Reports to: Vice President, Program Management and Compliance
Location: Toronto or Ottawa office (with up to 10% international travel annually)
Status: Full-time, permanent
Contact Level with Children: B
Grade: 10
What can you expect from a leading organization in the global movement to advance children’s rights and equality for girls?
Plan International Canada is the first non-profit organization to ever be inducted into Canada’s Most Admired Corporate Cultures Hall of Fame by Waterstone Human Capital. Here’s why: together, we have created a climate of trust and inclusivity – where diversity in people, ideas and approaches is not only respected, it’s encouraged.
We remain agile amid an ever-changing global landscape. Though we continue to evolve, our mission and strategic ambition will not change – and our work has never been so imperative. We will never stop believing in the multiplying power of girls and that every child deserves that right to learn, lead, decide and thrive. Our future success will be founded upon Plan International Canada’s 80+ year history of focusing on our mission, our core values, responding to challenges and seizing opportunities with purpose, relevance and impact.
Further information can be found at: plancanada.ca
The Position
Reporting to VP, of Program Management & Compliance, the Director will be responsible for the effective implementation of a thematically varied, gender-transformative grant portfolio of over
$100 million CAD. The incumbent will bring senior leadership and extensive program management and compliance experience working in an international development context.
What success looks like:
- Providing effective leadership and mentorship of a team of Senior Program Managers, Program Managers and Program Officers at Plan International Canada, to ensure workloads are well balanced, roles and responsibilities are clear, and a positive team environment is fostered.
- Working effectively with other Program department colleagues, to ensure all grants have a well-functioning, collaborative, multi-disciplinary project team (i.e. RASCI) in place including representatives from Program Management, Compliance, Monitoring & Evaluation, Gender Equality and relevant thematic area(s).
- Ensuring all grants have a start-up and subsequent annual work plans in place, with corresponding budgets which were developed in a participatory manner with field colleagues; within a results framework; and receive appropriate donor approval.
- Working with the Monitoring & Evaluation team, ensuring all grants have a mechanism for regular monitoring and reporting of results, including project evaluations and contributions to Plan International’s knowledge management.
- Monitoring and providing oversight of grant performance within the portfolio, and ensuring that appropriate risk and issue management practices are followed, including timely escalations and regular discussions with Country Directors and Regional Directors on Program Quality and Compliance.
- Maintaining a standard of excellence in donor reporting and relationships.
- Fostering and maintaining effective, positive, and productive relationships with the consortium and other implementing partners, Plan International Country Office and Regional Office colleagues, and colleagues in other departments within Plan Canada.
- Maintaining fiduciary accountability via serving as Budget Holder for grants within the portfolio.
- Effectively participating in and regularly contributing to the Program Management Team (PMT), Leadership Forum, and select Plan International Canada and PII Working Groups.
- Leading the implementation of select Outputs in the FY23 Operating Plan.
- Liaising with Plan Global colleagues to keep abreast of relevant policies and procedures, to contribute to areas of efficiency, and to support efforts to address systemic issues that impact project implementation.
- Providing people leadership to Senior Program Managers and maintaining accountability for the management of a team of up to 10 contract and permanent staff, including recruitment, setting performance expectations, managing performance, promotion, and discipline.
As our ideal candidate, you will have:
- A flexible and adaptable work style; open to collaboration with strong personalities and professionals; thrive in a fast-paced evolving work culture.
- Proven leadership and people management skills; preferable experience managing complex cross-functional teams of ten or more.
- Successful track record and significant experience managing grant-funded international development programs, some of which should have been gained overseas.
- Solid understanding of compliance requirements of donors, including institutional and corporates, and experience in engaging effectively in consortium arrangements.
- Skills in budget development, monitoring and forecasting; financial analysis of expenditure; and donor and consortium partner contract negotiation.
- Familiarity with gender-transformative, child protection and adolescent reproductive health programming is desirable.
- Superior skills in building effective and productive working relationships with colleagues, field offices, donors and partners and issue resolution.
- Solid understanding of monitoring and evaluation systems.
- Flexible approach to dealing with ambiguity.
- Fluency in oral and written English and French.
- Exceptional cross-cultural, oral and written communications skills.
- Ability to travel internationally (a valid passport will be required).