Location: Maharashtra (base location Mumbai / Pune/Pimpri-Chinchwad cluster, with travel across assigned ITI clusters in the state
Lend A Hand India is hiring a Project Lead to
own the day-to-day leadership of ITI transformation operations across Lend A
Hand India's assigned ITI clusters in Maharashtra. This is a state-level
leadership role that sits at the heart of the State PMU: the Project Lead will
coordinate with the state skills department, manage cluster teams and their
delivery of the 10-pillar playbook, coordinate ecosystem and technology
partners, track outcomes against milestones, and represent Lend A Hand India in
engagements with the Central PMU. The role suits someone who can operate
comfortably across strategy, field execution, government liaison and
data-driven program management.
Key Responsibilities:
1.
State & Cluster Program Leadership
- Lead the overall
planning, rollout and day-to-day management of ITI transformation operations
across Lend A Hand India’s clusters in Maharashtra (e.g., Pimpri and other
assigned districts).
- Own delivery at the
cluster level, from student mobilization and aspiration-building through to
post-placement mentorship and tracking.
- Manage and mentor
Cluster Project Coordinators/field teams (approx. 15 ITIs per cluster), setting
clear targets, reviewing progress and unblocking implementation issues.
- Drive the baseline
data assessment process for target ITIs and ensure findings feed into
cluster-level planning and prioritization.
2.
Government & Ecosystem Coordination
- Serve as the primary
point of coordination with the Maharashtra state skills department and relevant
government stakeholders on ITI transformation matters.
- Coordinate with the
Central PMU on strategy alignment, reporting requirements and cross-state
learning.
- Build and maintain
relationships with ecosystem and implementation partners — industry bodies,
other NGOs and technology partners — to ensure coordinated delivery across
pillars.
- Support ITI
principals, faculty and administration in strengthening institutional processes
under the Admin Strengthening and Faculty Development pillars.
3.
Industry Engagement & Placements
- Lead local industry
engagement efforts, particularly with employers in Maharashtra’s manufacturing
and industrial corridors, to strengthen demand-supply mapping and Dual System
of Training (DST)-style partnerships.
- Oversee placement
support and apprenticeship pipelines, working with industry to convert exposure
and training into quality job or apprenticeship outcomes.
- Support design and
delivery of post-placement mentorship, monitoring and retention efforts, given
known drop-off risk in the first year after placement.
4.
Data, Technology & Monitoring
- Ensure timely,
accurate data reporting from cluster to State and Central PMU levels, and use
data to identify anomalies, delays and areas needing intervention.
- Track progress
against the program roadmap and milestones (baseline assessment, pilot
rollout, scale-up phases) and flag risks early.
5.
Team & Stakeholder Management
- Build, lead and
develop a high-performing state team, including hiring, coaching and
performance management of cluster staff.
- Represent Lend A Hand
India and the state program in reviews with the Central PMU, donors, and
government counterparts.
- Contribute to the
continuous refinement of the ITI playbook and operating model based on
on-ground learning.
Requirements
- 8–10+ years of
experience in program/project management, with significant exposure to
skilling, vocational training, education, or livelihoods program.
- Demonstrated
experience managing multi-stakeholder program involving government
departments, NGOs/implementation partners, and industry.
- Prior experience
working with or within the ITI/vocational training ecosystem (DGT, MSDE, State
Skill Development Missions) is strongly preferred.
- Experience managing
field teams and driving delivery across multiple sites/districts
simultaneously.
Skills & Competencies:
- Strong stakeholder
management and government liaison skills; comfortable engaging with state
department officials, ITI administration, and corporate partners.
- Data-driven program management — able to work with dashboards/MIS tools, interpret outcome data,
and translate it into action.
- Strong people
leadership: hiring, coaching and managing distributed field teams.
- Structured
problem-solving and the ability to operate in an evolving, build-as-you-go
program environment.
- Excellent written and
verbal communication in English and Marathi/Hindi.
- Willingness to travel
extensively within Maharashtra to ITI clusters and district offices.
- Relationship - Oriented
- Proactive and Self - driven
- Adaptable and resilient
- Strong ownership and accountability
About Lend A Hand India
: Lend A Hand
India (LAHI) is a leading
national Think Tank/NGO with over 20 years of
experience in strengthening India’s skill and vocational
education ecosystem. LAHI works closely with 20+ State and UT
governments through long-term partnerships, providing
technical advisory and Project Management Unit (PMU)
support to drive systemic reforms.
- Direct
implementation in schools
- Partnership with
central-state governments to define, and scale
policy
- Building of Centres
of Excellence that act as lighthouses for innovation
- Resource
organisation for the skilling ecosystem
Through the design
& execution of innovative models from training
centres, innovation hubs to mobile outreach initiatives,
LAHI’s innovative knowledge resource drives both
grassroots learning and systemic transformation across
India. With 250+ LAHI staff embedded in state education
systems across 20+ states, we provide technical and
project management support, enabling governments to translate
policy into action.
LAHI’s current
scale of work includes -
- 20+ States and UTs
- 15000+ Schools
- 15 Lakh+ Students
- 250+ Team Members
