Programme Manager - Eastern Europe & Post-Soviet States

This is an exciting opportunity that involves a mix of partnership and project management to strengthen the Foundation's impact and build its reputation and presence across the Eastern Europe and Post–Soviet States.

It is a chance to play a key role in the Foundation's work to advance media freedom, foster inclusive economies and promote human rights across the region. The successful candidate will be able to make a real difference as part of a dynamic team, working to design and implement integrated projects and programmes, combining the power of media, law, and convening to deliver systemic long–lasting impact.

The Programme Manager – Eastern Europe and Post–Soviet States (EEPSS) will design and manage the Foundation's project portfolio in the region, ensuring the highest level of alignment with the strategy, synergy across projects, and the highest possible quality and impact on the ground. You will lead other project managers, as well as manage your own projects, as necessary.

You will work closely with other Foundation teams, local partners and donors to develop and implement new projects, products and services. This is a new role, which will oversee a small number of strong pre–existing projects focused on EEPSS, with the expectation and ambition that the role will increase the number and scale of TRF's projects and work there over the next 18months to two years.

Please be advised that for this role we offer 2 years fixed–term contract.

Key responsibilities:

• Lead on the management and further development of a diverse project portfolio, identifying common outcomes, operational synergies and the alignment with the Foundation's strategy with the goal to strengthen the Foundation's impact and presence in the region
• Lead a small but dynamic team, ensuring effective project design and delivery and compliance with donors' and contract requirements
• Effectively manage at least one strategic project, in coordination with project colleagues, including full project cycle and donor's accountability requirements, as necessary.
• Strong contextual knowledge and networks across Eastern Europe and the Post–Soviet States region – build a strong understanding of local contexts, including socio–economic and political situation and local legal, media, business, and NGO landscapes. Work with local partners and other stakeholders to understand local needs and capacities and advise other teams on the local contexts, as necessary
• Identify, monitor and manage risks to ensure excellent project delivery, staff, consultant, local partner and beneficiary safety and to promote he Foundation's reputation
• Working closely with thought leadership and other teams, develop and manage longer–term local partnerships and networks
• Working with the Business Development team and others to support the identification of new business opportunities, and develop, design and implement new projects, products and services for the region, as TRF and in partnership with others
• Work with Finance on project budgeting and resourcing and economic analysis of programmes and projects
• Working with other teams, build the Foundation's reputation as an important stakeholder, with long–term regional presence, strong partnerships, impactful projects and excellent understanding of the local contexts. Ensure high visibility and recognition of the Foundation's activities and understanding of its priorities in the region
• Working with the Senior Manager, Media Initiatives to manage the pool of consultants including consultant selection, contracts, appraisals, etc., deploy the right training content, and improve delivery modalities
• Strong and inclusive team management skills, able to empower and coach colleagues effectively
• Share strategic project data, updates and programme impact with TRF's regional board once in place
• Make sure that the Foundation's standards and principles are upheld by all contractors, freelancers and local partners
• Proactively facilitate learning, exchange and innovation

Required skills:

• The candidate should have experience in the following:
• Strong experience in project management (5+ years), ideally in the international development sector, including experience in designing and setting up new projects, recruitment and management of consultants and project staff, planning project activities, developing MEAL processes, end–to–end oversight of project activities, and reporting to donors
• Experience in budget development and financial management, including fluency in Excel
• Strong experience in remote setting up and management of partnerships, including local partner capacity building
• Strong contextual knowledge of several Eastern European and/or Post–Soviet States countries, and strong networks across civil society, especially with independent media outlets and journalists
• Self–starter
• Proven ability to manage and drive high quality client facing relationships
• Excellent communication and writing skills, including fluency in English.
• Demonstrated ability to work under pressure and meet tight deadlines
• Willingness to travel internationally when required

Desired skills:

• Previous experience of working in Eastern Europe and/or Post–Soviet States
• Russian and any other national language, including Ukrainian, Romanian, Georgian and others
• Experience with the professional training industry
• Familiarity with Salesforce or other similar customer relationship management platforms

What's in it For You?

At the Thomson Reuters Foundation, our people are our greatest assets. Here are some of the benefits we offer for your personal and professional growth:

• Global Perspective and Impact: Interested in working for a dynamic global organisation with a focus on social impact? With hubs all over the world from Bangkok to Madrid to Rio de Janeiro, join a truly international team with a shared goal of helping to build societies around the world that are free, fair and informed.
• A Unique Approach: Our expertise in media and the law is world class; we combine the power of both to address the critical issues faced by humanity.
• Our Relevance: With a focus on advancing media freedom, fostering more inclusive economies and promoting human rights, our work has never been more needed.
• Benefits: We offer competitive salary packages and market–leading benefits.
• Learning & Development: We are dedicated to the continual professional development of our employees and offer access to both in–house and external training opportunities.

About Thomson Reuters Foundation

The Thomson Reuters Foundation is the corporate foundation of Thomson Reuters, the global news and information services company. As an independent charity, registered in the UK and the USA, we work to advance media freedom, foster more inclusive economies, and promote human rights. Through news, media development, free legal assistance and convening initiatives, we combine our unique media and legal services to drive systemic change.