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Greenpeace International

International Programme Director

The International Program Director of Greenpeace International will drive a global strategy that aims to shift the way power is distributed and focuses on the wellbeing of people and the planet’s health. Reporting to the International Executive Directors, you will lead a team of international campaign leaders and support the efforts of the national and regional offices working in 55 countries. You understand what makes campaigns effective and how to adapt strategy in times of change. You also have strong internal leadership skills to motivate a dispersed team and build effective organizational processes for a complex global organization.

About Greenpeace International

Greenpeace exists because this fragile earth deserves a voice. It needs solutions. It needs change. It needs action. Greenpeace speaks for 2.8 million supporters worldwide, and encourages many millions more to take action every day.

Greenpeace International headquarters is based in Amsterdam, and the global network includes 26 independent national and regional offices covering operations in more than 55 countries. These offices carry out global campaign strategies within their local context and seek the necessary financial support from donors to fund this work. Through an inclusive process, Greenpeace International coordinates worldwide campaigns and supports and monitors the development and performance of the national and regional offices.

Purpose of the Role

The International Programme Director (IPD) facilitates and leads a global programme community that is ambitious, tough and pragmatic. She or he reports to the International Executive Director, and takes the lead on all programme and campaigning matters. The IPD manages the team of Global Campaign Leaders, which enables National and Regional Offices (NROs) to achieve the global campaign goals. The Director is responsible for ensuring that the global programme is “tight on strategy,” understanding that it is NROs that implement.  She or he will drive efforts to achieve the 10-year framework aimed at achieving transformative change.

The IPD also ensures that Greenpeace strategy remains informed by external realities, and keeps an eye out for opportunities and vulnerabilities for the organization, knowing what and where Greenpeace has strength to take advantage.    

Main Responsibilities

1. Strategy

The IPD is responsible for the overarching global programme strategy, and collaborates with NROs, global programme teams and others to facilitate and drive effective, sophisticated and organizationally-owned strategies. The IPD ensures that the team of Global Campaign Leaders (GCLs) ensures that global projects by NROs deliver to that strategy. The Director understands global campaigning and ensures that strategy is informed by external reality, and is in line with the 10-year Framework as well as the short term programme goals.

2. Leadership

The IPD supports the International Executive Director in partnership with the other members of GPI’s Strategy and Management Team (SMT) to ensure a highly capable management structure and environment with excellent functional qualities, an enabling and positive culture, and effective people to ensure the continuity and quality of GPI performance. The IPD should lead by example both in their knowledge and experience but also in how she or he works with others.

3. Management

  • Programme Responsibility:
    The IPD leads and directly manages a core team made up of Global Campaign Leaders and a small operational unit. The Director will create an integrated team culture that is focused, dynamic and works well together. She or he is responsible for identifying and leading strategic discussions and decisions among the GPI global programme team and global programme leaders from the NROs, to achieve a high level of shared analysis, strategic alignment and orientation, and to nurture working relationships to benefit each part of the organization.
  • Greenpeace International Responsibility:
    As a member of the SMT, the IPD supports the International Executive Director to ensure the effective performance of the SMT, and to ensure they manage, lead, enable, coach and inspire teams across GPI in order for them to reach their maximum potential and deliver on Greenpeace goals.
  • Integrated Management:
    The IPD has a collaborative working relationship with the Engagement and Operations Directors that helps ensure strong integration across these functions for the  global programme.
  • Greenpeace GLT Responsibility:
    The IPD supports the IEDs on initiatives relating to the Global Leadership Team, and adds strategic perspective to discussions relating to the programme strategy and organizational direction, especially providing programme guidance and advice around NRO three-year strategic plans.

4. Representation and Stakeholder Relationship

The IPD represents Greenpeace as a senior leader, both internally and externally. She or he speaks on behalf of Greenpeace, representing the organization with other NGOs, donors, supporters, the media, governments, representatives of civil society, trade unions, faith and religious leaders, and the public at large.

5. Programme

  • The Framework:
    The IPD is responsible for leading the implementation of the ten-year Framework, which guides the strategy, milestones, and priority geographies for the global programme campaigns. It covers the external context, the trends and the role of Greenpeace, links key issues to geographic priorities, and identifies ambitious objectives and outcomes. Three-year goals and related strategic guidance for projects are developed to drive and focus that work, and the responsibility for ensuring this happens lies with the IPD.
  • Programme Ways of Working:
    The IPD ensures the global programme team, and related functions are organized and behave in a way that enables clarity of roles, responsibilities and decision making for the rest of the organization, so that the team collectively enables the  delivery of dynamic and inspiring engagement projects.
  • Global Campaigns and Projects:
    The IPD provides strategic management of the overall programme and any other relevant functions into strategic teams who are responsible for the development, execution and delivery of global campaign strategy goals and impact in line with the Framework.
  • Distributed Campaigning:
    The IPD works with the SMT, global programme team and NROs to evaluate and propose any necessary adjustments to distributed campaigning, and to ensure Greenpeace delivers on the ambition of the operating model and is able to evolve to deliver the Framework. This means keeping in mind the NRO role for designing and implementing campaigns, while at the same time ensuring GPI maintains a strong global centre that provides clear strategic direction, supports experimentation and assists NROs to innovate, test, plan, manage and execute campaign projects that have impact.
  • Ensure Strategic Alignment:
    The IPD ensures strategic alignment of the programme across NROs and works in an integrated fashion with other departments such as Operations (ships, actions and investigations) and Global Engagement, to ensure that Greenpeace campaigns are inspiring, engaging and impactful by collectively providing integrated, rigorous, high quality and strategic analysis, orientation, systems and tools.

6. Finances

The IPD supports the IED and Finance Director to ensure the strategic and prudent management of GPI resources to ensure donor’s funds are allocated effectively. The Director also allocates the global Programme budget and ensures effective management and transparent and timely reporting of the budget.

Skills and Qualifications

  • At least ten years senior management experience, preferably in an international and multicultural environment.
  • Commitment to Non Violent Direct Action (NVDA).
  • Understanding of the broader social change and environmental movement and the challenges faced in different contexts.
  • An intimate and experienced understanding of campaign strategy and campaign implementation and advanced campaign leadership experience.
  • Strong leadership and team building skills and experience of leading and stimulating communities of practice. Knows when to lead and when to follow.
  • Captivating communicator. Can communicate complexity simply and translate the universal to the individual and vice versa; both written and verbal.
  • Change and crisis management experience and clear decision-making ability.
  • Willingness to take risks and the ability to identify and manage risks.
  • Strong emotional intelligence and can demonstrate experience working in diverse groups or contexts.
  • Strategic thinking and an ability to translate strategy into organizational output.
  • Negotiation, problem solving and networking skills.
  • The gravitas and sensibility to serve as a Greenpeace Executive leader and the ability to convene and lead challenging conversations and debates.
  • Financial control and management experience.