Operations Lead - Asia region
Full time. Permanent. Hybrid working
Location: Dhaka, Bangladesh (You will be required to attend the office for a minimum of 2 days per week with the option to work remotely for the remaining 3 days).
Salary: 4,475,298.00 Bangladeshi Taka
Applications and CV to be submitted in ENGLISH only
About us
Christian Aid exists to create a world where everyone can live a full life, free from poverty. We are a global movement of people, churches and local organisations who passionately champion dignity, equality and justice worldwide. We are the changemakers, the peacemakers, the mighty of heart.
We’re committed to building a diverse and inclusive workplace, and recognise the value this brings in forming strong, creative and high performing teams. We welcome applications from all sections of the community, and from those with experience from outside of the voluntary sector. And no, you don’t have to be Christian to work here – we encourage people of all faiths and none to apply. We just ask that everyone lives out our values of dignity, equality, justice and love. We value a good work-life balance, so we’re open to part-time and flexible working. We also offer hybrid working for our office-based colleagues and the option of being a homeworker for most of our roles too.
Learn about our vision, mission and values
About the role
Reporting in to the Head of Multi-Country Cluster (MCC), the Operations Lead for the Asia region is a member of the senior leadership team and provides strategic and representational leadership for the cluster on operational excellence, making things happen for programme colleagues and partners across multiple countries and connecting with other departments to facilitate programme and advocacy impact, aligning with organisational values and goals.
The post-holder will manage internal operations for effective programme delivery across the MCC, including ensuring that partners
(active, inactive, new) are supported with capacity assessments (POCRA), in line with Charter for Change commitments, and putting in place systems and procedures to ensure swift, compliant funding flows to partners in high-risk environments in line with Christian Aid’s risk appetite to maximise impact.
The role will ensure compliance to Christian Aid grant making policies though close cooperation with finance and partnership leads.
Some of the main areas of responsibility for the Operations Lead will include:
- Drive our systems to enable better high-performance and delivery of strategy at MCC, aligning with organisational values and goals.
- Foster a mindset of connection and collaboration across the priority countries that enable portfolio leads to achieve success.
- Foster a team mindset to ensure that the Business Insight and Process Improvement Team work alongside the Tech Team to support improvements in ways of working and build towards operational excellence through systems developments and improvements to maximise impact.
- Manage our risk appetite by planning well, having agile budgets, invest in innovation while maintaining our integrity as a UK registered charity and a going concern.
- Drive the team to ensure adaptability and agility of our programmes, keeping our organisation lean, finding cost-effective solutions and streamline decision making to enable flexible and responsive to evolving needs and contexts within the MCC.
- Oversee the digital platforms to ensure they secure and provide new ways to engage communities and develop new innovative technological use (including where AI is applied), to listen to and work with CSOs and other partners, as well as provide exciting and decolonial ways to gather data about impact across the MCC.
- Manage internal operations for effective programme delivery and ensure cost efficiency by considering whether repetitive and/or non-core activities are best provided by a third party via outsourcing to finding cost-effective and streamlined solutions.
About you
Who we are looking for
Essential:
- Fluent in English (written and spoken)
- Degree ideally in Management Science or Organisational Development or substantial equivalent professional experience.
- Substantial experience in business insight and process improvement on operational excellence (e.g. planning).
- Understanding of development issues and best practice.
- Highly developed ability in risk assessment in order to assess the organisation’s risk appetite and set risk.
- Demonstrated ability to get things done in complex settings.
- Highly developed interpersonal and communication skills, both verbal and written, and ability to build relationships with senior stakeholders and negotiate.
- Detailed understanding and experience of programmes varying in size, complexity, thematic priority and strategic approach.
- Highly developed analytical, creative and strategic thinking ability.
Desirable:
- Significant leadership and management experience in organisational effectiveness, strategic thinking, planning, budgeting and monitoring.
- Developed ability to provide thought leadership and innovative solutions.
- Highly developed ability to represent in public and in the media.
Further information
At Christian Aid we strive to be an inclusive and diverse employer and recognise the value that this brings in helping to build strong, creative and high performing teams.
We are actively encouraging racialised minorities, LGBTQ+, people with disabilities, returning parents or carers who are re-entering work after a career break, people with caring responsibilities, people from low socioeconomic backgrounds, women, and older workers to apply. This is because these groups are under-represented within our teams, especially at senior level, and we recognise and value the contributions members of these groups make to strong, creative and high performing teams.
We have a strong Christian ethos and we encourage applications from all faiths. Applicants will be expected to demonstrate an understanding of and sympathy with Christian Aid’s faith identity.
All successful candidates will require a DBS/police check appropriate to the role and location and a Counter Terrorism Sanction check as part of your clearance for commencing your role with us. We also participate in the Inter Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. In line with this Scheme, we will request information as part of the referencing process from job applicants’ previous employers about any findings of sexual exploitation, sexual abuse and/or sexual harassment during employment, or incidents under investigation when the applicant left employment. By submitting an application, the job applicant confirms their understanding of these recruitment procedures.
This role requires applicants to have the right to live and work in the country where this position is based and undertake the role that you have been offered. If you are successful and we make you an offer for the role, we will be required to conduct a right to work check on your immigration status in the UK. We will contact you regarding the documentation you will need to provide to evidence this.
For Salary details for this role, please refer to the Salary band by location.
- Salary (full time):T4,475,298
- Type of contract:Permanent
- Contracted hours:35
- Location:MCC Hub - Asia (Dhaka, Bangladesh)
- Closing date:13 October 2025
Documents for Application
Further Information
As a volunteer, you will receive:
- Support and supervision from a named contact within Christian Aid
- Appropriate induction and training for your volunteering role.
- Out-of-pocket expenses as agreed.
- Our regular volunteers e-newsletter
- Access to our Volunteers’ Hub for all our latest news, events and resources
If you do not see a suitable vacancy, please register for job alerts to be the first to know about new oppotunities. To keep up-to-date about Christian Aid, you can follow us on LinkedIn and Facebook.