Program Manager (PM)

OxfamNovibP

4d

About The Position

The Program Manager (PM) is responsible for the overall successful management, implementation, and closure of an assigned project, including partner organizations’ projects and activities across one or more countries and regional-level components. The PM leads the project team, establishes clear responsibilities and accountability, and manages related operational affairs. The role coordinates with Oxfam colleagues and departments, partners, service providers, peers, allies, donors, and other stakeholders to ensure coherent national and sub-regional interventions aligned with MENA and global strategies.

The position sits within Oxfam in North Africa’s extended structure and is designed for managers in the Human Economies thematic portfolio. The PM may be assigned or reassigned to other projects based on documented performance, competencies, and compliant internal processes. The role contributes to Oxfam in North Africa’s strategy, annual plans and reports, regional collaboration, donor engagement, and representation at national, regional, and global levels.

The PM leads strategic and operational project management, including project planning, risk management, partner selection and relationship management, contractual processes, implementation oversight, monitoring, evaluation, accountability and learning (MEAL), budgeting, reporting, documentation, and communication and visibility. The role also supports partner capacity building, cross-country learning, and the development of proposals, concept notes, and learning products. As a management role, it includes team recruitment and development, performance management, mentoring, and fostering a healthy, collaborative working environment.

The position is based in Tunisia. Oxfam describes its working conditions and benefits as aligned with National Staff Terms and Conditions (NSTC), with a flexible working setup determined by the Director and SMT. The role is full-time under NSTC and has responsibility for an assigned grant or project budget. The PM directly reports to the NA Program Management and Quality Lead and supervises relevant project team members.

Requirements

• Master’s degree or proven equivalent professional experience in the development field with similar organizations.
• At least 10 years of work experience with progressively increasing professional responsibilities, particularly in program design, quality implementation, management, and ME&L.
• Strong thematic expertise in gender-based violence prevention and response, women’s rights, and gender justice, using a feminist lens.
• Understanding of structural drivers of gender-based violence, gender inequality, and power dynamics, and experience with survivor-centred, rights-based, and intersectional approaches.
• Experience building partnerships and connections with civil society actors, including national, regional, and international NGOs and donors, as well as government, private-sector, academic, and research institutions.
• Strong risk assessment, prevention, and mitigation skills, including the ability to translate complex economic, political, and social dynamics into adaptive programmatic and strategic responses.
• Ability to analyze and synthesize thematic issues across countries, identify regional trends and common challenges, and use cross-country insights to inform regional priorities and strategies.
• Knowledge of influencing strategies and opportunities and understanding of national and regional contexts across North Africa.
• Experience conducting contextually grounded analysis to inform adaptive and alternative influencing pathways.
• Experience leading, monitoring, and mentoring team members and managing their work, operations, and capacity development.
• Commitment to equity, diversity, gender, child safety, and staff health and wellbeing.
• Commitment to Oxfam safeguarding policies and keeping people who come into contact with Oxfam as safe as possible.
• Strong communication skills, including strategic communication planning and coordination, and experience representing an organization at senior level with civil society organizations, government, donors, and others.
• Strong financial planning, management, and monitoring skills, including spending oversight, early identification of financial and budgetary risks, and preventive and mitigating plans.
• Ability to work under pressure, prioritize, meet deadlines, and hold oneself and others accountable.
• Availability and ability to travel as required, including regular partner visits and facilitating multi-day workshops and programmatic engagements across countries.
• Excellent English, French, and Arabic reading, speaking, and writing skills.
• Ability to live Oxfam’s values of inclusion, accountability, empowerment, courage, solidarity, and equality.
• Commitment to Oxfam’s organizational attributes, including adherence to its Code of Conduct.

Nice To Haves

• Experience working as part of a multicultural and multidisciplinary team.
• Commitment to Oxfam’s aims and policies, with experience promoting gender equity and diversity and the interests of marginalized people across development work.
• Openness and willingness to learn about applying gender and gender mainstreaming, women’s rights, and diversity across development work.

Responsibilities

• Formulate, manage, monitor, and mentor the project team, with clear responsibilities and accountability.
• Ensure project strategies and activities respond to anticipated needs, reflect context, build on existing assets and resources, and align with Oxfam’s strategic objectives.
• Identify project risks and plan, document, and implement preventive and mitigating measures consistent with Oxfam and donor policies, strategic direction, and budget.
• Promote strategic coherence and complementarities across country interventions, and facilitate regional learning and collaboration.
• Coordinate with Oxfam stakeholders and act as an interlocutor with regional and confederation-level counterparts; contribute to donor engagement, strategic reporting, and representation.
• Contribute to the development and implementation of Oxfam in North Africa’s strategy, annual plans, and reports.
• Maintain effective information and knowledge flows and regular internal and external communications.
• Contribute to the program portfolio by developing donor connections, proposals, concept notes, learning documents, and case studies.
• Initiate and coordinate cross-learning among project teams, partners, and other relevant stakeholders.
• Represent Oxfam in national, regional, and global meetings with partners, allies, and donors, as required and approved.
• Provide strategic input on governance and civic space programming, including adaptive approaches in changing civic environments, consistent with safe programming and feminist principles.
• Contribute to a regional partnership approach aligned with Oxfam’s partnership principles and country contexts.
• Develop and update project plans, timelines, workplans, spending plans, MEAL plans, risk management plans, and other project management documents with teams and partners.
• Ensure participatory, transparent, context-informed program inception and thematic planning, including power analysis across countries and development of project design and theories of change.
• Select national and regional partners and develop relationships consistent with Oxfam’s partnership approach and values.
• Oversee partner contractual processes and coordinate on country-specific contractual requirements with relevant confederation counterparts.
• Ensure implementation of Oxfam and relevant donor policies, procedures, and guidelines across project work.
• Work with program quality colleagues to develop and improve cross-country MEAL frameworks, ensuring contextual adaptation and alignment with the theory of change, Oxfam strategies, and policies.
• Oversee and support baseline surveys, progress monitoring, and progress and final reporting by teams and partners.
• Guide technical and management implementation to ensure coherence, standardized approaches, and program quality in line with project objectives.
• Manage and monitor the project budget and spending with finance colleagues, anticipate challenges and delays, and propose solutions and revised plans or budgets.
• Produce substantive project reports and facilitate financial reporting to the Affiliate and/or donor according to agreed timelines and requirements.
• Maintain structured, accessible, secure program documentation and archives in accordance with internal standards.
• Build partner organizations’ capacity in participatory analysis and planning and strengthen the value of partnership.
• Share program learning within the project and externally, and synthesize cross-country learning to inform cluster-level approaches and regional coherence.
• Participate in coordination mechanisms with partners and stakeholders to support working relationships, communication, coordination, and synergies.
• Coordinate development and delivery of the project’s communication and visibility strategy with the Communication and Media Lead; integrate activities into workplans, timelines, and budgets and ensure compliance with Oxfam and donor standards.
• Ensure the project team is sufficiently resourced, with clear roles and accountabilities; draft job descriptions and lead recruitment processes.
• Manage probation assessments and documentation, and ensure compliant and efficient end-of-service and contract closures.
• Set annual performance goals and capacity development and support plans for team members.
• Manage, mentor, and monitor the conduct, performance, and productivity of direct project team members and peers in line with Oxfam principles, values, policies, and obligations.
• Model Oxfam leadership values and support compliance, effective leave and priority management, and a healthy working environment.
• Promote collaboration and coordination with other project teams and departments, and maintain respectful professional relationships and communication.

Benefits

• Attractive working conditions and benefits in line with National Staff Terms and Conditions (NSTC).
• Flexible working setup, applied according to the Director and SMT steer and agreed ways of working.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior