POSITION TITLE: Senior Program Manager

PROJECT TITLE: Strengthening TVET Resilience and Inclusive Vocational Employment (STRIVE)

POSITION LOCATION: NORTH / EAST To be decided between Vavuniya and Batti – with frequent in-country travel to districts and occasional travel to Colombo.

REPORTS TO: Project Director

CONTRACT TERM: 1 year, renewable

LANGUAGES: Fluency in both English and Tamil are required

APPLICATION DEADLINE: Open until filled – applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis

Background:

World University Service of Canada (WUSC) is a leading Canadian international development organization that works with and through its southern partners to promote sustainable development. Founded in 1957 and currently working in more than 20 countries worldwide with an annual budget of approximately $45 million, WUSC fosters youth-centered solutions for improved education, economic, and empowerment opportunities to overcome inequality and exclusion. We believe youth have the potential to provide for their families, build strong communities, and create positive social change for future generations. Globally, WUSC has a network of higher education institutions, civil society organizations, private sector partners, professionals, students, volunteers, faculty, and community leaders that can be leveraged to support our work.

WUSC’s members are Canada’s most globally engaged post-secondary institutions. WUSC offers a dynamic international work environment with a diverse intercultural workforce. We offer employees exciting opportunities to apply their skills and gain experience all while making a difference for youth around the world. Employees at WUSC work hard to create lasting change in education, employment and empowerment.

Strengthening TVET Resilience and Inclusive Vocational Employment (STRIVE) project

STRIVE is an ambitious new initiative designed to transform the economic prospects of young people—especially young women—in Sri Lanka’s Northern and Eastern Provinces. Over the next five years, the programme seeks to reduce poverty, boost regional competitiveness, and propel sustainable economic growth, giving specific attention to advancing gender equality and strengthening resilience to climate and economic shocks.

Using a collaborative approach, STRIVE will drive gender-responsive, environmentally sustainable, collective action among actors in the technical and vocational education and training (TVET) ecosystem. These actors will be supported to increase the participation of young people, particularly young women, in enhanced TVET that leads to increased, gender equitable employment and self-employment in key sectors facing current and future skills gaps, with emphasis on the green economy.

The STRIVE project will focus on two key pillars:

1. improved participation of young people, particularly young women, in gender-responsive, environmentally sustainable and market-relevant TVET in the Northern and Eastern Provinces of Sri Lanka
2. Enhanced gender equitable transition to employment, including green jobs for young people, particularly young women, in the Northern and Eastern Provinces of Sri Lanka.

Job Role

The Senior Program Manager (SPM) supports the Project Director (PD) in ensuring that the STRIVE project reaches its stated results and objectives. The SPM assists with strategic and work planning, coordination and management of project staff, and overall management and administration of the project at the national and regional level.

Under the supervision of the PD, the SPM will work closely with project staff including the TVET Advisor, Partnership Officers, Monitoring and Evaluation Advisor, the Gender Equality Social Inclusion Advisor, Finance Officer and other staff to ensure that project activities are effectively planned, implemented and monitored. The SPM will support project staff and partner organizations to develop capacity building and training activities, mentoring and coaching interventions and follow-up support in ensuring that youth, especially young women are meaningfully included in higher education, employment and entrepreneurship pathways.

Under the supervision of the STRIVE Project Director, the Senior Program Manager will work closely in collaboration with other WUSC teams in Sri Lanka and Canada.

Responsibilities:

• Management and support oversight of project activities, ensuring that commitments made under annual work plans are achieved or that adaptations/changes are adequately planned for and monitored for quality assurance;
• Supporting the Project Director in providing mentoring and coaching to project staff to ensure that they are building relevant competencies in partnership management, project management and gender mainstreaming in their respective areas of work;
• Overseeing the development of capacity-building tools, training materials and other resources for a diversity of partners and other stakeholders;
• Supporting and supervising the recruitment and selection of program staff and/or external technical assistance to support various facets of the project;
• Working with project staff to identify and assess partners, prioritize capacity needs, identify areas of intervention, develop action plans, and help implement those plans through gender and youth sensitive training, coaching and mentoring;
• Foster relationships with implementing partners, subcontractors and consultants for the implementation of the STRIVE project, ensuring strategic alignment, communication, and compliance with donor regulations and internal organizational policies;
• Participating in and/or lead regular meetings, missions, donor monitoring visits and project events with staff, partners and relevant stakeholders;
• Manage all regional level government and stakeholder relationships;
• Contributing to the development of STRIVE’s reporting, budgeting and work planning processes;
• Develop and implement the private sector engagement and incentivization strategy;
• In conjunction with the Project Director, convene and manage regular Advisory Committee meetings, fostering meaningful input and governance of the STRIVE project;
• Work with the MERL team to ensure documentation of results and good practices of the STRIVE project and the generation of content and knowledge, and identify ways to to communicate this internally and externally;
• Ensure quality, consistency, and timeliness of project communication, with the donor, government counterparts and HQ colleagues;
• With the guidance of the Project Director, oversee the implementation of the project Communications Strategy and Plan.
• Work with colleagues and partners to ensure the effective mobilization, orientation, coaching and management of international of volunteers, placed with the STRIVE project;
• volunteer placements under the STRIVE project.
• Participate in regional level public engagements, networking and speaking engagements in consultation with the Project Director.
• Manage a team of STRIVE project direct reports.
• Providing any other managerial, administrative, technical or advisory support as requested by the STRIVE Project Director.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Master’s Degree in international development, education, public policy, social sciences or a related field;
• Project management certification would be an asset

Experience and competencies

The ideal applicant will combine experience and technical expertise in TVET and / or higher education, inclusive market systems, private sector engagement with a familiarity of Sri Lankan labour market context, a strategic and analytical mindset, excellent listening and interpersonal skills, strong staff management skills and most importantly, a proactive and positive approach to work.

Specific competencies:

• Relevant experience working in international development, education, public policy, social sciences or a related field. development cooperation/ technical assistance projects;
• Significant experience in project management and mentoring and coaching of project staff;
• Relevant experience on projects that promote inclusion for youth; tertiary or technical education for youth;
• Experience providing technical support to partner organizations and a commitment to a participatory partnership approach to capacity development;
• Demonstrated commitment to social inclusion and knowledge of the specific constraints and realities of challenges faced by youth or migrating groups, especially young women;
• Diplomatic skills and experience with representation with a wide range of key stakeholders;
• Experience working on a Global Affairs Canada project will be an added advantage;
• and cogently, and to edit communications products at a similarly high level;
• Adherence to gender equality and social inclusion principles; proven knowledge of and commitment to the concept of gender equality and intersectionality within programming;
• Curious, enthusiastic and willing to innovate and adapt;
• Commitment to WUSC’s mission of building a better world for all young people, particularly young women.

Language

• Complete fluency in English and Tamil is essential
• Fluency in Sinhala will be an advantage
• Excellent writing skills required in English

Other requirements

• The role will require occasional international travel for conferences, workshops and meetings;
• Ability to work a flexible schedule, requiring online meetings with HQ outside of normal business hours.

Applications:

WUSC offers a dynamic international work environment with a diverse intercultural workforce. We offer our personnel exciting opportunities to apply their skills and gain experience all while making a difference for youth around the world. Personnel at WUSC works hard to create impactful change through education and economic outcomes for young people.

WUSC is an equal opportunity employer. Female candidates and persons with disabilities are encouraged to apply. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. No telephone calls please.

Candidates must be legally authorized to work in Sri Lanka. WUSC will not facilitate any work authorization process or relocation.

How to Apply:

If you are interested, please apply here through our portal.