Project Director

Title:  Project Director 

Save the Children has been operational in Kenya since the 1950s, providing support to children through developmental and humanitarian relief programmes delivered both directly and through local partners. Current programming focuses on child protection, child rights governance, education, health, HIV/AIDS, livelihoods, nutrition and WASH. In 2012, as part of a global reorganization process, Save the Children combined the programmes of SC UK, SC Canada and SC Finland to create a single operation in Kenya. In Feb 2014, we completed a second transition, which saw us join forces with the British INGO, Merlin, and merge their health and nutrition programmes with our own. Save the Children now has an operational presence in Bungoma, Dadaab Refugee Camp, Garissa, Mandera, Turkana and Wajir and we work through partners in many other parts of the country

ROLE PURPOSE:

Save the Children is seeking a Project Director for the 5 year $27 million LEGO Foundation and Grundfos Foundation funded project Inclusive Teacher Professional Development System Support in Kenya focusing on grant 2 High Quality Inclusive Teacher Professional Development in Kenya. S/he will take overall responsibility of the overall consortium’s deliverables in the project.  The position holder will provide overall leadership and technical direction for the project, ensuring achievement of project deliverables.  The project aims to improve children’s holistic learning and wellbeing through strengthening of the quality and equity of the teacher professional development system in refugee hosting counties in Kenya, while also being responsive to learning environments, especially catering to teachers’ and children’s needs as shocks and stressors arise.

Contract Duration: 5 years

Location: Nairobi

Reports to: The Programme Steering Committee

KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY:

Technical assistance and capacity building

• Provide programmatic and strategic leadership, setting priorities in designing and managing the implementation of the project’s activities in collaboration with the technical and operational staff
• Provide overall operational and technical guidance and leadership for implementation of activities
• Working with the operational and technical staff across the partners, ensuring shared, harmonised, and integrated technical learning approaches across the partners
• Review and analyse data for performance monitoring and utilize the data to take corrective actions.
• Provide leadership in ensuring the project is implemented on budget, on time and with quality, and runs in an agile manner

Oversight and Management Project Operations

Responsible for overall coordination, line management and support of the Project, and ensure that:

• Project has an up-to-date work plan, in line with the approved annual Detailed Implementation Plan (DIP) and phased budget.
• Project receives adequate support from Country office support functions (supply chain, HR, Admin, Awards and Finance) to deliver high quality programme. Also ensure gaps are identified, prioritized, and communicated to the stakeholders effectively.
• Project has standardized systems, policies and procedures in place, well understood by all staff and implemented accordingly in the project.
• Project teams receive appropriate and timely support from technical advisers and programme quality teams for program design and strategy, MEAL, advocacy and planning as well as the support functions (Finance, Supply Chain and Human Resources & Admin teams).
• Project holds monthly award progress review meetings and update actions /issues are addressed.
• Principles of child safeguarding and ‘do no harm’ and inclusivity are embedded in all project planning, implementation and reporting and that staff receive regular, up to date training on it.
• Ensure transparency in targeting beneficiaries, delivery of services and participation of beneficiaries and partners in planning and monitoring of process is reflected in programme delivery.

Oversight of Grants and Finance Management:

• In close coordination with Award and Finance team, ensure that all programs progress in accordance with grant agreements, are completed within time, budget, and quality.
• Ensure compliance with all grant provisions and timely fulfilment of all project programmatic reporting requirements including donor reports and internal reports such as pipeline analyses and monthly reports.
• Oversee the development and successful implementation of work plans linked to indicators and budget for the project; 
• Oversee timely expenditure of approved budgets, avoiding under both spending and overspending on grant line items, and implementing plans for expenditure modification.
• Coordinate activities and prepare results reports, resource request and pipeline analyses

Representation and advocacy

• Serve as main focal person for all engagement with LEGO
• Chairs the Programme Steering Committee
• Represent the project in relevant internal and external fora including donor meetings (as appropriate)
• Lead stakeholder engagement with national and county Governments and foster strong relationships and collaboration of other key stakeholder groups e.g ministries, regional bodies, humanitarian organizations, development agencies, teacher unions, the Teacher Service Commission, and local community-based groups.

People management, mentoring and development

• To have overall management responsibility for the consortium team in the project, and manage and track all terms of sub agreements with consortium partners. 
• Ensure the recruitment, training, and promotion of staff as appropriate; ensure availability of and support appropriate professional development opportunities for staff in the project
• Incorporate staff development strategies and Performance Management Systems into team building process.

Assessment, monitoring, evaluation, and documentation

• Facilitate the annual work planning process in close collaboration the government teams and the project staff
• Ensure technical and administrative compliance with donor requirements
• Oversee narrative and financial reports for donor(s), ensuring these are of a high quality and submitted for review in a timely manner.
• Monitor program outputs and results and work closely with the Monitoring, Evaluation and Research team to ensure that results are documented and reported accurately and in a timely manner
• Work closely with the Monitoring, Evaluation and Research team and take a lead in ensuring that all the project’s components have robust monitoring plans, baselines, reviews and evaluations in line with the project design and donor guidelines
• Facilitate appropriate documentation and dissemination of learnings, analyses, and good practices documentations in the project internally and externally to donors, governments, consortium partners and other key actors.

BEHAVIOURS (Values in Practice)

Accountability:

• Holds self-accountable for making decisions, managing resources efficiently, achieving and role modelling Save the Children values.
• Holds the team and partners accountable to deliver on their responsibilities - giving them the freedom to deliver in the best way they see fit, providing the necessary development to improve performance and applying appropriate consequences when results are not achieved.

Ambition:

• Sets ambitious and challenging goals for themselves and their team, takes responsibility for their own personal development and encourages their team to do the same.
• Widely shares their personal vision for Save the Children, engages and motivates others.
• Future orientated, thinks strategically and on a global scale.

Collaboration:

• Builds and maintains effective relationships, with their team, colleagues, Members and external partners and supporters.
• Values diversity sees it as a source of competitive strength.

• Approachable, good listener, easy to talk to.

Creativity:

• Develops and encourages new and innovative solutions.
• Willing to take disciplined risks.

Integrity:

• Honest, encourages openness and transparency; demonstrates highest levels of integrity.

EXPERIENCE AND SKILLS

Essential

• Bachelor’s / post graudate degree or Ph.D in education, public administration, development studies or any relevant qualification
• Recommend a minimum of 10 years of relevant technical experience in education, teacher professional development, refugee education, and primary/junior secondary education in Kenya including working with the Ministry of Education, Teacher Service Commission, and a strong understanding of Kenya’s Competency Based Curriculm, gender and inclusion, play based learning, WASH, humanitarian response, and MHPSS/SEL.
• Recommend a minimum of 10 years of expertise managing large and complex grants (ideally LEGO), managing multiple partners, and working in consortia
• Excellent experience in external representation with donors, local/national governments, communities, and partners
• Experience of solving complex issues through analysis, adapting and innovating where necessary, and defining a clear way forward and ensuring buy in
• Ability to extensively travel for project monitoring and provide on-site technical support to field teams 
• Highly developed interpersonal and communication skills including influencing, negotiation and coaching
• Highly developed cultural and political awareness and ability to work well in an international and matrix management environment with people from diverse backgrounds and cultures
• Strong results orientation, with the ability to challenge existing mindsets
• Ability to present complex information in a succinct and compelling manner
• Fluency in English, both verbal and written, required
• Understanding of Save the Children’s vision and mission and a commitment to its objectives and values

THE ORGANIZATION

We employ approximately 25,000 people across the globe and work on the ground in over 100 countries to help children affected by crises, or those that need better healthcare, education and child protection. We also campaign and advocate at the highest levels to realise the right of children and to ensure their voices are heard. 

 We are working towards three breakthroughs in how the world treats children by 2030:

• No child dies from preventable causes before their 5th birthday.
• All children learn from a quality basic education and that,
• Violence against children is no longer tolerated.

Save the Children is an equal opportunity employer and seeks to employ and assign the best-qualified talent.

Female Candidates are encouraged to apply.

Disclaimer: Save the Children International does not charge any kind of fee at whichever stage of the recruitment process and does not act through recruitment agents.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.