Program Manager - Sierra Leone

About Imagine Worldwide

All children have immense potential, but hundreds of millions don’t have access to the learning they need. Imagine Worldwide’s mission is to empower millions of children across Sub-Saharan Africa with the literacy and numeracy skills they need to reach their full potential. We provide a tablet-based, personalized learning solution designed for the most challenging environments. Nine Randomized Control Trials (RCTs) across multiple countries and settings have shown dramatic learning gains, increased school attendance, and gender parity, all for less than $7 per child per year.

Imagine Worldwide partners with governments, organizations, and communities to provide child-directed, tablet-based learning that is accessible, effective, and affordable. We are a California-based (United States) nonprofit organization operating across seven Sub-Saharan African countries. Learn more on our website.

 

About the Role

The Program Manager will play an instrumental role in carrying out Imagine’s mission, to test and scale tablet-based learning solutions that enable children to become literate and numerate. The successful candidate will play a key role in coordinating projects in multiple locations to ensure effective and efficient delivery of all projects together with our implementing partners. The Program Manager will join a highly committed and collaborative team that is working together to empower every child, everywhere to achieve their full potential. The position offers an international, flexible, learning environment to enhance individual career development and growth.

 

Key Responsibilities

The Program Manager will work closely with Imagine’s Head of Programs, the Imagine Sierra Leone team and local implementing partners to ensure timely execution of all project activities in Sierra Leone. The Program Manager’s responsibilities will include — but will not be limited to — the following:

Ensure data-driven, high-quality project implementation: 

• Engage regularly with implementation partners to track progress and oversee implementation, including check-in meetings, progress reports, site-visits, and any other relevant activities.  
• Collaborate with Program & Systems Managers to improve tools, systems, processes, and methodologies to support implementation, and monitoring, ensure provision of adequate technical support, capacity building, and guidance to the team and partner staff to implement program plans, tools and strategies.
• Oversee and manage quality data collection to facilitate effective monitoring of program activities against set program quality benchmarks. 
•  Review and analyse monitoring data and share actionable insights with relevant stakeholders, i.e. identify successes, flag challenges, and make recommendations about adapting activities and approaches to achieve results. 
•  Work with the program and research teams to conduct and supervise program assessments, surveys, and impact evaluations.

Provide project leadership to ensure accountability and learning: 

•  Own the process capturing key lessons and findings to inform evidence-based program design and implementation
• Oversee implementation of strong accountability and beneficiary / community feedback mechanisms, including quality assurance of established processes
• Coordinate learning processes and documents, including periodically organizing learning summits for reflections on program performance, dissemination of M&E findings, and driving partnerships and donor engagement
• Collaborate with program and communications teams to collect, document, and disseminate impact stories
• Build team and partner staff capacity to enhance program accountability through guidance, training and resources

Provide leadership for stakeholder management: 

• Coordinate and manage all relationships with local community leaders, schools, parents, local education authorities, and other project stakeholders and partners 
•  Engage regularly with local implementing partners to track project progress and solve problems creatively 
•  Support dissemination of project outcomes with local stakeholders and share any feedback with Imagine’s team
• Represent the work in local meetings and forums relevant to the progress of the project in various sites

 

Requirements

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree in Project Management, Business Administration, Monitoring and Evaluation or related social science field.
•  A minimum of 5 years experience managing multi-site and multi partner projects.
• Experience in managing an implementation with significant data-based monitoring is required. Additional work experience is welcome.

Ideal Candidate Profile

• Exceptional project management skills and proven experience that includes: 
•  Excellent written and oral communication skills in English
• Ability to organise, manage, and analyse data to derive actionable insights 
•  Strong interpersonal and relationship building skills 
•  Ability to work effectively in multicultural environments and teams 
•  Strong organisation skills and superior attention to detail
• Experience in managing multi-site and multi partner projects at international level 
•  Ability to positively influence partners decisions and actions
• Ability to work under pressure and meet deadlines 
•  Good knowledge of computer hardware and software
• Ability to proactively manage and resolve conflicts

Additional project management skills (preferred)

•  Experience and knowledge of procurement procedures and practices in international development
• Experience in managing donor funded project

Qualities

•  Passion for Imagine’s mission and vision 
•  Demonstrated commitment to equity in educational access and outcomes
• Passion for project management
• Demonstrated ability to think independently and solve problems
• Collaborative team player; clear and proactive communicator
• Flexible, adaptable, and able to work in a fast-paced, changing environment

 

Compensation & Benefits

Salary is competitive and commensurate with experience.

 

Location

The Program Manager must be based in Sierra Leone, with frequent travel to other districts across the country as required. The Program Manager will frequently collaborate and coordinate with local staff from our teams and our Implementation Partner organisations.

 

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Imagine Worldwide is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran or disability status.