Project Director At Free the Slaves

About Free the Slaves

Founded more than 20 years ago, Free the Slaves is the leading organization in the anti-modern slavery movement and is dedicated to changing the conditions that allow modern slavery to exist. Through innovative programs, FTS works at the community level to build communities resilient and resistant to modern slavery and lead advocacy at the global level.

Currently, Free the Slaves works across the regions of the globe, including Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Latin America, and the Caribbean.

Free the Slaves runs the Freedom from Slavery Forum, and it is a member of the Global Coordinating Group (GCG) of the Alliance 8.7 where it is one of the organizations representing Civil Society.

To learn more about Free the Slaves, visit: https://freetheslaves.net/

Position Overview

The Project Director will provide overall leadership and strategic direction for the project, ” Promoting the Voices and Engagement of Persons with Lived Experience to Prevent Labor Exploitation” in the Philippines. This initiative aims to empower individuals with direct experiences of forced labor, human trafficking, and labor exploitation (“persons with lived experience” or PLE). The Project Director will oversee the planning, execution, and evaluation of the project, ensuring effective stakeholder collaboration and compliance with deliverables, timelines, and budgets.

Principal Responsibilities

Leadership and Project Management

The Project Director will provide strategic oversight to ensure the successful implementation of the project in alignment with Free the Slaves’ objectives, delivering high-quality outcomes. They will lead a multidisciplinary team, fostering collaboration, accountability, and effective coordination to achieve project goals. A key responsibility will be building and sustaining partnerships with government agencies, NGOs, survivor networks, and other stakeholders to strengthen the project’s impact and reach. The Project Director will oversee the project budget, ensuring efficient resource allocation and timely financial reporting. Additionally, they will establish systems to manage timelines, mitigate risks, and streamline reporting processes, ensuring operational efficiency throughout the project lifecycle.

Survivor Engagement and Capacity Building

The role will involve designing and implementing training initiatives to enhance the leadership, advocacy, and communication skills of persons with lived experiences (PLEs). By fostering safe and supportive environments, the position will enable survivors to share their experiences openly and advocate for systemic reforms. A key focus will be on identifying and empowering emerging leaders among survivors, equipping them to represent their communities effectively in policy discussions and broader advocacy efforts.

Policy Advocacy and Technical Assistance

The role will involve conducting policy analysis to identify gaps in labor policies and advocating for the inclusion of survivors in addressing these gaps. It will require collaborating with government agencies to ensure survivor input is integrated into policymaking and program development. Additionally, the position will drive advocacy efforts aimed at legislative reforms that promote and institutionalize survivor participation in decision-making processes.

Monitoring, Learning, and Evaluation (MLE)

With the support of MLE manager, the role will focus on developing a robust Monitoring, Learning, and Evaluation (MLE) framework to track project progress, assess impact, and integrate lessons learned into future strategies. It will involve gathering and analyzing data to measure project outcomes, with a particular emphasis on evaluating the empowerment of Persons with Lived Experience (PLEs). Additionally, the position will require producing detailed reports to communicate findings and progress to Free the Slaves and other key stakeholders effectively.

Relationships

• The project director reports to the Regional Director for Asia.
• Manages a team of technical experts, local partners, and staff.
• Coordinates and works closely with other FTS team members located internationally.
• Maintains working relationships with all project stakeholders, and engages in coalition-building.

Travel

The project director is expected to frequently travel to project sites in the Philippines and annually to Washington DC, USA.

Position Qualifications

The ideal candidate will be expected to:

• Minimum of five years of experience in project management, supervision, administration, and implementation of cooperative agreement and/or contract requirements (including meeting deadlines, achieving targets, budgeting, and overseeing the preparation and submission of required reports).

• Demonstrated experience establishing and maintaining systems for managing project operations.

• Have experience with multi-year US government-funded projects, particularly DOL-ILAB, in a leadership position.

• Minimum of five years’ experience working on projects that address labor-related issues, including forced labor, human trafficking, and/or experience working with persons with lived experience.

• Ability to maintain working relationships with all project stakeholders and effectively build partnerships between them.

• Specific knowledge of labor and trafficking issues in the Philippines and experience engaging with the Philippine government on labor rights, trafficking, or human rights issues.

• Experience establishing and maintaining systems for project operations, including working with the MLE manager to ensure those systems are functional.

• Experience in strategic planning and performance measurement, including indicator selection, target setting, reporting, database management, and developing MLE and performance monitoring plans.

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in public policy, international development, social science, or related field is preferred; or, ten (10) years or more of related work experience.

• Fluency in written and spoken English is required and knowledge of local languages.

• Prior experience in and ability to work in The Philippines without sponsorship.

• Proficiency in Microsoft Office suite, including Word, Excel, and Outlook.

Compensation will be dependent on candidates’ qualifications.