Senior Manager, Confederation of Meningitis Organisations (CoMO)

Senior Manager, Confederation of Meningitis Organisations (CoMO)

Location: Remote or hybrid (Bristol office)

Contract: Full-time, permanent

Salary: £42,000 - £45,000

Closing date: 20 November

Help lead a global community working to defeat meningitis

Meningitis Research Foundation is looking for an experienced, collaborative and strategic Senior Manager to lead the Confederation of Meningitis Organisations (CoMO), our global member network.

This is an exciting opportunity to shape CoMO’s strategy, strengthen its membership and partnerships, and ensure the voices and experiences of people affected by meningitis influence our work and the wider global effort to defeat the disease.

Reporting to the Director of Research and Services, you will provide senior operational leadership for CoMO, with responsibility spanning strategy, membership development, advocacy, partnerships, governance, funding and impact. You will also lead the team responsible for delivering the day-to-day member experience.

The role

Your key responsibilities will include:

• Leading CoMO’s strategy and annual operating plan, translating organisational priorities into clear plans, budgets, milestones and impact measures
• Developing CoMO’s membership strategy, including recruitment, retention and stronger representation in high-burden and under-represented countries
• Building trusted senior relationships with member organisations, lived-experience advocates and external partners
• Setting the direction for member learning, capacity strengthening and peer exchange
• Championing meaningful involvement of people affected by meningitis across MRF’s work
• Leading CoMO’s contribution to global advocacy, including the WHO Global Road Map to Defeat Meningitis by 2030 and MRF’s Race to 2030 programme
• Maintaining partnerships with organisations including WHO, UNICEF and Gavi, alongside other global and regional health bodies, civil society networks and funders
• Leading CoMO’s strategic involvement in World Meningitis Day
• Overseeing governance, operational risk, budgets, funding opportunities and impact measurement
• Line-managing the CoMO Membership Senior Officer and overseeing relevant consultants, freelancers, interns and volunteers.

About you

We’re looking for someone who combines strong programme leadership with excellent relationship-building skills and an understanding of how to bring together diverse organisations and voices around a shared purpose.

You will bring:

• Experience leading membership networks, civil society coalitions, patient organisations, advocacy networks or multi-country partnerships
• Experience developing programmes that strengthen advocacy, awareness, capacity, collaboration or policy influence
• Excellent stakeholder-management skills, with the ability to build trust across community organisations, lived-experience advocates, senior partners, funders and technical experts
• Strong programme-management skills, including planning, budgeting, risk management, monitoring and reporting
• Experience supporting governance, committees, advisory groups or boards
• Strong facilitation and convening skills across countries and time zones
• Excellent written communication skills and the ability to make complex information clear and accessible
• Good judgement, diplomacy and resilience when managing sensitive issues and competing priorities
• A strong commitment to meaningful lived-experience involvement, equity, diversity, inclusion, safeguarding and respectful partnership.

Experience of global health advocacy, WHO processes, civil society engagement or policy influencing would be particularly valuable. Experience working with patient or survivor networks, organisations in lower-resource settings, fundraising and donor reporting, or impact measurement would also be welcomed. Additional language skills, particularly French, Spanish or Arabic, are desirable.

Why join MRF

This is an opportunity to take a leading role in an international network and help strengthen the contribution of civil society and people with lived experience to the global effort to defeat meningitis.

You will work closely with colleagues across Meningitis Research Foundation, CoMO members and global health partners to turn strategy into practical opportunities for members to collaborate, build their capacity, strengthen advocacy and increase their impact.

Other Benefits

• 25 days’ annual leave, plus statutory and public holidays
• 6% employer pension contribution, alongside a 2% employee contribution
• Two paid volunteering days each year
• Time off in Lieu to support a healthy work-life balance
• Access to employee discounts through Peninsula
• BUPA-backed Employee Assistance Programme for you and your immediate family.

How to apply

Please submit:

• your current CV; and
• a covering letter explaining your interest in the role and how your experience meets the person specification to talent@meningitis.org

Closing date: 20 November

Meningitis Research Foundation is committed to safeguarding, equality, diversity and inclusion. We warmly welcome applications from people with different backgrounds, experiences and perspectives and will make reasonable adjustments throughout the recruitment process and employment.