Project Manager

Global Development Network

Roles and Responsibilities

Project Management:

• Lead the end-to-end management of donor-funded grantee implemented Doing Research Assessments, ensuring processes and timelines are aligned with the Doing Research global goals and objectives, across 5+ Asian countries (and potentially countries in other regions).
• Keep track of timelines, milestones and deliverables, support selection processes and contracting, facilitate payments and financial monitoring.

Stakeholder Management:

• Support effective communication and reporting, both internally and externally, including between GDN and: grantees, external advisors, and donor agency counterparts.
• Curate and keep up to date the global database of Doing Research stakeholders.

Resource Management: 

• Support programme leads and the finance department in ensuring that expenditure on each grant is properly monitored and that it is consistent with the overall programme budget, including as part of complex and composite multi-donor regional budgets.
• Track the allocation and management of project resources, including budgets of sub-grants, personnel and indirect costs.
• Utilise data-driven insights to optimise resource use and enhance project efficiency.

Risk Management:

• Identify potential risks early and implement proactive mitigation strategies.
• Address challenges effectively to ensure programme health, scaling up high-risk issues and involving colleagues in risk management as needed.

Quality Assurance:

• Support the establishment and maintenance of quality standards for project deliverables, including narrative and financial reports from grantees.
• Coordinate the review of reports between GDN Fellows and independent advisors.

Cross-Functional Collaboration and Continuous Improvement:

• Work closely with other departments and champion a culture of collaboration, learning, and innovation across the organisation.
• Drive continuous improvement by incorporating feedback and lessons learned into future programme planning.

Event Management:

• Plan and execute conferences and events that are critical to achieving programme objectives, fostering collaboration and knowledge sharing.
• Manage all aspects of event logistics, from venue selection to agenda development and participant engagement, ensuring alignment with programme goals.
• Evaluate post-event outcomes to measure impact and refine strategies for future initiatives.
• Work with cross-functional teams to integrate events into the overall programme strategy, leveraging them for stakeholder engagement and programme advancement.

Programme Development:

• Support the further expansion of the Doing Research global initiative in Asia, and across regions, contributing to funding proposals, including budget creation, concept notes, and technical specifications related to the Doing Research implementation process.
• Coordinate submission processes within donor deadlines.

The role might require international travel up to 15% of your time.

Duration of assignment

The initial appointment is for 18 months renewable, conditional to 6 months’ probation. The hiring and the renewal are conditional on the availability of adequate financial resources and on the successful expansion of the initiative.

Eligibility and desired profile

• BA and Master’s degree in relevant discipline (relevance to be discussed in the motivation letter)
• At least 5 years of demonstrable project management experience
• At least 3 years of experience working in international settings, including travel and event organisation internationally, and experience working with international donor regulations.
• Fluency (written and spoken) in English, and at least one more language. French fluency is an asset.
• Previous experience in international development and development research is an asset.
• Experience building and managing contact databases is an asset

How to apply, questions and clarifications 

• Up to date CV (no more than 2 pages)
• Motivation letter (no more than 1 page) that provides concrete and demonstrable examples of how your experience and capacity match the requirements for the position.
• A short essay on the question: What risks does the evaluation of social sciences potentially pose in Asian countries?
• Details of last salary and salary expectations for the position, along with a clear indication of the earliest start date.

For any queries related to the application procedure or the job posting, please write to jobs@gdn.int.

GDN is an equal opportunity employer, committed to diversity in its staff. Female candidates from developing countries are particularly encouraged to apply.