Program Operations

DESHPANDE FOUNDATION INDIA; Hubli; Hybrid; INR 600,000 - 900,000; Full time

Job summary

EarlySpark, an initiative of Deshpande Foundation, seeks a field operations lead in Karnataka to manage on-ground rollout across geographies. You will supervise a 2-3 member team, drive partnerships with schools and teacher education institutions, and ensure timely onboarding and enrolments.

Extensive field travel (~50-60%) and a target-driven mindset are essential as you coordinate stakeholder meetings, track progress, and maintain program quality from kickoff to closure.

Responsibilities

• Lead your team in outreach activities to build and maintain a strong pipeline of prospective partner schools and teacher education institutions within the assigned geography.
• Conduct meetings, presentations, institutional visits, and outreach activities to generate interest and convert prospects into active partners.
• Lead negotiations and facilitate timely closure of institutional partnerships and agreements.
• Own monthly and quarterly targets related to institutional onboarding, enrolments, and related partnership closures.

Job description

Travelling: Extensive field travel required (~50 - 60% of time)

Reports To: Program Director

Team size: 2 - 3 field team members reporting to this role

About EarlySpark:

EarlySpark, an initiative of Deshpande Foundation, focuses on improving students’ learning outcomes through high-quality teacher training. We are currently running two new teacher training program models – pre-service (B.Ed./D.Ed./M.Ed students) and in-service (private school teachers) – with ambitions to scale across multiple geographies.

About the role:

This role will serve as the single point of contact (SPOC) for all on-ground operations in the assigned geographies. She/He/They will lead a small team of 2 - 3 field members and be responsible for driving institutional partnerships, managing stakeholders, and ensuring smooth program rollout from the ground up.

This is a high-ownership, target-driven role that demands strong persuasion, relationship-building, and execution skills. You will be expected to meet monthly and quarterly targets on enrolment, onboarding, and partnership closures.

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead your team in outreach activities to build and maintain a strong pipeline of prospective partner schools and teacher education institutions within the assigned geography.
• Conduct meetings, presentations, institutional visits, and outreach activities to generate interest and convert prospects into active partners.
• Lead negotiations and facilitate timely closure of institutional partnerships and agreements.
• Own monthly and quarterly targets related to institutional onboarding, enrolments, and related partnership closures.

• Identify and reach out to potential hiring partners - schools, education institutions, and organisations looking to recruit trained teachers.
• Build and maintain a pipeline of employer contacts in the assigned geography.
• Coordinate handover of confirmed hiring partners to the internal placements coordinator for further process management.
• Track and report on employer pipeline status as part of regular field reporting.

3. Stakeholder Management, Retention & Satisfaction

• Build trusted relationships with school principals, college management, and government liaison contacts.
• Act as the primary SPOC for all external institutional stakeholders.
• Track satisfaction levels of partner institutions and act on feedback promptly.
• Drive continued engagement and re-enrolment of institutions across program cycles.
• Maintain the credibility and reputation of EarlySpark in every stakeholder interaction.

4. Program Onboarding & Execution Support

• Coordinate onboarding processes - institutional agreements, enrollments, scheduling of training etc..
• Liaise with the internal academic/training team to ensure availability of infrastructure, participant readiness and engagement.
• Resolve operational gaps before and during program delivery.

5. Field Operations & Monitoring

• Plan and assign field activities across the geography; oversee day-to-day work of your reportees.
• Ensure logistical readiness for training sessions - venue, materials, coordination.
• Conduct regular monitoring visits; document and report insights to the program team.
• Proactively identify risks, delays, or gaps and take corrective action before escalation is needed.