Plan International is searching for a new CEO

9 August 2024

We are seeking a driven and motivated CEO to move the needle in our sector and reach over 200 million girls in the next five years.

About Plan International

Margaret, Lynne, and Racheal in Geneva to speak at the United Nations. Photo credit: Plan International / Antoine Tardy.

Plan International is an independent development and humanitarian organisation that advances children’s rights and equality for girls. We believe in the power and potential of every child but know this is often suppressed by poverty, violence, exclusion and discrimination. And it is girls who are most affected.

Working together with children, young people, supporters and partners, we strive for a just world, tackling the root causes of the challenges and inequalities that girls and children face. We support children’s rights from birth until they reach adulthood and we enable children to prepare for and respond to crises and adversity. We drive changes in practice and policy at local, national and global levels using our reach, experience and knowledge.

For over 85 years, we have rallied other determined optimists to transform the lives of all children in more than 80 countries.

We won’t stop until we are all equal.

The Opportunity

We are seeking a driven and motivated CEO with the ambition to harness Plan’s scale and size to move the needle in our sector and reach over 200 million girls in the next five years. In 2023 alone, we reached 22 million girls and 42 million children directly. We responded to over 88 disasters and humanitarian crises, providing protection and services to children, girls, and their communities.

This is a pivotal moment for Plan, our sector, and for girls. Plan is well positioned as the “go to” organisation for girls’ rights and girls in crisis.

We seek an experienced thought leader to ensure young people are centred in one of the most critical times in history – where we see a roll back on rights, shrinking space for civil society, a growing climate crisis, an expanding hunger crisis, and a surge of humanitarian need around the world.

Our next CEO will lead us in:

Implementing a sustainable, locally-led globally-connected strategy and operating model that is fit for the future
Amplifying and strengthening our commitment to shifting power closer to the point of impact.
Championing the many leaders across Plan – strengthening our operational efficiency, supporting fundraising efforts across the organisation, and engaging donors.
Driving key priorities including our investment in the next generation of sponsorship, upscaling our humanitarian efforts, maximising the effectiveness of our global footprint, and ensuring we can report our impact to our supporters while navigating sector-wide financial constraints and changing funding flows.
Fostering an environment where we work as “One Plan”, bringing meaning to our core values.

Note: The CEO should be located where they can best serve our team, including being able to overlap time zones with our hubs based in the UK and Kenya.

To Learn More

PII is supported by the global executive search firm Egon Zehnder for this search process. If you are interested in this role, please reach out to us at PII_CEOapplication@egonzehnder.com for further details.

Please also contact EgonZehnder via this address if there is anyone in your network who you feel we should reach out to. Please do not submit any applications via the Plan International website.

The submission deadline is 28 August 2024.