Job Title : Project Manager, (Based in Tunis)
Reports to : Country Director, North Africa
Location : Tunis
Duration : To end January 2018 (with extension subject to funding)
Background
BBC Media Action is the independent international charity of the BBC. Our mission is to improve the quality of people’s lives in developing and transitional countries through innovative use of media. To achieve this, we partner with civil society, local media and governments around the world to a) Produce creative programmes in multi-media formats which inform and engage audiences around key development issues and b) Strengthen the media sector through building professional capacity and infrastructure. Our work is focussed around four key themes: governance and rights, health, resilience, and humanitarian emergencies. BBC Media Action requires a dynamic manager with solid project management and media experience to ensure the successful delivery and development of the BBC Media Action programmeMedMedia, working largely on media development and governance projects.
Purpose of the Job
The Project Manager is responsible for the development, management and evaluation of a southern Mediterranean project run from Tunisia. The complete management cycle for BBC Media Action project typically includes capacity-building, multiplatform media production, research (M&E) and policy development activities. The Project Manager ensures that these activities are designed and delivered on time, within budget and to the highest quality standards in accordance with BBC editorial values and BBC Media Action approaches and guidelines.
The Project Manager supports business development for North Africa. S/he contributes to, and at times lead on, the proposal-writing process, working in conjunction with the London-based project team to ensure that proposals are realistically budgeted, creatively and editorially compelling and in line with the country strategy.
This is a demanding role in a challenging work environment but it is also deeply rewarding. The Project Manager is expected to develop a close and supportive working relationship with local partners and stakeholders in southern mediterranea, such as public service broadcasters, the media regulatory body, civil society organisations and local NGOs, as well as with key international players and diplomatic missions. S/he is also expected to manage effectively a small team composed of local support staff and international trainers/consultants working across various fields. The role involves a great deal of day-to-day autonomy as well daily work in English-, French- and Arabic-speaking environments within office or on location. The Project Manager may at time be required work long hours, on weekends or on public holidays.
Main duties
- Responsible for planning, coordinating and implementing BBC Media Action project(s) activities and ensure these activities are delivered on time, within the agreed budget and to the highest standards.
- Ensure projects are legally and financially compliant and in line with BBC editorial standards and BBC Media Action approaches and best practice.
- Manage project and organisation risk, including the development of contingency plans.
- Follow BBC safety requirements and instructions, especially in relation to risk assessments, travel, production, emergencies and hostile environments.
- Contribute to the design, implementation and management of coherent training and development programmes as required, in line with project(s) objectives. This includes identifying and sourcing trainers/consultants, as required.
- Work closely with local and international project(s) partners to coordinate the implementation of consultancies, training/capacity building and outreach activities as well as production of media outputs.
- Produce narrative and financial reports for donor(s) and internal audiences using agreed templates as required.
- Prepare monthly reforecasts of project(s)’ budget(s) and activity plan(s), working with local and headquarters finance teams.
- Review trainers/consultants’ reports within agreed timelines and communicate them appropriately to partners.
- Support Country Director in identifying business development opportunities, assessing local development needs, holding discussions with donors and partners, designing new projects and writing proposals and budgets as required.
- Actively contribute to country strategy development and implementation.
- In coordination with Country Director and relevant London-based teams, ensure visibility of project(s) in North Africa and internationally, which may include ensuring the development of visibility outputs in English, Arabic and French.
- Represent BBC Media Action/Country Director at international and local stakeholder’s coordination meetings and engage in discussion with international donors as required.
- Line-manage the locally based project team as required.
- Support induction of new staff and carry out other agreed tasks as assigned by the Country Director.
Relevant Competencies
- Strategic Thinking – Can identify a vision along with the plans which need to be implemented to meet the end goal. Evaluates situations, decisions, issues, etc. in the short, medium and longer term.
- Flexibility – adapts and works effectively with a variety of situations, individuals or groups. Able to understand and appreciate different and opposing perspectives on an issue, to adapt an approach as the requirements of a situation change, and to change or easily accept changes in one’s own organisation or job requirements.
- Analytical Thinking – Able to simplify complex problems, processes or projects into component parts and explore and evaluate them systematically. Able to identify causal relationships and construct frameworks for problem solving and/or development.
- Leadership – Able to create a vision and inspire others to realise it irrespective of circumstances.
- Decision Making – Is ready and able to take the initiative, originate action and be responsible for the consequences of the decision made.
- Imagination/Creative Thinking – Is able to transform creative ideas/impulses into practical reality. Can look at existing situations and problems in novel ways and come up with creative solutions.
- Planning and Organisation – Is able to think ahead in order to establish an efficient and appropriate course of action for self and others. Prioritises and plans activities taking into account all the relevant issues and factors such as deadlines, staffing and resources requirements.
- Resilience – Can maintain personal effectiveness by managing own emotions in the face of pressure, set-backs or when dealing with provocative situations. Can demonstrate an approach to work that is characterised by commitment, motivation and energy.
- Influencing and Persuading – Ability to present sound and well-reasoned arguments to convince others. Can draw from a range of strategies to persuade people in a way that results in agreements or behaviour change.
- Communication – The ability to get one’s message understood clearly by adopting a range of styles, tools and techniques appropriate to the audience and the nature of the information.
(A job description is a written statement of the essential characteristics of the job, with its principal accountabilities, incorporating a note of the skills, knowledge and experience required for a satisfactory level of performance. This is not intended to be a complete, detailed account of all aspects of the duties involved.)