The Senior Initiative Manager (SIM) provides overall leadership on delivery of the SPA II project, providing strategic direction, project management oversight, as well as technical guidance and leadership on program quality and learning (PQL). The SIM is responsible for partnership management, strategic engagement of stakeholders, capacity building of partners and beneficiaries, technical guidance during design and delivery of innovation solutions, networking, and advocacy in relation to renewable energy, as well as linkage with staff working on related projects within the Climate Justice portfolio.  The SIM will ensure that innovative solutions are gender transformative and achieve the best value for money.

SPECIFIC RESPONSIBILITIES

Responsibility #1: Project MANAGEMENT Oversight

·        The SIM is responsible for ensuring timely delivery of CARE’s planned deliverables as per approved proposal and budget, working closely with the innovation partners.

·        The SIM will support project partners to mobilize project participants and influence the relevant leadership structures to trigger wider uptake of the innovation packages.

·        The SIM will coordinate the project team and innovation partners in monitoring of budget utilization to ensure a culture of zero tolerance to overspends and underspends and ultimately, zero No-Cost Extensions (NCEs).

·        The SIM will closely work with project partners and the grants team to ensure value for money, and utmost impact for women and girls, in the delivery of innovation packages.

·        The SIM will coordinate the project team and partners to review project risks from time to time, and devising timely mitigation measures, with the use of appropriate risk management tools.

·        The SIM will be responsible for consolidation of reports, both financial and narrative, and ensure timely quality reporting to the donor as per respective grant agreements.

Responsibility #2: Program QUALITY and LEARNING (PQL)

·        The SIM will plan, organise, and manage the consortium planning, and quarterly reflection meetings, ensuring that the lessons are captured and inform on-going improvement in project delivery.

·        The SIM will organise and/or facilitate capacity building sessions for the stakeholders, partners, and beneficiaries of the project, as may be required from time to time.

·        The SIM will work closely with the gender focal person for the project, to ensure that gender aspects are captured at baseline, and that the necessary gender actions for addressing identified gender issues are implemented and monitored throughout the project lifespan. This SIM will also be required to embrace and embed other CARE quality markers of resilience, and governance across the project cycle, reporting on progress using the established MEAL system and other reporting systems like PIIRS.

·        The SIM will ensure quality engagement at PQL platforms including monthly Program Review Meetings (PRMs) and quarterly PQL workshops.

·        The SIM will work closely with the MEAL advisor and the MEAL coordinator to carry out the day-to-day project monitoring as well as the three phased evaluation of the project, closely linking this to the research and iteration that will be carried out by the innovation partners and ensuring that concrete lessons and emerging issues are captured and used to inform project delivery and/or future innovative project designs.

·        The SIM will ensure robust communications and visibility of the project across different platforms like CARE shares, social media and any other relevant platforms that may present themselves, using quality content.

Responsibility #3: Strategic ENGAGEMENT and NETWORKING (SEN)

The SIM is responsible for external engagement, representation and influencing systemic change at all levels using different platforms, networks, alliances, and coalitions. To this end.

·        The SIM will be responsible for the advocacy and influencing of actors within the food and energy sectors, Government, CSOs, and Private sector to expand innovative climate solutions for refugees and their host communities.

·        The SIM will be the main link between the project partners and key leadership structures and/or technical working groups at settlement level (including within OPM, UNHR, Sub County) as well as subnational and national level (including Kikuube DLG, Ministry of Energy, Ministry of Agriculture Animal Industries and Fisheries, CSOs etc.,) ensuring representation and contribution to on-going initiatives and policy debates within the relevant sectors. 

·        The SIM will be responsible for articulating project progress and outcomes to the relevant stakeholders including CARE member partners, relevant Embassies, innovation communities of practice, CARE Uganda country office among others when called upon.

Responsibility #4: Program Design

The SIM will leverage own experience and expertise, as well as the experience from existing CARE projects, to build and grow the climate innovations. In this:

·        The SIM will be responsible for documenting and/or design of clean energy and food production models using the experience of the SPA II project, CAMP+ and other related projects within Kikuube and Karamoja region.

·        The SIM will work closely the CJ program manager to identify and pursue viable multi-year funding opportunities and to establish critical partnerships for building a robust energy and food innovations portfolio at CARE.

·        The SIM will work closely with the CJ program Manager, and the CJ team, to prepare winning proposals in response to identified funding opportunities.

Responsibility #5: Team management

·        The SIM will be directly responsible for management of performance of supervised staff, based on the provisions of CARE’s performance management guidelines.

·        The SIM will do whatever is necessary and within CARE policies, to build a cohesive and effective team for delivery on the SPA II program as well as the other Country Office deliverables.

·        The SIM will ensure visibility of team tasks to the rest of the Climate Justice team and other relevant CARE platforms.

·        The SIM will work closely with the Program Manager and the HR function of CARE to promote staff growth, including recommending and/or delivering mentorship, coaching and training to the project team as may be deemed necessary.

·        The SIM will coordinate the project team to ensure timely and quality contribution to Program and Country level tasks and processes.

Responsibility #6: Promote Gender Equity and Diversity and Safeguarding Practices (5%)

·         Practice a behavior consistent with CARE core values and promote gender equity and diversity goals.

·         Play a leadership role in identifying and implementing initiatives that enhance CARE’s commitment to gender and diversity.

·         Ensure that CARE Safeguarding policies and procedures are adhered to by all and the staff that S/he supervisors both directly and indirectly.

·         Ensure that He / She and consortium personnel under the project are familiar with the following organizational policies and procedures and can identify when needed how these may have been breached, The CI Safeguarding policy, Protection from Sexual Harassment, Exploitation and Abuse and Child Abuse, The anti-discrimination and harassment policy, The code of conduct and the organizations Values.

Responsibility #6: Any other duties assigned from time to time

·        Any other duties incidental to the role or assigned by supervisor.

EDUCATION, EXPERIENCE, SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE

Essential:

v  A Master’s degree in a relevant field from a reputable institution is a MUST.

v  Ten years of project management experience with substantial exposure to innovation processes.  

v  Experience in private sector engagement is a MUST.

v  A good understanding of the humanitarian innovations ecosystem within Uganda and beyond.  

v  Demonstrated experience in design of, proposal writing, and resource mobilization. 

v  Experience in research/evidence-generation especially in relation to the innovations iteration.

v  An analytical mindset that thinks outside the box, with excellent writing kills. 

v  Skilled at communicating and presenting to executive and high-level audiences.

v  Organizing skills and capacity to multi-task in rapidly changing and fast-paced environments.

v  Knowledge of and demonstrated personal commitment to relevant organizational codes of conduct including anti-fraud and anti-corruption, safeguarding etc

v  Good interpersonal skills especially in an environment that embraces diversity.

v  Willingness to live and work in a hard-to-reach environment

 Desired:

·        Professional training and experience in project management, Monitoring and Evaluation.

·        Professional training in budget management, people management and communications.

·        Professional training and experience in gender equality women and girls’ empowerment

·        CORE COMPETENCIES

·        • Excellence: Sets high standards of performance for self and/or others; successfully completes assignments; sets standards of excellence rather than having standards imposed; ensures interactions and transactions are ethical and convey integrity.

·        • Integrity: Maintains social, ethical, and organizational norms; firmly adheres to codes of conduct and ethical principles inherent to CARE.

·        • Communicating with Impact: Diplomatically, logically, and clearly conveying information and ideas through a variety of media to individuals or groups in a manner that engages the recipient / audience and helps them understand and retain their message.

·        • Facilitating Change: Supports and manages the change process at CARE Uganda by developing a culture affirmative of change; encouraging others to seek and act upon opportunities for different and innovative approaches to addressing problems and opportunities; critically analyzing evolving and fluid situations; facilitating the implementation and acceptance of change within the workplace; actively engaging with resistance to change.

·        • Strengthening Partnership: Identifying and utilizing opportunities within and outside of CARE Uganda to develop effective strategic relationships between one’s area and other areas/departments/units or external organizations to achieve CARE’s objectives.

·        • Management Excellence: Makes the connection between values and performance. Influences the performance of others, and ultimately, the performance of the organization. Sets direction, coaches & develops, promotes staff wellness & safety, practices & promotes compliance, models gender equity & diversity, communicates effectively.

·        • Developing Teams: Using appropriate methods and a flexible interpersonal style to help build a cohesive team; facilitates the completion of team goals.

·        • Diversity - Promoting, valuing, respecting and fully benefiting from everyone’s unique qualities, background, race, culture, age, gender, disability, values, lifestyle, perspectives, or interests; creating and maintaining a work environment that promotes diversity.

·        • Adaptability- Expected to well adjust with the country, the Co-operating environment and with the Program team to function effectively and efficiently

·        • Coaching - Ability to demonstrate to enhance skills and capacity of staff working in the field and office for them continue to serve CARE in the future program activities