Program Manager - SAM Centre Effective Governance of Indian States; CEGIS

Program Manager - States and Market ( Procurement)

Centre for Effective Governance of Indian States (CEGIS pronounced See-Jis) aims to improve lives by helping Indian state governments deliver better development outcomes. In order to augment State Capacities, work of CEGIS can be categorised into Four Themes or Pillars Outcome Measurement (OM), Personnel Management (PM), Strategic Public Finance (SPF) & State and Markets (SAM).

CEGIS work under the theme of State and Market (SAM) focuses on improving state capacity for better management of State interfaces with the larger market, especially in service delivery functions. The focus of the SAM team is to identify points of interaction between the Government and the Private Sector and to support States in reducing the frictions in such transactions. We work with State Governments in three capacities:

• Procurement
  :
  Improving procurement policies, processes, and decisions to improve value for money in public procurement
• Policy
  :
  Development of sectoral policy to incentivize cost effective service delivery, through the most appropriate models
• Regulation
  :
  Assessment of market failures and design and execution of proportionate regulatory interventions to address these

Of the above, currently the Procurement area dominates the portfolio of the SAM team with strong traction from multiple States. While the above work will be focused on CEGIS core sectors (education, health, nutrition, local governance), some streams like procurement have a broader sectoral coverage. Our projects will involve elements of research and analytics, market efficiency assessment, regulatory capacity assessment, and active support to Finance and line departments in reforms adoption.

This will involve both quantitative and qualitative skills. This will, among other things, entail:

• Conducting market assessments including identification of market failures (information asymmetry, market power, externalities, deadweight losses)
• Conducting assessment of State capacity on policy, provision and regulation, through benchmarking, assessment of rules, systems and procedures, and primary interactions with key stakeholders
• Quantitative assessments of cost effectiveness across different models of service delivery, including use of methods such as Value for Money assessments (VfM) and Public Sector Comparator (PSC) analysis
• Interactions with non-state actors (for Profits and Civil Society Organisations) to assess their offerings, constraints and operating ecosystem.
• Developing deep understanding of the Procurement Systems and practices across the States in which CEGIS has presence, as well as global/local best practices.

Position Summary:

The Program Manager - SAM is required to play an important role in contextualising and executing the CEGIS vision across States. The role will involve working closely with the other team members and the relevant State teams, and collaborating with the other CEGIS teams. The Program Manager will be jointly reporting to the Lead, SAM and the relevant State Lead(s).

• Supporting the State Governments in Implementing/Strengthening Digital Tools in Project Planning, Procurement systems, & Contract Management.
• Coordinate with the relevant Government officials for smooth implementation of interventions on which CEGIS is supporting the State Government.
• Research on problem statements identified by the State Governments.
• Guide the Associates in execution of assignments.
• Take lead in development of Knowledge Outputs for SAM and the Company.

Project Management and Supervision:

• Plan and allocate resources effectively.
• Create and revise work plans and project goals.
• Provide guidance, direction, and management to associates for efficient execution of projects.
• Identify and mitigate conflicts and risks.
• Ensure timely course correction when necessary.
• Contribute to knowledge products and documents.
• Review documentation for accuracy and reusability.
• Review the Quality of work and deliverables of the Associates.
• Manage government relationships with bureaucratic leadership at the highest level.

Documentation:

• Gather insights from subject-matter experts and industry specialists.
• Create Internal reports/documents for projects under execution for training and reporting purposes as well as to create institutional memory on projects.
• Facilitate access to administrative data and conduct necessary analysis.

Stakeholder Engagement and Communication:

• Coordinate with key stakeholders for transparent communication.
• Anticipate stakeholder needs and negotiate expectations.
• Prepare detailed presentations and documents for stakeholders.

Collaboration and Partnerships:

• Build and maintain relationships internally and externally.
• Collaborate with academics and stakeholders for research adaptation.
• Work closely with senior academics and government stakeholders to tailor procurement/regulatory/policy design and implementation protocols to local contexts.

• Masters degree or equivalent in economics,…