Senior Program Associate - Strategic Public Finance

CEGIS Foundation; Lucknow; On-site; INR 30,000 - 50,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading NGO in India is seeking a Senior Program Associate to enhance governance systems through data analysis and strategic partnerships in Uttar Pradesh. The role involves conducting research, managing projects, and engaging stakeholders to improve decision-making in government planning. Candidates should possess a Master's degree and 3-6 years of relevant experience, with fluency in English and Hindi. The position offers competitive remuneration based on experience, based in Lucknow, requiring occasional travel.

Qualifications

• 3-6 years of experience in related fields, especially in project management.
• Fluency in English and Hindi.
• Experience in data cleaning and analysis.

Responsibilities

• Conduct data analysis and generate insights for key stakeholders.
• Engage with departments to collect and manage relevant data.
• Produce documentation to convey critical insights.

Skills

Data analysis

Communication

Project management

Problem-solving

Stakeholder engagement

Education

Masters degree in economics, public policy, or related fields

Tools

STATA

R

MS Office

Job description

Senior Program Associate - Strategic Public Finance

Job Openings Senior Program Associate - Strategic Public Finance

About the job Senior Program Associate - Strategic Public Finance

About CEGIS

Centre for Effective Governance of Indian States (CEGIS – pronounced See-Jis) aims to improve lives by helping Indian state governments deliver better development outcomes. We believe that well-functioning governments share at least four features with high-performing organisations: (a) measuring outcomes through reliable, high quality data that enables goal setting and monitoring progress towards these goals; (b) strategic use of personnel – competency based hiring and training, skilling, and performance appraisals to determine job assignments, pay, and promotions – to achieve the goals above; (c) strategic budgeting where resource allocation is based on evidence and cost-effectiveness; (d) and creating efficient systems to leverage external actors (including for-profit and nonprofit organisations). At CEGIS, we support the state governments to build these foundations so that they can deliver development outcomes more effectively.

CEGIS works closely with the political and bureaucratic leadership in the states to achieve transformational change. We are currently present in 9 states - Assam, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh. We also partner with union agencies/ministries such as Capacity Building Commission, Ministry of Women & Child Development (MoWCD), Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation (MoSPI) to provide technical support for strengthening foundational systems and reflect insights from CEGISs work at the state-level into national level initiatives and guidelines. We also collaborate closely with academics and research institutions to ensure our work is grounded in rigorous research and evidence-based practices.

CEGIS Approach and Model of Functioning

Our solutions to enhance governance are co-created with state governments in a state-led way, where we focus on deep partnerships with states with an iterative cycle of think-demonstrate-document-transfer. We work closely with the top bureaucratic leadership, front-line workers and public officials in Finance, Planning, Human Resources and a few other priority line departments. Many of our solutions reflect ideas outlined in our founder Prof. Karthik Muralidharan's book (Accelerating India's Development), and these solutions are constantly being refined based on real-time feedback and are designed to both be customized to the contexts we are working in, and to create templates that can provide the starting point for replication across contexts.

To further explore the mission of CEGIS and the impact we hope to have, please take a look at this video of our CEO, Dr Vijay Pingale.

About the projects in Uttar Pradesh: CEGIS has partnered with the Government of Uttar Pradesh to strengthen governance systems and enable data-driven decision-making in the states Finance and Planning departments. The partnership supports Uttar Pradeshs strategic vision through initiatives to establish a Financial Analytics Unit, strengthen data systems for improved planning and service delivery, and build institutional and personnel capacity aligned with Mission Karmayogi principles. This collaboration aims to embed evidence-based reforms and enhance outcomes across the states core development priorities.

Position Summary The Senior Program Associate (SPA) will play an important role in contextualising and executing the CEGIS vision in Government of Uttar Pradesh. The role will collaborate with other CEGIS teams (Outcome Measurement, Public Finance; Personnel Management; Sectoral teams). The Senior Program Associate will be directly reporting to the respective Program Manager in the State.

Role and Responsibilities:

Data Analysis and Insight Generation:

• Engage with departments to collect relevant data, develop quantitative and qualitative tools/templates, administer these tools, and support in cleaning and organizing the data.
• Track and analyze data for accuracy and conduct qualitative and quantitative analysis.
• Extract important insights from complex datasets relevant to key stakeholders.
• Prioritize and address data issues promptly to support project progress and decision-making.
• Ensure compliance with internal data management and security protocols

Research and Documentation

• Independently conduct research and root cause analysis, documenting and presenting insights.
• Produce comprehensive presentations and documentation to convey critical project insights.
• Collaborate with other teams to jointly develop and implement technical solutions tailored to specific project requirements as is suitable for the states context.
• Create concept notes, policy briefs, and other documentation for stakeholder communication.

Stakeholder Engagement and Communication:

• Evaluate project contingencies and engage with internal and external stakeholders.
• Assist the project team in collecting critical information and departmental updates by maintaining regular communication with government counterparts, partner organisations, and other relevant stakeholders.
• Coordinate stakeholder meetings and gather feedback for project progress and decision-making.
• Foster deep connections with stakeholders and suggest innovative ideas to nurture partnerships.

Project Management & Delivery:

• Understand project requirements, coordinate with internal teams and external partners for delivery excellence.
• Support comparison and assessment of different strategies, frameworks, and solutions for effective decision-making.
• Plan and prioritise work plans, ensuring accountability for set timelines.
• Assist in altering project goals and outcomes based on stakeholder feedback and project progress, flag project risks.
• Support knowledge management processes to help achieve project and organisational objectives (for example, assisting in maintaining a project-based knowledge repository).

Required Qualifications, Skills and Abilities:

• A Masters degree or equivalent preferred in economics, public policy, social science or related fields from a reputed institution, bright graduate applicants may be considered.
• 3-6 years of experience. Minimum 3 years of work experience in India with organisations working in related fields of work i.e., research agencies, policy think-tanks, government or private sector organisations working on government advisory or consulting
• Proven experience in project management and analytical contributions.
• Strong communication, collaboration, and leadership skills.
• Experience with data cleaning and analysis of large and complex data sets and econometric analysis
• Knowledge of STATA or R (strongly preferred) or any other data analysis software is preferred
• Experience in client servicing/government projects would be preferred
• Report writing and presentations with proficiency in MS Office and other tools

Personal Characteristics and Desired Qualities

• Fluency in English and Hindi proficiency
• Excellent problem-solving skills, with an aptitude for research to formulate solutions
• Excellent writing and communication skills (ability to communicate complex ideas in a meaningful way and across different audiences)
• Ability to set priorities, plan timelines and meet deadlines
• Ability to think creatively, willing to take risks, to experiment with new ideas and to turn ideas into action
• High ability to collaborate and actively listen to others, understanding and valuing others views
• Operating style suited to working independently and in a small organization setting, where teamwork and resourcefulness are highly valued

Location and Compensation

Location: The role will be based out of Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. Travel to other states may be required.

Remuneration will be competitive with Indian philanthropy and social sector pay scales and will depend on the candidate's experience levels.

Interested candidates are requested to submit their applications by clicking the apply button below

Note: CEGIS has zero tolerance for sexual harassment. We therefore expect each applicant to self-declare related to the same. CEGIS could, if required, initiate a prevention of sexual harassment-based background verification. If an applicant is reported for misconduct, appropriate action that may include employment termination would be taken. Please complete the details for self-declaration on the application form.

• You are also highly encouraged to read Prof. Karthik Muralidharans book Accelerating Indias Development that informs much of CEGISs work and theory of change (especially Chapters 1, 4-6, 10-12, and 15-16)