Manager, Program Development for MENA/Asia At Search for Common Ground

The Manager will be responsible for leading program development efforts covering Search’s work in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and Asia. The position reports to the Vice President for Global Affairs and Partnerships and leads a team of five staff members. The position oversees all program development efforts for the organization’s work in MENA and Asia, including new and repeat business in line with the organization’s Program Development Strategy. This involves building program development strategies for conflict geographies, capturing opportunities, and leading Search’s engagement with institutional donors and partners. The Manager works in close collaboration with other departments, including conflict geography teams, Finance, the Institutional Learning Team, Communications, and Human Resources.

Responsibilities:

• Deploys time and resources in line with overall organizational strategy.
• Manages personnel and budgets.
• Coordinates across all of the team’s policy strategies and campaigns, ensuring that all strategies are developed, implemented, and integrated.
• Manages the funding pipeline for MENA and Asia programming and leads relevant fundraising efforts.
• Drives team knowledge and information management and sharing

Contributions:

• Manages all aspects of budgets relating to policy funding, including forecasting and compliance.
• Leads recruitment and management of staff, with an emphasis on horizontal and vertical capacity strengthening and collaboration.
• Regularly provides training and mentoring to staff and interns.
• Develops program management tools and resources with limited supervision.
• Leads knowledge management for the team.
• Leads the team’s collaboration with headquarters-based and service teams, including regular cross-unit learning and collaborative reflection opportunities.
• May have a matrixed role with other Search teams.
• Responds to questions and program-relevant requests in a timely and customer-service oriented fashion.
• Supports the development and execution of organizational initiatives and strategies, including participating in voluntary committees and discussions.
• Other duties that are broadly in line with the above key contributions as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field such as conflict resolution, international relations, human rights, etc. At least nine (9) years of progressively responsible relevant international development experience, at least three (3) years of which must be in a management role, including direct supervision of staff, budgets, and strategy.
• Experience managing diverse, high performing teams.
• Demonstrated ability to develop and oversee implementation of strategies that align with organizational goals.
• Experience as a budget holder, including tracking monthly spending and forecasts.
• Demonstrated experience with proposal budgeting, program development, fundraising, donor compliance, and grants management.
• Knowledge of organizations, thought leaders, donors, and policies relevant to international peacebuilding.
• Ability to prioritize, plan and organize workflow to tight timeframes, handle multiple tasks, and be flexible with changing priorities.
• Excellent analytical and writing skills, with demonstrated ability to produce successful proposals and/or influential policy advocacy content.
• Experience working in or overseeing collaborative relationships and/or matrixed management with staff in other functional areas of an organization.
• Fluent in English.
• Ability to travel internationally up to 25% of their time.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Fluent in a second language, such as French or Arabic.
• Experience managing remote staff.
• Has a strong relationship with peer advocates and/or implementing organizations working on conflict and peacebuilding.
• Has used Salesforce platforms.

Behavioral Competencies:

• Manages overall strategy and vision. Provides functional and program/project management. Anticipates and plans for needs and takes action accordingly. Provides guidance to direct reports or matrixed team members.
• Develops and maintains collaborative relationships with vendors, organizations, professional associations, partners, funders, and Search’s network of experts critical to the area of purview.
• Modifies a planned course of action in response to new information or new circumstances.
• Responds to changing circumstances and expectations readily.
• Articulates Search/function program/project goals and objectives within and external to Search. Develops program objectives that reflect broader Search strategies and approaches.
• Provides input for standards across functions globally within Shared Services teams and with a view from a multicultural perspective that reflects consideration of other cultures, other viewpoints, and other ways of doing things.
• Overcomes obstacles using ethical practices; formulates and evaluates morally and ethically justified solutions.
• Assesses risks and opportunities to lead decision makers to a favorable outcome.
• Checks the accuracy of one’s own and others’ work and sets up systematic checks and balances to support content and data integrity.
• Has knowledge of project management tools including technology as resources for efficiency and reduction of stress.
• Works with employees to set and communicate performance standards that are specific and measurable.
• Anticipates the consequences of situations and plans accordingly.
• Analyzes the costs, benefits, risks, and chances for success in making a decision.
• Provides coaching and mentoring to staff.

Candidates who meet a required 12 years of international development experience with one to two years at the Manager level or equivalent may be considered for this position at the Senior Manager level.

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.