Director, Operations

**Location: Singap**ore**:
**Job Posting**:
BACKGROUND:
Grow Asia was established by the World Economic Forum in 2015 in collaboration with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in response to the urgent need to transform food systems to be more inclusive, sustainable, and resilient to climate change. As a multi-stakeholder platform, Grow Asia works with more than 650 global and regional partners to broker market driven solutions across Southeast Asia. We do this by convening leading decision makers from public, private, and civil society organizations, mobilizing partnerships and finance, and delivering best practice through the implementation of collaborative public-private projects at a field-, national-, and regional level.

The Grow Asia network comprises our regional office in Singapore and five country chapters in Cambodia, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, and Viet Nam. The network operates through 44 national and sectoral Working Groups and is already reaching more than 2.9 million smallholders across Southeast Asia with technical assistance and blended finance solutions. In 2020, Grow Asia was accredited as an Entity Associated with ASEAN. This accreditation recognizes the important role Grow Asia plays in the region, particularly in facilitating multi-stakeholder partnerships and acting as a delivery mechanism for ASEAN programs.

THE ROLE:
Grow Asia is seeking an experienced leader and strategist to help us deliver impact at scale by strengthening operational excellence and coordinating the strategic mobilization of financial and human resources.

Reporting to the Executive Director, the Director of Operations will be responsible for strategic and financial planning, grant management, and project implementation at a regional and country level to ensure effective coordination of grants and blended resources across Grow Asia’s four Public-Private Programs - GrowVentures, GrowHer, GrowRight, and Growbeyond.

RESPONSIBILITIES include but are not limited to:
Operations and Finance
- Work with the Executive Director and Heads of departments to assess the operational needs of the Grow Asia network and translate the organization’s strategic vision into operational solutions
- Oversee annual business planning, operational excellence, human and financial resources, and monthly and annual reporting
- Monitor and oversee the life cycle of grants and matching contributions under GrowVentures, GrowHer, GrowRight, and GrowBeyond, ensuring efficient and timely deployment of resources to programs and countries (Cambodia, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Viet Nam)
- Oversee budget planning and financial reporting for individual donors and where appropriate, provide contractual and compliance-related information to partners
- Put in place an organization risk register to highlight and mitigate financial exposures and non-compliance as part of a strengthened internal audit function
- Oversee expenditures and spending rates with relevant teams to update financial projections and make any necessary revisions
- Oversee proactive collection of donor receivables or settlement of donor payables in a timely manner
- Collaborate with senior staff to create and maintain systems for efficient and transparent capture of program data for timely and informative internal and external reporting
- Work closely with Heads of departments to report on the impact of grants - both internally and externally

Organization and Team Leadership
- Guide and facilitate the scale up of human capacity and capability to accommodate new programs and country chapters in line with organizational growth.
- Manage a small team of Regional Program Managers and Finance staff and guide them in managing tools and trackers to ensure that in-country programs and field-level implementation adhere to requirements and expectations of donors and partners
- Oversee maintenance of Employee Handbook and ensure that policies are well communicated and implemented by hiring managers
- Supervise, coach, and collaborate with regional and country staff to ensure programmatic and team success, as well as to support the team’s ongoing professional development and growth
- Work closely with the Head of Partnerships to support operations in Cambodia, Philippines, and Viet Nam, and provide direct oversight to GrowAsia’s programs in Indonesia Papua New Guinea
- Support the Executive Director in optimizing cross-departmental knowledge flow, challenge silos, and be a champion for matrixed projects.
- Work with external vendors to coordinate optimal talent acquisition and ensure that recruitment processes adhere to Grow Asia’s diversity and inclusion commitments
- Contribute to the smooth running of governance meetings and annual events, including but not limited to Grow Asia Governance Councils and the Grow Asia Investment Forum
- Create and sustain a work environment of mutual respect where team members strive to achieve excellence