• Job Description

  Req#: JR-0003364
  Geographic Program Manager. Rio de Janeiro. Posting Date: 03/21/2024. Deadline: 04/12/2024

  Role Title

  Geographic Program Manager

  Grade Level

  Level E, Grade 11

  Reporting To

  Geographic Lead, Latin America and the Caribbean

  Location

  Bogotá, Mexico City, or Rio de Janeiro

  Role Purpose

  Support the Latin America and the Caribbean Geographic Lead in developing and implementing a strategic, consistent, and informed Open Society presence in the region. Coordinate the Latin America and the Caribbean Policy Group and country sub-groups, which will help define Open Society’s strategic approach to the region. Manage grants important for Open Society’s approach to the region outside of program opportunities.

  Key Responsibilities

  Reporting to the Latin America and the Caribbean Lead, the Geographic Program Manager’s key responsibilities are as follows:

  • Support the Geographic Lead in ensuring that Open Society’s work in Latin America and the Caribbean is overseen closer to the places we work in, grounded in local knowledge, and is cognizant of the differing contexts and political spaces in which we work.

  • Monitor Open Society’s work in Latin America and the Caribbean for program coherence, contextual relevance, and geographic risks

  • Build a strong understanding of the region and relationships with partners on the ground.

  • Liaise and advise the development and design of all Open Society work in the region; work collaboratively in assessing, and revising program strategies

  • Support the Latin America and the Caribbean Geographic Lead in developing and maintaining a light-touch, adaptable strategy that integrates work in the region carried out by different opportunities, core partner support, and urgent capital where needed

  • Support the Latin America and the Caribbean Geographic Lead in guiding, supporting, and executing the activities of the Latin America and the Caribbean Policy Group and relevant sub-groups, coordinating with internal colleagues and external partners and actors

  • Support the Latin America and the Caribbean Lead in ensuring coherence of Open Society policies and approaches in Latin America and the Caribbean across opportunities, core partners, and urgent capital

  • Ensure the contextual updates, policy needs, challenges, and opportunities are identified and prioritized so the Latin America and the Caribbean Policy Group can engage appropriately

  • Carry out grantmaking for non-opportunity specific grants that are important for Open Society’s presence in the region, including crisis response and urgent capital requests

  • Process and oversee progress of consultant contracts

  People Responsibilities (Total Team/DRs)

  No

  Key internal relationships

  Opportunity Directors and Associate Directors; Managing Directors; Core Partners; Special Advisors; Grants Management

  Key external relationships

  Government, nonprofit, multilateral, and private stakeholders

  Person Specification Qualifications

  Essential:

  • Educated to a degree-level (or equivalent)

  Desirable:

  • Post-graduate education relevant Open Society’s programmatic work in Latin America and the Caribbean

  Experience

  Essential:

  • Several years’ experience in one or multiple organizations, with comprehensive proficiency in relevant fields or subject areas; this experience should be related to Latin America and the Caribbean and Open Society’s programmatic focus

  • Prior experience engaging with government, nonprofit, private, and multilateral sectors in Latin America and the Caribbean

  • Relevant experience across democracy, rights, equity, and/or climate justice in Latin America and the Caribbean

  Competencies

  Functional Competencies:

  • Conceives, designs and manages cross-department, cross-program or similarly complex projects; expected to effectively manage time, budget and stakeholders and network-wide or similarly complex coordination

  • Able to generate, capture and organize information and knowledge to deliver prescribed outcomes

  • Ability to conduct research to drive decision making by management

  • Skilled in drawing out patterns

  • Experience in budgeting, strategic analysis and planning

  • Experience working well with a variety of public, private and nonprofit stakeholders

  • Building and maintaining networks of stakeholders

  • Promote strategic cooperation with governmental and other sectors

  Personal Competencies:

  • Ability to work independently and being self-motivated

  • Demonstrates commitment to OSF’s core values of humility, commitment, collaboration, respect, inclusivity and integrity

  • Able to build consensus with diverse audiences/stakeholders

  • Possesses cultural sensitivity to work respectfully and effectively in different settings

  • Proven experience in collaborating with multi-country stakeholders

  • Willingness to adjust working hours to include calls and discussions with colleagues and vendors located in various geographic regions

  • Commitment to continuous learning and growth in the areas of diversity, equity, inclusion, antiracism and social justice

  Languages:

  • Excellent written and spoken English

  • Fluency in Spanish; proficiency in Portuguese would be an asset

  Competitive rates of pay apply.

  Open Society Foundations is committed to advancing diversity, equity and inclusion, and to building a diverse staff that reflects the movements, issues and communities that our mission serves. Candidates from all underrepresented backgrounds, identities and communities are encouraged to apply.

  We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations to applicants and colleagues with disabilities.

• About the company

  Open Society Foundations, formerly the Open Society Institute, is an international grantmaking network founded by business magnate George Soros.

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