Application deadline: March 27, 2023 (8:00 a.m. EDT)

Start date: early June 2023

Compensation: $74,444 - $91,061

If you believe that:

• Social change is possible
• Feminist principles and process can help change the world
• Social justice activists, in Canada and in the Global South, can support and learn from each other
• You have a contribution to make in helping strengthen and manage a Canadian organization devoted to the promotion of social justice and human rights around the world

…you may be interested in applying for a Burma Program Manager position at Inter Pares, a Canadian social justice organization. We build relationships with people and organizations, in Canada and overseas, who share an analysis that poverty is caused by structural inequalities among and within nations, and who are working to promote fundamental change in their communities and countries.

As part of our institutional co-management team, the successful candidate will be expected to share responsibility for Inter Pares’ financial, administrative, and political well-being and direction. The co-management team operates on a parity basis – equal salary, equal responsibility – guided by principles of consensus-based decision-making. All co-managers participate in management committees, administration, raising funds, donor relations, board relations, external representation, and public engagement.

The position of Burma Program Manager

We are looking for a program manager to share responsibility with two other people for our program in Burma. This position entails supporting local organizations working in Burma on issues such as health care, media, women’s rights, human rights, peacebuilding, displacement, food sovereignty, economic justice, and control over natural resources. The program manager will collaborate on initiatives to inform Canadians (general public, public servants, and politicians) about the situation in Burma and the work that our counterparts are doing. This may  include organizing educational events, writing and publishing, and giving presentations. This position also entails supporting organizational strengthening with counterpart organizations, relationship-building with counterparts, policy development and advocacy (often targeting the government of Canada), and networking with national and international NGOs. The Burma program is currently mostly funded by Global Affairs Canada, and therefore the program manager will also spend time fulfilling administrative requirements for government funding, using a results-based management (RBM) approach. Read more details on the program.

The position is based in our office in Ottawa. During the current COVID-19 pandemic, there is some flexibility about in-office presence, however in-person onboarding during the first month is expected.

The candidate must demonstrate they hold the required qualifications and experience:

• Commitment to social justice and feminist principles
• Commitment to anti-racism and anti-oppression values
• Commitment to collective work, ability to work in a team and independently
• Program/project management experience (ideally using an RBM framework), including financial management
• Administrative and organizational skills, including the ability to juggle a diversity of tasks and themes within shifting, and sometimes overlapping time frames
• Very good written skills, attention to detail, and an ability to write for a variety of audiences
• Demonstrated initiative; experience going above and beyond, achievement despite obstacles, and/or finding a creative solution to a challenge
• Ability to work flexible and irregular hours on occasion, and to travel internationally (usually twice a year for a few weeks at a time) to sometimes remote and rugged areas. Domestic short-term travel is also sometimes required. A healthy work life balance is valued at Inter Pares, and there are mechanisms in place to help ensure this. A modest contribution towards child care expenses is accessible
• Burma-related work experience on ethnic/Indigenous struggles for self-determination, or, alternatively, a demonstrated understanding of the applicability of their work experience to the Burma context
• Good working knowledge of Windows software (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook) and competence using spreadsheets and databases
• Legal permission to work in Canada

The following experiences and qualities are extremely valuable assets:

• A very good understanding of socio-political dynamics in Burma, particularly ethnic struggles for self-determination
• Lived experience in Burma or its borders, or a personal/family connection to Burma
• Demonstrated experience engaging and organizing in a community (such as a local, cultural, interest-based or identity-based community) or a social movement (such as provincial, national or international solidarity movement) internationally and/or in Canada
• Experience working on the themes of healthcare systems, primary healthcare, SRHR and/or the right to health
• Advanced financial management skills/experience, including developing, managing, and reporting on large and complicated budgets
• Skills/experience in fundraising, communications, and public engagement

Languages

• Very good writing, speaking, and editing skills in English
• Good written and oral communication skills in French are an asset
• Ability to communicate in a language that is relevant to this program is an asset (Chin, Kachin, Karen, Karenni, Shan, Burmese, Thai, etc.)

Salary and benefits

This job is eligible for a salary ranging from $74,444 to $91,061. It also comes with a generous benefits package that includes extended health coverage and retirement planning benefits. All new staff begin with four weeks of vacation, which increases with seniority.

Start date: early June 2023

Application process

Interested persons should submit their CV, accompanied by a cover letter in English elaborating why they are interested in working at Inter Pares, and the skills and experience they would contribute. This should be sent by email to: info@interpares.ca, with the subject: Burma job posting - FIRST NAME LAST NAME.

Candidates must be available for a three-hour interview window (90-minute interview + 90-minute written exercises), between April 3-6 and potentially for further one-hour interviews between April 24-28. Interviews will be conducted by videoconference or in-person. The interview will be in English and may include one to two questions in French. The interview will also include a writing test in English, and a reading or writing test in French if the candidate has those language skills. We are happy to provide an accessible interview and employment environment and accommodation if requested. Inter Pares assumes reasonable interview-related expenses; as compensation for time spent engaging with our interview process, all candidates who reach the interview stage will also be paid the same hourly wage as co-managers earn (currently $35.79) during their participation.

Inter Pares is committed to working within an anti-racism, anti-oppression, and anti-colonial framework, and recognizes that systemic privilege and oppression have strongly shaped staffing patterns in international cooperation. We strongly encourage applications from women, racialized people, Indigenous people, migrants, people with marginalized sexual or gender identities, and people living with disabilities. We invite candidates to share how they personally identify in their application if they wish to do so.

For more information about Inter Pares, please consult our website: www.interpares.ca.