Global Program Manager

Title:                Global Program Manager

Reports to:      Director of the Hivos Global Office Hub

Period:             6 years, starting with a one-year contract

Scope:             Global

Location:         Hivos Global Office, The Hague, the Netherlands

Hours:             36 hours a week (full-time)

Deadline:         24 September 2023

POSITION IS PENDING CONFIRMATION OF FUNDING

We are looking for an inspiring and experienced Global Program Manager to lead the EU System for an Enabling Environment for Civil Society. You will be managing a Hivos-led consortium with five global civil society partners to implement this ambitious new program. Working closely with national and regional civil society partners across more than 80 countries, the program will monitor how shrinking civic space impacts civil society organizations’ ability to perform their vital human rights and development work and to develop strategies to respond to negative and positive changes to the enabling environment.

About the program

The EU System for an Enabling Environment for Civil Society (EU SEE) is a six-year program that will engage and support civil society organizations across more than 80 countries where civic space is under pressure. Through this program, we aim to improve the capacity and ability of civil society partners to detect and respond to situations of a deteriorating or improving enabling environment, and address and contribute to structural and systemic prerequisites for such an environment.

The EU SEE Monitoring Index, a civil society-led monitoring system designed to continuously assess the state of the enabling environment for civil society across all EU SEE partner countries, will be at the heart of the program. It will be complemented by a comprehensive Early Warning Mechanism to support the anticipation and rapid response to emerging threats and opportunities by civil society and diplomatic actors. In addition, the program will develop civil society partners’ capacity to promote an enabling environment for civil society and amplify their voices in national, regional and global fora through knowledge exchange, policy dialogue and advocacy.

Led by Hivos, the program will be implemented by a global consortium of civic space and democracy support organizations and networks, including CIVICUS, Democracy Reporting International, the European Partnership for Democracy, Forus and Transparency International. The consortium will closely collaborate with EU counterparts at Brussels and EU Delegation level, as well as EU Member States.

As the Global Lead of the program, Hivos is responsible for effective global coordination and oversight over all activities and partners, as well as for managing the EU SEE Secretariat and associated governance bodies.

This EU-funded project has a budget of EUR 30 million and will be implemented over a duration of six years.

Job context

The Global Program Manager (GPM) leads and guides the EU SEE strategically and operationally.

You are responsible for delivering effective program results and ensuring their quality, for guaranteeing sound financial management, effective human resources and upholding the program’s core values. You will shape the program’s strategic direction through your leadership and strategic foresight and adjust program priorities in light of internal and external contextual developments.

You are heading the EU SEE Secretariat staffed by five Hivos team members and supported by three additional partner staff. As Global PM, you are the first point of contact for the donor and represent the program’s policy, advocacy, expertise, and lessons learned, both internally and externally. You report to the Hivos Global Hub Director and work alongside other PMs leading global Hivos programs from the Global Office in The Hague.

Responsibilities

Leadership and management

• Provide strategic and inspirational guidance and promote teamwork across the consortium and among national EU SEE partners (EU SEE Network) towards fulfilment of the goals of the program.
• Lead and facilitate effective program governance structures bringing together a diversity of internal and external stakeholders, including consortium partners, EU INTPA, EU Delegations, EU Member States and other key civil society actors.
• Manage, motivate, train, appraise, support and guide the program staff directly contracted by Hivos, as well as partner staff who are directly contributing to the EU SEE Secretariat. Enable effective teamwork towards agreed objectives.
• Take final responsibility for operational and strategic relationship and contract management with the donor, including compliance with contractual agreements.

Project implementation and quality assurance

• Guide and oversee timely, participatory and qualitative project planning, budgeting and implementation. Ensure that national civil society partners and global consortium members actively participate.
• Maintain quality and coherence across all monitoring data streams and research released by the program through proactive monitoring and verification

Grant management and compliance

• Oversee and ensure compliance of Hivos, consortium members and sub-contracted organizations with agreements made, and promote dynamic and mutual accountability.
• Oversee and contribute to transparent and accessible reporting against the results framework and planning, including financial and progress reports, and evaluations.
• Maintain and update learning across the project and the partnership, stimulate generation of knowledge and sharing of results and lessons learned, and integrate learning into practice.

Networking, positioning and advocacy

• Act as the global ambassador of the program and build proactive relations with likeminded civil society organizations and networks from the Global South and North, as well as with EU and likeminded bilateral and multilateral actors engaged in the promotion of an enabling environment for civil society.
• Ensure strategic participation and visibility of the EU SEE in relevant regional and global fora to positively influence the agenda and debates on civic space and the enabling environment in international human rights and development policy. Create space in such arenas for voices and ideas of civil society partners from the Global South.

Requirements

• A minimum of ten years of experience in managing complex global or multi-regional civil society programs and consortia with global and national partners and networks
• A Master’s degree (or equivalent work experience) in human rights, international development, political science, public administration, public law, or another relevant field
• A strong interest and commitment to defending civic space and promoting a more enabling environment for civil society globally
• Knowledge of common political and administrative constraints affecting the ability of civil society organizations to operate in contexts of shrinking civic space.
• Ability to forge close collaboration and trusted and equitable relationships between civil society organizations from diverse geographic and socio-economic backgrounds.
• Extensive and demonstrable experience in managing complex, multi-million donor-funded project budgets, including supporting finance colleagues in monitoring partner budgets expenditure. Specific experience with EU-funded global or multi-country programs would be an asset.
• Proven senior leadership and people management skills, based on inspiration, trust and influence rather than hierarchy.
• Excellent skills in external relationship management, including with donors, government officials, external civil society stakeholders and the wider civic space and enabling environment field.
• Strategic thinking and ability to link operational lessons to wider program outcomes.
• Imagination and creativity for solving challenging strategic and operational issues.
• Full professional proficiency in English with excellent written and verbal skills; proficiency in another widely spoken language could be an asset (e.g. Spanish, Arabic, French, Swahili, etc.).
• Ability and willingness to travel regularly, both within Europe (mainly Brussels) and beyond (visits to global and regional conferences and policy fora, planning and monitoring visits to select partner countries, etc.).

What we offer

In this position you will work at Hivos’ Global Office in the city center of The Hague. This is will be the primary location of the EU SEE Secretariat headed by you, with most other Hivos program staff to be located there as well.

We offer a contract for 36 hours per week based on Hivos Global Office labor conditions. The gross salary ranges from € 4.862 to € 6.158 per month based on a 36-hour work week.

We provide a laptop and travel expenses according to our commuting policies, as well as participation in our pension fund. Hivos additionally works according to a 50/50 schedule, which means you may work from home during half of your contract hours.

How to apply

Please submit a cover letter and CV by September 24, 2023 at the latest, by clicking on the ‘Apply here’ button. Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.

APPLY HERE

Candidates are highly encouraged to provide a clear track record in their CV and description in cover letter that matches the requirements of the position elaborated above.