Project Manager

Job Posting Organization:
Catholic Relief Services (CRS) is the official international humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States. Established to save, protect, and transform lives in need, CRS operates in more than 100 countries worldwide. The organization focuses on various sectors including emergency response, health, agriculture, education, microfinance, and peacebuilding. CRS is committed to serving the poor and vulnerable, regardless of race, religion, or nationality, and emphasizes a collaborative, mission-driven work culture. The agency is dedicated to safeguarding children and vulnerable adults from abuse and exploitation, and it welcomes candidates from diverse backgrounds who share its values.

Job Overview:
The Project Manager will provide strategic leadership and overall management of the Building Resilient and Inclusive Growth in Shea Value Chains (BRIGHT Shea) project. This role involves ensuring effective planning, implementation, coordination, monitoring, and delivery of project activities. The Project Manager will lead the application of a Market Systems Development (MSD) approach to strengthen sustainable shea value chains, focusing on improved aggregation, post-harvest management, value addition, market access, financial inclusion, and landscape conservation. The position requires overseeing project staff, managing partnerships with various stakeholders, ensuring donor compliance, and promoting learning and adaptive management to enhance the economic resilience of women shea producers and youth entrepreneurs in Northern Ghana. The Project Manager will report to the Director for Agriculture, Livelihoods, and Landscape and will be based in Tamale, Ghana, with frequent travel across project communities.

Duties and Responsibilities:
The Project Manager will lead technical, budget management, monitoring, and reporting activities throughout the project cycle, including start-up, implementation, and close-out, in accordance with CRS program quality principles and standards, donor requirements, and best practices. Responsibilities include supervising and developing project staff, promoting high performance and staff well-being, managing team dynamics, providing coaching, tailoring individual development plans, contributing to the recruitment process, and completing performance management for direct reports. The Project Manager will ensure that learning accompanies project activities, support accountability through project evaluation activities, proactively identify issues, and report them to inform adjustments to plans and implementation schedules. Additionally, the role involves fostering and strengthening partnerships relevant to the project, leading the implementation of the MSD strategy, building and managing strategic partnerships with various stakeholders, assisting with preparation of trends analysis reports, and ensuring project documentation is complete and filed according to agency and donor requirements.

Required Qualifications:
Candidates must possess a Bachelor’s degree in agriculture economics, Agricultural Extension, Agribusiness, Development Studies, Business Administration, Development Finance, Entrepreneurship, or a related field. A master’s degree in any of these fields or in International Relations is preferred. The position requires a minimum of seven years of relevant project management experience, preferably in agriculture financing, natural resource management, the cocoa sector, private sector engagement, Savings and Internal Lending Communities (SILC), Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLAs), agribusiness development, and/or NGO programming. Good experience in project grants management, including project design for grants from multiple public donors, is also required, along with staff management experience conducive to a learning environment.

Educational Background:
The educational background required for this position includes a Bachelor’s degree in agriculture economics, Agricultural Extension, Agribusiness, Development Studies, Business Administration, Development Finance, Entrepreneurship, or a related field. A master’s degree in any of these fields or in International Relations is considered an added advantage, indicating a higher level of expertise and understanding of the complexities involved in international development and project management.

Experience:
The position requires a minimum of seven years of relevant project management experience. This experience should preferably be in areas such as agriculture financing, natural resource management, the cocoa sector, private sector engagement, Savings and Internal Lending Communities (SILC), Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLAs), agribusiness development, and/or NGO programming. The candidate should have a proven track record of managing projects effectively, demonstrating the ability to lead teams, manage budgets, and ensure compliance with donor requirements.

Languages:
Proficiency in English is mandatory for this position. This includes the ability to communicate effectively in both written and spoken forms. While English is the primary language required, knowledge of additional languages may be considered an asset, particularly if they are relevant to the local context or the communities served by the project.

Additional Notes:
The position is based in Tamale, Ghana, and requires the candidate to be willing and able to travel up to 50% of the time. The Project Manager will supervise Project Officers and will work closely with various internal and external stakeholders. CRS offers a comprehensive benefits package for U.S. based staff, including medical, dental, life insurance, vision, and a generous retirement savings plan. For successful candidates employed outside the U.S., benefits packages are based on the country of employment. The anticipated duration of the assignment may be informed by a term limit based on the type and level of the job and the needs of the agency. CRS is committed to safeguarding program participants, community members, staff, and volunteers from all forms of exploitation and abuse, and the successful candidate is expected to adhere to CRS' Code of Conduct.