Job Description

TITLE: Program Development Manager TEAM/PROGRAMME: PDQII LOCATION: Nairobi with travel to the field as required. GRADE:2 CONTRACT LENGTH AND TYPE: 1 year, National CHILD SAFEGUARDING:
Level 3: the role holder will have contact with children and/or young people either frequently (e.g., once a week or more) or intensively (e.g., four days in one month or more or overnight) because they work in country programs; or are visiting country programs; ore because they are responsible for implementing the police checking/vetting process staff.

ROLE PURPOSE:

The Program Development Manager support the Impact, Innovation and Influencing Director, and other country programme staff to grow Save the Children funding and partnerships at country level in order to resource the Country Strategic Plan.

To achieve the country’s programme ambitions in line with SC’s Global Breakthroughs, the Head of Program Development will be responsible for leading the proposal development process and ensuring the final product is responsive, competitive, and timely. S/he will be responsible for working with the Program Quality and Development (PDQII) and Operations team to coordinate the proposal design process and collaborating with the Finance team to integrate the proposal budget into the final submission to the donor. The Head of Program Development will also be responsible implementing donor engagement plans and continuous learning processes where applicable.

In the event of a major humanitarian emergency, the role holder will be expected to work outside the normal role profile and be able to vary working hours accordingly.

SCOPE OF ROLE:

Reports to: Impact, Innovation and Influencing Director

Staff Reporting to this Post: Program Development Officer

Key working relationships: Ensures appropriate coordination between CO SMT, Technical Specialists (TS), MEAL, Operations, Finance, Awards, Human Resources, Supply Chain, Security, Partnerships, Members, and other necessary stakeholders to establish and execute a strong proposal development process.

Role Dimensions: As a key member of the extended Senior Management team, the Program Development Manager must demonstrate the qualities of agile leadership. S/he plays a key role in resourcing the country strategic plan leading to overall expansion of the Kenya Country Office Portfolio. This is a challenging role requiring an individual who can work with complexity and multiple tasks at one time. It is essential that the Head of Program Development builds and maintains strong relationships across functions within the CO, including with TEs, ACCM, Operations, Awards Management and Finance. This role demands precision and speed in identifying and turning around mew funding opportunities. S/he has specific oversight for ensuring innovative program designs that demonstrate alignment to Save the Children’s three Breakthroughs for children, especially for the most deprived and marginalized: no child dies from preventable causes before their fifth birthday; all children learn from a quality basic education; and violence against children is no longer tolerated.

KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY

Fundraising strategy

• In close coordination with the Impact, Innovation and Influencing team, and Program Operations team, to implement fundraising plans for each of the Country Office’s five strategic goals for 2025-27 to assist in growing the Kenya portfolio in alignment with the Country Strategic Plan and child rights.
• Support the monitoring system to track progress of the fundraising plans per strategic goal on quarterly basis and capture learnings for continuous improvement

Proposal Management

• Lead the proposal development process in line with CO procedures for all funding opportunities with PDQI, Technical Specialists including MEAL, Operations (for field team inputs, logistics requirements, costings, etc.), Security, Awards Management, Finance, and HR (for staffing requirements).
• Produce proposal development schedules and track timelines, ensuring and facilitating coordination amongst teams (i.e. PDQI, Operations, Finance, Supply Chain, HR, and Security).
• Support the Finance team, PDQI, Operations, Supply Chain, and other necessary stakeholders to develop proposal budget.
• Draft key sections of the proposals that are standard inputs – such as capability statements, country context, and programme experience, while drawing on the expertise of technical specialists, MEAL, Operations, Finance, HR and Security.
• Strengthen CO capabilities to facilitate effective in-person and online proposal design workshops and undertake design workshop facilitation when called on to do so, including developing work plans and lessons learned.
• Represent Save the Children as a generalist, alongside PDQI, in proposal development meetings and discussions.

Donor engagement and capture planning

• Work with the existing Program Development Specialist to develop proactive donor engagement strategies and plans for key donors in Kenya.
• Work with III and Program Operations teams to gather and assess donor, partner, and internal information relevant to upcoming major opportunities.
• Develop proactive Member engagement strategies to improve Member fundraising for the Kenya Country Office
• Facilitate and lead on Domestic Fundraising efforts and plans’ execution in coordination with the Impact, Innovation and Influencing Director

Continuous Learning & Knowledge Management

• Ensure all donor opportunities and engagement are tracked and updated on the shared informational management systems.
• Ensure that all appropriate donor and Save the Children resources, templates, and tools are available to relevant staff, as well as a clear understanding of donor requirements.
• Maintains strong knowledge management systems (OneNet, SharePoint, Teams, etc.) to support intra-country office communication and continuous learning.
• Ensure all proposals and related documents are saved and circulated and work with Awards and Operations teams to share programme results and lessons learned.

Humanitarian Response

• Support effective and joined-up strategic resource mobilisation for Category 1&2 Emergencies within the country.
• When possible, deploy immediately to support funding coordination in the first phase of major regional responses as required.

BEHAVIOURS (Values in Practice)

Accountability:

• holds self-accountable for making decisions, managing resources efficiently, achieving and role modelling Save the Children values
• holds the team and partners accountable to deliver on their responsibilities - giving them the freedom to deliver in the best way they see fit, providing the necessary development to improve performance and applying appropriate consequences when results are not achieved.

Ambition:

• sets ambitious and challenging goals for themselves and their team, takes responsibility for their own personal development and encourages their team to do the same
• widely shares their personal vision for Save the Children, engages and motivates others
• future orientated, thinks strategically and on a global scale.

Collaboration:

• builds and maintains effective relationships, with their team, colleagues, Members and external partners and supporters
• values diversity, sees it as a source of competitive strength
• approachable, good listener, easy to talk to.

Creativity:

• develops and encourages new and innovative solutions
• willing to take disciplined risks.

Integrity:

• honest, encourages openness and transparency; demonstrates highest levels of integrity

QUALIFICATIONS

• Advanced university degree (master’s preferred) in Development Studies, International Relations, Social Development, Business Administration, or a related field.
• Minimum of 7–10 years of progressive professional experience in programme development, proposal management, or fundraising within an INGO/NGO or similar environment.
• Demonstrated strong background in proposal development, coordination, and donor engagement at a senior level.

EXPERIENCE AND SKILLS:
Required

• At least 7 years of experience coordinating and facilitating the development of major, high-value proposals to institutional donors, multilateral agencies, corporate donors, and/or foundations.
• Proven understanding and minimum 5 years of experience working with funding mechanisms for development programming, including exposure to innovative financing approaches.
• Minimum 5 years of relevant experience in INGO/NGO or nonprofit environments, with a strong grasp of operational and programmatic issues.
• At least 5 years of experience in Managerial role in developing project and proposal budgets in collaboration with finance and programme teams.
• Demonstrated track record (5+ years) of writing persuasive, competitive, and compliant proposals for institutional donors.
• Proven ability to solve complex issues through critical thinking, analysis, and stakeholder engagement, with at least 5 years in roles requiring strategic problem-solving.
• Strong experience (7+ years) leading proposal processes under tight deadlines, with high attention to detail and ability to deliver quality outputs under pressure.
• Highly developed networking and stakeholder engagement skills, with demonstrated experience (7+ years) working across cross-functional teams.
• Excellent organisational, time management, and prioritisation skills with a consistent record of meeting deadlines.
• Strong interpersonal, communication, influencing, and negotiation skills, with at least 7 years of demonstrated application in senior roles.
• High level of flexibility and adaptability, with experience working in dynamic and emergency-prone contexts.
• Proven cultural awareness and ability to work effectively in diverse, multicultural environments (minimum 7 years in international or cross-cultural settings preferred).
• Demonstrated experience (7+ years) in project or change management involving organisational development and cross-functional teams.

• Fluency in English (spoken and written) is required.

Additional job responsibilities

The duties and responsibilities as set out above are not exhaustive and the role holder may be required to carry out additional duties within reasonableness of their level of skills and experience.

Equal Opportunities

The role holder is required to carry out the duties in accordance with the SCI Equal Opportunities and Diversity policies and procedures.

Child Safeguarding:

We need to keep children safe so our selection process, which includes rigorous background checks, reflects our commitment to the protection of children from abuse

Safeguarding our Staff:

The post holder is required to carry out the duties in accordance with the SCI anti-harassment policy.

Health and Safety

The role holder is required to carry out the duties in accordance with SCI Health and Safety policies and procedures.