Team Lead

Position: Team Lead

Project: Resilient Communities Activity (RCA)

Location: Almaty, Kazakhstan with travel to Tajikistan as needed.

Period of Performance: LTTA

Project Background

The USAID Resilient Communities Activity (RCA) is a five-year regional activity aimed at advancing local capacity in peacebuilding and addressing vulnerabilities of marginalized groups across Central Asia. Implemented by DAI Global LLC, the activity works closely with both government and civil society partners to deliver services to the most at-risk communities, expand local ownership opportunities, and increase protection against violent trends. The USAID Resilient Communities Activity focuses on mitigating radicalization by fostering resilient, community-based systems at all levels—community, family, and individual—while emphasizing gender equality, youth involvement, and social inclusion. A core RCA responds to developing trends and adapt strategies through learning to achieve the overall project goal of reducing risks of and increasing resilience to violent extremism (VE) in Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. The RCA Activity will end on September 30, 2027.

The activity is designed to promote social inclusion, youth engagement and women’s roles in peace and security. The Activity aims to achieve the overall project goal of reducing risks of, and increasing resilience to, violent extremism in the region.

Position Description

The Team Lead is responsible for the overall management and success of the RCA activity, providing strategic leadership and technical vision. They will work collaboratively with the USAID Mission to Central Asia, USAID/Tajikistan, potentially other USAID missions in the region, and program partners to ensure successful implementation.

Responsibilities

• Serve as principal liaison and primary point of contact with all USAID missions and relevant and designated staff.
• Coordinate program activities with USAID to ensure strategic implementation and smooth transition from research to pilot programming.
• Develop and maintain relationships with diverse local stakeholders including international organizations working in the P/CVE space to ensure project strategy remains current and relevant.
• Ensures that grant implementation meets the schedule of deliverables and maintains compliance with DAI and USAID administrative and financial management requirements.
• Guides RCA to achieve performance targets and ensures compliance with all USAID regulations, within budget and schedule.
• Provide technical and intellectual direction and leadership.
• Oversee and supervise all research, monitoring, evaluation, and learning on the project, ensuring effectiveness and strategic direction, with a particular focus on achieving project objectives.
• Manage, lead, and oversee all project staff, grantees, and consultants in implementing activities in line with the overall strategic vision.
• Plans, provides direction to, and oversees technical implementation of subcontractors’ work in accordance with USAID strategy for RCA.
• In close coordination with DAI’s technical unit, provides technical support in all program areas to team as needed.
• Presents findings in both written and oral presentations as required.
• Travel to field office regularly to build the project team, including team cohesion, and provide training and mentorship on relevant topics.
• Lead participatory planning processes to produce a strategic plan for project deliverables, and track and submit all project deliverables.
• Ensure timely and accurate reporting to USAID on all program areas.
• Oversee all project finances, operations, and administration.

Qualifications

• A graduate degree in a related field such as International relations, political science, or religious studies.
• At least five years of progressive experience in managing and leading development programs of a similar size and scope in developing countries, with a strong preference for experience managing democracy, rights, and governance and countering violent extremism programs, as well as programs in Central Asia specifically or Asia more broadly.
• Substantial experience working on key result areas of the activity, like community resilience and development, preventing and countering violent extremism (P/CVE), or civic education.
• Excellent negotiation skills and the ability to lead and build consensus, cooperation, and coalitions among individuals with competing interests.
• Demonstrated experience with USAID rules and regulations.
• Demonstrated experience in a managerial position and leading a team of professionals.
• Demonstrated experience implementing a grants program under a USAID contract or cooperative agreement.
• Experience having financial and operational responsibilities.
• Demonstrated knowledge of integrating a gender perspective in the key delivery areas of the activity.
• Demonstrated experience in planning, conflict management, project management, and budgeting.
• Experience of working on similar technical areas and with the P/CVE or related projects in Central Asia or the former Soviet Union.
• Professional fluency in Russian and English is required.