Program Manager – Foundational Literacy and Numeracy, Mumbai

Ground Zero; Mumbai; On-site; INR 1,500,000 - 1,900,000; Full time

Job summary

Ground Zero in Mumbai is hiring a Program Manager – FLN to lead and scale foundational literacy and numeracy initiatives for primary learners in low-income communities. You will oversee end-to-end program delivery, governance, and state-level engagements aligned with national frameworks.

The role requires strong M&E, stakeholder management, and cross-functional collaboration with partners, technical agencies, and education departments to drive measurable outcomes.

Qualifications

• Post-Graduate Degree in Education, Social Science, Rural Management, or a related field.
• 5–7 years of fast-paced project management experience in Indian education sector.
• M&E expertise with evaluation frameworks and impact assessment.
• Strong ability to interact with government education departments and partners.

Responsibilities

• Oversee end-to-end FLN program delivery, timelines, and monitoring for projects.
• Coordinate relationships with implementation partners, agencies, and internal teams.
• Refine program design, track milestones, and manage budgets and reporting.
• Represent the organization in state-level government meetings and field visits.
• Prepare governance materials, updates, and progress reports for leadership.

Skills

M&E expertise

Stakeholder management

Governance & documentation

Program management

EdTech collaboration

Education

Post-Graduate Degree in Education or related field

Tools

Tableau

Job description

Role: Program Manager – Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN), Mumbai
Experience: 12+ years
Salary: Up to 15-19 LPA

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About the role:

The Program Manager – FLN plays a pivotal role in leading, managing, and scaling Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) initiatives aimed at addressing learning gaps among primary school children in low-income communities. Aligned with national educational frameworks (such as the NIPUN Bharat Mission), this position oversees end-to-end project implementation, partner relationships, governance, monitoring & evaluation, and state-level government engagements.

Key responsibilities:

1. Partnership & Project Management

• Oversee end-to-end program delivery, day-to-day operations, timelines, and monitoring for assigned education projects.
• Coordinate and manage relationships with implementation partners, technical agencies, and internal cross-functional teams.
• Refine program design, track milestones, manage program budgets, and troubleshoot operational challenges early.
• Ensure all internal and external donor reporting requirements are met on time.

2. Outcomes, M&E & Evidence Building

• Execute evaluation frameworks, learning agendas, and impact assessments according to agreed work plans.
• Critically review evaluation notes, progress reports, and verification metrics to assess indicator changes or project shifts.
• Track outcome performance against commitments and flag any divergence between reported and verified progress.

3. Governance & Documentation

• Prepare decision notes, pre-meeting briefs, and quarterly review materials for organizational leadership and governance committees.
• Maintain correspondence, formal agreements, project version controls, decision logs, and governance calendars.

4. State-Level Program Management

• Serve as the primary organizational point of contact for implementation partners in key target states (e.g., Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh).
• Represent the organization in state-level government review meetings and maintain active engagement with education department stakeholders.
• Conduct regular field visits to observe ground realities, validate progress, identify risk areas, and support course correction.
• Support holistic education pilot projects and integrate state-level learnings into the overarching FLN strategy.

5. Operational & Cross-Functional Support

• Prepare periodic project updates, budget summaries, and progress reports for internal leadership committees.
• Support team communications, stakeholder events, and social finance/funding initiatives as required.

Success Metrics:

• Compliance & Budgeting: Accurate tracking of outputs delivered by partners against financial expenditure.
• MIS & Reporting: Timely and accurate submission of project data and progress reports.
• Partner & Governance Management: High-quality documentation and efficient stakeholder coordination.

Requirements & Qualifications:

• Education: Post-Graduate Degree in Education, Social Work, Social Science, Rural Management, or a related field. (Specialization in social financing or learning tools like Tableau is a plus).
• Experience: 5–7 years of fast-paced project management experience within the Indian education sector.
• M&E Expertise: Proven background in Monitoring & Evaluation (M&E), impact assessment, and managing evaluation frameworks.
• Stakeholder Alignment: Strong ability to interact with and manage government education departments, implementation partners, and EdTech accelerators.

Hiring Note

Applications will be reviewed on rolling basis. This job is first posted on Sept 10, 2026 on Ground Zero
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