Senior Project Manager, Foundational Learning - UP (DPMU)

Team: Foundational Learning, DPMU (UP)

Role: Senior Project Manager / District Lead

Required work experience: 4 to 6 years of relevant work experience

Location: a district in Uttar Pradesh

About Central Square Foundation (CSF)

Founded in 2012, Central Square Foundation is a non-profit philanthropic foundation working with the vision of ensuring quality school education for all children in India. CSF has a mission focus on ensuring high-quality foundational learning for all children in India. To achieve this, we partner with individuals and social impact organizations to bring innovative solutions in education to build the capacity of the government to drive systemic impact. To know more about us and our work, visit www.centralsquarefoundation.org.

About the District Project Management Unit (DPMU)

The Foundational Learning UP DPMU team strengthens NIPUN Mission Implementation at the district level, by providing governance and academic support to the key stakeholders at district and block level. The DPMU unit of 4-5 Project Managers led by a District Lead works with administrative and academic leaders in the district to build mission salience, set short term and mid term goals, build capacity, and undertake micro-innovations that assist student learning.

The District Lead will lead the implementation of the project at the district level and will be responsible for managing a team. The key responsibilities are as follows:

Key responsibilities:

• Lead district strategy and planning by developing annual, quarterly and monthly implementation plans aligned with organisational priorities and government goals, while identifying district-specific challenges and designing contextually relevant solutions.

• Build and maintain strong partnerships with key district and block-level government stakeholders, including the District Magistrate, Chief Development Officer, Basic Shiksha Adhikari, DIET Principal, Block Education Officers and other relevant officials, positioning CSF as a trusted strategic partner.

• Drive high-quality project implementation by providing academic, governance and monitoring oversight across all district interventions, ensuring timely delivery of project milestones and achievement of intended outcomes.

• Provide strategic leadership by proactively identifying implementation bottlenecks, designing corrective actions, advocating with relevant stakeholders and ensuring effective execution of priority initiatives.

• Strengthen district education systems by providing technical guidance and support to institutionalise effective review mechanisms, governance forums and monitoring processes that improve decision-making and accountability.

• Lead and develop a high-performing team by setting clear expectations, providing regular coaching and feedback, fostering collaboration, and building the capabilities of team members to deliver high-quality work.

• Use data to drive decisions by reviewing programme data, analysing trends, monitoring key performance indicators and translating insights into actionable recommendations for government stakeholders and internal teams.

• Ensure quality and operational excellence across all district activities, including field implementation, stakeholder engagements, reporting, documentation, presentations and review processes.

• Represent CSF in district forums by facilitating meetings, presenting evidence-based recommendations, supporting government reviews and influencing decisions that strengthen foundational learning outcomes.

• Capture and scale good practices by documenting innovations, synthesising field learnings, sharing evidence with internal and external stakeholders, and contributing to continuous improvement of programme design and implementation.

• Collaborate closely with state and cross-functional teams to ensure alignment with organisational priorities, facilitate knowledge sharing and support the successful implementation of state-wide initiatives.

Skills & Qualifications

Essential Qualification

• Bachelor's degree from a recognised institution. A postgraduate qualification in Management, Public Policy, Education, Development Studies or a related field is preferred.

• 4–6 years of relevant professional experience, with significant experience in programme management, implementation or consulting in the social or public sector.

• Demonstrated experience of working with government systems, preferably in the education sector.

Skills & Experience

• Strong project management skills with a proven track record of planning and delivering large-scale programmes in complex, multi-stakeholder environments.

• Demonstrated experience of leading and developing high-performing teams in operations-oriented or field implementation projects.

• Excellent programme delivery capabilities, including the ability to create implementation plans, drive execution, manage competing priorities and consistently deliver high-quality outcomes.

• Proven ability to build credibility and influence senior government officials and other external stakeholders through strong relationship management and effective communication.

• Prior hands-on experience working in the Indian education sector, particularly with state, district or block-level government stakeholders, is highly desirable.

• Experience in designing, strengthening or using data monitoring and review systems to improve programme performance at scale.

• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to synthesise quantitative and qualitative data into practical, actionable recommendations.

• Demonstrated ability to identify implementation bottlenecks, design solutions and drive them to closure through effective stakeholder engagement.

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including experience in preparing high-quality presentations, reports and briefing notes for senior stakeholders.

• Strong organisational skills with the ability to manage multiple workstreams, prioritise effectively and deliver under tight timelines.

Personal Attributes

• A strong sense of ownership, accountability and bias for execution.

• Strategic thinker with the ability to balance long-term systems strengthening with day-to-day implementation excellence.

• Collaborative leadership style with a demonstrated ability to coach, mentor and develop team members.

• Adaptable, resilient and comfortable working in dynamic, fast-paced environments with evolving priorities.

• Passion for improving public education systems and a strong commitment to achieving better learning outcomes for children.

Remuneration will be competitive with Indian philanthropy pay scales and will depend upon the candidate's experience levels.