Program Manager- School Infrastructure (PM-SI) Unit

Program Manager- School Infrastructure (PM-SI) Unit

Organization Profile:

Room to Read (RtR) seeks to transform the lives of millions of children in low income countries by focusing on literacy and gender equality in education. Working in collaboration with local communities, partner organizations and governments, we develop literacy skills and a habit of reading among primary school children, and support girls to complete secondary school with the relevant life skills to succeed in school and beyond.

We are non-governmental and non-religious organization and work with many local NGOs and community based organizations to implement our programs. We currently work in Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Laos, Nepal, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Vietnam, and Zambia – countries with a desperate lack of resources to educate their children. Since our inception, Room to Read’s worldwide team has impacted over 9.7 million children by constructing more than 1,930 schools, establishing over 17,534 libraries, publishing 1,158 new children’s book titles in 11 local languages, and providing more than 3,1636 girls with long-term, holistic support to complete secondary school with the skills to negotiate key life decisions.

Room to Read has an annual budget of approximately US$43.7 million and our global staff numbers over 1,000. Our global headquarters is located in San Francisco, and we have smaller fundraising offices in Delhi, New York, Hong Kong, London, Mumbai, Sydney, and Tokyo. We have a Global Asia Office located in New Delhi and program offices in Colombo, Dares Salaam, Dhaka, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Kathmandu, Lusaka, New Delhi, Pretoria, Phnom Penh, and Vientiane. 

Position Overview:

The School Infrastructure Unit Program Manager will be responsible for carrying out all activities of Room to Read’s School Infrastructure Unit, including program development, planning, implementing, monitoring and evaluation, and project reporting. S/he will also be required to research and form networks within the technology industry to inform effective utilization of Room to Read School Infrastructure. This position requires skills in community mobilization and development, use of technology, building design, project management, training, networking, accounting, and supervising. This position will report to the Program Operations Director (POD).

DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES:

The position will require performing the below given job responsibilities not limited to:

Strategy & Program Development

• Take a lead in developing new concepts/ideas and strategies to improve RtR program efficiency in Nepal
• Review RtR Nepal School Infrastructure Unit (SIU) Strategy regularly, propose changes if required with new concepts/ideas/strategies. Ensures global guidelines are being adhered to and adapted as needed.
• Be responsible for creating and reviewing designs periodically for new classroom blocks, criteria and standards for repair and renovation of existing rooms, and internal designs for child friendly furniture and classroom layouts in collaboration with Global Office (GO) school infrastructure technical team and Country Office (CO) Teacher Professional layouts in collaboration with GO school infrastructure technical team and CO Teacher Professional Support Unit. Secure design approved from Ministry of Education (MoE).
• Research new construction technologies and materials that are cost-effective and locally relevant to improve the quality of our buildings.

Annual Planning & Budgeting 

• Develop annual plan, and budget of School Construction Project (SCP) for RtR Nepal in line with the guideline provided by RtR Nepal Country Office (NPCO) and Global office in close consultation with POD.
• Recommend POD and Finance to release funds to project sites after reviewing the expenditure and progress of the construction.
• Analyze SCP budget variance monthly and quarterly and suggest appropriate actions. 

Implementation

• Support School Infrastructure Unit (SIU) Officers to select and survey the sites and review the Bill of Quantity (BoQ)
• Develop Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and assist SIU Officers to facilitate the signing of MoU
• Provide regular updates on program activities and plans at regular meetings with POD

Capacity Building of Partner and RtR Staff

• Monitor and supervise the work of SIU Officers/ Sub-Engineers
• Provide technical advice and support to SC Officers whenever needs arise in the overall aspects of SIU program management
• Assess the capacity building needs on all aspects of program management of SIU staff regularly and design and implement capacity building programs systematically so that they will be able to implement SIU program effectively

Program Monitoring, Evaluation & Research

In working closely with Research, Monitoring & Evaluation (RM&E) team 

• Design the M&E framework/strategy for SIU program, implement the framework/strategy and identify the areas of improvement for quality work
• Undertake field visits as stipulated in the SIU monitoring table of Country Annual Plan; be involved in collecting, analyzing, monitoring data and identifying actions that need to be implemented for program quality
• Implement approved actions coming out of RM&E findings and assess the effectiveness of these actions.
• Identify the major research and evaluation areas for SIU program and assist in coordinating such research and evaluation studies either in-house or commissioned by external agency 

Networking, Coordination & Advocacy

• Build strong relationship with relevant ministries, government departments, relevant I/NGOs and donors, experts, academic institutions, strategic meetings, seminars, forums of key decision makers of education sector in Nepal
• Establish and manage relationships with other NGOs, government officials and local educational facilities/ authorities; schedule and attend meetings to coordinate planning and projects implementation

Documentation & Reporting 

• Prepare all internal and external reports with quality required by RtR such as donor report, government report, monthly/annual/quarterly progress report, best practices, newspaper article, case studies, lessons learned, etc.
• Manage the SIU database in a timely basis to monitor progress and appropriate materials
• Provide information to POD for MIU update and quarterly report.
• Support Communications Officer in planning and implementing donor site visits 

Regional Support

• Provide support to other SIU PMs of the region as and when necessary.

QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED:

• Master’s degree in construction and field work or experience related to the tasks mentioned above
• Minimum of 7 years work experience
• At least 5 years in community development, particularly in Education Sector
• Ability to travel frequently throughout the country
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English

PREFERRED:

• Prior experience working with INGOs, schools, teachers, administrators and government officials
• Good command of computer programs including Auto CAD, Auto desk, and MS Office suite, familiarity with databases, and internet skills
• To be successful as a member of the Room to Read team, you will also: 
• Have passion for our mission and a strong desire to impact a dynamic nonprofit organization
• Be an innovative and creative thinker that tries new things and inspires others to do so
• Have a very high level of personal and professional integrity and trustworthiness
• Have a strong work ethic and require minimal direction
• Work well independently as well as part of a team
• Thrive in a fast-paced and fun environment

COMPENSATION:

Please submit a cover letter explaining with evidences how you meet the above specifications along with your recent resume and recent photo (soft)by email (no calls, faxes, or drop-ins, please) to “nepal.hiring@roomtoread.org” OR by post through G.P.O. Box 21103, Kathmandu with “Application for Program Manager- School Infrastructure” as the subject line. Due to high applicant volume, we regret that we are not able to send personalized responses to all applicants. Applications are accepted until the position is filled.

Room to Read is proud to be an equal opportunity employer committed to identifying and developing 

the skills and leadership of people from diverse backgrounds.

Application Deadline: July 31, 2016