Executive Director – Prospect Burma

Executive Director – Prospect Burma

What Prospect Burma Does

Prospect Burma is a small UK registered charity which exists to help the education of Burmese citizens who will promote democracy in their homeland. It fulfils this mission by granting scholarships for tertiary level studies at educational institutions outside Burma, and by supporting educational projects, both inside and outside Burma.

Job Summary

The Executive Director is responsible to the Board of Trustees for making policy recommendations, implementing Board decisions, and organising the day to day management of the charity. He/she leads a team of three part-time staff, the others comprising the Development Director and a General Assistant. They are supported by the Treasurer, and they cooperate closely with Trustees, especially the Vice Chairman, and volunteers who contribute to the work of the charity.

K ey duties

· Liaison with the Chairman and other Trustees on policy

· Planning and organising the annual cycle of scholarship awards together with the Vice Chairman (who chairs the scholarships sub-committee)

· Working with the Development Director on fundraising and public relations activities

· Taking a leading role in maintaining relations with major donors

· Assessing and taking action on project proposals

· Planning and implementing the administration of the charity

· Budgeting and planning financing with the Treasurer

· Organising and recording trustee meetings

· Making annual reports to the Charity Commission and ensuring compliance with charity law

Required Skills, Knowledge a nd Abilities

A: Experience

i) Essential

· A track record in management, including financial management

· Working with governance systems

· Working with email, word processing, spreadsheets and databases

ii) Highly Desirable

· Active experience of charity work

· Academic assessment

· Fundraising methods

iii) Desirable

· Work in developing countries and specifically in Burma

· Work with academic institutions

· Administering websites

B : Knowledge

· Legal & moral obligations of charities and their Trustees

· Tertiary level educational systems

C: Abilities

· Strategic thinking

· Effective communication

· Leadership

· Hands-on and adaptable working methods

T erms of Service

They are negotiable. The present Executive Director works a three day week, with the option of operating from home for one of them. His salary is ￡18,000 pa which carries no pension or formal holiday entitlements.

Main Operations

Scholarships

The scholarship awards system operates on an annual cycle.

We invite applications at the beginning of the calendar year, to be submitted by 31 March. On receipt the applications (numbering between 850 and 1000 a year) are registered on spreadsheets, sorted by countries of study (mainly Thailand & India) and by educational institutions. A small Scholarships Committee, led by Prospect Burma’s Vice-Chair, assesses the applications according to established criteria. When students are selected for scholarships the Executive Director issues a formal grant letter to each successful candidate, which they must sign to confirm that they will abide by the charity’s terms. Payment of Grants are made in most cases by international bank transfer, or by cheque for scholars at universities in the UK.

The whole process entails close cooperation with our representatives in Thailand and India, who collate applications for study in their countries, offer advice to the Executive Director, and act as our paying agents for grantees in their regions. We deal directly with Burmese students studying elsewhere in the world.

Projects

The Executive Director maintains administrative oversight and funding of ongoing projects (including an English language teaching school for Burmese in Delhi, and a teacher training project in Northern Thailand). He/she assesses new project proposals.

Fu nd raising

Fundraising and publicity is primarily the responsibility of the Development Director, who edits and despatches the twice-yearly newsletter, manages the website, organises fundraising events, applies to grant-giving Trusts and other institutions, and interacts with donors and supporters. But the Executive Director leads on relations with the US State Department, our principal funder, and with some other major donors

Management & Administration

Running costs are deliberately kept to a minimum, which is reflected by the small number of paid staff. Consequently, the Executive Director has overall responsibility not only for implementing broad strategy but also for day-to-day management tasks including maintaining agreements, paying bills, keeping a cash flow record, preparing budgets and dealing with a range of general queries. He/she works closely with the Treasurer (who banks donations and other deposits, prepares the official accounts, and maintains Gift Aid records).

The Executive Director is responsible for preparing the Annual Report, which must be submitted to the Charity Commission and published on the website.

March 2010