Job Description

Position Title: Director, Technical Services, Laboratory

Position Type: Regular Full-Time

Department: MOMENTUM

Location: Washington, DC - Hybrid

Salary Range: $102,000 - $132,500 - $163,000*

Note: The posted salary range reflects the full range of Corus' Director pay grade and does not represent the anticipated hiring salary for this position. The target hiring range for the Director, Technical Services, Laboratory is expected to fall between the minimum and midpoint of the pay grade, based on program budget, internal equity and experience.

Corus International provides a competitive, growth-oriented, yet fiscally responsible compensation program.

Additionally, Corus provides a comprehensive and competitive employee benefit package to protect our valued and dedicated staff and their families. Our benefits include three medical plan options with comprehensive prescription drug coverage, low-cost dental coverage with 100% paid vision insurance. Corus also provides a generous retirement plan and PTO to include vacation, sick, holiday, parental, jury, international travel, and bereavement leave; employer-sponsored basic life/AD&D insurance; employee wellness incentives, and employee work/life balance and assistance programs.

Corus International is seeking a Director, Technical Services, Laboratory to provide strategic and technical leadership to strengthen laboratory systems and diagnostic services supporting infectious disease prevention, detection, surveillance, and response under the U.S. Government funded MOMENTUM Integrated Health Resilience (MIHR) project, primarily in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and other African countries.

This hybrid position will be based at headquarters in Washington, DC with in-office days on Tuesdays and Wednesdays each week.

The Director, Technical Services leads and advises country teams as they collaborate closely with Ministries of Health (MoH), the National Public Health Institute (INSP), the National Laboratory Directorate, provincial health authorities, and implementing partners to strengthen laboratory capacity for priority infectious diseases, including Ebola Virus Disease (EVD), Mpox, HIV, tuberculosis (TB), malaria, vaccine-preventable diseases (VPDs), and other emerging public health threats.

This role provides technical direction across laboratory network strengthening, quality management systems, biosafety and biosecurity, specimen referral systems, outbreak preparedness and response, workforce development, and laboratory information systems, ensuring activities are aligned with national policies, international standards, and Global Health Security priorities.

Responsibilities:

Technical Leadership

• Provide strategic and technical leadership for laboratory functions supporting EVD, Mpox, HIV, TB, malaria, vaccine-preventable diseases, and other emerging infectious diseases.
• Support country teams and provide technical direction in the development of annual workplans related to strengthening laboratory systems.
• Support Ministries of Health in implementing national laboratory strategic plans, policies, standards, and operational guidelines.
• Advise on laboratory system improvements, including referral networks, specimen transport systems, and diagnostic services.
• Provide technical assistance to strengthen laboratory preparedness and response capacity for disease outbreaks and public health emergencies.
• Provide technical assistance to ensure laboratory interventions align with the Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA), International Health Regulations (IHR 2005), and USG best practices and priorities.

Laboratory Systems Strengthening

• Provide technical assistance to strengthen integrated national and provincial laboratory networks.
• Develop systems to improve specimen collection, transportation, referral, testing, reporting, and quality assurance systems.
• Develop tools and methodologies to conduct laboratory assessments and develop corrective action plans.
• Provide technical support for the implementation of laboratory quality management systems (QMS), accreditation pathways, including ISO 15189 and SLIPTA, and continuous quality improvement initiatives.
• Strengthen biosafety, biosecurity, infection prevention and control (IPC), and waste management practices.

Capacity Building

• Work with country teams to identify capacity-building needs and develop plans to address gaps and strengthen the institutional capacity of Ministry of Health staff at the national and subnational levels, as well as laboratory partners.
• Develop and deliver laboratory training programs, supportive supervision activities, and competency assessments.
• Develop tools and systems for mentoring laboratory personnel at the national, provincial, and facility levels.
• Promote continuous professional development, technical learning, and knowledge sharing.

Disease Surveillance and Outbreak Response

• Provide technical assistance in developing standard operating procedures and manuals for laboratory confirmation and surveillance of epidemic-prone diseases.
• Provide technical assistance during outbreak investigations and emergency responses, including those involving Ebola, Mpox, cholera, measles, yellow fever, and other priority diseases.
• Strengthen the integration of laboratory services within surveillance systems, including Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response (IDSR) and event-based surveillance.
• Support laboratory surge-capacity planning and emergency preparedness.
• Promote compliance with biosafety and biosecurity standards.
• Conduct risk assessments and support the implementation of appropriate mitigation measures.
• Provide technical assistance regarding the measures and resources needed to ensure proper waste management and infection prevention practices.

Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning

• Support the development and monitoring of laboratory performance indicators.
• Support data quality assessments and the effective use of laboratory information systems.
• Analyze laboratory data to improve program performance and inform decision-making.
• Contribute to donor reports, technical documents, success stories, scientific publications, and presentations.
• Document lessons learned and best practices to support the continued strengthening of national laboratory systems.

Stakeholder Engagement

• Collaborate with Ministries of Health, National Public Health Institutes, donors, government counterparts, and implementing partners.
• Participate in regional and global technical working groups, coordination meetings, and professional forums.
• Represent Corus International and the project in international and regional laboratory and public health forums.
• Build and maintain productive relationships with technical partners and key stakeholders.

Supervisory:

• This position does not have direct reports.

Required Qualifications:

• Master's degree in medical laboratory sciences, Microbiology, Infectious Diseases, Molecular Biology, Clinical Pathology, or a related field and a minimum of eight years of progressively responsible professional experience supporting national laboratory systems, infectious disease programs, or public health laboratory services; or the equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Medical Doctor (MD), PhD, or equivalent advanced qualification is preferred.
• Demonstrated experience supporting Ministries of Health in fragile, conflict-affected, humanitarian, or emergency settings, preferably in the Democratic Republic of Congo or Sub-Saharan Africa.
• Experience working on USG-funded programs, including programs funded by the U.S. Department of State, USAID, CDC, PEPFAR, PMI, or similar donor-funded initiatives.
• Experience participating in international technical forums and working groups.
• Proven experience supporting laboratory components of HIV, TB, malaria, vaccine-preventable diseases, Ebola, Mpox, and other outbreak-response programs.
• Experience with laboratory quality management systems, accreditation, biosafety, biosecurity, and laboratory network strengthening.
• Experience providing technical assistance, mentoring, and capacity building to government counterparts and implementing partners.
• Demonstrated experience providing strategic leadership and technical direction across multiple countries, projects, or technical workstreams.
• Experience with laboratory information systems, data analysis, and the use of data for programmatic decision-making.
• Experience supporting outbreak preparedness and response.
• Must have authorization to work in the United States without the need for employer sponsorship now or in the future.
• Strong knowledge of laboratory diagnostics, quality assurance, quality management systems, and accreditation standards.
• Familiarity with laboratory programs related to Ebola Virus Disease, Mpox, HIV, TB, malaria, vaccine-preventable diseases, and other emerging infectious diseases.
• Strong knowledge of biosafety and biosecurity principles.
• Strong technical writing, report-writing, communication, and presentation skills.
• Ability to communicate complex technical information effectively to government officials, donors, technical specialists, and nontechnical audiences.
• Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively with multicultural and multidisciplinary teams.
• Fluent in English language with French an added advantage.

Physical and Mental Requirements:

• The physical requirements that may be needed to execute responsibilities may include bending, standing, and walking, etc.
• The mental requirements that are essential to satisfactorily executing the responsibilities outlined in this job description include, but are not limited to: learning new tasks, comprehending, and retaining information, completing tasks independently, effectively communicating verbally and in writing, demonstrating proficiency in using computer software to perform assigned tasks.

Other Duties:

This job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive list of activities, duties or responsibilities for the position. Duties, responsibilities and activities may change at any time with or without notice. All positions are required to perform any additional tasks assigned by the supervisor. Global positions that are bound by contracts will not be changed without notice and approval.

Working Conditions, Travel and Environment

• Corus has a hybrid work policy, allowing work to be done remotely; two days per week (Tuesday and Wednesday) in the office is required.  The employee must be available to work outside normal office hours or weekends as required.
• This position must be able to travel as required for standard domestic and international business purposes. While performing the duties of this job in different locations, the employee may be exposed to precarious settings under high-security risks and/or very basic living conditions and outside weather conditions, as well as to infectious diseases.
• If applicable, must have authorization to work in the country of assignment.

As a member of the Corus Family, each employee is expected to:

• Foster a work environment where everyone feels valued and included.
• Support employees' evaluation and promotion processes based on skills and performance.
• Promote a safe, secure, and respectful environment for all members of Corus family, stakeholders in general, and particularly for the communities we serve.
• Follow Corus Code of Conduct helping to prevent any type of abuse including workplace harassment, sexual abuse and exploitation, and trafficking in persons.
• Adhere to the Organizational Core Values.

Corus International is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, disability, genetic information, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law.