Global Project Design Manager

This position is based in Washington, DC, Yarmouth, MA or remote outside of these states

Staff work a hybrid schedule with 2 days/week in the office

The Global Project Design Manager is an integral member of the IFAW Program Operations team. He/She/They will work in close coordination with fundraising teams, particularly Institutional Giving, and programmatic technical leads to support project development (and management), including pre-award stage of proposals. He/She/They will provide oversight and direct support in the development of new projects, campaign designs as well as complex concept pieces, with significant focus on financial components to support our large planning efforts globally, but with emphasis in the Africa and Asia geographies. The position will serve cross-functionally and include internal and external efforts, reporting to the Director Program Operations, while working closely with Institutional Giving, Grants & Compliance, and Impact and Evaluation teams.

Role and Responsibilities

• Participates in project design and proposal planning meetings to support timely and holistic product development and ensure alignment among technical designs, partner identification, monitoring and evaluation plan, cost strategies and budget justification.
• Coordinates with Institutional Giving, Programs, Finance, Impact and Evaluation and other fundraising teams, to provide holistic reviews of supporting documentation for proposal submissions, including technical and budget narratives, log frames, qualification summaries, certifications, partner information and past performance.
• Coordinates with the proposal team, reviews budget templates to ensure organizational considerations, compliance with donor requirements as well as ensure all costs related to the proposal are captured in the budget.
• Provides direct support with development and preparation of cost applications, budget templates and/or budget narratives for proposals in coordination with technical lead and other proposal team members by working closely with relevant regional/field offices and project partner to obtain necessary budget information and maintaining version control of drafts.
• Provides strategic direction, technical instruction, cost advice to proposal teams in conjunction with proposal objectives for successful project/proposal design.
• Supports proposal team and liaises with technical leads with partner identification, cultivation of activities, as well as support programs with meeting coordination to ensure progress towards meeting deadlines.
• Post-award stage, works closely with support departments, such as Impact and Evaluation team, Finance to ensure timely set up of accounts, HR to keep track of existing and project level of efforts of staff.
• Represents IFAW to counterpart partner organizations to support budget negotiations in coordination with technical lead and other proposal team members.
• Supports proposal team with revisions, subsequent material review and/or developing responses to post-submission questions during post-initial submission, throughout negotiations up until official award.
• In collaboration with Programs, Communications, and Development teams, leads the development and management of a central repository that generates a pipeline of project ideas into submission-ready funding proposals and concept pieces.
• Develops and maintains a database of budget line and cost factor descriptions to be used in budget narratives across regional field offices and program priorities teams.
• Coordinates closely with internal support teams to identify and implement workflow improvements and build capacity of internal staff as well as key external partners, including preparing training materials for proposal development, delivering trainings and providing direct support for IFAW staff and project partners, as needed.

Qualifications and Education Requirements

• Two (2) to Four (4) years’ experience with an advanced degree or equivalent of progressive work experience in international relations/development, economics, finance, business or an appropriately related field preferred. Certification such as CGMA, CPA, or other related certifications a plus.
• Track record of developing large bilateral and/or multilateral funded projects, preferably with private sector components. Proven success to create compliant, competitive proposal budgets and compelling budget justifications for diverse donors, including with governments and institutions such as USAID, EU, GEF, GIZ.
• Excellent budgeting skills, including the ability to work with technical leads to build accurate cost proposals. Experience with multiple currencies a plus.
• Ability to produce effectively and accurately while managing multiple priorities and often competing deadlines.
• Must possess excellent analytical skills and strong attention to detail.
• Ability to think critically and proactively respond to work requests, as well as demonstrate problem solving and conflict resolution skills.
• Excellent interpersonal skills with demonstrated ability to work collaboratively with teams across cultures and multiple time zones to achieve stated goals. Requires effective communication, listening, presentation and training skills.
• Proficient with the Microsoft Suite (Outlook, Excel, SharePoint, Teams, Word) and database management, with advance experience with Excel.
• Ability to conduct quantitative and qualitative data research, interpreting and analysis; create data visualization and reports.
• International experience preferred. Occasional travel may be required.
• Fluency in written and spoken English is required. Foreign language capabilities a plus.

At IFAW, we aim to create and foster a workforce that reflects and contributes to the diverse, global community in which we work to improve the lives of both animals and people.    We are dedicated to fostering justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion so we actively encourage candidates from diverse backgrounds.

Submit a resume and cover letter at https://www.ifaw.org/careers