Управитель(ка) програм/ Program Manager

Location: Dnipro

Duration: 01/01/2027 – 31/12/2027

Starting date: 01/01/2027

Compensation and benefits: 3,410.68 € - 3,824.10 €, 300 Risk Allowance, PSS Support, Private Medical Insurance.

CARE

CARE is among the world’s largest international non-governmental humanitarian relief and development confederations. CARE was founded in 1945 by American charity organizations in to overcome the food crisis 

in Europe after World War II.  It has a confederation organizational structure. Now country offices work in more than 110 countries of the world. CARE's humanitarian aid reached about 200 million people. The organization pays special attention to the expansion of women's rights and opportunities CARE strictly adheres to the principles of a human dignity, gender equality, non discrimination, and equal access to humanitarian services for all people, regardless of sex, age, gender identity, political or religious affiliation, or origin.

CARE’s vision is to seek a world of hope, inclusion, and social justice; where poverty has been overcome and people live in dignity and security. To maximise the impact of our work and to create more equitable and sustainable structures we work closely with civil society, government institutions and the private sector in our partner countries. We attach particular importance to working with local project partners, especially with organisations that promote 

women‘s rights and opportunities. They are an important   guarantee of sustainable success and that our activities 

are aligned with the real needs of the people. Together we  develop solutions, involve local institutions such as

authorities, governments, local councils or informal groups   such as women‘s groups. In this way, we ensure that local expertise is always at the forefront and guides our actions. We work with partners who share our vision and goals. The  relationship with our partners is built on the firm foundation of our values, mutual trust, transparency, equality and the will to learn from each other. 

Context in Ukraine

CARE launched its humanitarian operations in Ukraine in March 2022, in direct response to the full-scale invasion and the rapidly escalating humanitarian crisis. As millions of people were forced to flee their homes and critical infrastructure came under attack, CARE mobilized to provide immediate, life-saving assistance to conflict-affected communities across the country. In the initial phase of the response, CARE focused on meeting urgent needs through a multi-sectoral humanitarian approach, including cash assistance, water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), protection, sexual and reproductive health (SRH) and shelter support. From the outset, protection and dignity were central to all interventions, guiding programme design and delivery across sectors. 

Since 2022, CARE-supported programmes have reached more than 1.5 million people across Ukraine.  

CARE UKRAINE

CARE’s response in Ukraine is implemented primarily through partnerships with Ukrainian civil society organisations, including women-led groups and women’s rights organisations that are deeply rooted in the communities they serve. More than 70% of CARE’s funding in Ukraine is channelled through national partners, strengthening local leadership and enabling sustainable, community-driven humanitarian action. Since the start of its operations in the country, CARE has partnered with over 20 national organisations, including Stabilization Support Services,  Girls, YurFem, East SOS, Avalyst, Women’s Perspective, and others.  

A defining feature of CARE’s work in Ukraine is its leadership in advancing gender-responsive humanitarian action. Together with the NGO Girls, CARE co-chairs the Gender in Humanitarian Action (GiHA) Working Group in Ukraine and was among the first organisations to conduct and publish Rapid Gender Analyses in response to the crisis. The evidence and recommendations generated through these analyses have since informed a gender-sensitive and gender-transformative approach to humanitarian response across Ukraine, influencing both CARE’s programming and wider sectoral practices. 

In practice, this commitment is reflected in CARE’s strong programmatic focus on protection, with particular emphasis on preventing and responding to gender-based violence (GBV) and addressing psychosocial needs. CARE and its partners provide GBV case management, psychosocial and legal support, and dignity kits, working closely with trusted women-led and women’s rights organisations to ensure services are accessible, survivor-centred and contextually appropriate. 

General objectives 

Role Objectives (Job summary): 

The Program Manager is accountable for the successful delivery of an assigned portfolio of grants, with different donors, grant sizes, thematic areas and levels of complexity, implemented through local partners. The position oversees each grant from start-up to close-out and is responsible for ensuring that agreed results are achieved on time, to the required quality, within approved budgets and in compliance with donor and CARE requirements. The Program Manager provides clear direction and follow-up to partners and coordinates the contributions of CARE’s technical, MEAL, grants, finance and operations colleagues, without directly managing their positions. 

The role requires excellent communication, coordination and prioritization across multiple grants, partners and internal teams. The Program Manager analysis the context and needs, anticipates delivery risks, brings the right people together quickly, resolves problems proactively within delegated authority and escalates decisions when needed. The Program Manager actively influences the design of CARE’s programs and strategy, by providing contextual, operational and partnership insights to the process. 

Role Responsibilities: 

Project Management 

1. Oversee the implementation and completion of all technical requirements associated with the grant, including project results and deliverables, in accordance with the project work plan and Detailed Implementation Plan (DIP), from startup to closeout (full project cycle management).Maintain the delivery plan for each grant (DIP), showing partner activities, CARE technical inputs, and milestones. Track progress against the plan, identify gaps early and ensure that corrective actions have clear owners and deadlines. 
2. Oversee and ensure compliance with contractual obligations, including providing regular updates on implementation status to CARE member partners internationally. 
3. Coordinate day-to-day grant delivery through implementing partners and mobilize timely inputs from CARE’s technical advisors or coordinators, MEAL, finance, procurement and other relevant teams. Clarify responsibilities, follow up on commitments and resolve cross-functional bottlenecks. Take ownership of agreed actions and follow them through to completion, proactively following up with responsible colleagues and partners. 
4. Manage contractual obligations for implementing partners; manage and maintain positive and constructive relationships with partners; constructively solve problems as they arise, with a view to improving working relationships; anticipate challenges on the project delivery (operations, implementation, budgeting, etc.) and provide timely solutions. 
5. Hold partners accountable for agreed deliverables while maintaining constructive relationships and supporting timely problem-solving. Review partner progress, expenditure, risks and support needs regularly; agree corrective actions and follow them through to completion. 
6. Provide orientation and act as focal point to local implementing partners and the wider CARE Ukraine grant team members to fulfill the project’s strategic goals and objectives. 
7. Ensure anticipated planning of procurements, ensuring alignment with the master procurement plan; liaise between the CARE support team, partners, and technical teams to guarantee that all procurement activities are well-coordinated, in line with standards and meet project timelines. 
8. Lead project planning and monthly implementation and budget reviews, including BVA and DIP meetings, ensuring active participation across departments to track progress, address challenges and support timely delivery against project goals. 
9. Ensure alignment between the DIP, financial forecasts, procurement plan and actual implementation timelines, revising budgets and work plans as necessary. 
10. Identify and address implementation or spending variances in a timely manner and initiate necessary work plan, forecast and budget revisions. 
11. Lead the preparation of monthly, quarterly and annual reports and updates, MEAL reports, and other deliverables, as specified in each grant’s agreement; with inputs from technical advisors and other team members involved, the Program Manager is expected to draft and revise these reports, and ensure timely submission to member partners.  
12. Maintain a reporting calendar and coordinate inputs sufficiently in advance of donor deadlines, setting clear internal deadlines for partners, technical teams, MEAL and Finance teams. 
13. Coordinate review of partner reports (consolidate feedback, define action points, etc.); ensure high standards of reporting, with specific focus on producing quality, donor-facing reports; ensure reporting efforts align with the needs, reducing or extending frequency based on the specificities of the project, partner capacity and donor requirements, ensuring efficiency in process. 
14. Ensure high standards of results delivery through the technical advisors and coordinators, including preparation of SOPs, trainings, and other program activities, to enhance impact, consistent with thematic best practices, cluster/working group recommendations and wider core humanitarian standards.   
15. Monitor and quickly react to the evolving security situation, pivot where necessary, and reallocate human and financial resources as needed in order to ensure continued service provision to affected populations; update Program Implementation Lead and Head of Program as required, and inform donors where necessary.    
16. Create or adapt management systems, with particular focus on program management systems and tools, in line with CARE’s standard operating procedures, ensuring consistency with project needs. 
17. As the primary budget holder, ensure efficiency and compliant resource planning and utilization, including risk management procedures, analysis of Budget Versus Actual (BvA) reports, preparing and analyzing forecasts liaising with implementing partners and key project stakeholders; record key decisions, action owners and deadlines, escalate material delays or unresolved issues promptly to the Program Implementation Lead, and liaise across departments to take actions; identify potential underspend, overspend and budget variances early and propose corrective actions or reallocations.Work with the Program Implementation Lead and partners to simplify program management practices, reduce unnecessary tasks and duplication, and adapt CARE’s support to where it adds most value to partners and project delivery. 
18. Collaborate closely with the Program Development team on no-cost extensions, grant modification requests, top-up funding and follow-up funding for existing projects, providing implementation evidence and reviewing proposed partner budgets.Conduct regular field visits to monitor project implementation, identify challenges, propose solutions, and prepare detailed field reports for the wider team, with involvement of donors, as required. Ensure feedback to partners is shared with Partnership Coordinator for capacity development needs, as well as with technical advisors and coordinators.  
19. Take responsibility for ensuring that partners’ program management capacities are strengthened throughout implementation. Together with partners and the Partnership Coordinator, identify capacity gaps, agree practical capacity strengthening plans and coordinate timely support from CARE’s program, technical and support teams.  
20. Ensure that program management and operational capacity needs, including planning, budgeting, reporting, monitoring, procurement and compliance, are addressed,  
21. Follow up on agreed actions and review how partners apply the learning.  
22. Advocate for partners’ priorities and ensure their feedback informs CARE’s support. 
23. Promote and support visibility of the project and the implementing partners’ work.  

Program Direction and Development 

1. Assess emerging needs, service gaps and changing priorities through field engagement with partners, communities and local authorities, drawing on monitoring findings and technical advice. 
2. Recommend where CARE can add the greatest value, considering underserved populations, existing responses, partner strengths and opportunities to connect immediate assistance with longer-term recovery. 
3. Critically review whether current projects and approaches remain relevant and effective, and propose changes to priorities, targeting or delivery models where evidence indicates a better approach. 
4. Contribute to shaping future programs with the Program Implementation Lead, Program Development team and technical colleagues, translating field knowledge and implementation experience into clear recommendations for new interventions and proposals. 

Relationship Building and Networking 

1. Build and maintain productive working relationships with donors, partners, and key stakeholders, including international, national, and community-level stakeholders; serve as the primary liaison among all project stakeholders. 
2. Support timely and transparent donor communication on implementation progress, challenges, significant variations, risks and proposed adaptations, in coordination with the Program Implementation Lead and relevant CARE Member Partners. 
3. Maintain regular engagement with relevant local authorities, including hromada administrations, in coordination with implementing partners. Ensure project activities are aligned with identified local needs and coordinated with relevant local plans and services, and address implementation barriers jointly.Build partnerships among international, national and community-level stakeholders; awareness of ethnic and cultural barriers to access various groups within Ukraine. 
4. Represent the projects at meetings, conferences, and other forums. 
5. Support CARE Ukraine Country Office initiatives by testing viable models and scaling proven models within the program. 
6. Contribute to proposal development by providing evidence from implementation, partner and community perspectives, and practical advice on delivery approaches, partner capacities and resource requirements. 

Requirements and Qualifications 

Essential 

• Relevant university degree or equivalent combination of qualifications and professional experience. 
• At least three years’ experience in humanitarian and/or development programming. 
• Understanding of Ukraine’s humanitarian and recovery context, including changing needs, local actors and implications for program delivery. 
• Strong analytical, organizational and problem-solving skills, with the ability to guide partners and project implementation, prioritize across competing grant requirements, anticipate challenges and coordinate practical solutions. 
• Ability to work autonomously, take initiative and make sound decisions within delegated authority, following actions through to completion and escalating significant risks, cross-project implications or decisions requiring wider agreement. 
• Demonstrated ability to use evidence, feedback and learning to critically review project approaches, adapt delivery and simplify processes, and to bring recommendations on wider improvements to the Program Implementation Lead. 
• Proven experience managing multiple grants through local partners, from start-up to close-out. 
• Strong project management skills, including implementation planning, donor compliance and high-quality reporting. 
• Demonstrated financial management skills, including budget oversight, BvA analysis, forecasting and revisions. 
• Proven ability to coordinate partners and multidisciplinary teams, influence without line authority, and secure timely contributions and decisions from relevant departments. 
• Experience in equitable partnerships and strengthening partners’ program management capacities. 
• Understanding of MEAL, gender equality, protection, inclusion and safeguarding, and their application to program delivery. 
• Excellent written and spoken English and Ukrainian;  
• Willingness to undertake regular field travel to project locations 

Desirable 

• Relevant postgraduate qualification or project management certification. 
• Experience with CARE’s systems, approaches and program quality standards. 
• Experience in at least one of the following sectors: protection, health/SRHR, livelihoods, women’s economic justice, shelter/housing or WASH. 
• Experience linking humanitarian response with recovery and longer-term development. 
• Experience contributing to proposals, grant modifications and funding submissions. 
• Experience engaging local authorities, hromadas and humanitarian coordination structures. 
• Experience in emergency preparedness, contingency planning or rapid response. 

The main responsibilities include:

Accountability within CARE:

A commitment to CARE values and CARE’s integrity framework is critical to working with CARE. Any candidate offered a job with CARE will be expected to adhere to the following key areas of accountability: 

• Comply with CARE’s policies and procedures with respect to safeguarding, code of conduct, health and safety, confidentiality, do no harm principles and unacceptable behaviour protocols.
• Report any concerns about the welfare of a child or vulnerable adult or any wrongdoings within our programming area. 
• Report any concerns about inappropriate behaviour of a CARE staff or partner.

Safeguarding:

Children and vulnerable adults who come into contact with CARE as a result of our activities must be safeguarded to the maximum possible extent from deliberate or inadvertent actions and failings that place them at risk of abuse, sexual exploitation, injury, and any other harm. One of the ways that CARE shows this on-going commitment to safeguarding is to include rigorous background and reference checks in the selection process for all candidates. 

Gender equality:

CARE is committed to meeting the standards of the CARE International Gender Policy (2019). Through this policy, CARE seeks to promote the equal realization of dignity and human rights for girls, women, boys and men in all diversities, and the elimination of poverty and injustice. Specifically, this policy seeks to improve the explicit incorporation of gender in programmatic and organizational practices. 

How to apply:

CARE values equal opportunities and diversity. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, colour, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status or disability.

Please send your CV (in pdf format max. 4 pages) and a cover letter in English to , no later than 15.11.2026.  Please name your documents Surname_CV, Surname_Cover Letter.  Put “Job Title Name” as the subject title of your email:

The candidates are interviewing on a rolling basis. The organisation reserve the right to fill the position prior to the closing date.

Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.   References will only be contacted after the interview. 

Please pay attention - this position is open only for national candidates.

People with disabilities are encouraged to apply. War veterans are encouraged to apply.