Programme Delivery Manager

Location:

1x MH role: Pune, Maharashtra
1x BH role: Patna, Bihar

Salary Range: ₹80,000 - ₹2,20,000 per month (CTC), depending on the skills and experience of the selected candidate (more details below).

Application deadline: 15th June 2025

Are you an outstanding people leader who is brilliant at getting the best out of your team? Do you get immense satisfaction from a smooth-running system? Are you tech-confident, data-driven and obsessed with continuous improvement? Do you want to use your skills to save lives?

About Suvita

Suvita works to increase the uptake of children’s vaccinations in India. We are impact-focused and scale-focused, delivering two evidence-based programmes, in collaboration with state governments, to boost attendance at childhood vaccination appointments. We are a 5-year-old organisation on a rapidly growing trajectory, aiming for large-scale impact.

We have scaled our SMS reminders programme across all of Maharashtra; we have MoUs with both Bihar and Maharashtra State Governments to target state-wide delivery of our programmes; and we have been incubated and funded by sector leaders like The/Nudge Foundation, Ambitious Impact (formerly Charity Entrepreneurship), Mulago Foundation and GiveWell. We’ve reached more than 40 lakh families to date but are just getting started. Now is a really exciting time to join the Suvita team.

We seek a Programme Delivery Manager to oversee our state-level programme team to execute effective, efficient and constantly-improving delivery of our core programmes. The core components and processes of our programmes are fairly established and running smoothly (often with quite sophisticated tech integration and data pipelines), but there’s plenty of room to improve the efficiency and observability of how we deliver and monitor them, and to scale their reach. We are also ramping up our Innovation function, and plan to experiment with many programme innovations and iterations over the coming months and years, to further boost our impact. You will play a key role in making this happen.

About the role

The Programme Delivery Manager’s role will be to oversee state-level programme delivery, which is effective, efficient and continuously improving (while scaling over time). You will implement systems to monitor and improve operational efficiency, and will need to be an excellent people leader in order to support and motivate our programme team to perform at their best. You will also work with our Innovation Team to test and implement programme design improvements, the best of which you will then integrate into Suvita’s routine programming.

We are looking for someone who is not simply satisfied with “the way things are” but is constantly thinking about how to make the system work better.

Your responsibilities will include:

Manage the core operational processes performed by our state programme team: allocate tasks, monitor process operations, problem-solve. The team’s core programmatic activities include:
- Conducting phone surveys
- Performing data collection
- Data digitisation (BH only)
People management of the state programme team: monitoring, accountability and feedback, expense and asset management, performance reviews, training and coaching, pastoral care, hiring. Instilling a culture of continuous improvement where every team member is enthusiastically focused on making our programmes more impactful.
Overall, ensure that the programme team increasingly hits and exceeds its KPIs.
In line with organisational priorities, manage programme expansion into new geographies within the state.
Working with the Senior Programme Delivery Manager, the Innovation Team and the Tech Team, operationally plan and oversee the implementation of priority programme improvements:
- Strengthened process monitoring systems for programme delivery;
- Programme innovation and optimisation initiatives to increase impact and efficiency.
Contribute your own ideas for improving our programme design and delivery, based on your deep understanding of programme delivery.
Feed real-time operational feedback / learnings / best practices into broader organisational learning (e.g. to other state POMs).
As needed, support Suvita’s government relationship in your state (ensure our Routine Immunisation Consultant in the state is well-informed of our latest programming activities, attend occasional government meetings yourself, work with our Routine Immunisation Consultant to identify relevant state-level opportunities to support government programming).

What might a day look like?

Morning: review monitoring data from this month’s ongoing Immunisation Ambassador nomination survey. Confirm whether we are on track to hit our target metrics for this round. Identify key points for discussion and coaching with the survey team to further improve performance.
Lunchtime: Meet with the innovation team to give inputs on the feasibility and operational considerations of a new programme design idea. Or, meet with the tech team to plan implementation of a new programme design we are testing. Agree next steps before testing roll-out.
Afternoon: prepare your reflections for some 1-on-1 performance review discussions with members of the programme team. Or, conduct analysis to further investigate the case for a process efficiency idea you had recently. Or, map out a project plan for executing that process improvement change.

What success looks like

Within 3 months:

You fully understand all programme flows, team roles and KPIs;
You can fluently interpret programme dashboards and explain performance trends;
You have identified and begun actioning on quick wins (resource allocation, basic process pain points);
You have built a solid relationship with the programme team; they trust you to manage them fairly and effectively.

Within 6 months:

Team performance has improved across programme KPIs;
Team time utilisation has become more efficient (less idle time, elimination of unproductive activities);
Team reports stronger alignment and clarity in their roles and expectations; there’s increased focus on KPIs throughout the programme team;
You’ve led structured performance reviews with all direct reports;
Process monitoring systems are stable and running smoothly.

Within 12 months:

KPIs continue to improve: core programme delivery is increasingly efficient and systematic;
Process monitoring systems are increasingly running “in the background”, without requiring frequent intervention from the Senior Programme Delivery Manager;
Field team reports high morale, engagement, and performance orientation;
You have provided useful, field-grounded inputs to inform prioritisation of programme design ideas, and have contributed a number of your own ideas for consideration;
You’ve helped implement 2+ major process improvements / innovations.

How will you fit into the team structure?

You will report to a Co-Founder in the short term, and a Senior Programme Delivery Manager in the medium term. You will manage the field team in your state (Survey Officers and, where applicable, Data Officers and Field Data & Engagement Officers).

Why is this a brilliant opportunity?

You will have significant scope to improve how we do things in the programme team, and your work will have a key impact on Suvita’s systems going forward. This role is a brilliant fit for someone who is data-driven, people-oriented and loves building and improving systems.
Your work will save lives. You’ll be part of a mission-driven, impact-focused organisation, delivering programmes grounded in evidence.
We are in a multi-year phase of accelerated growth so it’s a tremendous opportunity to influence Suvita’s impact and learn in a fast-paced environment.
We are a team with strong values and an energising and effective way of working.

Who are we looking for?

We are looking for someone who demonstrates strengths in the following competencies:

Accountability / Dependability / Ownership / Self-management
Initiative / Agency / Responsibility Mindset
Adaptability
Collaboration / Teamwork
Communication
Growth mindset
Impact orientation
Analysis & reasoning; Scout mindset
Attention to detail
Creative & innovative thinking
Managing up / Generating buy-in
Professionalism

Decision making & judgement (including data-driven management, risk management)
Systems thinking
Management / Strategic resource allocation
Empowering & developing others
Inspirational leadership

Additionally, we are also seeking the following role-specific experiences / skills (some of these are marked as “ideal” rather than essential; this means they are not needed for the role although they will strengthen your application):

You have at least 3 years’ experience in a people management role.
You have experience managing a team (at least 6 people, including direct and indirect management), including resource allocation, motivation & accountability, performance reviews, coaching and (ideally) hiring.
You are tech-confident and savvy at learning to navigate new applications (we use a number of apps as part of our routine workflow, such as Google Sheets, MS Excel, SurveyCTO, Telerivet, Exotel, custom-built in-house data entry software - you will need to be or become highly proficient in all of these).
Ideally, you have a postgraduate qualification (such as a Master’s degree) in business administration (MBA), operations management or a similar field.
Ideally, you have some experience working in India on health/development projects, meaning that you can bring a sectoral understanding to your decision-making.

Other requirements include:

Being someone who embodies Suvita’s values and is excited by our way of working
Fluent in Hindi & English. For the MH role, also fluent in Marathi.
Available for program-related travel - generally within-state, but occasionally this may be out-of-state.
Willing and able to commit to this role for at least 2 years.

Note regarding Suvita’s equity-based approach to hiring, compensation and performance-related decisions:

We welcome applications from a broad range of candidates and strongly encourage individuals from underrepresented groups to apply. We believe that teams benefit from a variety of perspectives and experiences, and we strive to ensure that all decisions regarding hiring, compensation, performance evaluation, etc. are made fairly and without bias. We do not tolerate discrimination based on age, caste, disability, sex, race, religion or belief, gender or gender reassignment, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy or maternity, or sexual orientation. If you require accommodations during the application process, please let us know.

Other details

Hours: Full-time
Salary range: We expect to offer a salary in the range of ₹80,000 to ₹2,20,000 per month (CTC), with banding within this range dependent on the skills, responsibilities and experience the selected candidate brings. We are open to candidates with a variety of professional backgrounds, and the final offer will reflect the scope and depth of leadership and operational ownership you can bring to Suvita’s mission.
Benefits include:
- 35 days paid holiday leave per year plus 12 days sick leave at full pay.
- Health insurance policy.
Location:
- 1x MH role: Pune, Maharashtra
- 1x BH role: Patna, Bihar
Travel: As needed for programme work. Mostly within-state (~1x/month); occasionally out-of-state (~1-2x/year).
Reports to: Senior Programme Delivery Manager (incoming role). Co-Founder in the interim.

Have any other questions?

We have made a significant effort to include the key info in this Job Description, but of course we can't have covered everything. To help us manage a very high volume of applications, please don't contact us directly at this stage with further questions. For now, please apply! Candidates who progress past the application form will have an opportunity to submit additional questions at that stage, which we will use to produce an additional FAQs resource on the role.

Application process

Early application deadline: 15th June 2025 (end of day)

The application process will consist of 3 rounds, on the following timeline:

Application form: 15th June 2025 (to guarantee consideration)
Asynchronous screening interview and testing: rolling, all completed by 29th June
Final interviews: Weeks of 7th and 14th July

Click here to apply