Manager/Assistant Manager, Institute for Educational Development

Manager/Assistant Manager, Institute for Educational Development

Location
Karachi, Pakistan

Introduction
Aga Khan University chartered in 1983 as Pakistan's first private international university, is committed to the provision of education, research, and health care of international standards relevant to Pakistan and the region. The affiliated Aga Khan University Hospital provides state-of-the-art clinical facilities and well-equipped diagnostic services. The University currently has teaching sites in Pakistan, East Africa, the United Kingdom, and Afghanistan, and is a major component of Aga Khan Development Network.

As an equal opportunity employer, AKU believes in promoting a diverse and inclusive culture and is committed to adopt appropriate standards for safeguarding and promoting a respectful relationship with and between diverse workforce of its faculty, staff, trainees, volunteers, beneficiaries, wider communities, and other stakeholders with whom it works, including children and vulnerable adults and expects all employees/trainees and partners to share this commitment.

Aga Khan University - Institute for Educational Development (AKU-IED) was established in July 1993 with the overall objective of becoming a leader in educational reform and improvement, especially in developing countries. The aim of the Institute is to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of schools and other educational institutions in the country through innovation, policy development, practice, training and research.

This is a grant-funded contractual position for a period of eighteen months.

Responsibilities
The incumbent will report to the Project Director (Principal Investigator and Co-Principal Investigators) and provide support to the project team in planning and executing the activities and events of the project. He/she will assist the project leadership and implementation team in day-to-day management of project activities and be responsible for a range of academic, administrative, finance, and coordination-related tasks. He/she will supervise the project’s support staff and work closely with the stakeholders. He/she will coordinate with entities (departments and units i.e. within AKU-IED and the university (e., Plaining and Development Unit and Research and Policy Studies Unit, Finance, HR, Legal, security, purchase, etc.)  funding agency (UNICEF) and government stakeholders (provincial education departments and associated institutions, district education departments), regarding all research activities carried out in the project. Specifically, you will be responsible to:

• provide administrative support to the project in managing day-to-day project activities
• provide support to financial management of the project 
• provide support to HR management of the project
• support the project’s academic teams in planning and execution of capacity building programmes and activities
• ensure timely completion of project deliverables
• coordinate with the funding agency (UNICEF) and relevant government departments regarding project-related programmes, activities, and events
• coordinate/liaise with relevant bodies (department/units) within AKU-IED (Planning and Partnership Unit, Research and Policy Studies Unit) and at the University (Research, Finance, HR, Legal, Security, Procurement, Travel, etc.,)
• assist the academic team in reviewing/adapting the existing educational material (training manuals, survey tools)
• guide the MER Specialist in developing and maintaining a rich database for the project
• revise and update the work plan (including the M & E plan) of the project as and when needed
• provide leadership to the MER team in documentation and reporting of projects activities and outcomes
• guide MER Specialist in writing and reviewing reports prepared by team leads and Training Specialists, and Provincial Coordinators
• guide the MER Specialist in preparing reports on project deliverables, progress reports and need-based reports (knowledge products and dissemination material)   
• conducts field visits to oversee project implementation and conduct meetings with funding agency and government stakeholders
• organizing events (meetings, seminar, policy dialogues, etc.).

Requirements:
You should have:

• a master’s degree (16-year education) in social or natural science from a reputable national/international University   
• at least five to seven years of demonstrated experience preferably in management of educational development/improvement 
• projects in education and other fields of social development
• demonstrated experience in managing educational development/improvement projects (preferably in education).
• skilled in managing day-to-day operations of educational development/improvement project 
• demonstrated experience in supervising (performance monitoring) and supporting project staff (assigning tasks, providing guidance and ensuring task completion). 
• demonstrated knowledge and skills in designing and executing capacity building programmes for various education stakeholders. 
• demonstrable expertise in project’s progress monitoring and report writing.   
• excellent interpersonal skills
• excellent communication skills in both written and verbal English & Urdu languages
• excellent analytical and organizational skills
• excellent leadership and management skills
• excellent report-writing skills 
• ability to work in a team
• proficiency in MS Office, SPSS, Excel, and related software
• ability to keep a high level of confidentiality
• willingness and ability to undertake travels  

• ability to work under pressure and meet tight deadlines.

   

 Comprehensive employment reference checks will be conducted.