Chief of Region, Africa & Chief of Region, Asia for Orbis International

SRI Executive Search has been contracted by Orbis International to assist with the search for exceptional candidates to fill the positions of Chief of Region, Africa and Chief of Region, Asia.

About Orbis International

We believe in a world where everyone can access the eye care they need to thrive.

Orbis is an international nonprofit building sustainable eye care systems globally, bringing treatment and prevention within reach for all.

Changing the Way the World Sees

A staggering 90% of all vision loss is treatable or preventable. That equates to 1 billion people on this planet living with vision loss from avoidable causes. Nine out of ten people with vision loss live in low- and middle-income countries, and 55% are women and girls.

To combat this, we build strong eye care systems that cover the full range of eye care services from educating people about eye health and the importance of preventive care to identifying eye conditions in the community to providing treatment and follow-up services for those who need them.

To learn more about Orbis, go to www.orbis.org.

Role Purpose

We are seeking two visionary and strategic regional leaders: Chief of Region, Africa and Chief of Region, Asia.

The Chief of Region(s) are members of Orbis International's Executive Leadership Team (ELT) and are accountable for the overall leadership, performance, growth, and impact of Orbis's multi-country portfolio across the respective regions.

These roles hold enterprise-level responsibility for translating Orbis's Global Strategic Plan into regional strategy, operational excellence, financial stewardship, policy influence, partnership growth, and sustainable resource mobilization.

The Chiefs lead high-performing Country Directors, strengthen regional partnerships, drive policy and advocacy influence, oversee crisis leadership, and support diversified fundraising across the region in close collaboration with the Chief Development Officer (CDO), Chief Program Officer (CPO), Chief Medical Officer (CMO), Country Directors, and CEO.

As Orbis's most senior representatives in the regions, the Chiefs serve as principal regional spokespeople and thought leaders, advancing Orbis's visibility, credibility, and growth.

Chief of Region (CRAF, CRAS)

• Accountable for overall regional performance, growth, fundraising support, and external influence.
• Holds direct line management of Country Directors.
• Leads regional strategy execution, partnerships, advocacy, crisis leadership, and donor engagement.
• Owns integrated regional portfolio results including programmatic, financial, and organizational.

Chief Program Officer (CPO)

• Accountable for global program strategy, technical standards, models of care, innovation frameworks, and impact measurement across the enterprise.
• Provides technical leadership and ensures consistency and excellence across all regions.
• Partners with Regional Chiefs to ensure high-quality implementation and learning.

In essence, the Chief of Region(s) leads regional enterprise performance and growth, while the CPO defines and safeguards global programmatic excellence and standards. The roles operate as strategic peers with shared accountability for impact and scale.

Major Duties and Responsibilities

Regional Strategy Leadership

• Lead development and execution of a bold regional strategy aligned with Orbis's Global Strategic Plan.
• Translate enterprise priorities into integrated regional and country-level operating plans and budgets.
• Oversee regional portfolio strategy to ensure coherence, scalability, innovation, and sustainability.
• Identify emerging opportunities for growth, systems strengthening, and cross-sector collaboration.

Country Leadership & Performance Management

• Provide direct line management, coaching, and performance oversight to Country Directors.
• Ensure country offices are high-performing, compliant, financially sound, and aligned with global standards.
• Drive accountability through KPIs, performance dashboards, and continuous improvement mechanisms.
• Foster an inclusive, values-driven, high-performance culture across the region.

Regional Fundraising & Resource Mobilization Leadership

• Partner closely with the CDO, CEO, CPO, and Country Directors to strengthen and diversify regional revenue streams.
• Support identification, cultivation, and stewardship of major institutional, government, corporate, and philanthropic funding opportunities within the region.
• Engage directly with high-level donors and funding partners as a senior representative of Orbis.
• Ensure strong alignment between program strategy and funding strategy across the regional portfolio.
• Support proposal development for strategic opportunities, particularly those requiring executive-level engagement or regional coordination.

Policy, Advocacy & Influencing

• Lead Orbis's regional policy and advocacy agenda in alignment with global priorities.
• Identify and strategically engage in key policy windows, regional convenings, and global moments.
• Influence health systems strengthening, integration, and financing discussions at regional and national levels.
• Position Orbis as a recognized leader in eye health and broader health systems discourse.

External Engagement & Strategic Partnerships

• Serve as Orbis's senior representative with governments, multilaterals, UN agencies, development banks, NGOs, civil society, and private sector actors.
• Build and deepen regional partnerships that extend beyond traditional eye health stakeholders into broader health and development ecosystems.
• Act as regional spokesperson and thought leader to elevate Orbis's brand and influence.

Financial Stewardship, Risk & Crisis Leadership

• Hold full accountability for regional financial performance, delegated budget authority, and compliance.
• Ensure strong internal controls and donor compliance across all countries.
• Lead regional crisis management, security oversight, and risk mitigation planning.

Global Collaboration & Organizational Leadership

• Contribute actively to ELT strategy and enterprise-wide decision-making.
• Partner closely with the Chief Program Officer and Chief Medical Officer to ensure program quality, innovation, and evidence-based delivery.
• Elevate regional insights to inform global strategy, advocacy, and learning.

Key Competencies

• Enterprise & Strategic Leadership
• Executive-Level Fundraising & Partnership Engagement
• High-Level Influencing & Diplomacy
• Financial & Risk Management
• Crisis Leadership
• Cross-Cultural Team Leadership
• Systems Thinking & Portfolio Management
• Executive Communication & Public Representation
• Change Leadership

Value & Competencies

At Orbis, our values and competencies are central to how we work and grow, both as individuals and as a global organization. These expectations apply to all employees and help ensure that we are aligned in our mission and impact.

Our Values in Action

We are guided by five values: Accountability, Commitment, Innovation, Integrity, and Equity.These values reflect how we engage with our colleagues, partners, and the communities we serve. We expect everyone at Orbis to model these values in daily decisions and behaviors.

Our Competencies in Action

These describe the key skills and behaviors needed to succeed at Orbis. They are used in performance discussions and to support career development across roles.

Click here for a quick overview of our values and competencies.

Profile

• Advanced degree in public health, international development, health systems, management, or related field highly preferred.
• 15+ years of progressive senior leadership experience in global health or international development.
• Demonstrated leadership of multi-country or regional portfolios with accountability for strategy, people, programs, budgets, and revenue growth.
• Proven success engaging donors, governments, and multilateral institutions at senior levels.
• Experience supporting resource mobilization and major funding negotiations.
• Track record of leading through growth, complexity, and crisis.
• Regional expertise and networks highly preferred.
• Willingness to travel regionally and internationally.
• Commitment to equity, safeguarding, and ethical leadership.
• Ability to travel regionally & internationally (30%).

Terms of Appointment

This is a full-time position.

Reporting and Working Relationships

Reports to: CEO

Supervises: Country Directors within the assigned region and Regional functional leadership (as applicable).

Works with: You will collaborate closely with the members of the Executive Leadership Team, most especially the Chief Program Officer, Chief Medical Officer, Chief Development Officer, Chief Financial Officer, and Chief People & Culture Officer. The Chief partners closely with the CDO, CEO and CPO as well, on translating global program and influencing priorities at the regional and local levels on strategic donor relationships and major funding opportunities across the region.

Orbis is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants, regardless of race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, disability, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic.

We encourage applications from qualified individuals of all backgrounds, cultures, and communities, particularly those underrepresented in the international nonprofit sector. Orbis is proud to foster an environment where everyone can contribute meaningfully and thrive.

Role Location

Global

How to Apply

To apply for this position, please ensure you click Apply and complete the Application Form by 27 March 2026 (23:59 hrs, GMT -4). It is essential that you submit your CV in English, specifically in Microsoft Word format (.doc/.docx), not exceeding 10MB.

Applications in other languages or formats will not be considered.

Rest assured, all information will be handled with the utmost confidentiality.