Regional Program Manager - Western Kenya at TechnoServe Kenya

Job Summary:

• TechnoServe seeks a Regional Project Manager - Western (RPM-W) to provide strategic and technical leadership of project activities in the LFS Western Kenya zone of influence. Reporting to the DCOP, the RPM-W will have strong technical knowledge of the food and market system of the sectors and geographies prioritized by the LFS project in Western Kenya counties. With guidance from the Technical Integration Team, the RPM-W will be tasked with operationalizing activities across a number of work-stream; identifying county and regional level priorities and supporting relationship building with county stakeholders; supporting the development of specific partnership opportunities across the work-streams; coordinating training and capacity building preferably by integrating a market systems development approach; coordinate activities across implementing partners and; fostering collaboration among stakeholders across the region and project objectives. Therefore, the RPM-E will work closely with local communities, government entities, private sector partners, and an international consortium to deliver tangible outcomes that improve food security, nutrition, and climate change adaptation in the region.
• Under the direction of the DCOP and COP, the role will oversee all aspects of project management, including strategic planning, partnership development, on-the-ground implementation, monitoring and evaluation, and stakeholder engagement. This role will require close collaboration with the Financial/Admin team, the CLA team, and the Technical Integration Team.
• The RPM-W will supervise a team of technical professionals across areas such as first/last mile distribution, agro-processing, nutrition, policy, monitoring and evaluation, access to finance, gender, youth and social inclusion (GYSI), and entrepreneurship. The RPM-E will have a matrix management role with admin, MEL, grants, procurement, finance, and other staff based in the regions.
• The RPM will collaborate with the Technical Integration Team to conduct applicable research around various market systems and identifying constraints to be addressed, identifying and coordinating local partners; supervising members of the project team; and overseeing project implementation, reporting, and monitoring and evaluation of the project.

Main Activities and Responsibilities:
Strategic Leadership:

• Under the guidance of the COP and DCOP, provide strategic guidance, leadership, management, and general technical oversight of the activities in the LFS’s Western Kenya zone of influence.
• Support in the contextualized development and implementation of food and market system interventions with a focus on gender, localization, and sustainability.
• Generate innovative ideas, and effectively manage partnerships to drive program success within the region.
• Identify new strategic program opportunities to expand the impact of the project.

Stakeholder Engagement:

• Independently engage with local-level executives from the private and public sectors to encourage solutions to local food systems
• Support the development and ongoing relationship management of county and inter-county level partnerships
• Engage with external stakeholders to build essential partnerships, as determined by the COP and DCOP

Program Management:

• Work closely with the Technical Integration Team, CLA Unit and Finance and Admin units to ensure alignment of resources, activities, and key performance indicators.
• Conduct frequent field visits to stay informed about intervention progress and support ongoing collaboration, learning and adaptation.
• Working with the Technical Integration Team, support the development schedules, tools, and processes for deploying a robust local partnerships fund; work closely with the regional implementation teams to ensure targeted calls for partnerships are released to address constraints in the local food system.
• Identify issues and risks related to implementation promptly, suggesting appropriate program adjustments
• Lead, or in supporting role, manage, contribute to, and provide quality control to data analysis and report writing within the region.

Capacity Building and Support:

• Support subawards and grantees in intervention design and operational management.
• Collaborate with the Technical Integration Team to provide Food and market systems coaching and guidance to program staff and partners

Monitoring and Evaluation and Reporting:

• Collaborate with the M&E team to monitor and evaluate program progress.
• Support or contribute to knowledge management activities including writing articles on project developments, learning or opinion pieces.

Innovation and Best Practices:

• Develop innovative approaches to enhance TechnoServe's work and share these innovations to promote the adoption of best practices within the organization.

Representation and Networking:

• Represent the program at networking events with private and public sector actors, as per the guidance of the COP and DCOP

Miscellaneous

• Perform other related duties as required to contribute to the program's success.

Basic Qualifications and Competencies:

• Bachelor’s degree in management, economics, statistics, agribusiness, business administration, agricultural economics, agriculture, international development or relevant field, or equivalent work experience, master’s degree preferred.
• At least 7 years of experience in food and market systems, or related fields
• Strong knowledge of the business and agricultural ecosystem in Kenya with familiarity with the various market actors and players, including financial sectors, input suppliers, service providers, etc.
• Strong gender leadership, supervisory, problem-solving, communication, and coordination skills required.
• Demonstrated commitment to advancing gender equality.
• Track record of building and managing strong client and stakeholder relationships, including with government, civil society and private sector
• Proven ability to develop strategies and conduct analysis on complex commercial questions
• Experience in authoring concise and well-written reports and presentations
• Demonstrated competency in program and staff management, coaching, and team leadership
• Experience working on donor-funded projects is preferred.
• Strategic and analytical thinking skills
• Exceptional interpersonal and cross-cultural skills
• Fluent user of MS Word, Excel, and PowerPoint
• Verbal and written fluency in English and Kiswahili

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience in LFS Western zone of influence preferred
• Proven experience in incorporating complexity awareness with programmatic implementation
• Proven experience with catalytic grants programs

Required Languages:

• Fluency in English and Kiswahili, with excellent oral and written communication skills required.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Demonstrated Leadership: Proven ability to inspire and lead teams toward program goals, fostering adaptability and creative problem-solving.
• Results-driven: Committed to achieving measurable impact and program outcomes, consistently seeking improvement opportunities.
• Strategic Management and Adaptability: Proficient in systems thinking, quick to adapt strategies in response to change, with expertise in Market Systems Development (MSD), entrepreneurship, and regenerative solutions development.
• Problem-Solving Expertise: Strong at addressing market system challenges and developing innovative solutions.
• Stakeholder Engagement: Skilled in building effective relationships with diverse stakeholders to drive collaboration and results.
• Gender and Inclusion: Familiar with gender-sensitive and inclusive program approaches, dedicated to reducing social and economic inequalities.
• Initiative and Independence: Takes initiative, works independently, demonstrating self-motivation and proactiveness.
• Effective Communication: Friendly and approachable, facilitating communication and collaboration with colleagues and stakeholders.

Supervisory Responsibilities:

• Directly supervise a team of technical staff, matrix management to additional sub-awardee and functional area staff.