Job Openings Senior Program Manager, Human Resource Unit (HRU)

About the job Senior Program Manager, Human Resource Unit (HRU)

Job Title: Senior Program Manager, Human Resource Unit (HRU)

Reporting To: State Lead, Maharashtra

Location: Mumbai, Maharashtra

Experience: 8-12 years

About CEGIS Foundation

Centre for Effective Governance of Indian States (CEGIS – pronounced See-Jis) aims to improve lives by helping Indian state governments deliver better development outcomes. We believe that the most impactful lever for accelerating national development is to improve governance and state capacity to better deliver core public services at scale.

Informed by cutting-edge research and evidence as well as a practical orientation toward implementable ideas, CEGIS works with state governments in India to enable a transformative improvement in their functioning. CEGIS's vision and Theory of Change (ToC) are an outcome of extensive research done by Prof. Karthik Muralidharan (CEGIS Co-Founder and Scientific Director) and outlined in his multiple award-winning, national bestselling book Accelerating India's Development, and enabled by strategic philanthropic support provided by Ashish Dhawan (CEGIS Co-Founder).

CEGIS Approach and Model of Functioning:

CEGIS's solutions to enhance governance are co-created with state governments in a state-led way, where we focus on deep partnerships with states using an iterative cycle of think-demonstrate-document-transfer. We work closely with the top bureaucratic leadership, front-line workers and public officials in Finance, Planning, Human Resources and a few other priority line departments. Many of our solutions reflect ideas outlined in the book Accelerating India's Development, and these solutions are constantly refined based on real-time feedback and are designed to both be customised to the contexts we are working in and to create templates that can provide the starting point for replication across contexts.

Our focus areas reflect evidence that key characteristics of high-performing organisations include (a) measuring outcomes through reliable, high quality data that enables goal setting and progress monitoring; (b) strategic use of personnel – competency based hiring and training, skilling, and performance appraisals to determine job assignments, pay, and promotions – to achieve the goals above; (c) strategic budgeting where resource allocation and revenue collection are based on evidence and cost-effectiveness; (d) and creating efficient systems to leverage external actors (including for-profit and nonprofit organisations). CEGIS partners with states to improve capacity by focusing on these pillars of State effectiveness, and aims to also integrate these horizontal governance improvements into integrated sectoral roadmaps to accelerate the achievement of state and national development outcomes.

Internally, CEGIS is organised into solutions teams that lead the design and technical quality control of our research and evidence-backed approaches to improving governance and state capacity; delivery" teams that lead state-facing work to contextualise the solutions, and support governments in implementing them; and enablement teams that enable the organisation to function smoothly.

CEGIS@6 to CEGIS@10: Building on momentum to catalyse national development

Since its incorporation in 2019, CEGIS has gained significant momentum in building strong collaborations with state government(s) as a trusted partner who can provide both thought leadership and implementation support on key governance reforms.CEGIS'sS position as a non-profit that does not take any funding from the government (other than in-kind contributions of office space/staff) has been a key enabler in earning this trust.

Beginning with 1 state government engagement in 2019, today CEGIS is working across 9 Indian states (Assam, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, and Uttar Pradesh). We also partner with union agencies/ministries such as the Capacity Building Commission, the Ministry of Women & Child Development (MoWCD), and the Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation (MoSPI) to share insights from our state-level work to inform national-level guidelines and dissemination to other states. Finally, we also take on selected work at the district level to design and test implementation templates.

From a small group of founding members, we have grown to become a team of 150+ members located across the country, and expect to grow to over 200 in the coming year. Led by a former senior civil servant with deep governance experience, state and solution team leads with decades of domain expertise, and enabling functions led by professionals with considerable corporate experience, the team at CEGIS brings together knowledge and experience that spans various sectors – from development economics, research, governance, management consulting, and social entrepreneurship.

Over the last 6 years, CEGIS has also garnered support for our vision and theory of change from several foundations and philanthropists whose partnership has enabled us to build our organisational capacity as well as continue to experiment and improve our solution design to augment state capacity and governance. With the rapidly growing demand for CEGIS's offerings, CEGIS is well-positioned to play a key role in accelerating India's development.

To explore what the mission of CEGIS is and the impact we hope to have, please take a look at this video of our CEO, Dr Vijay Pingale.

About the Personnel Management Vertical

We believe that empowered, equipped and future-ready public officials are crucial to achieving citizen-centric service delivery.

We work with central, state, and local governments to actualise their human capital by improving human resource (HR) management practices and organisational effectiveness using a competency-driven approach. We believe that supporting governments in undertaking these reforms will improve execution capacity and provide a fulfilling career journey for public officials.

The competency-driven approach focuses on the knowledge, skills, and attitude required for specific government roles. By adopting this approach, CEGIS aims to clarify the work officials do and empower them to achieve better results. This translates to a shift in accountability – from simply following processes to delivering tangible outcomes.

The Personnel Management team achieves this through three key workstreams.

  1. Competency-Based Recruitment: Ensuring the right people are selected for the job and bringing the necessary competencies (knowledge, skills, and attitude) on board from the outset.
  2. Competency-Based Learning & Development: Equipping public officials with the ongoing training and development they need to excel in their roles.
  3. Performance Management Systems: Evaluating and improving individual and team performance based on achieving defined goals, not just by adherence to procedures.

Through these efforts, the Personnel Management team strives to bring enhanced clarity and effectiveness to government work in India. By empowering officials with the right skills and holding them accountable for achieving desired outcomes, CEGIS is paving the way for a more efficient and impactful government service.

Engagement in Maharashtra (GoHRM) and About HRU

Maharashtra's vision under Viksit Maharashtra 2047 aims to increase life expectancy to 85+ through expanded healthcare infrastructure, preventive care, and data-driven innovation. Primary healthcare will be strengthened through Ayushman Arogya Mandirs, expanded sub-centres and PHCs, and improved recruitment and incentives for healthcare workers.

Goal- Oriented Human Resource Management (GoHRM) aims to improve HR management by linking individual competencies with organisational goals through aligned goal-setting, learning systems, and performance management. The Human Resource Unit (HRU) serves as the anchor for this effort, acting as a state-led institutional mechanism to drive competency-based learning and performance systems.

The scope of work would include:

  • Strengthening Goal–Competency–Learning Alignment
  • Integrating Learning, Assessment, and Performance Systems
  • Institutionalisation through HRU-led Governance
  • Strengthening Training Ecosystem and Digital Infrastructure

These GoHRM interventions in Maharashtra aim to create an integrated, data-driven HR ecosystem where goal setting, competency development, learning systems, and performance management are tightly linked and institutionally sustained through state-owned mechanisms.

This will allow CEGIS in driving sustainable, competency-based capacity building and improved service delivery and health and nutrition outcomes at scale.

Position Summary

We are seeking an experienced and dynamic Senior Program Manager (SPM) who can anchor the design, rollout, and institutionalisation of Learning & Development (L&D) and Performance Management System (PMS) solutions within the HRU. This role is critical in translating the HRU's strategic intent into operational programs, piloting and scaling solutions across departments, and supporting their alignment with Mission Karmayogi and the mandates of the Capacity Building Commission (CBC).

In addition to leading technical interventions in L&D and PMS, the SPM will support the HRU's broader mandate by playing a key advocacy and coordination role with department heads, CBUs, and training institutes, fostering buy-in and driving implementation on the ground.

The ideal candidate will understand competency as a concept and its wide application in the Human Resource Ecosystem. The candidate must also possess deep knowledge and understanding of how technology can be used in strengthening government systems. The candidate is expected to have a proven track record of applying principles of systems thinking, stakeholder management, and change management, and to be driven by a passion for creating meaningful impact in the capacity building of the state.

Roles and Responsibilities

      Institutionalisation of competency-based HR Management (L&D and PMS)

  • Oversee the design and rollout of competency-based frameworks for learning & development, and performance management across prioritised departments (WcD) in alignment with Mission Karmayogi
  • Identify and address gaps in personnel capability, performance culture, digital infrastructure, and resource utilisation across departments.
  • Drive the integration of PMS with learning and career progression to reinforce a culture of accountability and development.
  • Develop and operationalise tools such as Annual Capacity Building Plans (ACBPs), performance frameworks, Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), and digital dashboards that integrate with platforms like the Integrated Government Online Training (iGOT)-Karmayogi platform and electronic Human Resource Management System (eHRMS)
  • Liaison and management of relationships with Technology partners, administrative and state training institutes, learning content developers, etc, to deliver high-quality, scalable solutions.
    
    Enabling CBU Functioning
  • Support the formation and operationalisation of CBUs in line departments in line with CBC mandates and Mission Karmayogi guidelines.
  • Build CBUs' capacity to carry out competency-based HR functions, such as creating job descriptions, issuing work allocation orders, building ACBPs and integrating performance management systems.
  • Leverage data from personnel diagnostics and HR analytics platforms to enable CBUs to design tailored HR interventions and track progress.
  • Facilitate knowledge sharing and cross-learning between CBUs through workshops, learning sessions, and collaborative forums.
    
    Project and Stakeholder Management
  • Act as the key liaison between the HRU, line departments, central institutions such as CBC and SPV: Karmayogi Bharat, and external partners.
  • Contribute to strategic planning on the implementation of L&D and PMS solutions with HRU leadership and CEGIS to maintain program coherence and drive long-term impact.
  • Drives project planning, efficient resource allocation, goal tracking, risk identification and mitigation for seamless project execution
  • Manage and mentor a team of managers and associates to deliver time-bound, defined outputs and outcomes in alignment with the project's goals.
  • Lead advocacy efforts with senior bureaucratic and political leadership to build consensus and institutionalise customised HR reforms in the state context.
  • Build internal consensus and ownership through regular presentations, briefs, and review meetings with departments.
    
    Knowledge and Change Management
  • Lead the documentation of implementation journeys, challenges, and good practices across departments.
  • Translate data insights and implementation experiences into compelling narratives to develop knowledge products (e.g., playbooks, policy briefs) and support scale-up
  • Identify context-relevant, high-impact use cases in HR reform, learning, and performance management and inform the strengthening of the solution.
  • Think ahead with the leadership team to plan and prioritise activities, and continually link them to the broader goals of the program and organisation.

Education and Experience

  • Degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, Management, Public Policy, Social Work or a related field.
  • 8 to 12 years of experience in a high-performing environment, focusing on human resource management, performance management or project management, preferably within the Indian government ecosystem
  • Prior Experience of working on complex multi-stakeholder projects, especially with governments, donors, and research organisations
  • Candidates with exposure to the Health or Nutrition Sector will have an added advantage.

Required Competencies

The competencies required to perform the above-mentioned roles and responsibilities are as follows:

Domain Competencies

  • Public Administration Understanding: Understands India's governance and policy landscape to ensure solutions are contextually relevant and aligned with governmental priorities
  • Competency-based Human Resource Management (HRM): Applies design thinking and field insights to iterate and innovate solutions to strengthen HRM and lead reforms
  • Organisational Capacity and Systems: Evaluates organisational performance to drive sustainable improvements in capacity and efficiency

Functional Competencies

  • Project Management: Leads large-scale projects, ensuring alignment with organisational objectives through structured planning, resource optimisation, and performance tracking
  • Analytical Acumen: Ability to assess patterns, synthesise insights to inform decisions
  • Communication and Knowledge Practices: Documents and crafts compelling, targeted narratives to influence and drive system-wide buy-in

Behavioural Competencies

  • Developing People: Builds team capacity through mentorship, feedback, and enabling individual ownership to drive systemic transformation
  • Learning Orientation: Seeks feedback, reflects on gaps, and fosters a culture of adaptability and continuous improvement within the team
  • Collaboration: Builds and leverages high-trust networks to align efforts, accelerate reforms, and resolve conflicts.

Role Logistics

  • The role will be based out of Mumbai, Maharashtra
  • Language Proficiency in Marathi and English
  • Remuneration will be competitive with Indian philanthropy and social-sector pay scales, depending on the candidate's experience level.
  • CEGIS is an equal employment opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will be considered for employment and will not be discriminated against on the basis of race, colour, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, disability, age, genetic information, veteran status, ancestry, or national or ethnic origin.

Pre-reads for the application process

Please go through the following materials before sending in your application.

Recommended listening:

  • Karthik Muralidharan: India's Roadmap for Effective Governance — FED Dialogues: Podcast Episode.
  • Karthik Muralidharan on Making Governance More Effective — Sushasan | Podcast.

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