ThaiNGO

Exciting Job Opportunity: Planning & Coordination Lead at a Leading Education Programme

ROLE PURPOSE:

As a multi-donor funded programme, the consortium partners with selected ethnic and monastic education providers to strengthen their capacity to deliver and sustain good quality learning opportunities for children considered to be hard-to-reach in Myanmar. Applying a ‘systems strengthening’ approach, the programme provides funding, coordination, technical assistance, and research across different complementary education systems to promote continuous improvement of education services. The programme works with its partners, established education providers, to place an emphasis on developing the quality and inclusivity of education in Myanmar, including improved learning outcomes; and with a broader range of diverse stakeholders to address key barriers for the achievement of equitable education. In line with its current 2021-25 programme strategy, the overall aim for the programme is that hard-to-reach children access education services that meet their learning and well-being needs.

The Planning & Coordination Lead is based in Yangon and is responsible for the implementation and co-ordination of effective project cycle management processes across the programme. Under the direction of the Deputy Chief of Party, Programme Operations, the Planning & Coordination Lead is overall responsible for maintaining the programme’s Detailed Implementation Plan (DIP); facilitates planning coordination mechanisms; ensures progress monitoring is up-to-date and recorded and maintains effective review and escalation processes.

The Planning and Coordination Lead oversees the Annual Planning process, fielding and consolidating inputs, and ensures appropriate contribution from the Programme Operations team to donor reporting. They play a leadership role in strengthening Project Cycle Management capacity across the programme teams and the development of robust and fit-for-purpose tools and mechanisms for effective programme oversight. In addition, they will lead on the planning and facilitation of key internal coordination fora.

They will be expected to advise and coordinate effectively with other sections within the Programme Operations team and with other departments to ensure that planning, monitoring and reporting is coherent across the functions and that key analytical and management information is shared effectively.

The candidate is expected to be a well-organised, skilled, flexible leader that is able to foster collaborative working relationships whilst being able to deliver tasks to time-constrained deadlines in a fluid operating context.

TITLE: PLANNING & COORDINATION LEAD

LOCATION: Yangon, Head Office

CONTRACT LENGTH: Fixed Term, one year (renewable)

Number of Position: 1

GRADE: NAT-2

Reports to: Deputy Chief of Party, Programme Operations

Staff reporting to this post: 1 Programme Operations Assistant

Financial Approval: Budget authority as delegated up to $3,000 USD

Travel: Occasional (approximately 3 days per month)

Responsibilities that make a difference:

Planning

• Advises programme teams in a leadership role to plan implementation effectively, to coordinate planning between departments and adapt plans to changes in circumstance.

• Develops and maintains fit-for-purpose tools and coordination mechanisms to facilitate effective planning.

• Hosts fora to ensure inter-departmental collaboration in planning in order to maximise on resources, streamline partner interface and avoid duplication.

• Working with different teams, ensures that project planning informs other departmental planning (procurement, HR, MEAL, budget phasing, etc).

Monitoring

• Develops and maintains fit-for-purpose tools for progress monitoring, adapting to programme needs and oversight requirements.

• Advises programme teams in establishing and phasing clear targets and in systematically monitoring progress against these targets, recording justifications for variance.

• Works with the Partnerships teams to develop fit-for-purpose tools and mechanisms to record and monitor partner progress against indicators.

• Ensures that internal and partner progress is collated to provide an overview of project performance.

• Works with the EIM team to help ensure systematic monitoring against results framework indicators.

Review

• Facilitates formal progress review processes, hosts meetings and ensures appropriate documentation of minutes.

• Ensures coordination and consolidation of review processes to ensure alignment of implementation and financial performance tracking.

• Ensures appropriate analysis of data and identifies critical areas for action and escalation.

Adaptation and learning

• Advises programme teams to adapt their implementation plans when needed and ensures modifications follow due process and donor requirements and are appropriately recorded and communicated.

• Ensures that operating constraints are documented and inform risk and context analysis, learning, strategic planning and donor reporting.

Reporting

• Ensures that progress monitoring and review is appropriately documented and shared to inform management decisions and serve as a base-record for donor reporting.

• Provides quality inputs for donor reports and ensures that other required Programme

Operations components are provided on a timely basis.

Annual Planning

• Leads on the annual planning process, compiling different components from relevant stakeholders and ensuring that planning is feasible, realistic, coherent and coordinated.

• Leads on quarterly reviews and updates of the Annual Operating Plan.

Team Management

• Empower direct reports, deepen understanding of their roles and assist with career development.

• Equip team members with information, tools and resources to improve performance & reach objectives.

• Promote accountability, communicate expectations, and provide constructive feedback informally and formally via regular one on ones and performance reviews.

• Create and sustain a work environment of mutual respect where team members strive together to achieve excellence.

• Promote continuous organizational learning culture with the empowerment of individuals and teams with the identification of learning needs.

General

• Advise programme teams and staff with capacity-strengthening initiatives through training, coaching and socialisation of tools.

• Comply with MEC policies and practice with respect to safeguarding, code of conduct, health and safety, equal opportunities and other relevant policies and procedures.

• Build and maintain optimal working relationships with all programme implementation and programme quality teams.

Cross-Cutting (Child Safeguarding, GEDSI & Partnership) Responsibilities

• Ensures that child participation and child safeguarding are integrated into the planning and implementation of MEC activities, and that children’s voices are represented.

• Seek out and nurture a focus on GEDSI through all spheres of work.

• Ensure engagement with MEC partners is in line with MEC partnership principles.

Qualifications that set you apart:

• Bachelor’s degree in social / Development Sciences, Research, or other related subjects.

EXPERIENCE AND SKILLS

• At least 7 years’ experience in development, humanitarian context working for non-government organizations, UN agencies or consulting firms.

• At least 3 years’ experience in a Project Cycle Management role with proven experience of project performance monitoring and data collation and presentation skills.

• Experience of coordinating across teams and functions, strong organisational and meeting management skills, ability to hold to teams account and ensures timely inputs to shared processes.

• Highly developed planning skills and an ability to consolidate planning across different departments in a fluid context to ensure efficient use of resources, coherence and coordination.

• Ability to analyse data and identify and record critical information for internal documentation and/or escalation.

• Strong English and Myanmar communication skills, both written and verbal, are required; ability to speak another ethnic Myanmar language desirable.

• Excellent personal organizational skills, including time management, and ability to meet deadlines and work under pressure.

• Good people management skills/experience and proven ability to create an environment which encourages team-working and motivates a team across various geographical areas.

• Ability to work collaboratively with colleagues across the organization developing effective working relationships to deliver outstanding results for quality education for children.

• Ability and willingness to travel internationally.

• Commitment to and understanding of the programme’s aims, values and principles.

• Willingness and capability to comply with all relevant organisational policies and procedures with respect to health and safety, security, equal opportunities and other relevant policies, including the Child Safeguarding Policy.

Don't miss this opportunity to be part of our impactful education programme!

To apply, please send your CV and a cover letter to:

educationmyanmar.recruitment@gmail.com using ‘Planning & Coordination Lead’ in the subject line.

Application deadline: 11/September/2023 (Monday).

No requirement of photo or copy of certificates and only short-listed candidates will be contacted.

Remark: For those who failed to mention or incorrectly mention the position title in their applications, we will consider those as disqualified and we will not consider for short list.

Join our team and contribute to our mission of driving positive change in education through your expertise in information technology. We are excited to receive your application!