Senior Manager, Strategy & Operations – Women's Economic Empowerment (WEE)

Job Title: Senior Manager, Strategy & Operations – Women's Economic Empowerment (WEE)
Location: Bengaluru
Experience: 10 to 12 years
Salary: 22 - 25 LPA
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About the Role

We are looking for a highly driven, entrepreneurial, and strategically minded Senior Manager – Strategy & Operations to work closely with the Vice President – Women's Economic Empowerment as a strategic thought partner and execution partner. This is a high-ownership role that will help the VP translate the WEE vision into clear priorities, strategic initiatives, operating plans, partnerships, funding opportunities, and measurable outcomes. The role sits at the intersection of strategy, problem-solving, portfolio management, business development, and execution. You will be expected to bring structure to ambiguous problems, develop a strong point of view, support critical decisions, and ensure priorities move from idea to action. Candidates who have founded, co-founded, built, scaled, or operated a business/startup, worked in a high-growth environment, or recently exited an entrepreneurial venture are strongly encouraged to apply. Note: As the WEE portfolio grows, this role has the potential to evolve into a Chief of Staff–type role to the VP.

Key Responsibilities

1. Strategy & Strategic Problem Solving (30%)
- Work closely with the VP to define and refine strategic priorities for the WEE portfolio.
- Identify important problems, opportunities, and gaps across the WEE ecosystem; develop structured approaches to address them.
- Conduct market, sector, ecosystem, and business analysis to inform strategic decisions.
- Develop business cases, strategic frameworks, models, and recommendations for new initiatives.
- Evaluate potential programs, partnerships, business models, and areas for investment or scale.
- Bring an entrepreneurial and commercially informed perspective to WEE strategy while remaining grounded in ground realities.
Independently own high-priority strategic questions from problem definition through recommendation and action.

2. Portfolio Management & Operating Excellence (20%)
- Translate WEE strategy into clear annual, quarterly, and short-term priorities, milestones, and ownership.
- Establish and manage an effective operating rhythm across the portfolio, including regular reviews and leadership updates.
- Track progress across programs, strategic initiatives, partnerships, budgets, funding opportunities, and key outcomes.
- Develop concise dashboards and management information to support decision-making.
- Identify risks, dependencies, and bottlenecks requiring leadership intervention.
- Strengthen systems and processes that improve accountability, coordination, and execution.

3. Strategic Initiatives & Special Projects (20%)
- Take end-to-end ownership of high-priority strategic initiatives identified by the VP.
- Lead cross-functional projects requiring coordination across teams, partners, and external stakeholders.
- Develop new initiatives from concept through validation, pilot, implementation, and scale.
- Conduct rapid research, stakeholder consultations, market assessments, and financial/operational analysis.
- Step into areas where there is no clear owner and create structure, clarity, and momentum.

4. Funder Acquisition, Partnerships & External Engagement (15%)
- Identify and pursue new funding opportunities aligned with the organization's WEE strategy.
- Research and map potential funders, philanthropic institutions, businesses, investors, and strategic partners.
- Support the development of funding propositions, concept notes, proposals, business cases, pitch decks, and donor presentations.
- Help shape the narrative, theory of change, outcomes, value proposition, and scale potential for new WEE initiatives.
- Prepare the VP for funder and partner conversations through briefing notes, key messages, data points, and stakeholder profiles.
- Represent or support the representation of the WEE portfolio at external conferences, forums, and roundtables.

5. Data, Insights & Knowledge (10%)
- Analyze program, market, financial, and ecosystem data to identify trends, opportunities, and risks.
- Bring together quantitative data, qualitative insights, partner feedback, and field realities for strategic decision-making.
- Develop concise decision papers, briefing notes, dashboards, and analytical inputs for leadership.
- Support the development of case studies, learning products, and thought leadership to build institutional knowledge.

6. Executive Support & Strategic Communication (5%)
- Synthesize complex information into clear decisions, messages, and strategic narratives for the VP.
- Prepare the VP for internal leadership discussions, board or governance forums, and funder meetings.
- Develop high-quality presentations, briefing documents, talking points, and strategic communication materials.
- Ensure important decisions translate into clear communication and action across relevant teams.

Key Qualifications

• Preferred: Postgraduate degree in Management, Business Administration, Economics, Development Studies, Public Policy, Social Sciences, or a related field.
• Exceptional candidates with strong entrepreneurial, strategy, or business-building track records will be considered regardless of formal degree background.
• 10–12 years of relevant experience in strategy, operations, consulting, entrepreneurship, business building, program management, or social impact.
• Demonstrated experience independently owning complex projects, strategic initiatives, or portfolios.
• Experience in fast-paced, entrepreneurial, high-growth, or ambiguous environments.
• Entrepreneurial Background: Candidates who have founded, co-founded, built, scaled, or operated a business/startup (or recently exited one) are strongly encouraged to apply.
• Experience working closely with senior leadership on strategy, business planning, fundraising, or portfolio management is a strong advantage.
• Domain Depth : Proven track record working with women entrepreneurs, producer collectives (FPOs/SHGs), market linkages, or inclusive supply chains.
• Stakeholder Management : Demonstrated success working directly with government officials, corporate leaders, philanthropic entities, and grassroots institutions.
• Team Leadership: Direct experience hiring, managing, coaching, and developing high-performing teams.
• Regular travel to project locations (including rural and semi-urban areas across India) is essential.
  The role requires spending meaningful time in the field to:

Core Competencies & Traits

• Strategic & Problem-Solving Capability: Ability to structure ambiguous problems, distinguish symptoms from root causes, build logical frameworks ($Problem \rightarrow Hypothesis \rightarrow Learning \rightarrow Recommendation \rightarrow Action$), and make decisions with incomplete information.
• Entrepreneurial Mindset: A builder's mindset; comfortable operating without a predefined playbook, taking ownership beyond formal responsibilities, and moving quickly from ideas to experiments.
• Executive Partnership: Strong executive presence, maturity, discretion, and ability to act as a trusted thought partner while maintaining independent judgment.
• Communication & Stakeholder Management: Excellent written/verbal communication skills with the ability to simplify complex ideas for leadership, funders, and field partners. 

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Hiring Note: Applications will be reviewed on rolling basis. This job is first posted on Sept 2, 2026 on Ground Zero

For any questions, ping us on WhatsApp chat: +91-8058331557