Head of Culture and Change

About Médecins Sans Frontières

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is an international, independent medical humanitarian organisation. MSF provides medical assistance to people affected by conflict, epidemics, disasters, or exclusion from healthcare.

MSF was founded in 1971, in the aftermath of the Biafran famine of the Nigerian Civil War, by a small group of French doctors and journalists who sought to expand accessibility to medical care across national boundaries and irrespective of race, religion, creed or political affiliation.

MSF teams are made up of tens of thousands of health professionals, logistic and administrative staff – most of them hired locally. MSF actions are guided by medical ethics and the principles of impartiality, independence and neutrality. Our teams conducted medical activities in over 70 countries in 2023.

MSF’s revenue in 2023 exceeded €2 billion, of which 98 percent comes from individual private donors.

In 2023, MSF admitted staff provided nearly 16.5 million outpatient consultations, and admitted nearly 1.4 million people to health facilities and hospitals.

The MSF Movement

The international MSF movement is composed of legally independent associations that are registered in the country where they operate. They are the foundational structures of MSF. They are offices that enable, implement, support and govern the delivery of the social mission. They recruit staff, organise fundraising, and raise awareness on the humanitarian crises MSF teams are witnessing and are responding to.

The MSF associations work closely with six operational entities which directly organize and manage humanitarian action and are part of the association in the country in which they are based.

Several MSF sections have opened branch offices in different countries to extend their support work further. Additional “satellite offices” have been established to support field work, mainly in the areas of logistics, supply and epidemiology. A number of those satellite offices are also independent legal entities.

MSF OCA

MSF’s Operational Centre Amsterdam (OCA) is one of the six operational entities of the MSF movement. OCA comprises over 10,000 dedicated staff from across the globe, working in OCA’s programmes in about 27 countries. It is their commitment and shared sense of humanity that truly define and drive our organization.

Background of the Role

In support of its new Strategic Plan, MSF OCA seeks to transform its global People and Culture function into a responsive and solution-oriented function that embraces the human factor to drive their social mission forward, while maintaining strong processes, structures and accountability.

Two guiding principles are central to this transformation:

• Prioritizing the human factor and fostering trust in our workforce will support our collective potential to better serve the people at the heart of our mission.
• Embracing agility and simplicity in our ways of working will enhance our capacity to respond swiftly and effectively to evolving challenges.

In the new structure, the People & Culture Management Team (PCMT) will consist of three Heads of Centers of Expertise, besides Culture and Change there is a People Operations and a Talent and Learning team. The PCMT also consists of three People Partners, and the Staff Director, who is also part of the OCA Management Team.

The Head of Culture and Change will play a key role in shaping a positive, inclusive, and safe organizational work environment. They will lead change-initiatives with expertise and insight, while also strengthening our working culture and leadership across MSF OCA.

 

Job Summary

We’re looking for someone to help create a positive, inclusive, and safe work culture across MSF’s Operational Centre Amsterdam (OCA), in line with our new Strategic Plan. You’ll play a key role in making sure our mission, vision, and values are reflected in how we work and support our humanitarian efforts.

This role is all about leading meaningful change and helping build strong leadership across our country programs, supporting around 10,000 staff globally. You’ll work closely with Business Partners and the teams in Talent & Learning and People Operations within the People and Culture department.

As OCA moves forward with a renewed vision for People and Culture, you’ll be central in bringing that vision to life. You’ll be part of the People and Culture Management Team (PCMT), overseeing senior professionals and teams focused on DEI, staff health, change management, workplace culture, and case management.

• Drive sustainable cultural and organizational change across OCA globally by developing and executing, as a member of the PCMT, a strategic plan within the People and Culture Strategy. The upcoming strategic planning period (2026-2031), the WorkDay implementation in October, and movement-wide initiatives—such as the pay and benefits review—demand not only a strong change management expertise but also a capability to drive a cultural shift towards human-centered values, trust, flexibility, and simplicity.
• Develop and execute a multiyear Culture and Change plan, aimed at a unified, collaborative, inclusive culture with high engagement, in order to realize the People and Culture strategy.
• Manage and support senior professionals and teams leading Diversity Equity and Inclusion, Staff Health and wellbeing, Staff Engagement, Change Management Organization Development, and Case Management.

 

Accountabilities

• Contribution to the development and delivery of the OCA People and Culture strategy, as a member of the PCMT, including leading on strategic and tactical projects and managing budgets
• Development and delivery of a long-term Culture & Change plan, including continuous monitoring of progress on intended impact
• Quality of People and Culture support delivered to the organization, both at HQ and in country programs, by own centralized expertise teams
• Performance of own teams, by providing direction, driving engagement and fostering a safe working environment
• Development and delivery of insightful reports, to enable and improve data-driven decision making

• Demonstrated success in leading the design and implementation of organization-wide culture change initiatives
• Experienced senior People and Culture leader with a strong background in managing senior-level professionals, 10+ years of experience
• Extensive international experience, ideally within large, complex, international non-profit or mission-driven organizations
• Collaborative, proactive, and empathetic leadership style
• Strong strategic and analytical skills, visionary and action oriented.
• Commitment to MSF’s mission and values

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