Programme Manager - Youth Employment and Market Systems job at Restless Development

About Restless Development:

Restless Development Uganda is an agency for youth-led change; we support the collective power of young leaders to create a better world. We make sure that young people’s voices are heard and that they have the power to mobilize action in their communities to respond to long-standing challenges. Across Karamoja, West Nile, Eastern and Central Uganda, we support young people to influence the decisions that affect their lives while strengthening the systems and institutions that enable them to realize their full potential. We also coordinate the Uganda Youth Collective, a national platform of over 600 youth-led organisations working together to amplify youth voices and influence policies through the National Youth Working Group. We are committed to creating an organisation that walks the talk on power shifting, using the power shifting checklist, both internally and externally.

Our approach to safeguarding:

Restless Development considers the welfare and protection of children, young people and vulnerable adults to be an organisational imperative with primacy over the success of programmes or strategic objectives. We recognize that safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility and we expect all of our staff, young leaders and partners to ensure we protect the communities in which we operate from harm and abide by our Safeguarding Policy.

About our Youth Employment Work:

Restless Development is implementing an inspiring youth employment portfolio designed to improve the economic resilience and livelihoods of young people by expanding their access to dignified and fulfilling work, entrepreneurship opportunities and inclusive financial services. Working across 13 Districts in Karamoja sub region, Eastern, West Nile, Western Uganda, and in central region. Our approach places young people at the center of programme design and delivery while strengthening the local systems that support dignified and fulfilling work. Our work equips young women and men with market relevant technical, entrepreneurial, and financial capabilities while connecting them to employers, markets, business development services and affordable financial products. We work through youth-led organisations to create coordinated pathways that support young people to transition successfully into employment, self-employment and enterprise growth.

Beyond supporting individual young people, we invest in strengthening the capacity of youth-led organisations and youth-led enterprises to deliver high quality employment pathways, promote youth leadership, and influence policies and systems that shape youth economic opportunities. Through this integrated approach, we are building stronger inclusive employment eco-systems that enable young people, particularly young women, refugees and young people with disabilities to access dignified and fulfilling work.

About the Role:

The Programme Manager, Youth Employment and Market systems will provide technical leadership for Restless Development Uganda youth employment portfolio, leading the delivery of integrated interventions that enable young people to transition into dignified and fulfilling work.

The role will drive market responsive employment pathways by building the agency of young people, and strengthening the connections with the private sector, financial institutions, youth led organisations, SMES and other related market actors. The role will champion meaningful youth engagement throughout the programme, ensuring that young people actively shape employment pathways, influence local economic systems and participate in decisions that affect the growth of their enterprises.

Reporting to the Senior Technical Advisor - Livelihoods, the programme manager will support youth-led organisations to deliver market responsive employment pathways, build partnerships with private sector, finance institutions and government to enable young people transition into dignified work. He/She will ensure high quality programme implementation, adaptive management and delivery of employment outcomes for young people.

Key responsibilities

1. Programme Leadership:

• Provide technical leadership in the implementation of youth employment and market systems interventions.
• Lead the development of annual work plans, budgets, implementation strategies and performance targets to deliver sustainable pathways into dignified and fulfilling work for young people.
• Ensure youth employment interventions are market responsive, evidence based, and aligned with labour market trends, youth aspirations and emerging economic opportunities.
• Drive adaptive programming by using data, rapid market assessments and learning to continuously improve programme approaches and outcomes.
• Work closely with the Monitoring, Evaluation, Research and Learning (MERL) team to develop performance frameworks that measure youth employment outcomes and programme effectiveness.
• Strengthen accountability, risk management and safeguarding systems across programme delivery.
• Contribute to organisational strategy delivery by actively participating in the leadership team, providing technical insights, identifying opportunities and risks, and supporting evidence-based decision-making to strengthen organisational performance and impact.

2. Youth Employment Pathways and Market system development:

• Provide leadership in the development of integrated pathways that enable young people to transition from skills development to self employment/entrepreneurship.
• Oversee approaches that connect young people to employers, markets, business development services, financial services and enterprise growth opportunities.
• Lead market systems approach that identify barriers and opportunities affecting youth employment and facilitate solutions with relevant ecosystem actors.
• Ensure labour markets assessments and private sector insights inform programme design, skilling pathways and enterprise support models.
• Strengthen mechanisms for youth-led organisations to facilitate effective employment pathways.
• Promote inclusive employment approaches that address barriers faced by young women, persons with disabilities and other marginalised youth.

3. Partnerships and Ecosystem Engagement.

• Build and manage partnerships with private sector and financial institutions that create pathways for employment, apprenticeships, internships, market access, enterprise growth, and financial inclusion.
• Engage government stakeholders at national and local levels to strengthen alignment with national youth employment programmes and policies.
• Strengthen collaboration with financial service providers to improve young people’s access to appropriate financial products and business growth opportunities.
• Represent Restless Development in relevant youth employment and market systems platforms.

4. Strengthen Youth-led Organisations.

• Provide strategic oversight for strengthening the capacity of youth-led organisations to deliver effective youth employment interventions.
• Support youth-led organisations to strengthen their governance, leadership, programme delivery capacity and sustainability.
• Develop approaches that enable youth-led organisations to transition from mobilization and skilling roles into stronger employment ecosystems actors.
• Provide technical guidance to partners on market assessments, youth engagement, enterprise support, employment pathways and inclusive programming.
• Strengthen learning and collaboration among youth organisations.

5. Team Management

• Provide line management, coaching, and performance oversight to Programme Coordinators for Youth Engagement and Organisational Development & Advocacy.
• Build a collaborative, high-performing, and values-driven team culture across programme teams and consortium partners.
• Strengthen coordination between technical, operational, finance, communications, and MERL teams to ensure integrated programme delivery.
• Ensure efficient and effective utilisation of programme resources in collaboration with Finance and Operations teams.

6. Others responsibilities

• Other duties as required, including occasional work on weekends for which time off in lieu (TOIL) can be taken.

About you

We are looking for people with the right competencies and skills for the role, and who demonstrate the personal qualities consistent with our values. At Restless Development, we’re proud that the strength and integrity of our Values are recognised by staff, young people, donors and others who we work with. Beyond this, we have a culture of recognising and celebrating both our Values and our global achievements with an annual Values Day.

Restless Development is an Equal Opportunities Employer and welcomes applications from all eligible candidates. Restless Development will ensure that no applicant or staff member receives less favorable treatment on the grounds of gender, marital status, social status, race, ethnic origin, religious belief, age, HIV status, disability, or any other factor that cannot be shown to be relevant to performance.

Skills and Experience

Essential

• At least 7–10 years of progressive experience in leading youth development, livelihoods, economic inclusion, private sector engagement, market systems or related development programmes, with at least 3–5 years in a senior management role.
• Demonstrated experience designing and delivering programmes that create pathways to employment, entrepreneurship, and enterprise growth for young people.
• Proven experience managing large-scale, donor-funded programmes, preferably within consortium or multi-partner implementation structures, with responsibility for strategy, implementation, budgets and results.
• Experience building and managing partnerships with government, private sector actors, financial institutions and youth-led organisations.
• Strong understanding of youth employment ecosystems, labour markets, entrepreneurship development, financial inclusion and market systems approaches.
• Experience strengthening the capacity of local organisations, including youth-led and community-based organisations, to deliver quality programmes.
• Strong leadership, communication, negotiation and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to influence diverse partners and build collaborative relationships.
• Strong analytical skills and ability to use evidence, data and learning to inform strategic decision-making.
• Demonstrated commitment to youth leadership, gender equality, disability inclusion, safeguarding and inclusive development.

Desirable

• Master's degree in Development Studies, Social Sciences, Public Administration, Organisational Development, Community Development, International Development, or a related field.
• Experience managing complex youth employment or livelihoods programmes at national or multi-regional scale.
• Experience working with employment-focused partnerships involving employers, financial institutions, government and market actors.
• Knowledge of Uganda’s youth employment, entrepreneurship and economic development landscape.
• Experience applying market systems development, adaptive management or systems-strengthening approaches.

Values and Culture

At Restless Development, we’re proud that the strength and integrity of our Values has been recognised by staff, young people, donors and others who we work with. Beyond this, we have a culture of recognising and celebrating both our Values and our global achievements with monthly Values Champions and an annual Values Day.

Work-life Balance

It goes without saying that we work hard at Restless Development. We also recognise the importance of helping staff to maintain a positive work-life balance by offering:

• 24 days annual leave (in addition to public holidays and with an extra day of annual leave given for each full year of service, up to a maximum of 28 days).
• Birthday Leave
• Access to flexible working.
• Generous study leave, maternity, paternity or adoption leave, and other leave allowances.

Professional Development

Restless Development is proud to be an employer who recognises potential and invests in the development of its staff. We are committed to the professional development of our staff through:

• Empowering opportunities to work on significant projects which stretch and inspire staff – allowing them to develop on-the-job.
• Regular performance management.
• Training and development opportunities, including supporting our staff to identify mentors both within and outside of the agency.
• Quarterly Staff Workshops for all staff to give and receive agency updates, receive training, and socialise.

Please Note: This position is contingent upon the availability of project funding.

Travel and Medical Insurance

When travelling abroad with work, all staff will be covered by Restless Development’s travel and medical insurance.

• Provide technical leadership in the implementation of youth employment and market systems interventions.
• Lead the development of annual work plans, budgets, implementation strategies and performance targets to deliver sustainable pathways into dignified and fulfilling work for young people.
• Ensure youth employment interventions are market responsive, evidence based, and aligned with labour market trends, youth aspirations and emerging economic opportunities.
• Drive adaptive programming by using data, rapid market assessments and learning to continuously improve programme approaches and outcomes.
• Work closely with the Monitoring, Evaluation, Research and Learning (MERL) team to develop performance frameworks that measure youth employment outcomes and programme effectiveness.
• Strengthen accountability, risk management and safeguarding systems across programme delivery.
• Contribute to organisational strategy delivery by actively participating in the leadership team, providing technical insights, identifying opportunities and risks, and supporting evidence-based decision-making to strengthen organisational performance and impact.
• Provide leadership in the development of integrated pathways that enable young people to transition from skills development to self employment/entrepreneurship.
• Oversee approaches that connect young people to employers, markets, business development services, financial services and enterprise growth opportunities.
• Lead market systems approach that identify barriers and opportunities affecting youth employment and facilitate solutions with relevant ecosystem actors.
• Ensure labour markets assessments and private sector insights inform programme design, skilling pathways and enterprise support models.
• Strengthen mechanisms for youth-led organisations to facilitate effective employment pathways.
• Promote inclusive employment approaches that address barriers faced by young women, persons with disabilities and other marginalised youth.
• Build and manage partnerships with private sector and financial institutions that create pathways for employment, apprenticeships, internships, market access, enterprise growth, and financial inclusion.
• Engage government stakeholders at national and local levels to strengthen alignment with national youth employment programmes and policies.
• Strengthen collaboration with financial service providers to improve young people’s access to appropriate financial products and business growth opportunities.
• Represent Restless Development in relevant youth employment and market systems platforms.
• Provide strategic oversight for strengthening the capacity of youth-led organisations to deliver effective youth employment interventions.
• Support youth-led organisations to strengthen their governance, leadership, programme delivery capacity and sustainability.
• Develop approaches that enable youth-led organisations to transition from mobilization and skilling roles into stronger employment ecosystems actors.
• Provide technical guidance to partners on market assessments, youth engagement, enterprise support, employment pathways and inclusive programming.
• Strengthen learning and collaboration among youth organisations.
• Provide line management, coaching, and performance oversight to Programme Coordinators for Youth Engagement and Organisational Development & Advocacy.
• Build a collaborative, high-performing, and values-driven team culture across programme teams and consortium partners.
• Strengthen coordination between technical, operational, finance, communications, and MERL teams to ensure integrated programme delivery.
• Ensure efficient and effective utilisation of programme resources in collaboration with Finance and Operations teams.
• Other duties as required, including occasional work on weekends for which time off in lieu (TOIL) can be taken.

• Strong leadership, communication, negotiation and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to influence diverse partners and build collaborative relationships.
• Strong analytical skills and ability to use evidence, data and learning to inform strategic decision-making.
• Demonstrated commitment to youth leadership, gender equality, disability inclusion, safeguarding and inclusive development.

• Master's degree in Development Studies, Social Sciences, Public Administration, Organisational Development, Community Development, International Development, or a related field.
• Experience managing complex youth employment or livelihoods programmes at national or multi-regional scale.
• Experience working with employment-focused partnerships involving employers, financial institutions, government and market actors.
• Knowledge of Uganda’s youth employment, entrepreneurship and economic development landscape.
• Experience applying market systems development, adaptive management or systems-strengthening approaches.