Director, Program

FULL-TIME JOB VACANCY

Program Director

Program Department

Multiple Office Locations Considered

Application Deadline: 30 April, 2025

Compelling fact-finding that influences policy is at the heart of Human Rights Watch’s (HRW’s) capacity for impact. We are looking for an exceptional strategic leader and accomplished human rights professional to lead the Program Department and oversee HRW’s 15 regional and thematic divisions carrying out integrated fact-finding investigations, analysis, and output, and effective media, advocacy, and partnerships work.

The Program Department is the largest department at HRW and is primarily responsible for the organization’s fact-finding and reporting worldwide. The department consists of more than 250 staff around the world. The Program Director, with three deputies in the central Program Office, is responsible for ensuring the quality and integrity of HRW’s entire research output and standards and interdisciplinary collaboration required to advance human rights across the globe through the execution of HRW’s global strategic plan.

Candidate Profile

The Program Director should be an inspirational and effective thought leader and people manager, and a strategic thinker with deep knowledge of human rights issues, research methodologies and advocacy in the field of international human rights. The successful candidate will have experience in developing and strengthening systems to drive organizational change, including by: promoting diversity, equity and inclusion; fostering staff resilience and well-being; ensuring the implementation of the highest research and ethical standards in accordance with best practices in the human rights field; guiding development of strategies that contribute to human rights impact; and encouraging inclusive and authentic partnerships with others in the human rights movement. They will also have a track record of contributing to an organizational culture of learning, trust, resilience, and collaboration – all of which are critical to inspire and support the innovation needed to meet the many challenges facing the human rights movement.

The Program Director reports to the Deputy Executive Director/Chief Programs Officer and will be a permanent member of the Programmatic Leadership Team. The Program Director will be based in any of the following locations where HRW has an office: New York, Washington, Toronto, London, Brussels, Amsterdam, Berlin, Nairobi, Johannesburg.

The Program Director will oversee HRW’s research divisions (regional and thematic), ensure programmatic implementation of HRW’s global strategy, participate in developing strategies at the project and divisional levels, and undertake additional responsibilities within the Program office as outlined below.

The Program Director will supervise Program Office staff, comprised of three Program Deputies, a Senior Officer, a Senior Editor, and an Associate Director for research training and standards.

Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

Effective leadership

• Manage the core team of deputy Program Directors to effectively lead and support more than 250 Program staff based around the world, many of whom work in challenging environments.
• Represent HRW in high-level forums, publish original content on pressing human rights issues, and act as a spokesperson for the organization.
• Model, cultivate and coach inclusive and collaborative leadership across the Department that demonstrates commitment to diversity and belonging.
• Oversee and ensure the consistent application of policies and standards around performance management and conduct.
• Recruit and cultivate diverse and exceptional talent and manage performance in a fair, consistent, transparent, and empathetic manner.
• Lead on creating a culture of well-being across the Program Department, including promoting work/life balance; championing initiatives which support the well-being of staff working in challenging environments, or on challenging topics; and ensuring an inclusive approach in well-being initiatives, and that well-being is a considered, critical part of strategy building and roll-out.
• Promote an inclusive and positive work environment including by fostering diversity, equity and inclusion within the Program Office and Department, and proactively addressing bias, discrimination, and microaggressions.
• Contribute to overall organizational leadership, strategy, and a healthy and inclusive culture.
• Work closely and in a collegial fashion with the leadership of the Advocacy, Media, Strategy and Legal teams in shaping Human Rights Watch’s output and strategies.
• Work closely and in a collegial fashion with leadership of Operational departments to ensure institutional policies and practices are followed and implemented effectively by all Program Department staff.
• Chair meetings of divisional directors, Program Office and ad hoc teams.
• Provide feedback and support to direct reports and hold them accountable to high performance standards.

Strategy and innovation

• Oversee, initiate and support thought leadership and strategy development initiatives within the organization.
• Oversee the development of strategies and operational plans of the research divisions, ensuring that plans include clear goals and benchmarks, and that they align with the broader strategic plan and priorities of the organization. This includes annual and multi-year planning, as well as leading staff through implementation of the organization’s global strategy.
• Ensure well-articulated theories of change in divisional strategies that can be measured and evaluated and that are contextualized within broader movements for change.
• Take clear decisions on priorities as needed to ensure effective allocation of resources to strategic aims.
• Ensure that HRW is testing and scaling innovative methodologies and presenting findings in ways that facilitate organizational learning and advance human rights change.
• Keep abreast of new developments in policy and practice, including in the application of technology in the human rights sector.
• Ensure that the Program Office facilitates innovation, drawing from practices within HRW, in the human rights movement, and non-traditional partners and allies.
• Contribute to a culture that prioritizes creativity, supports informed and responsible risk-taking, and encourages learning from failure as critical pathways to innovation.

Finance and Fundraising

• Engage in high level fundraising, donor cultivation, and other development activities.
• Oversee and monitor the Program Department budget and ensure strategic allocation of funds within research programs and the Program Office.

Systems for effective, impactful work

• Build on systems to ensure consistency and rigor in conducting research and implementing internal fact-checking guidelines and ethical standards, in line with best practices in the human rights field.
• Facilitate effective cross divisional and cross organizational collaboration and teamwork, including by developing and building on systems to ensure a culture that prioritizes effective collaboration, teamwork and operational excellence.

Quality Control

• Oversee high standards of research, writing and fact-checking within divisions, including reviewing divisional products for effectiveness, structure, consistency, and compliance with organizational standards.
• Support divisions and ensure their compliance with vetting guidelines, research standards and policies within products.

Security

• Work with the Security team to build on, maintain and ensure compliance with security protocols, including physical, and information security and ensuring these also include considerations for staff well-being.

Partnerships

• Foster and strengthen sustainable partnerships with other human rights actors, including by promoting visibility and recognition of partnership work.
• Build on and execute the vision for HRW’s role as a collaborative and authentic partner in the evolving human rights movement and prepare for the human rights challenges of the future.
• Troubleshoot internal and external obstacles to effective partnerships.

Qualifications:

Education: A bachelor’s degree, or equivalent experience, is required.

Experience: A minimum of fifteen (15) years of relevant experience in international human rights or related work, including investigations, reporting and advocacy, with at least five years in a senior management role, is required.

Competencies

• Knowledge of and experience working in international human rights, including in-person interviewing, fact-finding and advocacy, and familiarity with international human rights law and international humanitarian law is required.
• A demonstrated track record of working effectively in collaboration with colleagues is required.
• A strong commitment to human rights research and strategic work that has impact is required.
• A deep understanding of global rights trends and critical human rights challenges and opportunities, and an ability to formulate strategies for impact given an evolving global advocacy landscape are required.
• Excellent writing, editing, and fact-checking skills, mastery of best practices in research and publication standards are required.
• Strong out-of-the-box thinker with a proven track record preparing an organization for the challenges of the future are required.

Track record of success in leading teams

• A high degree of emotional intelligence and collegiality is required.
• Experience effectively managing senior managers is required.
• Ability to coach colleagues to understand stakeholders’ perspectives and to handle high-level stakeholder challenges is required.
• Demonstrated awareness and sensitivity to the needs and concerns of individuals with diverse identities, cultures, backgrounds, skillsets, and orientations is required.
• An awareness of their own limitations, who leads by example and drives performance while displaying personal growth and openness to feedback are required.
• Experience with and commitment to being a collaborative team player who can empathetically engage with staff across levels and jurisdictions is required.
• Ability to act in a transparent and consistent manner guided by the values and best interest of the organization is required.
• Ability to adapt and lead confidently through complex, evolving situations is required.
• Ability to contribute to an organizational culture of learning, trust, resilience, and collaboration is required.

Experience with delivering results

• Track record of identifiable and measurable successes in managing and advising on complex projects, implementing operational change, and overseeing effective systems design and implementation is required.
• Experience in contributing to a work culture and practice that is inclusive and that attracts and retains staff from diverse backgrounds is required.
• Experience cultivating and facilitating interdisciplinary collaboration is required.
• Demonstrated ability to set priorities, delegate responsibilities, and allocate resources is required.
• Demonstrated ability to apply culturally competent behaviors, attitudes, and practices to enable effective policies and structures is required.
• Excellent presentation, communication, public speaking and listening skills are required.
• Fluency in English is required. Fluency in a second language is preferred, in particular Arabic, French or Spanish.

Salary and Benefits: HRW seeks exceptional applicants and offers competitive compensation and employer-paid benefits. HRW offers a relocation assistance package and will assist employees in obtaining necessary work authorization where we have the ability to do so if required; citizens of all nationalities are encouraged to apply. If based in the United States, the salary range for this position is USD 230,000 – 245,000. Salary ranges outside of the United States vary based on location.

How to Apply: Please apply immediately or by April 30, 2025, by visiting our online job portal at careers.hrw.org and submitting a cover letter and CV or resume. No calls or email inquiries, please. Only complete applications will be reviewed, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

If you are experiencing technical difficulties with your application submission, please email recruitment@hrw.org. Due to the large response, application submissions via email will not be accepted and inquiries regarding the status of applications will go unanswered.

Human Rights Watch is strong because it is diverse. We actively seek a diverse applicant pool and encourage candidates of all backgrounds based anywhere to apply. Human Rights Watch does not discriminate on the basis of disability, age, gender identity and expression, national origin, race and ethnicity, religious beliefs, sexual orientation, or criminal record. We welcome all kinds of diversity. Our employees include people who are parents and nonparents, the self-taught and university educated, and from a wide span of socio-economic backgrounds and perspectives on the world. Human Rights Watch is an equal opportunity employer.

Human Rights Watch is an international human rights monitoring and advocacy organization known for its in-depth investigations, its incisive and timely reporting, its innovative and high-profile advocacy campaigns, and its success in changing the human rights-related policies and practices of influential governments and international institutions.