Project Director at Center For Reproductive Rights

The Role:

•  This is a new role within the Center’s Program Division, this role will provide leadership and managerial and technical direction for a new multi-million-dollar restricted grant funded by Global Affairs Canada. The role will also provide leadership in identifying lessons from this grant to inform further institutional grants management system and process improvements. The grant aims to improve access to Sexual Reproduction Health Rights (SRHR) of women and adolescents in Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Colombia, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador, and Guatemala, by building the requisite political and legal support at national, regional and global levels.

About the project: 

• The project will implement legal advocacy strategies in the 13 countries and at the UN tailored to the specific systemic challenges and prevalent SRHR violations faced by women and adolescents in each context, while also drawing lessons learned to inform strategies across countries and via global processes. The project will also expand on the Center's existing work with national level partners to build capacities of national legal entities and organizations. The project will build norms and standards with Africa regional and sub-regional bodies, as well a regional body in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). Finally, protecting and advancing SRHR in global processes (e.g. UN General Assembly, Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), Commission on Population and Development (CPD), Human Rights Council, Treaty Monitoring Bodies (TMBs), and Special Procedures and Universal Periodic Review) form a crucial component of maintaining a circle of accountability prioritized by the project. As such the project crosses three Center departments. These are the Africa region, the LAC region, and Global Advocacy (GA).

About the role: 

• The Project Director will guide an assigned project team to assure strategies and activities are responsive to the stated priorities of the Center’s grant agreement with GAC, as well as in line with the Center’s Africa, LAC, and GA departmental strategies. The Project Director will play a significant technical role in developing, monitoring, and overseeing the project, including ensuring synergies between Africa, LAC and GA implementation plans are maximized wherever possible. The Project Director will oversee the project budget, monitoring and evaluation plan, and the project risk and mitigation plan, with support from the Center’s program development, finance, and compliance teams. The Project Director will serve as the Center’s main liaison with GAC as it relates to this grant and it accountable for the successful management and delivery of the grant.
• This position will report to the Vice President of the Africa Region (based in Nairobi), with a dotted line to the Vice President of the LAC region (based in Bogota), and the Vice President GA (based in New York). The Project Director will line manage a Project Associate. A new position that is also currently under recruitment. Other staff assigned to the project will continue to directly report into existing Africa, LAC and GA departments.
• The position can be based in Nairobi where our Africa office is established in a hybrid model of 3 days working in office, 2 days working from home. Candidates able to work in one of our other global offices in New York City and Bogota will also be considered.

Primary Responsibilities:

Leadership:

• Lead the implementation of the project.
• Ensure the project plan can meet the ambitious outcomes expected by GAC, for example by identifying and addressing the gaps in existing Center Africa and LAC regional and GA existing implementation plans and providing direction for filling these gaps.
• Oversee project planning, paying close attention to the need to both deliver according to the plan and to learn and adjust the plans according to new opportunities and threats arising in the SRHR legal and advocacy landscape in the countries and spaces where the project will be implemented.
• Provide leadership to ensure alignment of the project with Africa, LAC and GA strategies as well as the overall Center global strategy.
• Manage the performance of the project team in line with the Center’s Human Resources policy, work plan and organizational values.
• Promote an organizational culture of high performance and continuous improvement that values learning and commitment to quality.

Grant Management:

• Provide overall project management for all project-related activities and oversee inputs of assigned staff to the project.
• Work with the Center’s Compliance Director to develop and implement and project risk and mitigation strategy, as well as plan to train staff and oversee grant compliance provisions assigned in the Center’s prime agreement with GAC.
• Work with the Center’s finance team to develop and implement appropriate project financial monitoring and compliance procedures.
• Ensure the flow of funds to partner organization comply with the Center’s onward granting procedures, and support project team to find efficiencies and good practice related to these partnership procedures in accordance with the Center’s partnership principles.
• Support the recruit and onboarding of project staff, as needed.
• Engage and manage external consultants as needed.
• Ensure proper reporting and accountability to internal and external audience, including
• Support new fundraising efforts related to project outcomes and activities.

Technical Oversight:

• Lead the conceptualization and implementation of project activities.
• Ensure proper reporting and accountability to internal and external audience, including leading donor reporting process as specified in the Center’s prime award with GAC.
• Support the team to ensure a feminist, human rights and broader SRHR movement intersectional approach across project activities.
• Assure monitoring of the project work plans, and work with assigned M&E specialist to ensure appropriate monitoring, evaluation and learning strategy
• Serve as a strategic advisor and thought partner to the VPs of Africa, LAC and GA on project implementation.

Representation:

• Steward the relationship with the GAC project officer responsible for the project, working closely with the Center’s GA and development teams to align this relationship with our wider relationship with the Canadian government.
• Represent the Center in other external meetings as agreed.

Qualifications:

• Over 15 years’ experience with significant experience in roles that focus or include project and grant management, MEL and leadership, preferably in an international NGO.
• A master’s degree in management, public health, development studies, law, or any other relevant field.
• Experience working on human/women’s rights and/or in the social justice sector in Africa, Latin America or at the global level with demonstrable experience leading implementation of large, restricted grants.
• Experience overseeing government grants ,particularly GAC grants, is a plus.
• Expertise in setting up systems for effective accountability, monitoring and reporting across teams and regions.
• Experience adapting context specific analysis, strategy, policies, and procedures to suit different audiences.
• Proven ability to manage projects workflow, including facilitating project scope, identifying goals and deliverables, planning and scheduling project timelines, and monitoring project progress.
• Experience managing across regions, remote staff and a range of priorities.
• Ability to influence, lead and collaborate with those that may not have a direct reporting relationship.
• Experience in providing non-profits technical assistance.
• Fluency in English a must (Spanish a plus)

Behavioral Skill Sets:

• Commitment to the Center’s mission, purpose, and values.
• Diplomatic and tenacious: Possess strong relationships building skills with resolve. Must possess a “can-do” and “will-do” attitude and build effective relationships while sustaining focus and drive in the Sexual and Reproductive Rights protection agenda.
• Time perspective, planning organizing and work Impact: Must possess and exhibit a level of confidence in themselves and own work but must be able to take direction and criticism professionally.
• Management Skills: Strong organizational skills with proven ability to concurrently manage a large number and wide variety of projects with strict deadlines while working within a team setting across varied time zones.
• Teamworking and Flexibility/adaptability: Ability to work in a team and able to adapt to and work effectively within a variety of situations and with various individuals and groups. Understanding and appreciating different and opposing perspectives, adapting one’s approach as the requirements of a situation change. willingness to travel within Kenya, Africa Region and abroad, as needed.
• Creativity Innovativeness: “Out of the box” thinking perspective.
• Information Monitoring, Strong networking, and negotiation skills: Be astute at information gathering monitoring and networking.
• Initiative, energy, drive and follow up skills: Effectively respond to pressure or crisis situations and acts proactively and follow through on ideas, assignments, and open issues.