Senior Program Manager- Ecosystem Capacity Building

NSRCEL; India; On-site; INR 3,000,000 - 5,200,000; Full time

Job summary

NSRCEL, the startup hub at IIM Bangalore, seeks a Senior Program Manager to lead iCube, NSRCEL’s flagship institutional capacity-building program, across India with travel.

You will drive strategy, governance, partnerships, and program delivery, building evaluator-ready evidence and scalable systems while managing a small team of program managers.

Qualifications

• Postgraduate degree in management, public policy, development studies, social sciences, entrepreneurship or related field.
• 10–12 years of relevant experience.
• Experience in program management, consulting, incubation, ecosystem development or institutional capacity building.
• Proven ability to manage complex, multi-stakeholder programs end to end.
• Experience working with incubators, accelerators, ESOs, government or development-sector organisations.
• Strong skills in problem-solving, program design, facilitation, M&E and stakeholder management.
• Experience leading small teams and coordinating external experts.
• Strong financial, operational and documentation discipline.
• Excellent communication and presentation skills.
• Leadership experience in social enterprises, government programs, foundations, universities or ecosystem organisations.
• Familiarity with institutional frameworks, M&E systems and organisational design.
• Experience designing operating models, governance structures or sustainability plans.
• Strong ecosystem network across entrepreneurship, CSR, government or academia.
• Experience working in underserved or public-sector incubation contexts.
• Structured and adaptive operator capable of growing a Business Unit and executing strategy.

Responsibilities

• Lead iCube end to end and scale ECB’s institutional capacity-building portfolio.
• Translate ECB strategy into annual plans, account roadmaps, budgets and measurable outcomes.
• Own the full iCube lifecycle: partner identification, scoping, contracting, onboarding, diagnostics, co-design, implementation, mentoring, review and closure.
• Ensure high-quality delivery across multiple incubator engagements.
• Coordinate internal teams, external experts and implementation partners.
• Manage risks, dependencies and decision-making processes.
• Lead a small team of program managers and assistant managers.

Skills

Program management

Leadership

Stakeholder management

Monitoring & Evaluation

Financial management

Team leadership

Communication skills

Education

Postgraduate degree in management/public policy/development studies

Tools

M&E tools

Job description

Senior Program Manager- Ecosystem Capacity Building

• Industry Nonprofit Charitable Organizations

Reportingto: AVP / Head – Ecosystem Capacity Building
Location: Bengaluru, with travel across India
Employment: Full-time
Role focus: Program leadership, institutional capacity building andecosystem partnerships

NSRCEL is the startup hub andincubation centre of IIM Bangalore. It supports entrepreneurs andentrepreneurship-support institutions through incubation, learning, research,partnerships and ecosystem-building initiatives.

NSRCEL works with founders,incubators, governments, academic institutions, corporates and funders tostrengthen India’s entrepreneurial ecosystem and enable inclusive andsustainable innovation.

EcosystemCapacity Building (ECB) is NSRCEL’s institution-building andecosystem-development vertical.

ECBworks with incubators and other Entrepreneur Support Organisations (ESO) tostrengthen their:

• Strategy and institutionalpositioning
• Governance and leadership
• People and organisationalcapabilities
• Incubation programs andventure-support systems
• Monitoring and evaluationsystems
• Financial and institutionalsustainability

ECB’sportfolio includes institutional advisory, incubation-manager development,research and knowledge products, and multi-stakeholder capacity-buildinginitiatives.

Incubating IncubatorsInitiative (iCube) is ECB’s flagship institutional capacity-building program.

It supports emerging andgrowth-stage incubators, particularly those serving underserved regions andsectors, to become stronger, more effective and sustainable organisations.

Through diagnostics,co-design, implementation support, mentoring and evaluation, iCube helpspartner incubators:

• Define incubation thesis andstrategic positioning; strengthen governance and institutional leadership
• Design and implement incubationand venture-support programs, along with effective organisational and operatingmodels
• Build capable incubation teamsand strengthen corporate, government, investor, and ecosystem partnerships
• Establish monitoring andperformance systems and improve long-term financial and institutionalsustainability

The program brings togetherNSRCEL’s institutional frameworks and products, including ECKNA™, the NSRCELAcademy, Funding Desk, learning curricula, readiness diagnostics, monitoringtools and access to a national network of practitioners, mentors and partners.

The Senior ProgramManager will lead iCube end to end and play a central role in scaling ECB’sinstitutional capacity-building portfolio.

The role combines:

• Program leadership
• Institutional strategy andadvisory
• Partner and funder management
• Team leadership
• Financial and operations stewardship
• Monitoring, evaluation andlearning

The Senior ProgramManager will translate institutional needs into practical improvement plans,ensure high-quality delivery across multiple partner incubators, and build thesystems, partnerships and evidence required to establish iCube as a leading nationalplatform for incubator capability development.

Own the full iCube lifecycle:partner identification, scoping, contracting, onboarding, diagnostics,co-design, implementation, mentoring, review and closure.

Translate ECB strategy intoannual plans, account roadmaps, budgets and measurable outcomes.

Ensure consistent, high-qualitydelivery across multiple incubator engagements.

Coordinate internal teams,external experts and implementation partners.

Manage risks, dependencies anddecision-making processes.

Ensure engagements lead tomeasurable institutional capability improvements.

Lead institutional diagnosticsacross strategy, governance, operations, programs, people, ecosystem linkagesand sustainability.

Assess institutional maturityand readiness of partner incubators.

Support development ofincubation thesis, business model, governance systems, operating model, programarchitecture and M&E frameworks.

Convert diagnostics intostructured, time-bound improvement plans with clear KPIs and ownership.

Provide hands-on advisory toincubator leadership teams.

Track progress againstcapability-building milestones.

Serve as primary relationshipowner for incubators, funders, government and ecosystem partners.

Build trusted relationshipswith senior stakeholders.

Establish governance mechanisms(steering committees, reviews, check-ins, reporting forums).

Deliver high-quality proposals,reports and updates.

Ensure timely fulfilment ofcommitments and reporting requirements.

Identify renewal and expansionopportunities.

Define success metrics,baselines and evidence frameworks.

Track program and institutionalperformance across outputs, outcomes and impact.

Conduct structured reviews andcourse corrections.

Synthesize learnings acrossengagements to improve iCube methodology.

Develop case studies,frameworks and knowledge outputs for the ecosystem.

Lead a small team of programmanagers and Assistant managers

Set clear roles, priorities andperformance expectations.

Provide day-to-day guidance ondelivery, stakeholder management and problem-solving.

Allocate work across accountsand ensure balanced workload distribution.

Coach team members and supporttheir professional development.

Build a culture of ownership,rigour, collaboration and continuous learning.

Identify and onboard externalexperts and partners as needed.

Own budgets, forecasts andfinancial utilisation.

Ensure timely and compliantfund utilisation and reporting.

Maintain audit-readydocumentation across all engagements.

Track contracts, deliverables,decisions and program records.

Ensure compliance with NSRCEL,IIMB and funder requirements.

Strengthen scalable systems,templates and processes.

Contribute to iCube’s 3-yearscale strategy.

Shape operating model, talentmodel, partnerships and revenue approach.

Identify demand across sectorsand geographies.

Support business developmentand partner conversion.

Integrate ECB tools andproducts into engagements (ECKNA™, Academy, Funding Desk, diagnostics, M&Etools).

Represent NSRCEL in ecosystemforums and convenings.

The Senior ProgramManager will ensure that:

• iCube engagements are deliveredon time, within budget and at high quality.
• Partner incubators showmeasurable improvements in capability and performance.
• Institutional improvement plansare implemented effectively.
• Funders receive timely,credible and evidence-based reporting.
• A capable small team and expertnetwork supports program delivery.
• iCube strengthens NSRCEL’sposition as a national leader in incubator capacity building.

Postgraduate degree inmanagement, public policy, development studies, social sciences,entrepreneurship or related field.

10–12 years of relevantexperience.

Experience in programmanagement, consulting, incubation, ecosystem development or institutionalcapacity building.

Proven ability to managecomplex, multi-stakeholder programs end to end.

Experience working withincubators, accelerators, ESOs, government or development-sector organisations.

Strong skills inproblem-solving, program design, facilitation, M&E and stakeholdermanagement.

Experience leading small teamsand coordinating external experts.

Strong financial, operationaland documentation discipline.

Excellent communication andpresentation skills.

Experience building or scalingan incubator, ESO or institutional program.

Leadership experience in socialenterprises, government programs, foundations, universities or ecosystemorganisations.

Familiarity with institutionalframeworks, M&E systems and organisational design.

Experience designing operatingmodels, governance structures or sustainability plans.

Strong ecosystem network acrossentrepreneurship, CSR, government or academia.

Experience working inunderserved or public-sector incubation contexts.

You are a structured andadaptive operator who can grow a Business Unit and move from strategy toexecution with ease.

You bringconsulting-level rigour, strong ownership and the ability to lead small teamswhile managing multiple stakeholders. You are comfortable working in ambiguity,building systems from scratch and ensuring delivery excellence in complexenvironments.

You are motivated bystrengthening institutions that enable entrepreneurs to succeed and scale.