Project Management Specialist (Health Workforce) - USAID India (Apply by: 28 May 2014)

USAID/India is accepting applications for the following Foreign Service National (FSN) Personal Services Contract position: 

Advertisement No. : USAID/14-09

Position Title : Project Management Specialist (Health Workforce)

Number of Positions : One 

Office : Health Office (HO)

Grade : FSN-11

Location : The position is based at New Delhi.

Working Hours : 40 hours per week, Monday to Friday, 8:30am to 5:00pm

Education:

Master’s degree or Post Graduate diploma in public health, health management, business management, or a related field is required. Additional training in strengthening health systems, human resources management, and related fields is desired.

Experience:

Five to seven years of progressively responsible (increasing responsibility for human, financial, or material resources) professional-level experience in health workforce programs; previous experience working with public sector health programs at the national and/or state level; experience working successfully in a team environment is required. 
Demonstrated experience in strategic planning, policy formulation, providing technical leadership, facilitating private sector partnerships, and program management in a complex and highly sensitive environment is desired.

Duties:

The Project Management Specialist (Health Workforce) has strategic, technical, thought leadership, project management, and program/administrative responsibilities. S/he functions with a high degree of independence with respect to programs, issues, and responsibilities related to the health workforce activities in the Health Office – Health Systems Strengthening (HSS) portfolio. This key FSN technical leadership position is intended to bring high visibility and focus on USAID’s efforts to strengthen the health workforce, which is at the heart of health service delivery and is presently a critical barrier for improved critical health outcomes. The responsibilities are complex because of the enormity of workforce challenges at every level of service delivery in the public and private sector, and the need to identify targeted interventions that will make dramatic improvements. S/he will coordinate with technical specialists for Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child, and Adolescent (RMNCH+A), health, nutrition, Tuberculosis (TB), and HIV/AIDS to understand the key workforce needs in these areas. The incumbent will report to the HSS Team Leader, who has overall responsibility for all HSS activities in the portfolio. 

Broadly, the incumbent’s responsibilities will include:

I. Strategic, Technical, and Thought Leadership 

• Provide analyses, expert advice, updates on developments, and recommendations to senior Mission management and staff regarding the strategy formulation for assistance relative to health workforce issues and implementation of related activities in the Mission’s portfolio; identify short- and long-range achievable, sustainable strategies related to workforce improvements; and participate, as required, in the development of Mission strategic plans, monitoring evaluation, and learning (MEL) strategies, results analyses, resource requests, and other strategic planning and reporting documentation.

• Stay abreast of strategies, programs, technologies, innovations, and developments in India and globally relevant to the health workforce; capitalize on opportunities to influence policies and practices, partner for greater synergy, and optimize undertakings and their potential for results; adapt best or promising practices from other countries that may be applicable to India or practices successful in India that could benefit other countries; identify capacity building needs that can accelerate results.

• Provide expert technical advice and strategic direction for health workforce issues, working in collaboration with Government of India (GOI) authorities and partners, private sector entities, and development partners to develop sound health workforce policies and practices; evaluate global best practices, evidence, U.S. Government (USG) objectives, resource availability, private sector partnership potential, cost-effectiveness, and likelihood of success to identify approaches; use negotiating and influencing skills as a trusted thought leader to champion appropriate approaches and effective state-of-the-art interventions to bring sustainable change; represent USAID/India with active participation at meetings, seminars, and conferences on health workforce issues. 

• Actively seek opportunities for promoting innovation (especially information and communication technology), engaging the private sector, forging market-based partnerships and solutions, as well as local or global development alliances, to achieve the Country Development Cooperation Strategy (CDCS) goals and greater potential for sustainability; serve as a private sector champion, as directed, and collaborate with other private sector champions, as appropriate; link as necessary with the Center for Accelerating Innovation and Impact in Washington and the Mission Center for Innovation and Partnership for advice and understanding of best practices and lessons learned.

• Establish and maintain relationships with senior and mid-level officials at the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MOHFW), as well as private sector leaders and representatives, to design, implement, and monitor programs that support efforts to improve the availability and quality of health workers; and work with GOI and private sector officials to interpret and explain USG policies and practices, and to help them to understand the importance and value added of USG involvement and approaches (which often involves extremely sensitive and difficult discussions and negotiations, requiring credibility, resourcefulness, and the highest level of diplomacy, tact, and effective communication skills). 

• Foster and lead coordination efforts between USAID’s health workforce interventions and implementing partners and other USG RMNCH+A, HIV/AIDS, TB, and health systems strengthening partners, seeking ways to strengthen health outcomes with workforce interventions and preparing guidance when necessary; represent USAID and proactively participate in coordination of activities and issues with GOI, the private sector, other donor and multi-lateral agencies, appropriate local public sector and non-governmental entities in defining the technical, policy, and program agenda relating to the health workforce, especially to avoid duplication of effort and/or programming gaps. 

• Determine the additional analyses, assessments, or reviews required primarily for sound health workforce strategies and activities, and to build a learning agenda that is a broad ranging, integrated approach to collaborating, learning, and adapting in order to improve or adjust programs in the portfolio; design and oversee the implementation of such analyses or assessments; and participate in, coordinate, or manage USAID inputs into assessments conducted in conjunction with other USG Agencies, international organizations, other donors, or other stakeholders.

• Provide thought leadership by highlighting effective health workforce interventions when assigned as point person for important visitors from the U.S., including Congressional Delegations, high-level officials from USAID/Washington, other important USG officials or officials from the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria (GFATM); provide ad hoc functional leadership when assigned as point person for visit.

II. Health Workforce Portfolio Management 

• Manage the health workforce portfolio on a day-to-day basis; identify and resolve program issues, assure that all activities are carried out in a technically sound and cost-effective manner, and assure that activities are carried out in accordance with all applicable Mission and Agency program priorities, directives, and regulations. S/he will oversee a portfolio of approximately $6 million.

• Implement the Mission’s health workforce strategy and participate in the design of new activities led by other members of the Health Systems Strengthening Team, or other Health Office teams with health workforce challenges, to meet Mission and Agency foreign assistance goals.

• Serve as the manager Agreement or Contracting Officer’s Representative (AOR/COR) of specific activities in the health workforce portfolio; oversee the management or technical content of any other health workforce activities managed by other Health Office or Mission staff; and keep other Health Office staff updated on health workforce interventions that could impact their work.

• Ensure the timely review and approval of health workforce partner implementation plans, annual work plans, and budgets; monitor activities to ensure compliance with approved work plans and budgets. 

• Routinely review the capacity building needs of the implementing partners, especially local entities, and develop plans to address deficits with implementing partner.

• Ensure monitoring and reporting systems are in place to assess progress in health workforce assistance toward achieving other health program and overall Mission goals; provide technical input in the development of Performance Monitoring Plans for specific projects and activities; develop an MEL agenda for health workforce activities with a rigorous monitoring system that gauges progress and provides for course correction or other adjustments. 

• Oversee the review and documentation of health workforce implementing partner performance through regular site visits, routine reports, assessments/evaluations, and participation in technical working groups and other forums to monitor activities and verify asset use; ensure that issues are identified in a timely manner and that recommended follow-up actions are carried out; identify successes, best practices, innovations, and lessons learned for sharing on a national and global level; routinely review the capacity building needs of implementing partners, especially local entities, and develop plans to address any deficits. 

• Manage and oversee the health workforce activity budgets and finances in coordination with Health and Financial Management office leadership; ensure that program/activity expenditures, accruals, and pipelines are monitored and that corrective action is taken when needed; ensure appropriate and timely funding actions. 

• Participate, as needed, in preparing for and responding to audits and evaluations of health workforce assistance.

• Ensure that health workforce program and activity management files (both electronic and hard-copy, as per policy) are up to date, in order, and complete. 

III. Program and Administrative 

• Participate in preparation of coordinated HSS responses to Program Office, Office of the Global AIDS Coordinator (OGAC), the Bureau of Global Health or Office of HIV/AIDS/Washington requests for information or participation in key planning and program documentation for efforts such as the Operating Plan (OP), the Health Implementation Plan (HIP), Congressional Budget Justification (CBJ), the Country Operational Plan (COP), and the USAID or PEPFAR annual performance reports.

• Lead the preparation of new procurements for health workforce activities, including program descriptions, illustrative budgets, waivers, and exceptions to competition as required.

• Serve on Technical Evaluation Committees for procurements or new staff recruitments, chairing those related to health workforce or others, when requested.

• Carry out such other tasks related to health workforce, the broader Health Office, or Mission work groups assigned to innovation, public-private partnerships, etc., as might be assigned from time-to-time by Mission or Health Office management.

• Handle all assigned work either independently or, as required, as part of teams, according to established Mission policies, practices, and programmatic guidance, as in effect and in accordance with all applicable USAID regulations and guidance as provided in the USAID Automated Directives System (ADS) and elsewhere. 

• Make independent judgments that can be defended as necessary, planning and carrying out independently the specific activities entailed in fulfilling major duties and responsibilities. 

• Resolve problems that arise by determining the approaches to be taken and methodologies to be used; developing, coordinating, and clearing proposed solutions with all necessary parties; and then taking appropriate actions necessary to resolve the problem.

The incumbent will perform other duties and tasks as assigned or required.

Language:

Fluency (Level IV) in English and Hindi is required. Bilingual fluency in speaking, reading and writing is required. 

Knowledge:

The incumbent should possess:

• In-depth expert knowledge of health workforce challenges and opportunities, policies, regulations, global best practices and precedents applicable to health systems.

• Knowledge of the public health system and private health services.

The incumbent is desired to have:

• Knowledge of team management techniques to plan, organize, and direct multidisciplinary teams and activities. 

• Knowledge of private sector approaches and innovation frameworks, as well as promising and best practices related to health workforce interventions in the public and/or private sector.

Ability and Skills:

The required Abilities and Skills include:

• Strong oral and written communications skills to communicate complex technical and programmatic concepts clearly, and develop and maintain effective, sustainable working relationships for the achievement of results with diverse national and international working partners in a cross-cultural setting (e.g., to resolve program implementation issues), particularly using skills of diplomacy, ingenuity, and tact with MOHFW officials, private sector executives, development partner technical staff, and other key individuals at the highest levels.
• Excellent prioritization skills and personal initiative in the management of multiple tasks within tight time deadlines.
• Strong quantitative and qualitative analytical skills and their application to the interpretation of program monitoring and evaluation data.
• Intermediate user level of word processing, spreadsheets, presentation software, and databases.
• Strong interpersonal skills to work in a team structure, create a participatory environment, including an ability conduct effective meetings and achieve consensus.
• Considerable flexibility, resourcefulness, and credibility to engender trust and influence other collaborative organizations or private sector entities to adopt appropriate health and development strategies for their program activities. 
• Ability to readily analyze, understand, and discuss new program design, management, implementation, and MEL approaches.
• Ability to access people and information related to work objectives.
• Ability to synthesize and highlight programmatic successes, both in writing and orally, for briefing papers, visiting dignitaries, and GOI and private sector officials. 

Opening Date for Applications : May 7, 2014

Closing Date for Receipt of applications: May 28, 2014 at 1700 hours

To Apply: 

1. Interested applicants must apply on Universal Application for Employment (UAE) as a Locally Employed Staff (DS-174) (attached). Please note: Must answer all the questions in DS-174 application form.

You may also click the link below to access the above form: 

http://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/documents/1860/ds174_0.pdf 

Applications not submitted in the specified form will not be accepted.

2. Submit print copies of applications to:

Human Resources
United States Agency for International Development
U.S. Embassy
Shantipath, Chanakyapuri
New Delhi – 110 021

Or

Electronic Submission to: indiaper@usaid.gov

3. Applicants must specify the advertisement number and position title in Column 1 of the Employment Form. Applications without reference to a specific advertisement number will not be accepted.

Notes:

Probationary Period: FSN employees currently serving their probationary period or with less than one year of USG service are not eligible to apply. Employees desiring a change after the initial probation period will be required to be in their present position for not less than 120 days.

Compensation: The selected individual will be compensated in accordance with the Local Compensation Plan for Foreign Service National (FSN) employees. 

Applicants living outside New Delhi / NCR should note that if selected for the position, no resettlement travel or housing is associated with the position. It would be the candidate’s responsibility to travel to New Delhi in a timely manner for the pre-employment clearances.

Age Requirement: Consistent with local law, customs, and practices, the separation/ retirement age for Foreign Service National (FSN) employees is 60 years.

Equal Employment Opportunity: It is the policy of the United States Government to ensure equal employment to all persons without regard to race, color, religion, caste, sex, national origin, age, disability, or sexual orientation. 

Due to a high volume of anticipated applications, only short-listed candidates will be notified.