Project Manager

Workplace Circumstances

• Environment: Office
• Languages: English, Khmer
• Location: Phnom Penh

Position Summary

Reports to : Deputy National Director

Duty Location : Phnom Penh with regular travel to the four pilot provinces

Department : Program

JOB SUMMARY

The Project Manager plans, implements, coordinates, monitors, ensures quality, oversees finances, and reports on the project "Advancing Care Reform in Cambodia through Social Workforce Development and Meaningful Youth Participation" across the four provinces (Battambang, Ratanakiri, Kampot, and Prey Veng).

The role ensures that the project strengthens, rather than duplicates, Cambodia's existing child protection and care reform systems. The Manager leads day-to-day collaboration with the Ministry of Social Affairs, Veterans and Youth Rehabilitation (MoSVY), Provincial Departments of Social Affairs, Veterans and Youth Rehabilitation (DoSVY), Innovation, Evidence & Scale (IES) of SOS Children’s Villages International, provincial SOS teams, care-experienced young people, care-leaver networks and other partners.

The position is accountable for delivery of the three project outcomes: strengthened social service workforce capacity, meaningful participation of care-experienced young people, and strengthened care-leaver networks and transition support. The Manager ensures full compliance with the approved Partnership Agreement, annual work plan, budget, donor requirements, SOS safeguarding and PSHEA standards, national regulations, and Results-Based Management requirements.

Duties & Responsibilities

• Project planning, inception and implementation
• Lead preparation and periodic updating of the project Annual Work Plan, implementation schedule, procurement plan, risk register and detailed budget in line with the approved concept note and Partnership Agreement.
• Coordinate project inception, launch, baseline planning, stakeholder mapping and implementation-readiness activities.
• Translate the three project outcomes and outputs into clear provincial activities, milestones, responsibilities and deliverables.
• Ensure activities are sequenced appropriately, including baseline/needs assessment, curriculum and tool development, Training of Trainers, cascade training, youth participation mechanisms, care-leaver network strengthening, coaching, monitoring and evaluation.
• Coordinate implementation across Battambang, Ratanakiri, Kampot and Prey Veng and ensure locally adapted approaches are used while maintaining common quality standards.
• Government and strategic partnership coordination
• Serve as the main operational focal point for coordination with MoSVY, Provincial Departments of Social Affairs and relevant sub-national authorities.
• Organize and document technical meetings, consultations, validation workshops, annual joint reviews, policy dialogues and dissemination events.
• Ensure project tools, training packages, monitoring approaches and policy recommendations are developed collaboratively with government and relevant stakeholders.
• Coordinate closely with IES/SOS Children’s Villages International on technical support, training, consultants, learning products and project review.
• Build effective collaboration with RCIs, NGOs, community-based service providers, youth groups, care-leaver networks, schools, health services and referral partners.
• Technical oversight and integration of project outcomes
• Provide overall oversight of Outcome 1 activities on social workforce development, reintegration, leaving care, aftercare, case management and transition planning.
• Provide oversight of Outcome 2 activities to ensure care-experienced young people participate meaningfully in policy, program design, monitoring and community awareness.
• Provide oversight of Outcome 3 activities to strengthen provincial and national care-leaver networks, peer support, referrals, advocacy and transition support.
• Ensure care leavers are engaged as co-facilitators, peer mentors and partners rather than only as beneficiaries.
• Ensure lessons from the four provinces are compared, documented and used to inform national care reform dialogue and potential scale-up.
• Safeguarding, PSHEA and ethical participation
• Ensure safeguarding, PSHEA, child rights, informed consent, confidentiality and do-no-harm principles are integrated into every project activity.
• Ensure specific safeguarding protocols, psychosocial support and referral pathways are in place for participating care-experienced young people.
• Work closely with the Child Safeguarding Manager/focal points to assess and mitigate risks related to training, youth participation, community housing, reintegration, field travel, data collection and public advocacy.
• Ensure ethical storytelling, photography, data use and public representation of children and care-experienced young people.
• Immediately report and respond to safeguarding concerns in accordance with SOS policies and national referral procedures.
• Budget, procurement and resource management
• Manage the approved project budget in close coordination with Finance and ensure expenditure is linked to approved activities and budget codes.
• Review monthly budget-versus-actual expenditure, forecasts, commitments and burn rates and initiate timely corrective action.
• Ensure procurement, consultant engagement, travel, training and event expenditure comply with SOS and donor requirements.
• Ensure adequate documentation, asset control and value-for-money considerations are maintained.
• Support preparation of financial inputs for donor reporting, audits and project reviews.
• Monitoring, reporting and learning
• Ensure the joint RBM and monitoring framework is operational and used consistently across the four provinces.
• Review quarterly progress, outcome data, youth feedback, safeguarding trends, risks and financial performance and use findings for adaptive management.
• Coordinate high-quality narrative reports, government reports, donor updates, learning briefs, case studies and management presentations.
• Lead annual project reflection and joint review processes and ensure agreed actions are tracked to completion.
• Support the mid-term review, final evaluation and documentation of evidence for sustainability and scale-up.
• Team leadership and performance management
• Provide direct supervision, clear work plans, coaching and performance feedback to project staff.
• Ensure role clarity and effective collaboration between project staff and existing SOS Cambodia Program Quality, MEAL, Safeguarding, Finance, HR&OD, Advocacy and provincial teams.
• Identify staff capacity needs and organize appropriate coaching, mentoring and technical support.
• Promote a professional, inclusive, accountable and learning-oriented team culture.
• Risk management, sustainability and exit
• Maintain and regularly review project operational, financial, safeguarding, partnership, contextual and reputational risks.
• Ensure sustainability is built into implementation through ToT, government ownership, strengthened local systems and formalized youth/care-leaver mechanisms.
• Coordinate phased handover of training, monitoring, coordination and advocacy functions to government, trained trainers and care-leaver networks during the final year.
• Ensure final tools, curricula, templates, evidence and lessons are properly documented and transferred to relevant stakeholders.
• Key Working Relationships
• Internal
• Deputy National Director - Direct supervision and approval.
• National Director and National Management Team.
• Program Quality Manager/MEAL Manager - technical quality, RBM, learning and evaluation.
• Child Safeguarding Manager and Safeguarding Focal Points.
• Finance, Procurement, HR&OD, Communications/Fund Development and Advocacy teams.
• Project Managers and designated Provincial Project Focal Points in the four pilot provinces.
• Project Technical Officer, Youth Participation & Care Leaver Networks Officer, MEAL Officer and Project Finance & Administration Officer.
• External
• MoSVY and relevant national technical departments.
• Provincial Departments of Social Affairs and sub-national authorities.
• SOS Children’s Villages International / Innovation, Evidence & Scale (IES) and funding partners.
• RCIs, NGOs, community-based service providers, schools, health services and referral partners.
• Care-experienced young people, care-leaver networks, youth councils and community leaders.

Languages

• Khmer - Fluent
• English - Fluent

Qualifications

• Master's Degree in A relevant discipline is preferred
• Bachelor's Degree in Social Work, Development Studies, Project Management, Child Protection, Public Administration, Education or a related field

Work History

• Progressively responsible experience in project/program management within NGOs, INGOs or child protection/social welfare programs for 5 years as a minimum

General & Technical Skills

• Training/certification in project management, RBM/MEAL, safeguarding, alternative care or care reform is an asset.
• Demonstrated experience in alternative care, family strengthening, reintegration, leaving care/aftercare, youth development, or social service workforce strengthening.
• Experience coordinating with government ministries and sub-national authorities and managing multi-location projects.
• Experience with donor-funded project planning, budgeting, reporting, risk management and partnership coordination.
• Experience supervising staff and coordinating consultants, training providers and technical partners.
• Willingness and ability to travel frequently to the four pilot provinces, including remote communities.
• Strong written and spoken Khmer and English.
• Commitment to child rights, meaningful youth participation, safeguarding, PSHEA, gender equality, disability inclusion and cultural sensitivity, including work with Indigenous communities.

Soft Skills

• Strategic and operational project leadership.
• Strong coordination, facilitation and stakeholder-management skills.
• Sound understanding of Cambodia’s child protection, alternative care and care reform context.
• Results-Based Management, analytical thinking and evidence-informed decision-making.
• Budget oversight, risk management and donor compliance.
• Strong report writing, presentation and communication skills.
• Coaching, team leadership and collaborative problem-solving.
• High integrity, confidentiality and commitment to safeguarding and ethical participation.