Senior Associate - Project Management and Coordination

Position Summary
To support the KAPSARC School of Public Policy (KSPP) in translating strategic priorities into actionable plans, monitoring performance, supporting institutional excellence initiatives, and enabling effective governance, reporting, and stakeholder coordination.

Major Accountabilities 
Strategy Implementation

•    Support KSPP leadership in translating strategic priorities into operational plans across relevant functions.
•    Coordinate planning inputs from multiple teams to ensure alignment with KSPP strategic objectives.
•    Monitor the implementation progress of strategic initiatives and highlight risks, dependencies, or deviations to management.
•    Support annual planning processes by consolidating input and preparing analysis to support decision-making.
Strategic Analysis 
•    Conduct internal and external strategic analysis to assess the environment in which KSPP operates and evaluate strategy and performance trends.
•    Identify gaps, risks, and improvement opportunities and support the development of recommendations for management.
•    Support the development and maintenance of a comprehensive strategy map, including objectives, KPIs, initiatives, risks, and change and communication considerations.
Performance Management
•    Support the development and cascading of objectives, KPIs, targets, and initiatives across KSPP.
•    Support the implementation and maintenance of data governance standards, including KPI definitions, data ownership, and data quality controls.
•    Track performance against approved plans and targets, analyze variances, and support timely corrective actions.
•    Facilitate cross-functional workshops to refine KPIs, targets, and initiatives, resolve definition disputes, and align on measurement
•    Manage the performance calendar and governance schedule, ensuring on-time delivery and adherence to standards.
•    Support the development of performance dashboards and standardized reporting packs; automate recurring reporting where possible to improve timeliness and accuracy.
•    Validate and certify KPI results prior to reporting by conducting data checks, reconciliations, flag data integrity issues and drive resolution.
Institutional Excellence
•    Support the development and implementation of frameworks, standards, and approaches that enhance organizational performance and alignment with strategic objectives.
Reporting 
•    Analyze information and prepare management reports and dashboards in a timely and accurate manner to meet requirements, policies, and quality standards, whilste maintaining confidentiality. 
Policies, Systems, Processes and Procedures 
•    Lead the documentation, standardization, and continuous improvement of key institutional processes.
•    Contribute to the design, implementation, and improvement of policies, systems, and procedures related to planning, performance, and governance.
•    Ensure alignment with KAPSARC policies, procedures, and applicable regulatory requirements.
Innovation and Continuous Improvement 
•    Identify opportunities to improve systems, processes, and practices through benchmarking and the adoption of best practices.
Related Assignments 
•    Perform any other duties required by the organization. 

Qualifications and Experience 
Recommended Qualifications and Years of Experience
•    Education: Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Management, or a related field 
•    Experience: 4-7 years of proven experience in strategy, planning, or performance management (or 2-5 years of experience with a Master’s degree). Experience in academic, policy, or research institutions is desirable.
•    Excellent writing and editing skills in Arabic and English.