Project Manager

Position: Project Manager

Functional Area: Programmes

Location: Delhi

Experience: 5-8 years

About Smile Foundation:

Smile Foundation works for the welfare of underprivileged children and their families through Programmes focused on education, healthcare, skilling and women empowerment and Empowering Grassroots. Started in 2002 by a group of young corporate professionals, today Smile has evolved into a national level development organization impacting lives of over 2 million underprivileged children and their families with programme presence in 27 states across India, 10 offices in strategic locations and over 650 employees, besides volunteers, well-wishers and supporters.

The organization also holds Special Consultative Status with United Nation’s Economic & Social Council

(ECOSOC), accredited with global organizations like GuideStar, United Way, CAF America, Give2Asia and many more. Furthermore, Smile Foundation has been a Great Place to Work © Certified organization for the last Six years running and is considered ‘Gold Standard’ in identifying and recognizing Great Workplace Cultures.

Currently SF is implementing projects across India directly or with the help of grassroot organizations. These are primarily CSR funded projects of varied scale in both urban and rural settings including aspirational districts in thematic areas. The wealth of knowledge emanating from our work is immense, which is curated systematically for purposes ranging from raising funds to driving programmatic change. towards creating large scale impact.

Visit our website to know more about us and our latest development:

www.smilefoundationindia.org

Summary of the Project:

India faces a significant and growing burden of hypertension, with low levels of awareness, treatment and control, particularly in underserved rural communities.

Smile Foundation is implementing a 12-month Hypertension Control Project aimed at strengthening hypertension prevention, detection, treatment linkage and continuity of care in underserved rural communities.

The project aims to strengthen hypertension management through dedicated teams, focusing on community awareness, population-based screening, early identification of hypertension, facilitation of treatment initiation, medication adherence and regular follow-up. It will also leverage digital patient management systems and community-based teams to strengthen the continuum of care.

The project will be implemented in the same areas as Smile on Wheels (SOW-Mobile Medical Units), working in collaboration with state and district health authorities and existing public health systems, particularly the India Hypertension Control Initiative (IHCI).

Summary of the Role:

The Project Manager will lead the overall planning, coordination, implementation and monitoring of the Hypertension Control Project across designated states.

The Project Manager will ensure that Project activities are implemented within agreed timelines, operational plans and budgets, and that project deliverables and outcomes are achieved. The role will involve extensive coordination with internal teams, government stakeholders, technical experts, field personnel and implementing partners, with strong ownership, stakeholder engagement and data- driven decision-making.

The position requires a professional with demonstrated experience in implementing Non-Communicable Disease (NCD) Projects, particularly hypertension or other chronic disease interventions, and the ability to work closely with government health departments and district-level health systems. Key duties include program implementation, coordinating with government officials, conducting monitoring& evaluation (M&E), and providing technical expertise, usually requiring clinical background, public health degree and field experience.

Key Responsibilities:

A. Project Planning and Implementation

• • Lead the planning, coordination and implementation of the annual and monthly Project implementation plans, including activity schedules, milestones and deliverables, across the designated states, districts and project locations through teams.
  • Ensure timely implementation of community mobilisation, awareness generation, hypertension screening, referral and treatment linkage activities.
  • Monitor field-level implementation and ensure adherence to approved Project protocols, operational guidelines and timelines.
  • Identify implementation challenges and facilitate timely corrective action.

B. Government Coordination and Stakeholder Engagement

• • Establish and maintain effective working relationships with State Health Departments, State NCD Cells, District Health Authorities and relevant government health facilities.
  • Coordinate with government stakeholders to secure necessary administrative approvals and facilitate Project implementation.
  • Facilitate linkages with PHCs, CHCs and other public health facilities for diagnosis confirmation, treatment initiation, medicine access and patient follow-up.
  • Organise and participate in government review meetings and project progress discussions.

C. Operational and Field Management

• • Oversee day-to-day Project operations across project geographies and ensure effective deployment of personnel and resources.
  • Coordinate the work of 25 Patient Navigation Officers and 50 Community Health Workers, along with the technical consultant and other Project personnel.
  • Ensure timely recruitment, onboarding, training and deployment of project staff.
  • Monitor procurement, distribution and utilisation of BP monitors, tablets, IEC materials and other Project resources.
  • Undertake regular field visits to assess Project implementation, service quality, staff performance and community engagement.
  • Resolve operational bottlenecks and ensure effective coordination between field teams and government health facilities.

D. Clinical and Technical Coordination

• • Work closely with the technical consultant to ensure that clinical protocols, screening tools, referral pathways and training materials are developed and implemented in accordance with national and state guidelines.
  • Ensure that field teams are adequately trained in hypertension screening, counselling, referral and patient follow-up.
  • Facilitate the integration of screening, treatment and follow-up activities with existing public health systems.

E. Monitoring, Evaluation and Reporting

• • Establish and maintain effective Project monitoring systems to track progress against agreed objectives, targets and indicators.
  • Monitor key Project indicators, including:
  • Linkage established with state and district health system for alignment with government NCD programs
  • Securing administrative approvals for service delivery
  • 100% of project staff recruited, trained and onboarded
  • Number of community awareness sessions.
  • Number of people identified with suspected hypertension and diagnoses confirmed.
  • Number of patients initiated on treatment.
  • Number of patients receiving regular follow-up.
  • Number of patients achieving BP control.
  • Ensure timely and accurate data collection, validation, analysis and reporting.
  • Prepare weekly progress reports, fortnightly updates, monthly reports and periodic donor reports.
  • Identify gaps in the continuum of care and recommend corrective measures to improve treatment adherence, follow-up and BP control.

F. Project Review and Coordination

• • Conduct regular internal Project review meetings and monitor progress against the approved implementation plan and Gantt chart.
  • Coordinate fortnightly Project review calls with the technical and Project teams.
  • Facilitate periodic reviews with government stakeholders and other relevant partners.
  • Ensure timely documentation of Project progress, challenges, lessons learnt and good practices.

G. Any other tasks based on project and management requirements.

Educational Qualifications

• • Postgraduate degree in Public Health, Health Administration, Hospital Administration or a related discipline.
  • Candidates with a postgraduate qualification in management and a relevant health-sector background may also be considered.

Experience and Essential Competencies

• • 5-8 years of relevant professional experience in planning, managing and implementing public health Projects, with demonstrated field experience.
  • Prior experience in hypertension, diabetes or other NCD prevention and control Projects will be strongly preferred.
  • Demonstrated experience in government liaison and coordination with State and District Health Departments, NHM, NCD Cells and public health facilities.
  • Strong operational experience in managing multi-location field Projects, including staff deployment, field monitoring, logistics and implementation oversight.
  • Experience in coordinating community-based screening, referral, treatment linkage and follow-up interventions.
  • Familiarity with government health Projects and national guidelines, particularly IHCI and NPCDCS/NCD-related initiatives, will be an advantage.
  • Experience in Project monitoring, indicator tracking, data analysis, report writing and donor reporting.
  • Working knowledge of digital data collection and patient management systems.

Key Skills and Attributes

• • Strong Project management, planning and execution capabilities.
  • Excellent coordination, communication and stakeholder management skills.
  • Ability to work effectively with government officials and multiple institutional stakeholders.
  • Strong problem-solving and decision-making abilities.
  • Ability to manage geographically dispersed teams and multiple operational priorities.
  • Good analytical, documentation and report-writing skills.
  • Proficiency in MS Office, particularly Excel and PowerPoint.
  • Ability to work independently, take ownership of deliverables and meet tight implementation timelines.
  • Willingness and ability to undertake frequent travel to project states and districts.

Location and Other Requirements

• • The position will be based at Smile Foundation's office in New Delhi.
  • The role requires regular travel to designated project states and districts for Project implementation, government coordination, field monitoring and review.
  • Candidates must be willing to undertake extensive domestic travel as required by Project needs.

Key Performance Expectations

The Project Manager will be accountable for:

• • Timely achievement of Project milestones and deliverables as per the approved implementation plan.
  • Effective coordination with government health systems and timely completion of required approvals and linkages.
  • Successful recruitment, deployment and management of Project personnel.
  • Operational readiness and effective implementation across all designated project locations.
  • Quality and completeness of Project data and timely submission of reports.
  • Effective functioning of screening, referral, treatment linkage and patient follow-up mechanisms.
  • Progress towards improved treatment adherence and hypertension control among identified patients.