Senior Program Manager

Job Title: Senior Program Manager

Report: Project Director, with dotted line to Country Director

Department: Operations

Location: México

About TechnoServe:

TechnoServe, founded over 50 years ago, is a leader in harnessing the power of the private sector to help people lift themselves out of poverty. A nonprofit organization operating in more than 30 countries, we work with enterprising men and women in the developing world to build competitive farms, businesses and industries. By linking people to information, capital and markets, we have helped millions to create lasting prosperity for their families and communities.

Job Summary:

TechnoServe is seeking an experienced Senior Manager for two ongoing programs. The Senior Manager will be responsible for growing and maintaining public- and private-sector partnerships, working with the operations team to connect smallholder farmers to markets and supporting services, and overall monitoring and evaluation of the programs. She/he will ensure high performance of the M&E and learning functions within the projects, promoting evidence-based decision-making and project adaptation.

The position includes planning and reporting - including presentations - and supervising IT systems, financing models, data collection and analyses. The Senior Manager will research and manage innovations on sustainability, digital tools, youth and gender.

In addition, she/he will supervise an M&E Analyst, Communications Specialist, Gender Specialist and Program Specialist and work closely with the programs’ operations teams. The Senior Manager will work directly with the Project Director and Country Director and is responsible for internal and external measurements including communications.

Primary Functions and Responsibilities:

Leadership and Management

• Advises on and develops innovative solutions to complex problems, requiring creativity, ingenuity and innovation. Ensures solutions are consistent with organizational objectives.
• Manages and inspires a team that focuses on cross-cutting areas and promotes a positive workplace. Secures internal support and understanding for new policies or programs; conducts briefs and technical meetings for internal and external representatives.
• Monitors and drives achievement of project goals in cross-cutting areas such as gender equity, regenerative agriculture, and digitization, and manages donor and partner relationships.
• Optimizes the quality of programs and frameworks through continual assessment and adaptation; mobilizes resources to achieve quality goals, persuading others to adapt new approaches.
• Executes actions that assure timely and high-quality service delivery, in line with donor expectations, resolving issues and managing the integration of new policies and procedures.
• Develops budgets in coordination with the Project Director or Country Director for new partnerships with the public and social sector.
• Develops annual project plans.
• With the Project Director, supports the development and execution of key project strategies.
• Coordinates the development and execution of project procurement plans.
• Acts as a spokesperson for the programs and presents their work internally and externally.

Project Execution

• Establishes goals with corporate partners and farmer organizations in coordination with the operations.
• Supports alignment and coordinates with partner NGOs.
• Documents best practices to open purchasing channels for smallholder farmers.
• Plans and conducts farmer visits with partners.

Reporting and Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL)

• Develop or coordinate donor and partner reports: quarterly reports, monthly monitoring reports for the Project Director and Country Director, weekly monitoring reports for the team, and other information required by the donor for its communication and internal events.
• Report impact and progress of programs internally and externally according to each program’s M&E plan including quarterly reports, annual corporate measurements, and donor presentations.
• In coordination with the Project Director and Global Impact Practice, recommend methodologies (RCT, Propensity Score Matching, etc.) to define M&E strategy and conduct analyses.
• Assess and select digital tools and coordinate the development of apps for data collection, traceability and digital learning.
• Work closely with the Project Director and/or Country Director and other managers to provide necessary analyses and reports and deliver reports and evaluations to donors on time.
• Conduct or coordinate baselines, mid or final evaluations internally or with third parties. Supervise evaluation consultants.
• Supervise relevant contractors as needed.
• Respond to and implement surveys as requested by Global TechnoServe (i.e. quality survey).
• Implement and coordinate the systematization of internal project processes, e.g. agronomy, business, and quality teams.

Country Support

• Supports the MEL, Communication and Gender components for the Country Office.
• Develops donor proposals and coordinates the compilation for requests for information.

Basic Qualifications

• Master’s degree with 7 years of relevant experience or bachelor’s degree with 10 years of experience in agricultural economics, statistics, econometrics, international development, business, economy, public policy, or other relevant areas.
• Proven experience in project management, monitoring and evaluating programs including agriculture, climate/conservation and gender-integrated programs.
• Experience in financing.
• Mexican residency or valid work permit.
• Fluency in Spanish and English with excellent oral and written communication skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience leading economic development programs, in particular access to finance, market access, digitalization or gender and youth integration.
• Consulting experience desired.
• Team manager with good communication skills that enable seamless collaboration with field-based teams.
• Demonstrates high attention to detail and superb planning skills with a history of working independently and within agreed timelines and the flexibility to manage multiple tasks simultaneously while adapting to changing work situations.
• Proactivity and focus on results.

Required Languages

Has excellent written and verbal communication skills in Spanish and English with proven report writing, presentation, and data analysis skills.

Travel

Regular travel across Mexico.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Proven record of successfully supporting or managing complex private sector development programs with extensive local capacity building components.
• Demonstrated excellence in managing teams, projects, and budgets.
• Demonstrated ability to interact effectively and collaboratively with a broad range of public and private sector counterparts and other key stakeholders.
• Demonstrated capacity and experience to supervise field teams and work to achieve the expected results.
• Demonstrated ability to plan, monitor and deliver quality assurance; familiarity with M&E frameworks.
• Independent judgment and strong decision-making skills required, with limited supervision.
• Knowledge of agricultural market systems and facilitation approaches.
• Ability to work under tight deadlines while managing multiple tasks and activities.
• Ability to develop well written, cohesive analyses and reports in English and Spanish.
• Demonstrates interest in and/or knowledge of women's economic empowerment and gender equity.

Supervisory Responsibilities: Gender Specialist, Communications Specialist, Program Specialist and M&E staff. Experience leading multi-disciplinary teams is desired.

We encourage all qualified individuals who share TechnoServe's vision of improving the lives of others through proven business solutions to apply. With our commitment to diversity, we are proud to be an equal opportunity employer and affirmative action employer and do not discriminate on the basis of gender, race, color, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, HIV/AIDS status, protected veteran status, disability and all other protected classes. We are also proud of our commitment to protecting staff, partners, and beneficiaries from abuse and exploitation and thoroughly vet all final candidates through rigorous background and reference checks.

If you have a disability that affects your ability to use our online system to apply for a position at TechnoServe, please contact the Human Resources at recruitment@tns.org or call +1 202 785 4515.