Practice Area Director – HYBRID

Position description

Creative Associates International is a dynamic, fast-growing global development firm that specializes in education, economic growth, governance and post-crisis stabilization. Based in Washington, D.C., Creative has a field presence in more than 25 countries with a strong client portfolio that includes the U.S. Agency for International Development and the State Department, among others. Since its founding in 1977, Creative has earned a solid reputation among its clients and is well-regarded by competitors and partners alike.

We value diversity — in backgrounds and in experiences. We are deliberate and self-reflective about the kind of team and culture that we are building, seeking staff that are not only strong in their own aptitudes but care deeply about supporting each other’s growth. Our success depends on all our employees’ points of view, and the principle that inclusion is everyone’s responsibility.

Position Summary:

Creative seeks a Practice Area Director (PAD) for the Communities in Transition (CIT) Division to lead the Conflict Prevention and Stabilization Practice Area. The PAD is responsible for setting strategy for the Practice area and executing on it to meet the challenges of stabilization and conflict settings. The PAD manages project management teams and leads and directs project implementation. The PAD is responsible for the management of complex projects of all sizes in funding, management of large project teams, and ensuring project implementation success. The PAD is responsible for a comprehensive range of activities that include actively anticipating, diagnosing, and resolving project implementation matters of a technical, programmatic, business development, client relations, local relationships, subcontractor relationships, contracts, and compliance nature throughout the project life cycle in addition to working with division support regarding project finance, human resources, administrative, and operational matters. The PAD is proactive in cultivating and maintaining industry relationships and utilizing networks to expand learning and business development to strengthen Creative Associates as leader in the stabilization, conflict prevention, and transitions technical areas. The PAD also directs the knowledge management from the projects and overall practice area for learning and business development. The PAD travels internationally in executing many responsibilities of the role and brings extensive in-country experience on technical aspects of program design and implementation, and in the development of new business initiatives within the Practice Area.

Reporting & Supervision:

The PAD reports to the Vice President and Senior Director of CIT. The PAD supervises, including but not limited to, Project Directors, Senior Project Directors, Senior Technical Advisors, Senior Project Managers and COPs.

Expected Outcomes:

Leadership

Projects under Practice Area oversight receive outstanding leadership guidance, management and strategic vision. Project Directors, Senior Project Directors, Senior Project Managers and Senior Technical Advisors under Practice Area manage their portfolios and assigned business development and technical tasks purposely, cohesively, and efficiently. Project aims are clear on the strategic (outcome level—technical), tactical (output level—managerial and financial) and operational (milestone-level transactions) fronts. The client—in particular USAID’s Office of Transition Initiatives (OTI)– is being effectively served and is satisfied with Creative’s service and offerings. Senior Management is kept abreast of significant threats, implementation deficiencies and opportunities.

Project Management

Projects in the Practice Area are aligned with Practice Area strategy and perform well– meeting or exceeding contractual obligations, and performance and financial targets. Projects are well-planned so that inputs—such as human resource deployments, STTA, procurements—can be timely and effectively supported by HQ. Project staffing, project obligations, and reporting meet anticipated levels and high-quality standards. Challenges and potential implementation issues are preemptively identified and proactively addressed.

Financial Management

Projects in the Practice Area forecast appropriately and meet or exceed performance targets. Projects meet revenue projections and gross margin targets, and proactively manage vacancies, non-billables, and unallowables. To mitigate risk, projects requiring important course corrections or corporate support are expeditiously handled and receive the attention of senior management.

Staff Management

Project Directors, Senior Project Directors, Senior Project Managers, and Senior Technical Advisors in the Practice Area are tangibly supported technically, managerially and professionally; their professional objectives and personal needs are well understood, as are those of COPs in the field. Staff are encouraged to contribute to the goals and strategic vision of the Practice Area, division, and the company as a whole, undertaking technical, learning, and outreach efforts, as well as supporting continual operational improvement. Performance reviews are meaningful and constructive and are administered timely. Projects honor all aspects of programmatic and fiscal compliance.

Business Development (BD)

Practice Area has a clear understanding of the relevant forward market, and a strategy and plan to gain a percentage of that market in line with, or exceeding, company targets. Staff and projects in the Practice Area demonstrate an entrepreneurial and winning spirit; they are able to anticipate and seize opportunities in the local marketplace, within current conditions, and to position the company and pave the way for the realization of new business opportunities. Industry and network relationships are created and nurtured to anticipate, generate, and execute new business for Creative. The company is visibly represented before stakeholders. Specific new business pursuits are well planned and timely executed. Activity design is conducted with insight and intellectual curiosity. Staff serve regularly and effectively in line role on capture and live proposal efforts.

Learning & Adaptation

Staff and projects in the Practice Area have a heightened awareness of the value of learning and adaptation. Projects have explicitly defined learning agendas, action research, monitoring and evaluation and Knowledge Management (KM) plans that track progress towards learning, and course corrections that are informed by data. Project information, interventions and innovations are synthesized, shared, tracked, and managed within KM plans, are used to refine Practice Area and division strategy, and feed into BD efforts Learning events (i.e., Knowledge Share, pause and reflect sessions, etc.) capture salient programmatic aspects with potential for replication or scale up. Salient activities are celebrated and promoted through Creative’s Communications Department.

Responsibilities

• Leads development of Practice Area strategy and advises VP on setting corporate priorities and budgets that follow the strategy;
• Oversees assigned Project Directors, Senior Project Directors, Senior Project Managers, Senior Technical Advisors, and COPs;
• Ensures that all projects in the Practice Area achieve contractual deliverables with technical distinction;
• Ensures that all Projects in the Practice Area meet fiscal targets and manage Practice Area funds with support from the division;
• Ensures that all Projects in the Practice Area are well planned and resourced, and tracks all aspects of project performance;
• Ensures that all facets of project implementation meet internal and governmental procedural and compliance requirements;
• Represents projects externally before clients—especially OTI, partners, donors and other stakeholders;
• Serves as chief spokesperson for the Practice Area communicating regularly with client representatives (i.e., CORs and AORs) and serving a primary company representative on issues related to conflict prevention, stabilization, transitions and peacebuilding;
• Serves as chief spokesperson with senior management on matters or importance, including performance, risks and opportunities;
• Frames and leads pertinent new business development endeavors;
• Ensures business development policies and procedures are adhered to in the Practice Area;
• Oversees relationships with subcontractors, including performance and financial management;
• Contributes to the division’s learning agenda and thought leadership efforts;
• Frames and oversees the production of project reports, and other material such as success stories, interventions and innovations;
• Leads project learning and data driven adaptation;
• Ensures that staff and assigned product leads are up to date in their team’s development, submission, and tagging of KM project deliverables and knowledge-share events;
• Conducts periodic reviews of knowledge share products developed out of their portfolios to ensure products provide the level of feedback most useful for portfolio learning and application in project implementation, proposal design and external thought leadership efforts; and
• With support from the division, serves as the Practice Area’s liaison with Creative’s support units, including HR, Finance & Contracts, Procurement, Field Operations, Communications, etc.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in relevant field and at least fifteen years of relevant experience or Master’s degree in relevant field and at least twelve years of relevant experience;
• At least twelve months of field experience as a Chief of Party, Regional Program Director, Country Representative, or equivalent field role;
• Minimum of ten years of supervisory experience, including management of COPs;
• Experience in assuming responsibilities for large projects totaling $50M+ in funding in a Practice Area
• Expert level knowledge and experience in directing specialized and complex work of others in project implementation;
• Considerable experience in providing technical and financial oversight to large projects to include budget realignments; in approving project procurements, grants and purchase order agreements;
• Experience with a variety of donors, including USAID/OTI, State Dept., and other international donors;
• Extensive experience and proven thought leader in the Practice Area technical focus;
• Strategic thinker and decisive evidence-based decision-making skills;
• Experience in quickly producing results on a range of assignments in diverse country and programmatic contexts; in developing/monitoring proposal and project budgets;
• Expert leadership of project start-ups and close-downs;
• Considerable skill in managing teams, handling tight deadlines; ability to travel internationally on short notice;
• Extensive skill and experience in U.S. government donor relations and client management;
• Expert knowledge of programming trends;
• Excellent oral and written communication skills to include extensive experience in making formal presentations to clients, peers and other groups; and
• Extensive Business Development experience, including prior experience with Proposal Management, Championing and writing USAID proposals.

Languages:

• Proficiency in French required

Application instructions

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