India: Senior Programme Manager

Sr. Programme Manager (SPM), Kusuma Foundation, New Delhi, India, Salary Range: INR 12 to 15 lakhs per annum

Job Purpose:
The SPM is a senior role with the primary responsibility of providing technical leadership and management to The Foundation’s programmatic work in secondary and higher education to help improve educational outcomes for motivated and high performing young people from economically disadvantaged backgrounds. The SPM will incubate ideas based on national policy, global best practices and evidence-based learning to develop innovative programmes and scale-up existing projects in accordance with the Kusuma Strategy. The SPM will work closely with the staff teams in Delhi and London, and with our grantees and research partners, to ensure the technical and programmatic integrity of The Foundation’s interventions.

Main duties & Responsibilities:
1. Development of Ideas for innovation and scale-up 1.1. Lead the identification and development of ideas for programmes to deliver a better quality of education so that more young people complete secondary education, enter and complete university, professional and vocational education, and gain employment.
1.2. Identify and promote innovative and viable strategies to strengthen programme ideas that will lead to interventions at scale, based on evidence and a cogent theory of change. 1.3. Ensure a realistic and robust design of proposals by providing grantees technical and design inputs.
1.4. Conduct technical review of concept notes, grant and research proposals to ensure development of high quality programmes; provide direction to colleagues and recommendations to the CL. 1.5. Ensure (with guidance from the CL), that designs of Kusuma supported programmes are aligned to National, State and District level implementation mechanisms and take into account evidence from initiatives of government, non-government and private agencies. 2. Programme Management 2.1. Guide grantees to achieve desired impact of grants; conduct site visits, provide technical guidance, convene meetings of key stakeholders, and apply and evaluate milestone-based performance objectives. 2.2. Prepare and submit accurate and timely monthly, quarterly and annual programme reports including updates on projects and proposals, project evaluations, case studies and other key developments. 2.3. Support the CL to establish and maintain systems and processes for reporting from grantee organisations and to Kusuma Trust UK. 2.4. Develop concept notes and terms of reference and manage research, documentation and special studies to measure, highlight and advocate programme evidence and learning. 3. Review of policy, practice and evidence 3.1. Review and participate in policy dialogue on secondary and higher education in India and globally. 3.2. Ensure that Kusuma programmes are informed by global and national policy and aligned to discourse and current state of the art practice. 3.3. Collaborate with the CL and Research and Evaluation Manager (REM) to provide inputs to concept notes, terms of reference for research, other documentation and special studies to measure, highlight and advocate programme evidence and learning. This should lead to testing of innovations and reviews that will lead to the scaling-up of programmes. 4. Planning and External Developments 4.1. Provide inputs into the development of Kusuma’s grant portfolio based on dialogue with government departments, organisations and individuals working in the secondary education sector. This will include thematic areas such as teachers training, teaching and learning tools, vocational training, continuing education, self-employment, skills development and identification of gaps, opportunities, needs and interventions at the national and state levels. 4.2. Promote collaborative relationships with the national and state government and other stakeholders, to advocate coordinated response to issues inline with national policy and evidence. 5. Key Relationships 5.1. Maintain regular contact and dialogue with grantees, programme partners, national and state level Rastriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan and research partners. 5.2. Work closely with the CL, REM, Programme Manager, Programme Officer, Research Officer, Programme Support Manager and Finance Manager as part of a mutually supportive team. 5.3. Maintain regular liaison with the CEO and other staff at The Trust. 5.4. Develop collaborative relationships with representatives from the government, civil society organisations and donors

Essential: - A PhD in Education, International Development or Social Sciences with four years of professional experience. A minimum of two years’ experience in providing technical leadership to large programmes and grants in secondary and/or higher education. OR A Masters in Education, International Development or Social Sciences and a minimum of six years’ experience in providing technical leadership to large programmes and grants in secondary and/or higher education. - Demonstrated technical knowledge in at least two of the following areas in the context of education: education management, in-service and pre-service training, pedagogy, and improvements in quality of teaching and learning, governance of education and scholarships. - Experience with state of the art approaches to learning, participatory methods for monitoring and evaluation, and partnership development. - Demonstrated ability to successfully work with a range of stakeholders, including government agencies, community leaders, donors and NGOs on issued-based advocacy initiatives. - Excellent working knowledge of Microsoft Office: Outlook, Word, PowerPoint and Excel. - Strong management and leadership qualities, including the ability to innovate and manage risks effectively. - Excellent organisational and planning skills, ability to prioritise a diverse and demanding workload, and meet deadlines consistently. - Strong interpersonal, networking, communications (including high level written and verbal English), IT, problem solving and analytical skills. - Willingness to work flexibly and travel regularly. - Proven ability to think strategically and analytically. - Patience and flexibility. - Excellent negotiation and diplomacy skills. Desirable: - Empathy with Kusuma’s mission and priorities - Working knowledge of Oriya, Telugu and Hindi - A sense of humour - A passion for creative problem solving and enthusiasm - International experience in education programmes