Website IPA Tanzania
IPA Tanzania
IT Director
Organization: Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA)
Application Deadline: 31 March 2026
Location: Remote (from countries where IPA has registered offices)
About IPA
Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA) generates and applies research to help people living in poverty thrive.
The global IT function supports:
- ~450 staff across 20 country offices
- Hundreds of field-based data collectors
- A distributed workforce operating in varied connectivity environments
The IT ecosystem is:
- Data-intensive and integration-heavy
- Built primarily on SaaS platforms and Microsoft Azure
- Managed by a lean internal IT team (6 staff) with external consultants
Job Summary
The IT Director leads IPA’s global IT function by:
- Setting strategic direction
- Establishing governance frameworks
- Building a high-performing, service-oriented IT team
⚠️ This is a leadership role, not a hands-on technical position.
Success in this Role Looks Like:
- A structured team with clear ownership
- Governance frameworks that are actively followed
- Sustainable, long-term technology decisions
- Strong alignment between IT and organizational needs
Key Responsibilities
1. IT Strategy & Governance
- Develop and maintain IT strategy aligned with:
- Organizational priorities
- Resource constraints
- Compliance requirements
- Own IT governance frameworks:
- Security policies
- Data governance
- Access control
- Vendor management
- Ensure policies are:
- Practical and enforceable
- Understood across all country offices
- Advise senior leadership on:
- Technology risks
- Investment decisions
- Evaluate emerging technologies (AI, automation)
2. Leadership & Team Management
- Lead and develop a team of 6 IT professionals:
- Systems administrators
- Data engineers
- Support staff
- Build team structure with:
- Clear ownership
- Redundancies for critical functions
- Foster a culture of:
- Documentation
- Accountability
- Service orientation
- Set priorities and manage capacity with senior leadership
3. Security, Compliance & Risk
- Lead information security strategy
- Ensure compliance with:
- Donor requirements
- Regulatory standards
- Oversee:
- Audit readiness
- Incident response
- Coordinate with legal and senior leadership on security issues
4. Organizational Alignment
- Lead change management for major IT initiatives
- Ensure system adoption across country offices
- Manage:
- IT budgeting
- Financial reporting
- Vendor performance and SLAs
Qualifications
Required Experience
- 7+ years in senior IT leadership roles
- 5+ years managing IT teams (including senior technical staff)
- 5+ years overseeing:
- SaaS platforms
- Cloud environments
- System integrations
- 5+ years handling technical/security escalations
- 3+ years experience in:
- IT governance and controls
- Compliance and audit environments
- IT budgeting and vendor management
- Change management for enterprise systems
Core Competencies
- Strong leadership and people development
- Ability to translate technical issues into business language
- Experience with business intelligence tools (e.g., Power BI)
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience in multi-country or distributed organizations
- Background in nonprofit, development, or donor-funded sectors
- Exposure to AI or automation initiatives
- Knowledge management or collaboration platform experience
- Professional proficiency in Spanish or French
Location & Time Zone Requirements
- Remote role (must be in a country with an IPA office)
- Must maintain:
- 2–3 hours overlap with East Africa Time (EAT)
- 2–3 hours overlap with U.S. Eastern Time (ET)
- IPA does not sponsor work permits
Reporting Line
Reports to: Senior Director, Operations & Systems
Safeguarding Commitment
IPA is committed to:
- A safe and respectful work environment
- Protection of children and vulnerable adults
- Ethical conduct and social responsibility
All staff are expected to uphold these safeguarding standards.
Why Join IPA?
Be part of a global organization dedicated to:
- Reducing poverty through evidence-based solutions
- Ethical impact and social responsibility
- Building systems that improve lives worldwide
How to Apply:
To submit your application, please follow the link provided below.
To apply for this job please visit workforcenow.adp.com.