Program Manager
Ongoza (www.ongozayouth.org/) is a young,
dynamic organization working to empower youth as catalysts for social change
through economic empowerment and community leadership.
Working in four counties across Kenya, we
identify promising grassroots youth leaders with an existing micro-enterprise
and social mission and provide two years of high-touch (weekly), needbased
business coaching and training to scale their employment and social impact.
Ongoza also hosts an annual summit that unites youth leaders from every county
in Kenya as a platform to amplify youth voices in national policy dialogues around
peace. We believe in a “business plus” approach, recognizing that holistic
solutions to peace and community development require economic empowerment,
strong leadership, and community cohesion.
As Ongoza’s most senior program team member,
the Program Manager will work closely with the Executive Director and be
primarily responsible for leading a team to implement and continuously improve
Ongoza’s service delivery. The Program Manager will play a key role in
streamlining existing processes, developing new tools to improve
implementation, and overseeing growth.
The Program Manager will draw on internal
successes and failures as well as field-wide lessons to be a key mentor and
guide for Ongoza’s County Business Advisors and program staff. As a core member
of Ongoza’s leadership team, the Program Manager will also be responsible for
contributing to strategy around organizational development, representing Ongoza
to high-level stakeholders, and building innovative partnerships.
Program Manager Job
Responsibilities
·
Lead the growth of Ongoza’s current cohort of
partner youth businesses by coaching a team of private sector development
professionals through the development and delivery of business growth
strategies
·
Spearhead Ongoza’s growth by guiding the
recruitment of new youth-led social businesses and designing new program
directions in response to organizational goals and field-wide trends
·
Mentor and coach Ongoza’s current team of
County Business Advisors, our program assistant, and various short-term
consultants and interns to deliver targeted results
·
Actively test and experiment with new ideas,
innovations and best practices to improve program delivery and refine Ongoza’s
model, drawing on trends and best practices in the development and social
enterprise fields
·
Advise the Executive Director, Boards, and
rest of senior leadership team on organizational growth strategies, processes,
and procedures
·
Collaborate closely with Ongoza’s monitoring
and evaluation team, leading Ongoza’s program development in response to experience
and measured results
·
Lead the consolidation, implementation, and
iteration of Ongoza’s training toolkit, customizing and enhancing the quality
of trainings being delivered
·
Manage, optimize, and build Ongoza’s program
structures and systems
·
Build relationships and partnerships with
government authorities, private sector actors, donors, and members of civil
society, elevating Ongoza’s presence at the county, national, and international
levels
·
Contribute to Ongoza’s fundraising and
resource mobilization efforts to support the growth of Ongoza’s programs
·
Design and write detailed concept notes,
proposals, budgets, and work plans for new programmatic work
·
Foster a culture of openness, learning,
collaboration and innovation across the organization
·
Support Ongoza’s consultancy efforts as needed
Qualifications for the Program
Manager Job
·
5-8 years of experience in a similar role is a
must, with demonstrated team leadership and business development experience in
a similar environment. Private sector experience desirable, and preference to
graduate study in business, finance, or related field.
·
An excellent understanding of general business
principles a must, including product development, value chains, market
analysis, investment readiness and design thinking principles. Understanding of
the informal sector essential.
·
Demonstrated results-oriented management
skills a must, with experience building systems in a changing environment.
·
Strong mentorship, coaching, and leadership
skills necessary. Experience in curriculum development and training an
advantage.
·
Learning and change-oriented mindset a must –
willing to take calculated risks, think outside the box and try new ideas.
·
Demonstrated experience using data as a basis
for decision-making for both program and organizational growth essential.
Monitoring and evaluation or business analytics experience desirable.
·
Excellent understanding of players and best
practices in the social impact field a must.
·
Fundraising and partnership development
experience an advantage.
·
Ability to travel a must, remote management
experience desirable.
·
An excellent relationship builder and
communicator, both verbally and written, who enjoys being an active member of a
team.
How to Apply
Please send your CV and a cover letter (of no
more than two pages) to hr@ongozayouth.org explaining
why you are interested in Ongoza and what your first 100 days look like. Please
include in the cover letter the results (including descriptions) of this
survey: https://www.jivesoftware.com/why-jive/worktype-navigator/. Note that
there is no right answer here; we’re just curious to understand how you would
approach this new opportunity and fit in with the existing team.