Manager - Founder's Office, Strategy & Performance

Location: Marol, Andheri

Our Values

We look for people who connect strongly with Organization's values and demonstrate them through everyday decisions and behaviour:

· People First - put children, teachers and communities at the centre of decisions.

· Innovation with Empathy - solve real problems creatively while understanding local context.

· Shared Responsibility & Sustainable Change - build ownership with schools, communities and institutions rather than creating dependency.

· Transparent, Lasting Partnerships - work with openness, trust, accountability and a long-term view of impact.

About the Role The Manager - Founder's Office, Strategy & Performance works closely with the Founder & CEO to translate organisational priorities into clear decisions, measurable outcomes and accountable execution. This is not a conventional Executive Assistant role. The purpose is to strengthen CEO effectiveness, cross-functional alignment and organisational systems so that funding, leadership attention and team effort ultimately translate into sustained outcomes for the children, schools and communities Organization serves.

The role sits at the intersection of strategy, programme performance, fundraising and financial insight, governance, cross-functional execution, organisational learning and responsible AI adoption.

Key Responsibilities

CEO Strategy & Weekly Priority Management: Run the CEO's weekly priority-setting and tracking system (internally called the Power Planner), converting strategic priorities into 5-7 measurable outcomes with owners, deadlines, next actions and evidence of completion.

Decision Support: Structure complex organisational questions into clear decision points; gather evidence, assess trade-offs and prepare concise decision notes with options, implications and recommendations.

Cross-functional Execution: Maintain visibility on Organization's highest-priority programme and organisational outcomes, resolve dependencies with department heads, surface risks early and drive commitments to closure.

CEO Effectiveness: Protect CEO attention for fundraising, partnerships, strategy, leadership and high-value decisions. Prepare briefs and context, capture commitments and recommend what should be delegated, deferred or stopped.

Programme & Funding Intelligence:



Work with Finance and programme teams to analyse programme cost-effectiveness, cost per beneficiary, grant utilisation, fundraising pipeline, reserves/funding runway and the balance of restricted and unrestricted funds, helping leadership connect resource decisions to beneficiary outcomes.

Strategic Initiatives & Partnerships: Support high-value CSR, donor, government and strategic initiatives through research, preparation, internal coordination and follow-through, ensuring commitments translate into strong delivery for schools and children.

Governance, Compliance & Documentation: Support Board and committee preparation, governance calendars and statutory compliance tracking, including coordination around FCRA, 12A/80G, CSR-1 and audit readiness where relevant. Maintain reliable decision records, risk registers, review notes and strategic documentation while functional/compliance owners retain responsibility for technical filings and approvals.

Responsible AI & Data Protection: Identify useful AI applications and support safe adoption. Ensure human verification, confidentiality and responsible handling of beneficiary and children's data, aligned with applicable requirements under India's Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 and Organization's internal safeguards.

Organisational Problem Solving: Identify recurring bottlenecks, understand root causes and help teams implement sustainable fixes that strengthen accountability rather than create dependence on the Founder's Office.

Experience & Preferred Background

4-8 years of relevant professional experience. Relevant routes include Founder's/CEO Office roles, development-sector strategy, programme management in NGOs or foundations, social impact consulting, management consulting, strategic operations, programme/business finance or corporate finance. Development-sector experience is a plus, not mandatory, provided the candidate demonstrates strong transferable skills and genuine commitment to Organization's mission.

Qualifications such as CA, CFA, MBA, Finance, Strategy,



Public Policy, Development Studies, Management or related disciplines may be advantageous.

What We Are Looking For

· Strong analytical and structured problem-solving ability with the ability to simplify complexity.

· Strong execution discipline and ability to close loops across senior and cross-functional stakeholders.

· Comfort with programme budgets, grant utilisation, fundraising pipelines, cost-effectiveness and management information.

· Clear, concise written and verbal communication suitable for CEO and Board-level discussions.

· Ability to influence without formal authority and challenge respectfully with evidence.

· High judgement, discretion and maturity when handling sensitive organisational, partner and beneficiary information.

· Comfort with ambiguity, changing priorities and a fast-moving social-impact environment.

· Strong connection with Organization's mission and willingness to learn directly from schools, teachers, children and communities.

Field Travel & Language

Field exposure is an important part of this role. During the first quarter, the incumbent should expect approximately 2-4 field days per month, subject to programme schedules and operational requirements. Thereafter, field travel will be need-based. Travel may include Organization programme locations outside Mumbai.

Robust professional English is required. Working knowledge of Hindi is strongly preferred; Marathi or another relevant regional language will be an advantage for field and stakeholder engagement.

Success Measures: 30 / 90 / 180 Days

Role Boundaries

· Administrative coordination may form part of the role, but its primary value is judgement, prioritisation, decision support and execution governance.

· The role supports functional leaders rather than replacing them; department heads remain accountable for their teams, quality and delivery.

· Routine departmental documents and first drafts remain owned by the relevant functions.

· The Founder's Office should strengthen existing systems rather than create unnecessary parallel reporting.

· External commitments, budget positions and partner promises require explicit delegation or appropriate approval.

Pay: Up to ₹1,000,000.00 per year

Benefits

- Paid sick time
- Provident Fund

Work Location: In person

📌 Founder's Office Manager (Andheri)
🏢 VITAL HOPE FOUNDATION
📍 Andheri