Project Associate

The Role:

• This a new role within the Center’s Program Division. The role will provide support to the Project Director assigned to lead and manage a new multi-million-dollar restricted grant funded by Global Affairs Canada. The grant aims to improve access to Sexual Reproduction Health Rights (SRHR) of women and adolescents in Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Colombia, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador, and Guatemala, by building the requisite political and legal support at national, regional, and global levels.

About the project:

• The project will implement legal advocacy strategies in the 13 countries and at the UN tailored to the specific systemic challenges and prevalent SRHR violations faced by women and adolescents in each context, while also drawing lessons learned to inform strategies across countries and via global processes. The project will also expand on the Center's existing work with national level partners to build capacities of national legal entities and organizations. The project will build norms and standards with Africa regional and sub-regional bodies, as well a regional body in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). Finally, protecting and advancing SRHR in global processes (e.g. UN General Assembly, Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), Commission on Population and Development (CPD), Human Rights Council, Treaty Monitoring Bodies (TMBs), and Special Procedures and Universal Periodic Review) form a crucial component of maintaining a circle of accountability prioritized by the project. As such the project crosses three Center departments. These are the Africa region, the LAC region, and Global Advocacy (GA).

About the roIle:

• The Project Associate will support the Project Director in his/her role of guiding the project team to assure strategies and activities are responsive to the stated priorities of the Center’s grant agreement with GAC, as well as in line with the Center’s Africa, LAC, and GA departmental strategies. This position will report to the Project Director.

This is a 2-year fixed-term role with the possibility of extension.
This role will be based in the Center's office in Nairobi, Kenya.
Primary Responsibilities:

• Lead on project knowledge management, including setting up and maintaining project documents on the organization-wide SharePoint site.
• Lead on the set up of project management tool (e.g. Monday.com) used to oversee project workplans and support with preparation and maintenance of a project Dashboard
• Support Project Director on internal communications
• Provide administrative support to Project Director, including calendar management, meeting logistics, travel coordination, expense reporting, reimbursements and other day-to-day activities, as assigned.
• Provide relevant administrative support, such as proofreading, photocopying, printing, scanning, and uploading files to internal servers.
• Process professional service agreements as needed to deliver the project.
• Coordinate with all units involved in project implementation in the development of project internal and external narrative and financial reports.
• Set up and note take for regular check-ins and meeting with project team and provide logistical support for face-to-face meetings that take place during the life of the project.
• Support in the monitoring of the project risk and mitigation strategy, and support in the coordination of necessary staff training related to grant compliance, financial management, and project monitoring and evaluation.
• Support Project Director and other project members in new fundraising efforts, as assigned.
• Support Project Director around external meeting, as assigned.
• Other project-related tasks, as assigned.

Qualifications:

• Strong commitment to the Center's mission, purpose, and values.
• Bachelor’s degree required, advanced degree a plus.
• At least 3 years of professional experience in the field of international development
• Strong verbal communication and organizational skills.
• Ability to draft and copyedit written communication effectively such as concept notes, proposals, memos, talking points, presentations, and emails.
• Strong attention to detail and accuracy in recording information.
• Ability to work under tight deadlines
• Desire and ease to learn new skills
• Experience working on human/women’s rights and/or in the social justice sector in Africa, Latin America or at the global level with demonstrable experience leading implementation of large, restricted grants
• Fluency in English a must (Spanish a plus)

Don’t meet every single requirement? At the Center, we are dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive, and authentic workplace, so if you are excited about this role but your past experience does not align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.
Behavioral Skill Sets:

• Commitment to the Center’s mission, purpose, and values.
• Diplomatic and tenacious: Possess strong relationships building skills with resolve. Must possess a “can-do” and “will-do” attitude and build effective relationships while sustaining focus and drive in the Sexual and Reproductive Rights protection agenda.
• Time perspective, planning organizing and work Impact: Must possess and exhibit a level of confidence in themselves and own work but must be able to take direction and criticism professionally.
• Management Skills: Strong organizational skills with proven ability to concurrently manage a large number and wide variety of projects with strict deadlines while working within a team setting across varied time zones.
• Teamworking and Flexibility/adaptability: Ability to work in a team and able to adapt to and work effectively within a variety of situations and with various individuals and groups. Understanding and appreciating different and opposing perspectives, adapting one’s approach as the requirements of a situation change. willingness to travel within Kenya, Africa Region and abroad, as needed.
• Creativity Innovativeness: “Out of the box” thinking perspective.
• Information Monitoring, Strong networking, and negotiation skills: Be astute at information gathering monitoring and networking.
• Initiative, energy, drive and follow up skills: Effectively respond to pressure or crisis situations and acts proactively and follow through on ideas, assignments, and open issues.

Behavioral Competencies:

• Develop & Manage Self & Others: Takes ownership of individual growth in order to achieve full potential; recognizes the value of team members and helps them develop their full potential while also achieving set objectives.
• Collaboration (People First): Works intra- and/or cross-departmentally to support the goals and overarching strategies of the Center and its strategic plan.
• Feedback (Improve & Innovate): Actively engaged in feedback cycles: Gives and requests feedback to and from peers, supervisors and direct reports about work products, behaviors, values, style, and approaches with a view on how this impacts self, other individuals, and teams.
• Accountability: Follow-through on each commitment made to individual contributors, teams and partners and proactively informs others of any delays that occur along the way.

Work Competencies:

• Project Management: Works effectively on project teams in order to achieve long-term project goal and objectives.
• Problem Solve & Make Decisions: Identifies, analyzes and resolves existing and anticipated problems, using common sense to make timely decisions in order to reach the best solutions for the organization.
• Internal/External Focus: Anticipates internal and external partner’s needs; assesses requirements and identifies new solutions that align with overall goals and objectives of the organization.
• Communication & Influence: Communicates with and influences others to gain agreement and commitment to the strategic goals of the organization.