The British Council is the world's leading cultural relations organization and creates opportunities for people in the UK and worldwide to understand each other, to work together and learn from one another. We see this as crucial to building secure, more prosperous and sustainable futures for us all. We build trust and understanding between different countries and cultures and develop strong international links that are of benefit to people in Britain and the rest of the world.
We are recruiting to fill the below position:
Job Title: Project Manager
Location: Port Harcourt
Department/Country: Programmes/Nigeria
Pay Band: 6
Reports to: Programme Manager, Skills
Duration of job: Fixed Term Contract (2 years)
Start Date: 1st June 2015
Purpose of Job
- To work with the Director Education and Skills, Programme Manager, Skills and the wider Education and Skills team to manage the delivery of the Fast Forward (FF) action research pilot project starting in 2015.
- To support the programme manager on the implementation and delivery of a new Skills portfolio in Nigeria.
Context and Environment
- The British Council in Nigeria works in three strategic business areas; Arts, English, Education and Society.
- This is a new post that will manage the two year grant funded Fast Forward (FF) project in Rivers, Cross Rivers and Lagos States funded by the MacArthur Foundation and build a portfolio of projects, campaigns and research in employability skills, building from the foundations laid by the ‘Mind the Gap’ Skills Roundtable (event) held in October 2014 in Lagos.
- In so doing, the British Council’s networks, credibility and knowledge of the education and skills sector are expected to grow, that will expand our programme and replace the MacArthur funding after 2017.
- FF is an action research project that will enable co-creation between schools and employers of work-based learning for students in senior secondary school facilitated by British Council in partnership with a Nigerian organisation (expected to be LEAP). The pilot will test how this approach can develop employability skills and how innovations can be introduced in teaching the government curriculum that prepares students for the demands of the workplace.
- At the end of the project, evidence will exist about the new skills students have gained, the effectiveness of bringing work-based learning into the classrooms and the aptitude of teachers to learn new methodologies for teaching skills within the curriculum. Dissemination of research findings will be nationwide with the expectation that if successful, the approach will be adopted into policy by other States and/or scaled up by donor intervention.
- Twenty senior secondary schools across Rivers, Cross Rivers and Lagos States will be selected to participate that will include 1000 students and 300 teachers. An external advisory group will support each State cohort made up of Ministry, NERDC, employers and other stakeholders.
- FF will give us the credibility and leverage as practitioners to contribute to policy direction in employability skills in Nigeria.
Job Duties and Responsibilities
Project Management and Coordination:
- Manage project activity to agreed contractual terms of reference, timelines, costs, targets and established performance indicators
- Responsible for organising and managing meetings, teleconferences, advisory and selection boards and other project or contract related events.
- Support internal departments in Nigeria, SSA and UK deliver activity on the project or contract to agreed timelines and standards
- Support external programme partners and consultants deliver activity by providing guidance on appropriate British Council strategy, policies and guidelines including Travel, Sector strategy, Child Protection, EDI, security and data protection.
- Manage reporting from partners, contractors and suppliers on financial, delivery and impact performance.
- Responsible for reporting project performance using British Council corporate scorecard and contract or project M&E systems and raising variances with Programme/Contract Managers for action to be taken
- Provide support to Programme Manager on the development of content, implementation and delivery of new Skills programme.
Financial Management and Procurement:
- Responsible for project procurement in line with established corporate policies and guidelines
- Responsible for developing detailed activity and event budgets for approval by Programme Manager and managing delivery against budgets with an emphasis on value for money
- Responsible for preparing monthly financial performance reports, monthly cash flow, and quarterly project forecasts against the annual budgets to the timelines set for internal use.
- Responsible for preparing statements of account for external clients and partners in accordance with the contract/agreement
Scorecard:
- To administer British Council's monitoring and evaluation tool: Scorecard.
- Collect and record all data within deadline and according to corporate standards.
Internal Communications
- Work with British Council Nigeria Marketing and Communications team to develop and disseminate impact stories for internal communication channels including intranet, blogs and newsletters
Contract and Account Management
Where British Council has been contracted:
- Monitor project delivery against contractual terms of reference/schedules, reporting variances to Programme or Contract manager and following through on action plan
- Manage client invoicing: raising invoices against schedule, monitoring receipt, follow up on overdue payments
- Manage relationship with client's/partner's appointed contact person/s
- Support Programme Manager in drafting agreements for contractors, consultants and suppliers
- As part of Country Client Relationship Management framework, maintain and update contacts for the CRM, recording contacts/ leads and outcomes of meetings , ensuring follow up action is carried out in a timely and efficient manner
- Develop and manage relationship with project delivery partners, contractors and suppliers.
Where British Council is the contractor, in compliance with corporate standards, processes and templates:
- Support Programme Manager in drafting agreements for contractors, consultants and suppliers
- As part of Country Client Relationship Management framework, maintain and update contacts for the CRM, recording contacts/ leads and outcomes of meetings , ensuring follow up action is carried out in a timely and efficient manner
- Develop and manage relationship with project delivery partners, contractors and suppliers.
Key Relationships
- Internal: Director Education and Skills, Programme Manager, Skills, Nigeria, Education and Skills team, Nigeria Communications team, Regional and Global Education and Society team +wider BC team, including large scale projects.
- External: Project Delivery Partners ( Consultants, State Ministries of Education, Heads of Partner Schools , Private sector organisations) External Advisory Group, Project Sponsors
Other important features or requirements of the job
- This is a new post that will require the post holder to hit the ground running and to quickly understand the new FF project and understand and comply with British Council policies and processes.
- Travel will be required on a regular basis to Cross Rivers and Lagos and occasionally to Abuja.
- Operational project work requires occasional work outside conditioned hours, for example in the evenings or at weekends. TOIL should be agreed with the line manager in advance to maintain an adequate work-life balance.
- The post-holder may also be required to travel internationally on BC business and should therefore hold valid travel documents.
- Training may be required for certain aspects of the job such as using SAP.
Key Internal Relationships
- Country Director Nigeria, Director Programmes, Director Education and Skills, Nigeria Programme Management Team, Nigeria Marketing and Communications team, Nigeria Finance team, wider BC Nigeria programmes team, Regional and Global Education and Society team
Key External Relationships
- Support Directors Programmes and Education and Skills to develop and manage relationships with key government and private sector stakeholders, development organisations, funders, donors and partners
- Maintain relationships with Fast Forward project partners and participants (schools, employers and External Advisory Groups) in Rivers, Cross Rivers and Lagos State
Other important Features or Requirements of the job
- This is a new post that will require the post holder to hit the ground running and to quickly understand the new FF project and understand and comply with British Council policies and processes.
- Travel will be required on a regular basis to Cross Rivers and Lagos and occasionally to Abuja.
- Operational project work requires occasional work outside conditioned hours, for example in the evenings or at weekends. TOIL should be agreed with the line manager in advance to maintain an adequate work-life balance.
- The post-holder may also be required to travel internationally on BC business and should therefore hold valid travel documents.
- Training may be required for certain aspects of the job such as using SAP.
Person Specification
Behaviours:
- Connecting With Others (most demanding)
- Working Together (more demanding)
- Being Accountable (most demanding)
- Making it happen (most demanding)
Other behaviours needed for the job but not evaluated at interview:
- Shaping the future (more demanding)
- Creating a shared purpose (more demanding)
Skills and Knowledge
- Managing Projects:
- Examines project data and performance, reporting on progress and recommending corrective action as needed.
- Communication skills:
- Displays good listening, writing and speaking skills, setting out logical arguments clearly and adapting language and form of communication to meet the needs of different people/audiences.
- Planning and organising:
- Organises own work over weeks and months, or plans ahead for others, taking account of priorities and the impact on other people.
- Managing finance and resources:
- Monitors and controls an agreed budget within a defined area, producing reports and analyses and contributing to planning.
- Knowledge of the employability and skills discourse
- Knowledge of the secondary education sector
- Network of contacts in education and or industry sectors in any or all of Rivers, Lagos and Cross Rivers
Qualification
Experience
- Working knowledge of Nigerian Education and Skills systems. (Essential)
- For SKILLS this should include private and public funded interventions within TVET and Employability fields (Essential).
- Experience of working with donor/grant/ client funds (Essential).
- As per role profile (Desirable).
Application Closing Date
15th June 2015.
How to Apply
Interested and qualified candidates should:
Click here to apply online
Click here to download job details MS Word
Click here to download BC Core Skills (pdf)
Click here to download BC Behaviours (pdf)