Job Opportunity for Chief Operating Officer (COO) at RightWalk Foundation in Lucknow

Number of Positions:

1

Salary Range:

As per Industry Standards and Candidate Experience

Organization Background

RightWalk Foundation’s core mission involves driving Equity, Inclusion & Social Justice by co-shaping public policies and translating them into action. We practice Systems Thinking approach for institutional reform by partnering with system leadership, lawmakers and communities. We work closely with the State Government and have been instrumental in unlocking RTE 12.1(c) policy in the State thereby impacting over 5.30 lakh children from vulnerable communities in the last five years.

We have been listed amongst the country’s top 50 Education leaders in 2020 and top 26 NGOs in India impacting Education in 2016 by the Education World magazine.

Leadership & Strategy  

• Builds and implements the operational roadmap in alignment with our 5-year strategic plan.
• Evaluates and designs the expansion across new policies and into new geographies as per the  organizational 5-year strategy and core vision.
• Drives strategic operational initiatives, including coordination and collaboration with internal and  external stakeholders, to ensure timely and accurate completion and delivery of outcomes.
• Provides senior leadership and external stakeholders with regular value-added reports that  identifies & tracks the status of programs, projects, milestones, and deliverables.

Operational Planning and Management 

• Develops annual operational plan, engaging key internal and external stakeholders. Oversees the  strategic alignment and direction of various projects and programs across regions.
• Works closely with the program and fundraising teams of the organisation to ensure the conduction  of impact visits of partners, stakeholders, the organisation team members and funders as per need.
• Supports any requests that may come from time to time from any National/State level officials we  will directly work with.
• Ensures accountability of delivery on achievement of pre-defined outcomes. Participate in  respective donor meetings and support donor reporting and engagement.
• Ensures that the operational policies and standard operating procedures are contemporary and  aligned to best practices and recommends changes to the leadership team as appropriate.

Government Relationship 

• Manages existing and builds new relationships with senior government officials at the National/State level to support the effective implementation of the program.
• Actively pursues MoUs and establishes Program Management Units (PMUs) in Govt. Depts.
• Leads the advocacy efforts of the organisation towards the inclusion of the organisation team  members in national and state-level policymaking space.

Human Capital Management 

• Leads, recruits, capacitates, and coaches members of the operations team.
• Co-creates and maintains Strong Systems and Processes for the creation of weekly, quarterly, and annual goals, strategies, and plans. Holds members of the operations team accountable for  the strategies and goals co-created.
• Works closely with the operations team on the capacity building of team members and ensures the  constant growth of fellow-team members.
• Ensure effective manpower planning for operations management and program delivery.
• With support of the HR team, ensure the effective implementation of contemporary people  practices across recruitment, induction, compensation and benefits, operations and compliance, employee retention, employee engagement, performance management, learning & development,  and grievance management.  

Accountability and Governance: 

• Lead the process of setting up an operations advisory board for the organisation to support the  leadership team in the operations department.
• Work closely with the founding team and boards of the organisation to enable the sustainable  growth of the organisation.

Expected Credentials

• Masters in education, social science, management or equivalent from reputed institutions.
• At least 10-15+ years of experience in government engagement, leadership positions and  operations based roles.
• Prior experience in senior leadership positions and/or in public policy space.
• Fluent in both Hindi & English (Written and spoken).
• Willing to relocate to Lucknow and travel.
• Comfortable with Technology, Program Management and willing to learn new skills.

Desired Qualities  

• Entrepreneurial spirit and ‘get-it-done’ attitude.
• Operating style suited to working in a middle sized organization setting, where teamwork and  resourcefulness are highly valued.
• Excellent leadership skills, including ability to manage multiple projects at a time.

Personal Attributes  

• Strong alignment with RWF’s mission of driving Equity and Inclusion through public policy.
• Results-focused with a strong sense of ownership.
• Enjoys working under pressure: flexible, highly organized and able to prioritize work to meet  deadlines.
• Self-motivated and a good team player.
• Openness to listen, learn and contribute beyond the confines of this role.

Compensation  

Remuneration will be competitive and will depend upon the candidate’s experience level.

RWF is an equal opportunity employer with social inclusion as a key value. We do not discriminate based on gender, sexual orientation, caste, color, creed, religious beliefs, appearance, and socio-economic background and encourage diversity at the workplace.

Competency:

Strategic thinking, leadership relationship, communications, Financial acumen, problem-solving.