Head of the Species Recovery Division

Qualification & Experience

The Head should possess at least a Master’s degree in Wildlife Sciences, Ecological Sciences, Environmental Sciences, or Biological Sciences, along with a minimum of 10 years of demonstrable experience in species-specific conservation work after the completion of the Master’s degree. Alternatively, candidates with a Ph.D. in species ecology should have at least 7 years of relevant experience following the award of the Ph.D. degree.

Role Context

The Head of the Species Recovery Division is based at the WTI Headquarters. It is a managerial position responsible for project planning, supervision and monitoring to achieve the Outcomes and Outputs of 6-7 projects under the Species Recovery Big Idea, together with the respective Project Heads.

Major Responsibilities

• Leads in planning, supervising and periodic monitoring the projects under the guidance of Project PIs

• Develop concepts and project plans for new projects.

• Leads in the development needs, fund raising, budget utilization and ensuring donor commitments of all species recovery projects are met as per the Project Implementation Plans.

• Oversee project data archiving, and support the projects in its proper usage for preparation of reports, publications and other project outputs.

• Update the concept plans, update information on Species Recovery Division in the Policy, Planning and Procedure (PPP) Manual of WTI

• Lead the preparation and publication of project outputs, including both internal reports and peer-reviewed scientific articles, based on project results.

• Build partnership with government departments, non-government organizations and experts to achieve the goals of the division and its projects.

• Mentor and monitor interns and staff that are hired from time to time in the division.

Job Duties

Strategic Planning, Project Implementation and Monitoring

• Conduct need assessment for strategic planning meeting for the Species Recovery Big Idea in consultation with the PIs and Planning/Development Division.

• Take the lead in conducting situation analysis and Theory of Change (ToC) and developing outline of the project plan and Logical Framework for ongoing and new project / new triennium with project team.

• In consultation with PIs and Chiefs, responsible for preparing, refining / modifying the draft PIP prepared after inputs from Project Heads, and finalization of all project plans under the division.

• Monitor progress for achieving project outcomes and outputs as outlined in PIPs together with the Project Heads

• Visit project sites periodically to monitor project progress, implementation quality, identify course correction needs and update the project team.

• Submit PIs approved quarterly project reviews in the prescribed format to the Planning Division.

• Commission 3rd Party Evaluation of projects / project components in consultation with the PIs concerned Chiefs.

Fund & Financial Management

• Manage project budget, including approving cash flow of team members, scrutinizing the submission of statement of accounts to Finance/HQ in line with PIPs

• Review the expenditure of the project on monthly/quarterly basis to track budget utilization and report to PIs and concerned Chiefs.

• Process the budget change request by Project Heads to the CFO and PIs for approval and mid-term corrections in the project plan.

Donor Co-ordination

• Coordinate with specified donors, if assigned the role of Donor/s Point Person by the organization.

• Ensure timely updates are provided to the Donor Point Person/s of the project on project progress and committed deliverables.

External Communication / Co-ordination

• Liaise with non-government organizations, academic institutions, scientific bodies, and national and international experts to enhance quality and effectiveness of projects.

• Ensure that periodic project updates are shared with the Communications Division for website stories, press release and social media updates for communication and branding needs of the project.

Management Information System (MIS) & Reports

• Ensure that the reports are of scientific standard, and shared with donor and other stakeholders as scheduled in the project plan.

• Be responsible for storage of data (both quantitative and qualitative) of the projects in easily retrievable manner for appropriate basic and advanced analysis.

• Follow-up with project heads to update the data on quarterly basis and apprise the PI about the same.

• Ensure that the periodic reports and other regular updates, and photographs and video footages of the project are shared with the Communication Division for appropriate communication and branding needs of the project.

• Ensure that the team members prepare manuscripts for scientific publication, conferences adhere to WTI’s processes of approval of idea, analysis and selection of journal.

Human Resources Management

• Ensure PMRs of all division team members are done meticulously on time

• Approve leave of absence of all staff in reporting relation

• Facilitate skill enhancement programmes of biologists and sociologists under the division with HR.

• Motivate teams to give quality results by promoting activities that encourage team building

Desirable Skills

• Experience in project planning and monitoring and fund raising is important.

• Knowledge of species status assessment (IUCN Red Status and Green Status) is desirable.

• A sound knowledge of data analysis related to species distribution, abundance, and habitat preference, along with working knowledge of GIS, is essential.