Director, Community Engagement

Job Category: Clinical Development, General
Job Title: Director, Community Engagement
Location: Cape Town or Remote in South Africa, Nairobi Kenya
Reports to: Senior Director, Global Clinical Operations
Position Summary: Are you passionate about Clinical Research and eager to make a difference in a mission-driven organization?
IAVI is seeking an experienced Director, Community Engagement who will implement Good Participatory Practice (GPP) throughout African clinical research centers (CRCs) involved in IAVI clinical research. Working with sites from Formative research, through post-trial engagement, the Director, Community engagement will partner closely to develop and implement strategies that enhance community engagement, while building strong relationships with diverse stakeholders.
Key Responsibilities: Develop and execute a comprehensive community engagement strategy to support GPP implementation in clinical research at IAVI.Establish metrics and key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure the success of community engagement initiatives, regularly assessing and reporting on the impact of community engagement efforts on clinical trial recruitment and retention.Supervise community engagement staff, including regular check-in meetings, overseeing training and career development, and assessing performance and addressing areas for development.Accountable for determining resource needs for current and projected studies and hiring qualified staff.Collaborate with cross-functional teams to integrate community engagement into the overall clinical research development process.Oversee the development and implementation of study-level GPP Plans including determining key deliverables, budgets and timelines and providing this input to management and study teams and reporting back on progress against plans, deliverables, timelines, and budgets regularly.Oversee development of study level plans and implementation including assessment of CRC's GPP implementation readiness and plans to address GPP implementation needs.Oversee input in the protocol management plans (PMP) relevant to GPP implementation for each study.Oversee facilitation of protocol and informed consent form review and input by Community Liaison Officers (CLOs) and Community Advisory Boards (CABs).Oversee facilitation of 2-way communication between IAVI and CRCs, study participants, the wider community, CAB, and escalate concerns and issues to study team and management as appropriate.Oversee development of research literacy materials for specific indications and trial populations to support effective GPP implementation, research literacy and to address concerns as needed.Oversee effective study results dissemination to study participants, communities, and other relevant stakeholders as needed, working closely with the IAVI study team and CRCs.Co-ordinate networking of CLOs across CRCs through quarterly calls to further knowledge sharing amongst peers and build capacity.Organize annual CLO Forum to ensure cross-site engagement, sharing of best practices and lessons learned among program participants and to provide training to CLOs as needed.Build and maintain strong relationships with advocacy groups, healthcare providers, community leaders, and other key stakeholders.Write abstracts, articles, reports, publications and newsletters on GPP and Community Engagement for internal IAVI and external purposes (e.g. conferences) and involve CLOs in co-authoring of abstracts, articles, reports, publications.Identify and lead process improvement efforts including developing, reviewing, and providing input on SOPs to ensure adherence to guidelines for GPP.Stay up to date on required trainings, including identification of changes in US, EU and other applicable regulations and best practices with regards to clinical trial conduct and GPP.Contribute to grant proposals and other fund-raising activities as needed.Act as back up when a community engagement team member is temporarily unable to fulfill role (e.g. leave, illness, or pregnancy).Other duties as assigned.Education and Work Experience: Bachelor's degree in public health, social sciences or another relevant field is required.Minimum 10 years of experience in vaccine or infectious disease clinical trials in Africa and community engagement and GPP in support of clinical trials is required.Qualifications and Skills: Expert knowledge of community engagement and Good Participatory Practices is required.Strong understanding of clinical trial processes and regulations is required.Ability to lead community engagement strategy is required.Ability to deliver assigned tasks within deadlines is required.Proven ability to successfully lead teams and mentor others is required.High level of interpersonal skills and ability to work effectively with outside vendors, collaborators, subordinates and functional peer groups at various management levels is required.Excellent verbal and written communication skills is required.Ability to translate key scientific and research concepts into layman's terms is required.Ability to work collaboratively with people of diverse educational and cultural backgrounds and maintain a high standard of professional conduct as a representative of IAVI is required.Ability to develop and manage budgets is required.Excellent computer skills with software tools needed to fulfill the responsibilities of position is required. Organizational Overview: IAVI is a nonprofit scientific research organization dedicated to addressing urgent, unmetglobal healthchallenges including HIV and tuberculosis. Our mission is to translate scientific discoveries into affordable, globally accessiblepublic healthsolutions. Through scientific andclinicalresearch in Africa, India, Europe, and the U.S., IAVI is pioneering the development of biomedicalinnovations designed for broad global access. We develop vaccines and antibodies in and for the developing world and seek to accelerate their introduction in low-income countries. IAVI programs and partnerships are grounded in the regions of the world where the disease burden is the greatest, and our approach emphasizes sustainability. Our network ofclinicalresearch center partners in Africa and India helps strengthen in-country research capacity and supports the training and education of the next generation of scientists. The global impact of ourscienceincludes fundamental contributions to understanding thebiologyof HIV infection, which IAVI and others are applying toward advancing vaccinescienceand immunology. IAVI accelerates scientific discovery and development by fostering unique collaborations among academia, industry, local communities, governments, and funders to explore new and better ways to addresspublic healththreats that disproportionately affect people living in poverty. Our global reach, including aclinicalresearch network in five countries in sub-Saharan Africa and in India, has allowed us to make fundamental contributions to understanding the epidemiology, transmission, virology, and immunology of HIV. This work played a key role in facilitating the design of promising HIV vaccine candidates, as well as the discovery of broadly neutralizing antibodies that are now being advanced as promising approaches for HIV prevention. Our integrated capabilities in vaccine and antibody discovery, development, andclinicalresearch take advantage of bio-pharmaceutical industry expertise to accelerate the development and testing of prevention methods for HIV and other diseases. Through the Product Development Center, we support external researchers with technical and scientific expertise to accelerate the development of their own products.
About ADVANCE: ADVANCE (Accelerate the Development of Vaccines and New Technologies to Combat the AIDS Epidemic) is a ten-year cooperative agreement with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), through the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). This visionary $200 million program will run until June 2026 and is part of IAVI's 22-year collaboration with USAID that has significantly impacted the field of HIV vaccine R&D and accelerated the search for innovativeprevention tools, including a safe and globally effective HIV vaccine. USAID's long-term investment and willingness to foster advances inscienceto benefit the world's most at-risk populations have enabled IAVI's unique model in Africa and India.
IAVI CORE VALUES: Dedication to the Mission: We are committed to the translation of scientific discoveries into affordable, globally accessiblepublic healthsolutions.Innovative Evolution: We are committed to solving complex problems in creative and innovative ways, learning from our mistakes and successes and never giving upIntegrity: We are committed to meeting the highest ethical and professional standards in everything we do and to taking responsibility for our actions to earn respectCollaboration: We are committed to embracing diversity, the power of global teamwork and the belief that by working as one we can make a difference Disclaimer: Nothing in this job description restricts management's right to assign or reassign duties and responsibilities to this job at any time. The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by individuals assigned to this position. They are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities and skills required of personnel so classified. This document does not create an employment contract, implied or otherwise, other than an "at-will" relationship. IAVI is an equal opportunity employer and applicants will be considered for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran or disability status.
IAVI IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER actively committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive global organization. IAVI believes that diversity and inclusion among our teammates is critical, and we seek to recruit, develop and retain the most talented people from a representative candidate pool. At IAVI, we celebrate the spectrum of colleagues' experiences and believe that dedication to our mission above all is essential to our success as a scientific global non-profit. IAVI upholds these principles through IAVI's Global Diversity and Inclusion Committee.
IAVI has zero tolerance for discrimination or harassment on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, caste, national origin, home language, ancestry, religion, marital or civil partnership status, age, physical or mental disability, HIV status and any othermedicalcondition, genetic information, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, and veteran status, in addition to any other status protected under the law in any of our locations worldwide.
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