Responsibilities
Strategic Leadership
1. Provide overall strategic leadership to ensure the effective delivery of MSF Switzerland / OCG's social mission, in line with MSF's Charter, values and humanitarian principles.
2. Ensure that medical-humanitarian priorities remain at the centre of all organisational decision
3. Lead the development, implementation and monitoring of the multi-year strategic ambitions, in close collaboration with the President, Board of Directors, the OCG Congress and the Management Team.
4. Maintain a permanent strategic reflection on the stakes, constraints and dilemmas of medical-humanitarian action in a rapidly evolving global environment.
5. Promote a culture of integrity, accountability, ethical behaviour, innovation and learning, consistent with MSF Behavioral commitments and management values.
Executive management
6. Ensure the overall management of the organisation, including operations, people and resources, to guarantee effectiveness, efficiency and coherence.Appoint, lead, coordinate and evaluate members of the Management Team, ensuring strong cohesion and collective responsibility.Provide strategic oversight to, and construcitve support and challenge the Director of Operations and Medical Director, contributing to the analysis of the operational portfolio and the definition of overarching operational and medical policies.Ensure effective coordination between headquarters, hubs and field operations, and the availability of relevant, high-quality information to support decision-making.
7. Lead organisational risk analysis and ensure the definition and implementation of mitigation measures, particularly in relation to staff security, safety and critical incident management, in close coordination with operational and support leadership.
Governance, accountability and risk management
8. Work in close collaboration with the Board of Directors, OCG Congress and President, providing timely, accurate and transparent informaiton to support governanance oversight, while retaining executive accountability.
9. Ensure regular reporting on strategy implementation, organisational performance, risks and challenges.
10. Ensure organisational oversight of risk analysis and mitigation, including safety and security risk management, critical incident governance and duty of care, with appropriate reporting to governance bodies.
11. Ensure organisational compliance with legal, regulatory, statutory and MSF internal frameworks.
Financial Stewardship
12. Ensure sound financial management, including budgeting, reporting, auditing and internal controls, in line with legal requirements and MSF rules.Integrate financial considerations and impact assessments into strategic and operational decision-making at all levels.Enable access to diverse and ethical funding sources, ensuring that private and institutional funds are used responsibly and in support of MSF's independence and social mission.
Movement Leadership, partnership and external representation
13. Actively participate in the MSF Movement's Executive Committee (Core-ExCom) and other international executive fora, contributing to collective decision-making and implementation.
14. Collaborate with General Directors of other Operational Centres, the International Secretary and partner sections to strengthen coherence, synergies and complementarities across the Movement.
15. Represent OCG internationally and contribute to debates on humanitarian positioning and operational challenges, while safeguarding OCG's interests and promoting movement-wide strategic priorities.
16. Develop and maintain strong relationships with partner sections, ensuring OCG's full integration within the MSF Movement.
17. Represent MSF Switzerland / OCG externally with donors, Swiss authorities, international institutions, humanitarian actors and, when relevant, the media, in line with associative positions and MSF principles.
People, culture, duty of care and inclusion
18. Act as a role model for ethical leadership and integrity, setting clear expectations regarding professional behaviour, safeguarding, prevention of abuse and respect for MSF Behavioral commitments .
19. Foster an organisational culture grounded in inclusion, integrity, empowerment, respect, accountability, and collaboration.Ensure HR policies and practices support fair and socially responsible working conditions, staff wellbeing and professional development at all levels.
20. Ensure the existence, independence and effective functioning of mechanisms to prevent, report and respond to abuse, discrimination and misconduct, including safeguarding concerns, in line with MSF standards and duty of care.
Your profile
Education
21. Advanced university degree in medicine, public health, humanitarian affairs, political sciences, management or a related field, or equivalent senior-level professional experience.
22. A medical or health-related background, or a demonstrated and sustained engagement with medical-humanitarian action, is a strong asset.
23. Strong alignment with MSF's social mission, charter and humanitarian principles, including a patient-centred approach.
Experience
24. Extensive senior leadership experience in a complex and large international non for profit organisation, in the humanitarian or medical-humanitarian sector. Solid understanding of the mechanimsm and processes relevant to organizations, such as human resources, operations, finance etc.
25. MSF experience is a major asset.
26. Experience in executive or senior management roles, including General/Executive Director or Director of a major organizational function.
27. Demonstrated experience engaging with and overseeing medical-humanitarian operations with the ability to operate in highly insecure working environment.
28. Exposure to ethical, access and security dilemmas.
29. Experience working within associative or multi-layered governance structures.
30. Demonstrated experience leading organisational change, transformation or strategic reform.
31. Strong background engaging with external stakeholders (donors, governments, UN agencies, partners) in politically sensitive environments.
Languages
32. Fluency in English and French. Swiss German (or German) and or Italian an asset. Additional languages are an advantage.
Skills/ Technical competencies
33. Excellent leadership and organisational skills, with the ability to lead inclusively and decisively in complex, high-pressure environments.
34. Strong strategic planning, execution and organisational performance management skills.
35. Proven operational leadership, including process optimisation, resource allocation and cross-functional coordination.
36. Solid understanding of governance, compliance and risk management frameworks.
37. Demonstrated ability to work effectively with a Board of Directors, respecting the specificities of associative and executive roles and ensuring constructive complementarity and clear accountability.
38. Strong financial literacy at management level, including budget oversight.
39. Excellent oral and written communication skills, including at senior external representation level and in cross-cultural contexts.
40. Ability to motivate, coordinate and lead large and diverse teams, including through participatory, empowering and accountable leadership parctices.
41. Strong listening skills and sound judgement.
42. Capacity to delegate, empower and hold teams accountable, fostering ownership and leadership at all levels.
43. Demonstrated commitment to high ethical standards, integrity and accountability, aligned with MSF' Behavioral Commitments and Management Values.
Terms of employment
44. Full-time position 100% (40h/week)
45. Open-ended contract (mandated position, 3 years, renewable once)
46. Working place: Geneva, Switzerland
47. Ideal start date: August 2026
48. Gross annual salary (for 100%): from CHF 176'436 to CHF 188'052 (salary commensurate with equivalent experience and internal salary grid)
49. Paid vacation: 25 days per year, prorate temporis, plus any Swiss public holidays falling within the contract period.
50. Pension plan: pension contribution covered 3/4 by MSF, 1/4 by staff member.
51. Relocation package if moving from a different country to Switzerland.
Specific requirements for this position
52. Frequent international travel, including field visits to conflict zones. This could be adapted depending on the personal circumstances and reasonable accommodation.
53. The position requires high availability and flexibility, balanced with responsible leadership of personal well being and role modelling of sustainable working practice.
54. Given the highly visible nature of the role, the GD is expected to demonstrate exemplary personal and professional conduct, full aligned with MSF's behavioral commitments and management values.
How to apply
Candidates are invited to submit their application exclusively through our recruitment platform, following these guidelines:
55. CV (maximum 2 pages)
56. Cover letter (maximum 1 page)
57. Documents must be submitted in either English or French.
The application deadline is 22nd of March
We reserve the right to close this vacancy earlier if we receive a sufficient number of quality applications.
All applications will be treated confidentially.
Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
Please note that we do not wish to use the services of recruitment or placement agencies.