Associate Director, AI Transformation

Associate Director, AI Transformation

Location: Nairobi, Kenya; Delhi, India; Dakar, Senegal; Rabat, Morocco; Lusaka, Zambia or Manial, Philippines

About the team

IDinsight is leading the next phase of data and technology-driven development by enabling social sector organizations to develop, deploy, and evaluate AI solutions. Read more about our AI strategy.

We are hiring an entrepreneurial Associate Director to lead two parts of our AI strategy: growing our external AI Transformation Advisory practice to help partner organizations navigate their own AI journeys, and building custom AI products that reshape how we deliver our core services.

You will lead a multidisciplinary team of engineers, product managers, and consultants. You will drive external consulting engagements from development to delivery and own the product roadmap for IDinsight’s internal AI Lab.

This role will report to Rob Sampson, Senior Director of Transformation.

About IDinsight

We amplify social impact by partnering with leaders to develop tailored solutions. Our mission is to improve lives with data and evidence. We transform how the world fights poverty.

IDinsight is a global nonprofit that equips leaders with the data, evidence and technology to improve lives at scale. We partner with governments, NGOs, multilaterals, and funders to support decisions at every stage of their impact journey – from bold pilots to nationwide scale-ups. Our teams bring rigorous evidence and practical insights so leaders can make informed decisions that truly change lives. With our partners, we are pioneering the next frontier of social impact, where data and technology accelerate progress for millions. We help leaders overcome the three main barriers to impact:

1. Figuring out what works
2. Learning and improving
3. Reaching and operating at scale

We work in multiple countries across Asia and Africa. Our work spans a wide range of sectors, including agriculture, education, health, governance, sanitation, financial inclusion, and other areas.

We have expertise in a variety of rigorous approaches and methodologies, which we tailor to each client depending on their needs and constraints. To achieve a positive social impact we:

• Support our partners with the full ‘data and evidence’ value chain – from primary data collection to data systems, monitoring evaluation and learning tools, and data science
• Inform funding decisions – toward high-impact initiatives and away from less effective programs or approaches
• Create cutting-edge AI-for-good products that make the delivery of social interventions and learning tools more cost-effective and scalable

Our diverse, growing team of roughly 250 outstanding colleagues operate in nearly two dozen countries around the world. Learn more about our mission, values, and principles at www.IDinsight.org.

Responsibilties

Grow and Deliver External AI Consulting

Build IDinsight’s external AI Transformation Advisory practice into a sustainable, high-impact service line serving nonprofits, governments, and foundations.

• Engagement leadership: Serve as the senior lead on external advisory engagements, owning client relationships, strategic direction, deliverable quality, and team allocation.
• Client development: Identify, scope, and structure new AI advisory engagements.
• Service design: Codify IDinsight’s AI transformation approach into repeatable frameworks, toolkits, and playbooks covering governance, change management, tool development, and benchmarking.
• Training and workshops: Design and deliver executive workshops, workflow redesign sessions, and training programs that build lasting client capability.
• Thought leadership: Represent IDinsight externally through blog posts, conference presentations, and sector conversations on AI transformation.

Lead internal AI Product Strategy

Own the product roadmap for IDinsight’s internal AI journey. Lead a team building custom AI solutions that change how IDinsight and our partners deliver core services.

• Product vision and roadmap: Define and prioritize which custom AI products to build, determine make/buy decisions, ensure custom builds are reserved for problems that off-the-shelf tools can’t solve.
• User-centered discovery: Drive user research and workflow audits to identify where AI can deliver step-change improvements across IDinsight’s business units and external partners.
• Delivery oversight: Ensure products move from concept to deployed tools on quick timelines, apply agile principles, stop what doesn’t work and scale what does.
• Measurement: Track improvements with hard metrics. Use data to drive strategy and execution decisions.
  
  

Qualifications

We’re looking for someone who combines consulting expertise, product leadership, technical fluency, and entrepreneurial drive.

• Commitment to IDinsight's values and mission.
• 8–15 years of professional experience, with significant time in consulting, digital transformation, product management, or technology implementation, ideally serving governments, foundations, or social sector organizations.
• People management: Track record of building, managing, and developing high-performing teams that include both technical and non-technical roles.
• Product leadership: Experience owning a product roadmap end-to-end, from user research and problem definition through build, launch, measurement, and iteration.
• Client-facing consulting: Experience leading complex advisory engagements, managing senior client relationships, and delivering results against defined success metrics.
• Technical fluency: Strong understanding of LLM capabilities and limitations, AI agent architectures, and the practical realities of deploying AI in organizations. Ability to credibly direct a technical team. The role does not require production coding skills.
• Change management: Demonstrated success driving technology adoption in complex organizations.
• Project development: Experience contributing to or leading proposal development, client scoping, and revenue generation for consulting or advisory services.
• Communication: Exceptional written and spoken communication, with the ability to translate complex AI concepts for non-technical executives, donors, and NGO leaders.
• Self-directed: Proven ability to identify opportunities and build something from limited structure in ambiguous, fast-moving environments.
  
  

Professional development

Skill and career development are core to IDinsight's values and long-term impact strategy and have been noted as highlights of teammates' experiences. IDinsighters receive significant mentorship from IDinsight leadership, support from talented peers, and considerable autonomy when ready. They maintain professional development plans and are provided "stretch" opportunities designed to strengthen various skills. Real-time feedback is embedded in our culture, and a formal structure enables maximum professional growth. Additionally, teammates have access to an annual professional development stipend that they are encouraged to explore their career interests and develop their skills.

Nuts & bolts

Location

This position will be based in one of IDinsight's offices (Rabat, Dakar, Lusaka, Nairobi, New Delhi, Manila), with a preference for New Delhi.

Start date

The start date of this position is flexible, although there is the potential to start almost immediately. We expect a minimum one-year commitment, with regular professional development conversations and potential for a long-term career at IDinsight.

References

Applications should include three references, including email, phone, and title. Briefly state in what capacity you worked with each reference.

Work authorization

IDinsight can sponsor employment visas for all nationalities; however, we will prioritize candidates who do not require IDinsight to sponsor work authorization in the aforementioned countries. All candidates not currently located in our country offices listed above will be expected to relocate to the office location at the onset of their employment.

Compensation

Compensation and benefits are commensurate with the qualifications and experiences IDinsight is hiring for and are competitive within the global development sector. We are especially proud of the people-focused benefits we offer, including comprehensive international health insurance, including mental health coverage; paid vacation, sick, and parental leave; relocation benefits; a travel stipend; technology and work-from-home stipends; a professional development budget; and more. Please note, as a non-profit, we are unable to provide compensation similar to leading private sector organizations.

How to apply

Please click the "Apply for this job online" button at the top right. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. The application asks various questions for us to get to know you and requires a CV and cover letter.

Please ensure that your CV includes relevant professional and personal experience and details on academic qualifications. CVs can range from one to two pages. Please note that headshot photographs, parental information, birth dates, marital status, and other personal information not relevant to the application do not need to be included in your CV. Additionally, we strongly encourage you to use your cover letter to highlight why you want to work for IDinsight specifically and what has prepared you to succeed in the role you're applying for. A customized cover letter is an important part of IDinsight's recruiting process as it allows us to understand your motivations for the position, relevant skills, and clarity of writing.

More information, including details on
IDinsight's hiring process and
frequently asked questions, can be found online at IDinsight Careers. Any queries should be directed to careers@IDinsight.org.

IDinsight's commitment to reducing power asymmetries

IDinsight is committed to
reducing power asymmetries in the social sector. Our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion reflects our understanding of the need for the sector to abandon unhealthy practices of the past. We wish to be part of a new generation of international NGOs who are honest about this history and transparent about our role in the present. Our commitment is also aligned with the impact of our work.

We seek a workforce that is inclusive of a variety of perspectives that will help us refine and improve our methods and relationships and strengthen the services we provide our clients and their communities or constituencies. The following commitments represent our vision for the IDinsight team:

1. IDinsight will have greater representation from the populations with whom we work and the clients we serve.
2. IDinsight will have greater representation from the countries in which we work.
3. Across all countries in which we recruit, we will seek greater representation from historically excluded communities.
4. IDinsight will foster an inclusive work culture that empowers a diverse team to do their best work.

IDinsight is an equal opportunity employer and strives to create a diverse and supportive workplace.