Project Manager, Tostan Guinea

  Guinea

Conakry

  Senegal

Dakar

  United States

Washington

Term: Academic Year 
Durations of Program: 7-12 months and 1-2 years
Typical Duration of Program: 1-2 years
Dates: 07/31/2010

Description: The general goals for Tostan Guinea's Project Manager are to assist the National Coordinator with assuring deliverables, furthering donor relations, completing administrative tasks, tracking deadlines, and liaising with both national staff and international Tostan offices.

Minimum commitment: 1 year required, 2 years preferred

Hours per week: 40 hours/week

Location: Labe, with travel to Conakry and other regions of the country

Direct supervisor(s): National Coordinator, Guinea            
Collaborator(s): Assistant National Coordinator, Finance and Administration Manager, Supervisors, International Program Team (Dakar), International Communications Team (Dakar, Paris, Washington, DC), Monitoring, Evaluations, Research & Learning (MERL) Team, and other staff and partners at the local and national levels   

Primary Responsibilities:
* Assist the National Coordinator with various tasks, ranging from organizational to administrative to linguistic, etc.
* Research, write, and deliver quarterly reports to project partners, in coordination with the National Coordinator, the Assistant National Coordinator, and the Executive Director
* Assist staff to professionally present Tostan's work, during donor and partner visits, with local and national media, in the office space, etc.
* Collaborate with local and international staff to produce public relations materials (in French and English), in formats such as PowerPoint presentations, brochures, films (if qualified)
* Represent Tostan Guinea at local and national conferences, interact with visiting donors and project partners, etc.
* Synthesize monthly Regional Coordinator and Supervisor reports for entry into Tostan Guinea database
* Participate in strategic reflection and project planning as projects progress

Secondary Responsibilities:
* Investigate and communicate the impacts and effects of Tostan programs in the field through village visits, participating in program evaluations, and writing and sharing reports
* Write village portraits and collect anecdotes to share with Tostan Guinea staff and the International Communications Team
* Initiate capacity-building activities for staff in ICT skills, report writing, statistical data collection and analysis, and English through trainings, workshops, and collaboration/critique
* Help to develop an organization and communications system within Tostan Guinea to ensure that information is shared with the Executive and International Communications Teams
* Write and edit reports, proposals, articles, etc. for Tostan Guinea, including translation when necessary
* Help to increase awareness of gender issues and gender sensitivity among regionally-based project team, as well as contribute to efforts to develop the organization as a leader in gender-equal practices (on the national and international level)

Final products
* Electronic copies of all documents produced, edited, etc. to National Coordinator, incoming volunteer, and Volunteer Coordinator
* Final narrative report of individual activities for internal distribution and adaptation for external use
* Reports/work group meeting minutes, and periodic status reports to Executive Team
* Completed "Request for Volunteer" forms, submitted to the Volunteer Coordinator, as needed
* Other activities, as requested by the Executive Team, Volunteer Coordinator, and other immediate supervisors and collaborators

Highlights: Benefits

Professional Experience:
* Hands on experience with an internationally recognized NGO
* Development of curriculum vitae/resume
* Opportunity to develop highly sought-after skills in project management, training, and written and oral communication in a multicultural, multilingual environment
* Opportunity to collaborate and interact with communities, Tostan staff, international volunteers, and a variety of donors and partners

Accommodations:
* Common volunteer housing and utilities
* Lunch Monday-Friday
* All work-related travel, including work-related travel between Dakar and Conakry, and internet communication covered by Tostan (All other flights to and from Guinea will be paid for by the volunteer)
* Accommodations for stipend or other living expenses should be discussed with Tostan Volunteer Coordinator prior to commitment

Trainings provided:
* Week-long volunteer orientation with other volunteers
* Introduction to national language skills
* Introduction to Tostan Community Empowerment Program
* Short introduction to software
* Other training, as deemed necessary and appropriate by supervisors

Qualifications: Qualifications and Necessary Skills
* Bachelors degree or current enrollment in Bachelors program; studies in International Development, Education, Gender Studies, other social sciences, Business, Management, or related field required
* Master's degree OR current enrollment in Master's program (studies in International Development, Education, Gender Studies, Non-Profit Management preferred ) highly desired   
* Experience working with a non-governmental organization/non-profit OR prolonged experience in a developing country/region
* Thorough understanding of Tostan's programs and methodologies
* Strong written and spoken proficiency in English and French (writing samples required)
* Capable of working with external stakeholders on planning and program implementation
* Strong computer skills in Microsoft Office Suite, including Word, Excel, and PowerPoint; Experience with Access or other database software preferred
* Knowledge of Gmail, Google Groups, Google Documents, Google Calendars, and other Internet programs preferred.
* Project management experience required
* Ability to be persistent and diplomatic, and to establish mutual respect among Tostan staff, project partners, and local community members
* Ability to work independently, self-motivate, and to manage multiple tasks at once
* Strong communication and organizational skills
* Flexibility, in order to adapt to a multicultural environment, work in varied conditions, be considerate of limited resources, and to adapt work priorities to the immediate needs of the project or donor
* Ability to travel independently
* If a woman, ability to operate in a male-dominated society, including occasional cat calling/harassment from men

Experience Required: no

This Program is open to Worldwide Participants.

Participants Travel Independently

Application Process Involves:

• Letters of Reference
• Online Application plus Application Assessment
• Other
• Phone Interview
• Resume

Post-Program Services Include:

• Alumni Network
• Job and Internship Network

Tostan's Mission Statement: Tostan's mission is to empower African communities to bring about sustainable development and positive social transformation based on respect for human rights. Tostan means "breakthrough" in the West African language of Wolof. Since 1991, Tostan has brought its holistic 30-month education program to thousands of communities in ten African countries: Burkina Faso, Djibouti, The Gambia, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Mauritania, Senegal, Somalia, and Sudan.

Year Founded: 1991