Specialist, Wellbeing and Engagement

Save the Children International has an exciting opportunity for a Specialist, Wellbeing and Engagement to join our global team.

Team and Job Purpose

The Health and Wellbeing Team exists to ensure the health, safety, and wellbeing of Save the Children’s global workforce across all operational contexts. By leading the development and implementation of evidence-based strategies, policies, and procedures, the team champions diversity, equity, inclusion, and wellbeing to create an engaged, thriving, and resilient workforce. This team fosters a culture where every individual feels valued, respected, and empowered, while ensuring alignment with organisational goals, ethical standards, and international compliance requirements. Key focus areas include travel health, insurance frameworks, safeguarding, mental health initiatives, and medevac protocols. Through collaboration with key stakeholders, such as Safeguarding, Insurance, GSS, People/HR, and the One Humanitarian Team, the team ensures globally aligned and integrated approaches to health, safety, and wellbeing. These efforts are designed to promote physical, mental, and emotional health across all staff, fostering a safe and supportive work environment that empowers employees to thrive and perform effectively, even in the most challenging settings. By aligning with international standards and organisational objectives, the Health and Wellbeing Team plays a vital role in enabling staff to deliver on Save the Children’s mission to ensure every child’s right to survival, protection, development, and participation.

Role purpose

The Wellbeing and Engagement Specialist is responsible for designing, implementing and monitoring initiatives that enhance the health, wellbeing, and engagement of Save the Children’s global workforce. This role ensures that staff wellbeing is prioritised and integrated into organisational practices, enabling employees to thrive and perform at their best. Working collaboratively with internal stakeholders and partners, the Specialist focuses on addressing key areas such as mental health, resilience, engagement, and inclusivity. They play a pivotal role in evaluating the effectiveness of wellbeing strategies and fostering a workplace culture that supports physical, emotional, and mental health.

Job Title: Specialist, Wellbeing and Engagement

Reports To: Global Head of Health & Wellbeing

Work Pattern: Hybrid/Remote with flexible working options available 

Contract Length: Permanent

Grade: P3

Location: Any approved Save the Children International office location. For a full list of locations that Save the Children International can hire in, please visit: SCI Careers 

Time Zone (that the role holder must be available to work in): Any

Right to Work: The successful candidate must possess the unrestricted right to work in their current or preferred location for the duration of employment. 

Language Requirements: Any

International Travel Requirements: Yes, up to 10% 

Budget Responsibility: N/A

People Management Responsibility: N/A

Principal Accountabilities

• Design and Deliver Wellbeing Initiatives

Design and implement holistic wellbeing initiatives that support the physical, mental, and emotional health of staff working in diverse and high-stress humanitarian contexts. Ensure initiatives are practical, culturally appropriate, and adaptable across office, field, and remote operational settings.

• Build Capacity and Provide Support

Develop and deliver tailored training and capacity-building activities on stress management, resilience, trauma awareness, and self-care. Strengthen staff and leader capability to proactively manage wellbeing challenges in demanding operational environments.

• Promote Engagement and Inclusivity

Lead engagement initiatives that respond to the realities of remote, emergency, and multi-cultural humanitarian operations. Foster inclusive participation, collaboration, and connection across geographies, time zones, and contexts, ensuring equitable access to wellbeing and engagement support.

• Collaborate and Influence Policy

Work closely with internal stakeholders (e.g. Safeguarding, Insurance, GSS, One Humanitarian Team) and external partners to strengthen wellbeing systems. Advocate for context-specific policies and practices that address systemic and operational barriers to staff health, safety, and wellbeing, particularly in high-risk and field-based settings.

• Provide Contextualised Crisis Support

Coordinate and deliver targeted crisis and critical incident support in collaboration with safeguarding and security teams. Ensure access to immediate psychosocial support, peer support mechanisms, and post-crisis debriefing to reduce trauma exposure, burnout, and long-term wellbeing risks.

• Measure and Report Impact

Design and manage wellbeing and engagement measurement approaches suitable for complex and sensitive contexts, ensuring staff anonymity and safety. Monitor, evaluate, and report impact to senior leadership, translating insights into actionable operational and strategic improvements.

• Champion Continuous Improvement

Stay informed of emerging trends, innovations, and best practices in wellbeing, engagement, and crisis support relevant to humanitarian contexts. Use evidence, learning, and staff feedback to continuously refine strategies and strengthen organisational resilience. 

Experience and Skills

Essential

1. Global Wellbeing Programme Management: Experience managing wellbeing initiatives across diverse humanitarian contexts, ensuring strategic alignment and measurable improvement.
2. Programme Design & Implementation: Ability to create and deliver holistic wellbeing and engagement programmes addressing psychological, emotional, and physical health, while fostering inclusivity.
3. Data Analysis & Continuous Improvement: Strong skills in collecting, analysing, and leveraging data to evaluate wellbeing strategies, drive improvements, and align with organisational goals.
4. Training & Capacity Building: Proficiency in designing and facilitating training sessions on wellbeing, resilience, and engagement tailored to varied audiences and cultural contexts.
5. Communication & Stakeholder Engagement: Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, with proven ability to articulate complex concepts clearly and build strong stakeholder relationships.
6. Project & Initiative Delivery: Capable of planning, executing, and overseeing wellbeing and engagement initiatives (e.g., employee surveys), ensuring delivery within timelines and budgets.
7. Cross-Cultural Competence: Demonstrated experience working with diverse cultural perspectives and embedding inclusivity into wellbeing and engagement activities.
8. Problem Solving & Innovation: Strong ability to identify challenges and develop creative, practical solutions that enhance staff wellbeing and engagement.
9. Ethics & Integrity: High level of accountability and commitment to organisational values of honesty, transparency, and ethical conduct.
10. Project Management: Proven ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously, maintaining efficiency and ensuring timely delivery of objectives.

Desirable

• Experience in both wellbeing and engagement, ideally within global contexts.
• Practical background in mental health or employee engagement initiatives.
• Knowledge of diversity, equity, and inclusion principles, particularly in high stress or culturally diverse environments. 

Education and Qualifications

Essential

• A master's or equivalent professional qualification in a relevant field such as Psychology, Public Health, International Development, or a related discipline, or equivalent experience
• Experience collecting, analysing, and interpreting wellbeing and engagement data, using both quantitative and qualitative methods to inform evidence-based decision-making.

Desirable

• Formal training or certification in wellbeing, mental health, or related areas (e.g., Mental Health First Aid Instructor, Trauma-Informed Care, or Stress Management).
• Qualifications or experience in humanitarian aid or crisis response, with an understanding of the challenges faced by staff in conflict or disaster settings. Familiarity with international health and safety standards, travel health protocols, or safeguarding frameworks within the humanitarian sector.
• Experience with data analysis software or dashboards (e.g. Excel, Power BI, SPSS, or survey platforms) to visualise and communicate wellbeing outcomes.

Working at Save the Children International

Save the Children is the world's leading organisation for children, employing ~25,000 staff. We save children's lives. We fight for their rights. We help them fulfil their potential. Through our work in 116 countries, we put the most deprived and marginalised children first.

We know that great people make a great organisation, and that our employees play a crucial role in helping us achieve our ambitions for children. We value our people and offer a meaningful and rewarding career, along with a collaborative and inclusive environment where ambition, creativity, and integrity are highly valued.

The work here is challenging but is also immensely rewarding. At Save the Children, you will be in good company, working with talented, like-minded individuals who are determined to ensure that all children survive, learn, and are protected. Your contribution will help ensure children's voices are heard at the highest levels, and that we achieve our global strategy, Ambition for Children 2030, and reach every last child.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and Equal Opportunities

DEI is core to our vision, values and global strategy. Save the Children is committed to creating a truly diverse, equitable and inclusive organisation, and one which will support us in our vision to ensure every child attains the right to survival, protection, development, and participation.

We are committed to equal employment opportunities, regardless of gender, sexual orientation, race, colour, ethnic origin, nationality, disability, marital or civil partnership status, gender reassignment, pregnancy and maternity, caring or parental responsibilities, age, or beliefs and religion. We are committed to diversifying our staff to better represent the communities we serve and actively welcome underrepresented groups to apply.

Reasonable adjustments will be made should any candidate invited to interview require this.

Application Information

Please attach a copy of your CV and cover letter with your application. A full copy of the role profile can be found here via the job listing. It is recommended that you save a copy of the role profile as it will no longer be available after the advert closes.

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis and the job advert may be closed earlier than advertised subject to the volume of suitable applicants. Please submit your application at your earliest convenience to avoid disappointment.

Due to the high volume of applications we receive, only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. Candidates who are successfully shortlisted should expect to hear from us within 2 weeks of the advert deadline.

Our recruitment process:

1. Application review by our recruiting team based on your CV and cover letter
2. Two-stage competency-based interviews with the hiring team
3. Some recruitment may include an additional assessment or case study stage, or a third stage interview
4. If successful, you will receive a conditional offer of employment, followed by your contract subject to passing background checks

We need to keep children and adults safe so our selection process includes rigorous background checks and reflects our commitment to the protection of children and adults from abuse. All employees are expected to carry out their duties in accordance with our Code of Conduct and all policies and procedures relating to Anti-harassment, Health and Safety, Safeguarding, and DEI and Equal Opportunities.

Save the Children does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process.