IPA Evidence Action Field Operations Senior Manager Job in Nairobi Kenya

Position: Senior Manager, Field Operations - Evidence Action

Start Date: 15th May 2014
 

Location: Nairobi, Kenya with frequent travel within Kenya.
 

About Evidence Action: Evidence Action is assuming management and growth responsibility for two programs tested and incubated at Innovations for Poverty Action that are currently making a difference in the lives of millions of people in Africa and Asia: the Deworm the World Initiative (DTW) and Dispensers for Safe Water Initiative (DSW). 

Evidence Action scales proven development interventions and crafts resilient business models for long run success.
 

Description
 

Evidence Action is providing Technical Support to a National Service Programme, which aims to:
 

1. Create enriching opportunities for over 30,000 unemployed Kenyan youth.
 

2. Improve educational outcomes for over 2 million primary school children.
 

3. Promote national cohesion.
 

As a part of this programme, Evidence Action seeks to recruit high performing recent university graduates to serve as Volunteer Graduate Assistants in primary schools, where they will provide education support and serve as ‘education ambassadors’ in the surrounding community.

This programme will also provide these volunteers with professional skills and increased access to top employers in Kenya.
 

Purpose of Role: The Senior Manager will oversee field operations for the programme, ensuring that volunteers are enabled to do their work with the highest level of quality. 

This includes ensuring that staff members in the field are responding to volunteer needs from a human resource perspective; fostering learning, sharing and networking between volunteers; and communicating programmatic changes and improvements to volunteers and local government officials. 

The Senior Manager will also ensure that their staff liaise with other partners in the field including county, district, and school officials as well as other stakeholders in the private sector, as required, to prepare them to fully own and implement the programme in their region.
 

The Field Manager will oversee a Partner Support Field Officer and a Volunteer Support Field Officer in each of 8 regions (with the potential to expand).

Responsibilities
 

Team Development

• Develop hiring strategy for the team of field staff. (one Partner Support Field Officer and Volunteer Support Field Officer in each of 8 regions)
• Manage hiring process for the Field Team.
• Develop and conduct a training session for field staff on their roles and responsibilities.
• Maintain a high level of motivation among team members.
• Conduct ongoing training, and professional development for field team members.
• Work with the Program Manager and other team members to design a comprehensive scale-up strategy for the field team including optimal scale and 4-year growth trajectory.

Programme Delivery and Improvement

• Ensure that the Field Team effectively enables volunteers to achieve their goals. This includes ensuring that support is available volunteers who may need it, fostering an environment of continual improvement of volunteer skills, conducting activities to maintain a high level of volunteer motivation, foster a supportive network among volunteers in the field, and ensure that volunteers continue to improve their content knowledge.
• Ensure that the Field Team effectively enables teachers, local government officials and county officials to achieve their goals by conducting training sessions, supporting them to make logistical arrangements, sensitizing the community, and providing ongoing support as necessary.
• Liaise with other members of the national team to understand and implement any changes to the design of the program and/or the monitoring and evaluation of the program vis a vis the volunteers and local officials.
• Support communications with, and strategies for, volunteers’ transition into the programme.
• Develop an emergency response strategy for field activities.
• Communicate regularly with volunteers about safety, rules and regulations and any other important areas that may arise.
• Share information coming upward from volunteers with the national team (including the Government of Kenya and Evidence Action) in an organized effective way.
• Responsible for creating strong project plans and communication to ensure field operations run smoothly.

Staff Management

• Set vision and direction and manage field staff members toward intended outcomes.
• Build and maintain an outcome oriented, cohesive, happy, and effective team culture that is integrated with other functional teams in the organization and improves their operations and outcomes.
• Work with team members to set and make progress towards individual development goals aligned with both team members' long term ambitions and the needs of the team over time.

Financial Management

• Monitor financial expenditure as it relates to field activities and ensure appropriate spending.
• Provide strategic input on programme-wide budget for the purposes of fundraising.
• Prepare financial reports as they relate to field activities.

Qualifications
 

Education

• Bachelor’s Degree, Master’s Degree preferred

Experience

• 5-7 years’ experience coordinating large scale programs
• 3-7 years’ experience managing outcome oriented, high performing teams
• Experience in the NGO sector in Kenya
• Proven record of achieving ambitious results, individually, as a manager, and as part of a team

Skills

• Strong consensus building, conflict management, and negotiation skills
• Exceptionally strong strategic thinking and planning skills
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills
• Superb organization, detail-orientation, and project management skills
• Ability to thrive in a goal-oriented, fast-paced, and entrepreneurial environment, including the ability to be flexible in project execution
• Ability to envision, plan and project-manage multiple complex, collaborative projects simultaneously, with impeccable follow-through on execution
• Sound judgment related to organizational and interpersonal dynamics
• Thrives on feedback and hungry to continually learn, improve, and help others grow

This position is based in Nairobi, Kenya with frequent travel within Kenya

Term: 1 Year Contract
 

To apply:  

Please send a cover letter and detailed CV, 3 references, daytime phone number(s), and email address. 

Your CV should include details about your academic qualifications and any relevant work experience.
 

Applications be submitted by email to jobs-kenya@poverty-action.org, please ensure that the subject line reads: “Senior Manager, Field Operations-Evidence Action,” REF NO: Evidence Action-2014-04-03. 

Deadline to Apply: 28th April 2014

Only short-listed candidates will be contacted by phone and email for an interview. 

Applicants are encouraged to apply early, as applications will be reviewed on a ROLLING BASIS
 

Disclaimer: The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of the work being performed by the Senior Manager, Field Operations-Evidence Action. The statements are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all possible duties, tasks, and responsibilities. Management reserves the right to amend and change responsibilities to meet organizational needs as necessary. Please note that Evidence Action will never request any form of payment from an applicant. Applicants are encouraged to confirm the information listed above with IPA prior to releasing any extensive personal information to the organization. Please direct questions to jobs-kenya@poverty-action.org.