Lead, Impact Project Management at Mastercard Foundation

THE WORK AT THE FOUNDATION

We have entered a very exciting time at the Foundation as we scale up our operations across Africa to realize our Young Africa Works strategy. Our role at the Mastercard Foundation is to be a catalyst. Our Young Africa Works strategy focuses on working with others to spur systemic change so young people have the opportunity to find work that is dignified and fulfilling. The Foundation has opened offices in Rwanda, Kenya, Ghana, Senegal, Ethiopia, Nigeria and Uganda, building a broader leadership presence in Africa to develop specific strategies that support youth employment.  Within a country, we work with governments, the private sector, educators and other funders to improve the quality of education and vocational training, prepare young people for the work force, expand access to financial services for entrepreneurs and small businesses, and connect job seekers to dignified and fulfilling work.

We are ambitious and driven. Our values transcend and rise above everything else as our guide. We encourage you to bring your bold ideas, curiosity, and expertise to your work. We laugh at ourselves and with each other. We are a team. Our journey together makes our impact even more meaningful

If you are an experienced Lead, Impact Project Management professional looking to increase your impact, read on!

THE OPPORTUNITY

Reporting to the Head of Impact, the Project Manager will serve as a business partner to the Chief Impact Officer and work with the Impact senior leadership team and cross functional teams to support the prioritized project and process planning work for the Impact function at enterprise level to ensure effective and optimal workflows. This ranges from supporting enterprise planning, execution of convenings and workshops, developing detailed workflows and artefacts to support process design, and/or improve existing processes, supporting teams to meet strategy implementation milestones, reporting and communication.

As such, the Project Manager will work with multiple complex, multi-track projects or workstreams balancing scope, time, cost, geography, and quality while maintaining a positive environment that promotes high performance.  The Project Manager must be comfortable with uncertainty and possess the flexibility to co-create with dynamic, cross-functional teams to deliver integrated solutions.

The successful candidate will be based in Canada or any of our listed offices in Africa (Ghana, Rwanda, Kenya).

WAYS YOU CAN CONTRIBUTE

1. Develop and manage integrated plans; tracking progress and achievement of milestones through regular status reporting.
2. Work with stakeholders to identify, document, assess, and monitor all project dependencies, risks, issues, and required decisions.
3. Understand and develop content through active problem-solving and engagement of stakeholders for solutions as needed to execute deliverables.
4. Provide support on the implementation and operationalization efforts including training, change management and communications.
5. Support stakeholders to coordinate project delivery, change management and internal communication strategies through the lifecycle.
6. Develop, maintain and track milestones and overall project deliverables within the constraints of scope, schedule, cost and quality.
7. Translate requirements from Regional Planning team (as directed) into tangible workplan(s) and ensuring delivery of requirements.
8. Collaborate with Regional and Workstream Leads in the designing of Impact Function Budget and monitor its execution.
9. Provide coaching on project management best practices, stand in as Operational Excellence resource for the hub in alignment with the Foundation’s Project Management Centre of Excellence.
10. Successfully deliver project management support on prioritized initiatives for the Impact function and managing multiple projects or workstreams concurrently.
11. Drive discussions, developing content, and problem solving with cross-functional teams to develop a desired/improved future state.
12. Document workflows, tools, and accountability frameworks as required; housing information in a knowledge repository.
13. Support implementation and operationalization efforts including training, communications and change management.
14. Lead and support the development and/or continuous improvement of operational and programmatic processes as they relate to Impact.
15. Develop and manage integrated plans and associated communication documents to report on progress.
16. Prepare and provide frequent verbal and written progress reports on the status of projects; and provide action plans or recommendations on project delivery to stakeholders.
17. Ensure completion of deliverables and effectively closing out projects through transition documentation and lessons learned.
18. Curate evidence and insight information and knowledge management for the Impact Function.
19. Provide coaching on project management best practices, in alignment with the PM Centre of Excellence (CoE).
20. Provide leadership and technical guidance to Project Support Teams.

 WHO YOU ARE

1. University degree, preferably in business administration or a related field; Master’s Degree is an asset.
2. Minimum 7 years of relevant business project management experience (as opposed to IT project management) and success in leading and managing complex projects in an official PM capacity, demonstrating PMO methodologies for planning, risk management and reporting.
3. PMI certified with at least 3 years’ experience working in an M&E/Impact environment.
4. Advanced knowledge of project management tools and MS Suite (Word, PowerPoint, Project, Viso and Excel) and project management dashboard
5. Fluent in English required. Ability to speak French and a local language(s) is an asset.
6. Detail-oriented, methodical and process-oriented to consistently and effectively produce and deliver high quality results.
7. Strong collaborator and relationship builder who can establish trust, respect and credibility to co-create solutions across a range of stakeholders.
8. A highly analytical problem-solver and critical thinker who can define root cause, evaluate alternatives and find solutions effectively.
9. Possess a ‘client’ focus mindset which enables effective business partnering and issue resolution.
10. Flexible to travel to Country offices within Africa and Canada, as required.
11. A team player, self-starter, and resourceful with the ability to work within a constantly changing and ambiguous environment with minimal supervision and resilience.
12. Agile, adaptable, and able to execute a range of job duties and changing priorities.
13. Possess excellent verbal, written, and presentation skills with the ability to articulate information to a variety of constituents across cultures.
14. Possess professional maturity, sensitivity with different cultures, and impeccable integrity.
15. Committed to Mastercard Foundation’s values and vision.