Project Manager (Mid-Day Meal Programme) - Kusuma Foundation (Apply by: June 19, 2016)

JOB DESCRIPTION
Project Manager – Mid-Day Meal Programme
Kusuma Foundation, Sambalpur, Odisha

1. POSITION VACANT: Project Manager – Mid-Day Meal Programme, Kusuma Foundation,Sambalpur, Odisha

2. BACKGROUND:

Kusuma Foundation (KF) is registered under Section 8 of the Company’s Act, 2013. It works to support and implement programmes of national importance on Secondary Education in India. It implements and learns from its programmes in districts of Sambalpur, Odisha and Hardoi, Uttar Pradesh to develop scalable and effective models for improving secondary education. Kusuma Foundation is funded and supported by Kusuma Trust UK. KF works in partnership with Secondary schools (112 in Hardoi and 187 in Sambalpur) to implement its programmes. It has established Kusuma Resource Centre and twoKusuma Satellite Centres in each district, which offer free access to educational resources including books, audiovisual materials and computers with internet connectivity.

For details about the organisation, please visit www.kusumafoundation.co.in

About Mid May Meal Project:

At the request of the Government of Odisha, Kusuma is funding the construction of a Mid-Day Meal Kitchen and feeding programme in Sambalpur, Odisha. The programme will feed up to 20,000 students daily in eligible areas of Sambalpur Development Authority. Initially the programme will establish a temporary kitchen to feed up to 10,000 mid-day meals in Sambalpur in years 1 and 2, and scale-up to 20,000 students per day in years 3 to 5. The Kitchen will be built on pro-bono land provided by the Government and an implementation partner for the construction and feeding
programme will be selected by KF.

3. JOB DESCRIPTION/ RESPONSIBILITIES:

Reporting to the Country Leader, the Project Manager – Mid-Day Meal Programme (PM-MDM) shall be responsible for providing oversight to the kitchen construction project and meal delivery by managing relationship with Government of Odisha and the implementation partner. He/she will maintain regular contact with the partner to ensure successful programme implementation, monitoring and reporting.

The incumbent shall be liaising with Kusuma Foundation & Kusuma Trust UK staff, State and district education departments and Kusuma Partner Schools.

Key Job Responsibilities:

(A) Programme Management
(1) Manage the partner to ensure that the MDM kitchen is constructed on time and within budget in line with the Government of Odisha MDM guidelines;
(2) Ensure the implementation partner initiates MDM feeding programme based on accurate calculation of eligible students and schools using Government of Odisha MDM guidelines;
(3) Plan, track and report on budget utilisation as per monthly and quarterly milestones; review planned activities and actual expenditure;
(4) Ensure implementing partner is raising funds for programme sustainability and sets up an escrow account to invest into the programme.

(B) Programme Monitoring and Reporting
(1)  Undertake regular visits to schools of the eligible Sambalpur Development Authority to monitor the quality of mid day meals provided by the kitchen and seek feedback from students and School Management and Development Committee (SMDCs).
(2) Share progress (programmatic and financial) and key concerns with CL, SM, Finance Manager (FM) and Programme Support Manager (PSM) on a monthly and quarterly basis;
(3) Support SM in liaising and reporting to the government at State and district level;
(4) Ensure high quality documentation of activities, events and meetings for project updates and reports;
(5) Complete the annual programme and financial review of the MDM programme.

(C) Key Relationships
(1) Liaise with State Nodal Officer, MDM Odisha, District Collector, District Nodal Officer, MDM and District Education Officer;
(2) Work closely with the CL, SPM, SM, PSM and FM as part of a mutually supportive team.

4. QUALIFICATIONS, EXPERIENCE AND COMPETENCIES: 

Qualification: 
Applicants must have a Masters degree in Construction Management/Civil or Construction
Engineering/ Building Science.

Experience: 
Minimum five years of relevant experience in project management of large construction projects.

Skills and Competencies:

Essential
(1) Demonstrable knowledge and experience of at least three-four of the following areas: construction accounting, hazard management, fundamentals of project management, project scheduling, construction law, soil testing reports and blue print reading;
(2) Excellent organisational planning and analytical skills, ability to prioritise a
diverse and demanding workload, and meet deadlines consistently;
(3) Strong interpersonal, networking, problem solving and analytical skills;
(4) Excellent knowledge of English and Oriya (written and spoken);
(5) Excellent knowledge of Internet & Microsoft Office (Word, PowerPoint and Excel);
(6) Willingness to work flexibly and travel regularly;
(7) Excellent negotiation and diplomacy skills.

Desirable
(1) Experience of managing kitchen construction and mid-day meal programmes;
(2) Knowledge of supplementary feeding and nutrition management programmes;
(3) Knowledge of Occupational Health and Safety Act and legal and statutory compliances;
(4) Empathy with Kusuma’s mission and priorities;
(5) A sense of humour and patience.

5. COMPENSATION OFFERED:

The gross remuneration budgeted for the position is attractive. Offers shall be commensurate with the qualifications, experience and salary history, of the selected candidate.

6. LOCATION: Sambalpur, Odisha

7. TENURE:

The selected candidate shall be offered a two year fixed term contract, renewable based on performance.

8. REFERENCE: PM-MDM-KF

9. CONTACT INFORMATION:

Senior Consultant
Strategic Alliance Management Services P Ltd.
1/1B, Choudhary Hetram House, Bharat Nagar 
New Friends Colony, New Delhi 110 025 
Phones: 011-2684-2162; 011-4165-3612; 011-4101-1564 and 011-4101-1565
Email: pm-mdm-kf@sams.co.in

10. LAST DATE FOR APPLICATIONS:

Eligible candidates interested in this position are requested apply to pm-mdm-kf@sams.co.in with a cover letter, discussing their interest in and suitability for the position, along with an updated resume, giving details of three references, current cost to organisation and expected compensation, by June 19, 2016. For further details, please visit www.sams.co.in.