Senior Project Lead - DPMU (Telangana)

Job Title: Senior Project Lead - District Project Management Units (DPMUs), Telangana

Organization: Central Square Foundation

Department: Strategic Support States 

Location: Hyderabad, Telangana (with significant travel to Districts)

Central Square Foundation:

Founded in 2012, Central Square Foundation (CSF) is a non-profit philanthropic foundation working on the vision of ensuring quality school education for all children in India. We are driven by our mission to transform the school education system with a focus on improving children's learning outcomes, especially in low-income communities.

Learn more about CSF by visiting our Website

About the team:

Strategic Support States (SSS) team at Central Square Foundation assists the States in designing and implementing the respective state FLN missions to ensure FLN learning outcomes for children. Spread across eight states, CSFs Project Management Units (PMUs) work closely with the state bodies in co-ideating goals for states FLN mission, driving critical workstreams, setting indicators of success across the workstreams, and reviewing mission progress. With key FLN mission building blocks established and rolled out at the state level, SSS has now set up District Project Management Units (DPMUs) in select project districts. These DPMUs are designed to strengthen the on-ground implementation of state-designed interventions, ensuring effective execution at the district level and accelerating progress toward improved learning outcomes. Currently, DPMUs are established in nine districts across Bihar, Odisha, and Telangana, working closely with the district education departments and middle management to drive effective FLN implementation.

CSFs work in Telangana:

CSF has been actively working with the Department of School Education, Telangana, to strengthen the FLN mission and enhance learning outcomes for Grades 1-5. Over the years, CSF has played a pivotal role in designing and supporting the rollout of critical FLN program components while establishing robust monitoring and implementation mechanisms at the field level. At the state level, CSF works closely with the academic and governance wings of the DepartmentSCERT and Samagra Shikshaengaging with key stakeholders such as the Secretary (Education), Commissioner (School Education), Director (SCERT), and the Additional State Project Director (Samagra Shiksha), among others.

At the district level, CSF collaborates with District Collectors, District Educational Officers (DEOs), and Academic Monitoring Officers (AMOs) to support effective implementation. This engagement extends to middle-management officials such as Mandal Education Officers (MEOs), Complex Head Masters (CHMs), and Academic Resource Persons (ARPs) at both the mandal and district levels. These multi-tiered partnerships enable CSF to drive evidence-based interventions, ensuring sustainable improvements in foundational learning across the state.

About the position:

The Senior Project Lead DPMUs Telangana will be part of the State Project Management Unit (SPMU), based in Hyderabad. The role involves overseeing District Project Management Units (DPMUs) in Medak, Medchal Malkajgiri, Bhadradri Kothagudem, and KADA (covering Vikarabad and Narayanpet), focusing on Academic and Governance components of the Telangana FLN mission.

Key Responsibilities:

1. Driving implementation of FLN workstreams at district level

   1. Oversee the rollout of FLN initiatives in districts,

   2. Build and sustain teacher capacity for FLN, focusing on the quality of training and implementation.

   3. Strengthen middle management (MEOs, CHMs, and resource persons) to improve school visits, classroom observations, and teacher support.

2. Data-Driven Decision-Making:

   1. Enhance data collection processes, ensure data reliability, and promote its effective use for decision-making.

   2. Work with district and mandal stakeholders to generate actionable insights.

3. Strengthening District-State Coordination for Effective FLN Implementation:

   1. Engage regularly with District Collectors (DCs) and District Educational Officers (DEOs)

   2. Collaborate with the State Project Management Unit (SPMU) to align district efforts with state policies.

   3. Lead pilot projects to address specific district challenges or test innovative approaches.

4. Leadership and Team Management:

   1. Mentor and guide district teams to achieve project goals effectively.

   2. Promote collaboration and knowledge sharing among district teams to enhance outcomes.

   3. Ensure timely reporting and documentation of program progress, challenges, achievements, and impact.

5. Documentation & Reporting:

   1. Ensure timely and accurate reporting on progress, outcomes, and financial utilization across districts.

   2. Document quantitative and qualitative impacts of district-level interventions.

Required Qualifications, skills and abilities

• Masters degree preferred (education, development studies, public policy, social sciences).

• At least 10 years of relevant experience in the education sector, demonstrating project delivery and stakeholder management.

• Prior experience with state and district-level Governments is highly desirable.

• Proficiency in Telugu and English, with excellent communication skills.

• Expertise in project management and large-scale program implementation.

• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and stakeholder engagement skills.

Location:

• Preferably based in Hyderabad, where the State Project Management Unit is located.

• Requires significant travel to project districts (around 10 days/month).

Reporting & team responsibilities

1. This position will report to the Director (CSF leadership) of SSS team

2. This role will need to work very closely with State Lead (of SPMU)

3. This position will manage around 4-5 Project Leads directly and upto 15-18 other team members indirectly (likely remotely)

Compensation:

Remuneration will be competitive and will depend upon the candidates experience levels.