Job Description

Heifer International is an equal opportunity employer.  All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, gender, gender identify, sexual orientation, age, status as a protected veteran, among other things, or status as a qualified individual with disability. 

FUNCTION
The Senior Program Manager provides leadership and management for all Heifer Tanzania Programs in the field, including leading the planning, design, development, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of the country programs and ensuring the quality of projects, implementation, reporting, and field level management is of the highest standards.

The Senior Program Manager enforces quality assurance with all projects being implemented by Heifer International in Tanzania. He/she provides line management support to all Program Managers and Project Coordinators including overall management of their performance. The Senior Program Manager supports the translating of Heifer International’s Global Vision and strategy into project implementation and ensuring project design and implementation are geared towards achieving scale and impact, attracting funding to diversify funding resources and that the project implementation processes respond to Heifer International’s need to strengthen global operating systems.

With the support of the Deputy Country Director, He/ She leads the process for developing and growing Heifer Tanzania’s Program to reflect a fair balance in the project portfolios that will include but are not limited to Dairy Development, Climate Change, Pastoralists and Small Ruminant Development. 

ESSENTIAL CHARACTER TRAITS: 

Self-motivated, accountable, result oriented; and an individual of high integrity.

RESPONSIBILITIES & DELIVERABLES
(including approximate percentage effort)

Program Management (25%)

1. Assume overall responsibility for the management of all Heifer Tanzania programs and provide line management support to all Program Managers and Project Coordinators.
2. Support Program Managers and Project Coordinators (PC’s) in the management of field resources and project budgets and ensure these are used in compliance with approved guidelines.
3. Implement annual performance management process for all Program Managers and Project Coordinators and support them to ensure these cascades to all Program staff.
4. Ensure that program field staff clear advances monthly.

Deliverables

1. Staff performance management system for all program staff implemented on a quarterly and annual basis.
2. Enhanced compliance and accountability in the management of project resources, achieving 100% compliance.
3. Planned milestones are achieved by the projects annually.
4. Ensure 100% compliance donor contractual obligations by all the project staff.

Program Planning and Budgeting (15%)

1. Support all project teams to develop annual budgets and work plans consistent with project documents and donor contracts.
2. Support teams in undertaking the necessary review and updating of the work plans and budgets to respond to emerging field implementation challenges and project review processes.
3. Lead the field program in the Letters of Agreement (LOA) revision process based on the ground performance and realities.
4. Support in the review of the Heifer Tanzania Country program Framework

Deliverables

1. Project work plans and budgets (annual, quarterly and monthly) developed for all approved projects every financial year and implemented in line with project documents and work plans.
2. Periodic and timely reviews of budgets and forecasting of all approved projects work plans undertaken and shared with Headquarters and respective donors, ensuring alignment with the donor contracts.
3. Biannual and annual review of the Tanzania Country Program Framework with clear actions to address any gaps that may be observed.

Budget Management and Monitoring (15%)

1. In coordination with the finance department and the Deputy Country Director, undertake monthly and quarterly budget monitoring and variance analysis with all Program Managers and support the projects in reviewing and tracking spending to adhere to annual budgets.
2. Lead the Program Managers in undertaking corrective management actions arising out of budget monitoring reports.
3. In coordination with the Finance department and the Deputy Country Director, approve program related requests for imprest and reconciliations in line with work plans and financial management procedures.

Deliverables

1. Monthly and Quarterly activity and budget reports for all ongoing projects highlighting the status of project spending are completed and presented in the monthly operational meetings.
2. Implementing and tracking all the proposed corrective measures to address variances, ensuring that the spending is brought on track within the planned period.
3. Ensure program request for imprests and reconciliations approved in line with work plans and financial management procedures.
4. Ensure monthly procurement plans are designed and submitted by project teams ahead of deadlines.

Program Development and Fundraising (15%)

1. In collaboration with the Deputy Country Director, support Program development work with all the regional teams to grow and develop Tanzania Programs portfolio.
2. Support Heifer Tanzania’s fundraising work through background information gathering, Concept Development, and proposal development.
3. Support field teams in ensuring that Heifer Tanzania interventions are appropriately designed and benefitting correctly targeted beneficiaries and creating the desired impact with participants 

Deliverables

1. At least three (3) partnerships are annually established for program development.
2. Effective designs and models are developed and incorporated into new projects in order to achieve the required scale and impacts.

Documentation and lessons learned (10%)

1. Support country projects in developing and documenting lessons learned and experiences for dissemination and sharing to inform future project development.
2. Provide leadership in incorporating lessons learned into projects being designed and implemented.

Deliverables

1. Ensure at least two successful cases per year per ongoing project are documented from projects and disseminated through different platforms.
2. Ensure that the Lessons learned from projects documented and disseminated to stakeholders before the end of each project.
3. Successful business models documented before the end of projects for replication or scale up.

Any other duties as assigned by the supervisor

This will be dependent on the specific duties assigned

Required Skills

Most Critical Proficiencies:

• Good understanding of annual work planning and budgeting and budget monitoring.
• A good understanding of monitoring and evaluation processes.
• Solid project management and reporting skills.
• Sound project and proposal development skills.
• A good understanding and sensitivity to issues associated with poverty, hunger and environment, and knowledge of the context to which non-profit organizations operate.
• Solid knowledge and experience in extension methodologies.
• Experience in Agribusiness development, especially developing livestock value chains, market facilitation approaches and development of farmer business institutions.
• Knowledge and experience in training and participatory training methodologies.
• Team leadership skills, with good abilities to address conflicts amongst diverse teams and constituents.
• Excellent organizational skills.
• Proficient knowledge of word processing, spreadsheets, presentation tools, electronic mail (Microsoft Office preferred) and Internet.
• Demonstrated proficiency in English and Swahili, both oral and written.

Essential Job Functions and Physical Demands:

• Motivated to work responsibly with little supervision
• Ability and willingness to work a flexible schedule
• Preparing and presenting project reports and presentations in a well-designed and attractive format with superior attention to detail.
• Demonstrated creativity, ability to think systematically, willingness and ability to incorporate innovative solutions.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills with the ability to work cooperatively, tactfully and diplomatically with culturally diverse groups of people.
• Willingness and ability to assign and review the work of line-managed staff and to use participatory management skills with junior and senior staff.
• Proven team leadership and supervisory skills with the ability to train and work cooperatively with a diverse staff.
• Regularly conduct stakeholder analysis to strengthen partnerships and leveraging of resources
• Constant face-to-face, telephone and electronic communication with colleagues and the general public to scale up country program visibility and publicity.
• May require constant sitting; working at a computer and focusing for extended periods of time and performing office work in the field and/or in remote conditions.
• Working with sensitive information and maintaining confidentiality.
• Ability to manage and execute multiple tasks with little supervision while meeting sometimes inflexible deadlines.
• Ability to lift and carry up to 30 pounds (14 kilograms) floor to waist

Required Experience

Minimum Requirements:

• Bachelor Degree in Rural Development, Project Planning and Management, Agriculture, Agribusiness and Animal Science, Veterinary Medicine and other relevant qualification
• Seven (7) years of relevant experience in Program management, extension, and community development work.

Preferred Requirements:

• Master’s Degree in relevant professional discipline.
• Four (4) years of supervisory/managerial experience.
• Thorough understanding of programming processes, systems and principles, and the ability to provide leadership and support to staff working at community level.
• Solid skill, knowledge, and foundation in proposal development and of the project management cycle.
• Sound understanding of value chain development on various agricultural commodities including dairy and livestock sectors.
• Sound understanding of integrated development issues and critical analysis of the root causes of poverty in Tanzania.
• Knowledge of development issues, trends, challenges and opportunities and implications to community development.
• Demonstrated knowledge of strategic planning processes.