EAII Advisors Senior Manager Community Engagement Strategy

This position is with EAII Advisors, Evidence Actions technical partner in India.

About EAII Advisors

EAII Advisors, Evidence Action s technical partner in India, supports the implementation of the school and Anganwadi-based National Deworming Day program, as well as iron and folic acid supplementation programs, across 11 states by providing technical assistance to applicable state ministries of health, education, and women and child development. Moving forward, EAII Advisors aims to expand its impact by collaborating with more state governments on these existing programs, as well as supporting new public health, water, & nutrition programming.

About Evidence Action

At Evidence Action, we deliver data-driven interventions that transform lives at an unprecedented scale. We identify neglected global health issues and deploy proven solutions, forging healthier futures for generations.

Our model operationalizes leading academic research (including from Nobel-winning economists). We measure progress and outcomes at every stage to ensure we re making a real impact for people living in poverty and suffering from preventable or treatable health issues. Operating across 9 countries, our team of 800+ has reached over 500 million people, working closely with governments to scale these interventions.

At Evidence Action, your colleagues are your greatest asset. Youll partner with high-caliber colleagues in an environment blending innovation, autonomy, and teamwork. Our team excels in disruptive thinking and believes in rolling up our sleeves to get things done. If youre looking to work flexibly and with purpose, join a team that delivers measurable change for millions.

About Safe Water Now

Evidence Action s Safe Water Now program provides safe drinking water to over 10 million people across rural Uganda, Malawi, and Kenya. Recent evidence highlights that water treatment may be among the most cost-effective interventions available to save young childrens lives, reducing all-cause child mortality by about 25%. The Dispensers for Safe Water (DSW) program, based on research by a Nobel-winning economist, utilizes an innovative and human-centric design to deliver clean water at the source in rural settings, achieving usage rates which are 5x that of comparable interventions. Evidence Action recently launched a next generation technology, In-Line Chlorination (ILC) in Uganda and Malawi, targeting rural, peri-urban, and urban communities, which has the potential to be even more cost-effective. Over the past year, we ve more than doubled our footprint in East Africa and are actively exploring opportunities for expansion into new countries.

In addition to its longstanding work in East Africa, Evidence Action, through its technical partner in India, EAII Advisors, is launching a major technical assistance program to help the government of India reach 17.5 million people across multiple states with safe water. This complements the Indian government s effort to bring water access to every household in the country.

The Role

We are looking for a Senior Manager, Community Engagement Strategy with excellent organizational, project management and with outstanding experience leading community-level work to join our India Safe Water team. You will be responsible for developing, planning and executing the community engagement and behaviour change communication strategy of the India Safe Water program.

To fulfill this role, you will lead the development and implementation of the strategy at the community level, establish the alignment of this strategy with other program activities, and coordinate with National, State and Field staff to monitor, refine and troubleshoot activities on the field. Furthermore, you will oversee the contract management enforcement of external agencies and consultants in charge of specific community engagement components.

You should have a background in program strategy with at least 8 years of experience, particularly in designing and implementing community engagement initiatives or related fields. The role requires a comprehensive understanding of institutional structures at the community level and their interaction with governmental systems at the local, block, and district levels. You will also require to have strong relationship management, both internal and external, as well as outstanding project management skills that include coordinating geographically dispersed teams, prioritizing among competing tasks, and continuous iteration.

Responsibilities:

Lead the design and development of the community engagement strategy of the India Safe Water program, ensuring its correct implementation and team s alignment with it, as well as its continuous refinement and optimization.

Work with the Behaviour Change Specialist in the design and delivery of behavior change campaigns, including the creation of messaging frameworks, communication materials, and mass media strategies tailored to rural and semi-urban contexts.

Support the EAII Communications team in working with external vendors and consultants specializing in BCC to innovate and refine approaches based on community feedback and program data.

Ensure the proper adoption of the India Safe Water program at the community level through engagements and coordination with different governance structures, namely Gram Panchayat, frontline workers, Village Water and Sanitation Committees, and valve operators, among others.

Optimize systems and processes built within the community engagement strategy through data collection and analysis, monitoring and testing.

Oversee the content development process required for the proper implementation of the community engagement and BCC strategy. This includes Standard Operating Procedures (SoP), training and communication materials, guidelines, talking points, etc.

Ensure that the Implementation Support Agencies are performing as per contracts guidelines, supervise the team s joint operations with both agencies, and enforce contractual obligations when required. This could include developing or amending existing statements of work to reflect new programmatic requirements.

Establish and maintain monitoring and evaluation systems to assess the performance of the Implementation Support Agencies and other vendors, and take appropriate corrective measures when necessary.

Manage external consultants in charge of specific deliverables and analysis of the community engagement strategy. This includes regular check ins, distribution and supervision of work, brainstorming sessions, and performance evaluation.

Identify and work with additional external vendors that could bring in additional expertise in the areas of external communications, behavioral change campaigns, etc.

Work with the Senior Manager, Safe Water Operations and the State teams to define required manpower for community engagement activities, contract management, and materials development.

Identify and build systems to build the required community engagement capacities of other team members to support their daily activities. This could range from general alignment of the community engagement strategy to specific skills development for community engagement activities through workshops, courses or guidelines.

Support government requests in the area of community engagement with materials development, participation in discussions, and incorporation of government feedback.

Work with the National Project Management Unit Lead to engage with government stakeholders, ensuring the development and implementation of the community engagement and behavior change communication strategy for broader rollout.

Bachelor s degree in social sciences, humanities, social work or a related field.

Prior working experience in program management at the National level with exposure to Field operations activities.

Willingness to travel to rural areas for up to 25% of the time.

Minimum of 8 years of experience with increased responsibility in management, project handling, or consulting roles.

Minimum of 5 years of experience in community engagement in India at the rural/ village level, including both field experience and leading community engagement teams across multiple geographies;

Strong project management and organizational skills; proven ability to manage multiple complex projects simultaneously requiring inputs from various stakeholders;

Strong interpersonal skills and ability to engage with internal and external stakeholders within India and globally;

Willingness to take initiative, being a self-starter, and showing proactiveness.

Experience managing Implementation Support Agencies in charge of community engagement activities.

Strong preference for candidates with experience in transferring or supporting sustainable community-owned programs.

Experience in WASH or public health programs.

Experience in procurement, contract management and enforcement.

Fluency in Telugu is highly preferred.

Disclaimer: The duties and responsibilities described are not a comprehensive list and that additional tasks may be assigned to the employee from time to time.

Position Location

The role is based in New Delhi

We are unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of an Indian employment visa at this time. Applicants must be legally authorized to work in India for roles based in India.

EAII provides a comprehensive benefits package for employees worldwide. Benefits include:

Compensation: Competitive and commensurate with the individuals credentials, experience, and previous pay scale.

All candidates applying for the position should upload a resume along with cover letter mentioning current and expected salary.