teams, addresses behaviors that undermine transparency and trust. Maintains productive working relationships with colleagues and holds team members responsible for doing the same. Engages in active listening and two-way conversation. Asks questions for clarification and responds to others appropriately.  Learns from others’ ideas and expertise.

Relationship Management - For assigned stakeholder groups (e.g. donors, private sector & foundations, civil society, or other), deep knowledge of the organizations and their unique characteristics, and strong professional network with key players. Understanding of, and sensitivity to, stakeholder perspectives, interests and needs and their intersection with GPE’s goals and interests. Extensive experience forging and managing relationships and developing partnerships that expand the reach and impact of the organization. Strong influencing and negotiation skills; Skilled at getting alignment behind a common goal, and support for specific courses of action or solutions. Possesses strong political judgment, diplomatic sense, conflict resolution, and problem-solving skills.

Representation Skills - Well-rounded with a broad base of knowledge about GPE, its partners, its work, its challenges and its impact (not expected for external candidates). Expert the ability to think and respond quickly and extemporaneously with tact and diplomacy, and to present a credible and convincing presence. Ability to represent GPE and the full range of its activities and products to external stakeholders. Thorough understanding of the political landscape within which GPE and its partner countries operate.

Strategic Planning and Work Program Management - Demonstrated experience defining organizational strategy and translating that to operational objectives and plans. Extensive experience defining team and individual work programs, identifying key performance indicators and tracking and managing results. Proven ability to manage large and diverse business units or a major function with diverse capabilities and clients.

Team Leadership - Extensive experience building and managing teams and creating an enabling work environment. Skilled at leading and inspiring team members.  Able to articulate a clear vision for the team and implement it in a way that fosters participation, shared ownership and appropriate delegation.  Proven track record of taking tough decisions and addressing performance issues directly and in a timely manner.

WBG Managerial Competencies