Leadership For Skilled Education Foundation

Background

Leadership For Skilled Education Foundation (branded as Leadership for Equity, LFE) is a non-profit organisation based in Pune, Maharashtra, working to strengthen India’s public education system so that every child learns and thrives. We envision public education systems that refuse to let children down.
LFE partners with state and district governments across multiple states—including Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, and Haryana—to improve teaching practices and build sustained academic support structures within the public system. Our work is anchored in the belief that public education systems are the gatekeepers of social equity, and strengthening them is essential to ensuring that every child has access to strong foundational and future-ready learning.

Approach

LFE’s systems-change approach focuses on improving classroom practice and enabling government ownership through three core levers:
  1. Co-creating high-quality curricular resources and building teacher capacity
  2. Developing academic leadership to coach and mentor teachers
  3. Providing data-driven advisory support and policy implementation guidance
Our model empowers teachers as instructional leaders and embeds long-term support through government-run mentor cadres, continuous classroom observation cycles, and in-system academic structures. Technology plays a critical role, including an in-house Classroom Observation App for real-time monitoring and a WhatsApp-based teacher support chatbot for contextual resource delivery.
The approach is iterative and context-responsive, grounded in classroom realities and tailored to state and district needs. Implementation varies across geographies—whether working directly with teachers or through government-appointed mentors—ensuring relevance and feasibility within existing structures. A continuous feedback loop of training, observation, and coaching moves beyond one-time interventions toward sustained practice change. All programs are co-designed and co-implemented with government partners to ensure scale, sustainability, and systemic ownership, ultimately leading to improved student learning outcomes in foundational and future literacy.

Job Description and Responsibilities

The Director – Program Implementation will lead the design and delivery of large-scale education programs in collaboration with state and district governments. This role is central to ensuring high-quality execution of LFE’s systemic reform efforts and driving impact across all levels of program implementation — from classroom practices to institutional capacity building.

The Director will work closely with key government stakeholders at state/district education departments, internal verticals (M&E, Research, Strategy, HR), and implementation teams to ensure that implementation plans are aligned with funder priorities, rooted in evidence, and executed with excellence.

Strategic Leadership & Program Planning (30%)

  • Work with the senior leadership team to translate LFE’s vision into clear, practical goals for each state or district.
  • Build annual implementation plans with timelines, budgets, and key milestones.
  • Support the development of new proposals and partnerships to expand or deepen LFE’s work.
  • Bring in insights from the field to inform LFE’s larger strategy and learning agenda.
  • Translate LFE’s organisational strategy into clear state/district implementation plans.
  • Identify focus areas for system reform and co-design interventions with government leadership.
  • Design risk identification and mitigation process for the programs & design systems for problem-solving and shape adaptive strategies to sustain long-term change

Team Leadership & Capacity Building (25%)

  • Lead and coach a team of Program Managers, Associates, and District Coordinators who directly work with government partners.
  • Build a healthy team culture rooted in learning, ownership, and accountability.
  • Conduct regular reviews with team members to track progress and address bottlenecks.
  • Identify skill gaps and organise spaces for team learning — for example, on facilitation, government relationship management, or data use.
  • Create opportunities for internal talent to grow into leadership roles.

Government, Donor & Partner Engagement (25%)

  • Build and sustain strong working relationships with senior officials in the Education Department — from state leadership to district officers
  • Represent LFE in joint reviews, steering committees, and consultations with government and ecosystem partners
  • Align government priorities with program plans, ensuring shared ownership and follow-through
  • Serve as the primary relationship manager for key donors — provide program updates, coordinate reviews and field visits, and ensure timely reporting
  • Identify and pursue opportunities to scale existing LFE programs through new government partnerships or collaborations with other NGOs
  • Work closely with the Partnerships and Strategy teams to develop proposals, concept notes, and pitches that build on successful models
  • Strengthen relationships with peer organisations, CSRs, and academic institutions to co-design or expand initiatives for larger system impact

Monitoring, Learning & Evidence Use (15%)

  • Partner with the M&E team to track progress on outcomes and outputs through clear, practical indicators.
  • Use data from dashboards, reviews, and field visits to identify trends and guide decisions.
  • Lead quarterly reflection and planning sessions with internal teams and government partners.
  • Ensure that insights from the field are used to improve design and delivery, and are communicated effectively to donors and stakeholders.

Knowledge Management, Documentation & Communication (5%)

  • Guide teams in documenting implementation models, lessons learned, and success stories.
  • Oversee the preparation of reports, presentations, and communication materials for donors, government, and external partners.
  • Contribute to LFE’s learning products, case studies, and policy notes that showcase effective practices and pathways for scale.
  • Facilitate cross-state learning and knowledge sharing across teams.

Requirements

Education & Experience
  • Master’s degree in Education, Public Policy, Management, or related fields.
  • 10–12 years of relevant experience, with at least 5 years in a leadership role managing large-scale education or government-linked programs.
  • Demonstrated experience in managing government partnerships and donor-funded initiatives.
  • Proven ability to lead teams and partnerships across multiple districts or states.
  • Prior experience working directly with public systems is essential.
  • Important: Given the nature of the project, please apply only if you qualify based on the above requirements

Knowledge, Skills and Capabilities
  • Excellent written and spoken English; working knowledge of the regional language (Hindi/Marathi) preferred.
  • Strong planning and execution skills, with the ability to manage multiple moving parts.
  • Deep belief in the potential of public systems and commitment to equitable education.
  • Understanding of teacher professional development, school leadership, and government delivery systems.
  • Skilled in relationship building, negotiation, and partnership management with senior officials, donors, and peer organisations.
  • Strong presentation, reporting, and proposal development skills.
  • Proficiency in Excel, PowerPoint, and Google Suite.
  • Adaptability, patience, and resilience in navigating change and complexity.


Location and Compensation

Location: Vijayawada with frequent travel to other LFE sites across states.

Compensation: In addition to being part of a young and dynamic learning team, the individual will receive a competitive compensation package at par with the non-profit sector benchmark for this position, commensurate with the individual’s prior experience and qualifications. Competitive and commensurate with experience and qualifications. The current compensation band offered, based on fit and experience, is 30-32 lakh INR per annum CTC.

Leadership For Equity is an Equal Opportunity Employer and Prohibits Discrimination and Harassment of Any Kind. We do not discriminate based on caste, race, religion, colour, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, or any other non-merit factor.
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