Programme Manager, International Science Partnerships Fund (Ispf), East Asia

As a valued employee of the British Council, you already help us deliver our mission to support peace and prosperity by building connections, understanding and trust between people in the UK and countries worldwide. For over 90 years we have shaped brighter futures through education, arts, culture, language, and creativity.

You are part of our organisation in over 200 countries and territories and where we are on the ground in more than 100 countries.

We connect. We inspire.

British Council Payband 6

Contract Type: Full time fixed term contract. The contract duration is extendable, subject to the availability of donor funding.

Start Date : Immediate Start to 31 March 2026

Location: This post will be open to applicants based in Indonesia, Malaysia, or Thailand

For internal candidates, it will serve as a lateral movement or temporary promotion, depending on the applicant's current payband.

Closing Date: 20th July 2025
There is no relocation or sponsorship support.

Role Purpose:

This role focuses on the implementation of the International Science Partnerships Fund (ISPF) programme primarily in Indonesia, Malaysia or Thailand (depending upon where the candidate is based) with additional global responsibilities.

Accountabilities/Responsibilities:

Relationship & Stakeholder Management

• Has relationships with delivery partners and stakeholders within country and is able to procure services and contract delivery partners.
• Identifies and engages with potential international partners, researchers and stakeholders in each of the countries involved to establish ISPF partnerships.
• Maintains effective communication and a good working relationship with in-country UK organisations and international partners. This includes providing regular updates, soliciting feedback, addressing concerns and responds to enquiries from stakeholders promptly, and involving them in decision-making processes when appropriate.
Works closely with in-country partner institutions/universities on any issues arising from funded activities.

Commercial and Financial Management

• Liaises with the ISPF Finance Lead to ensure alignment with the British Council’s financial system figures and reporting to DSIT.
• Ensure accurate and timely monthly forecasting is in place, by running regular reports in the SAP system on actuals, monitoring outstanding purchase orders, reviewing commitments, analysing and commenting on reasons for variances to plan and recommending corrective actions.
Ensure timely and accurate planning and forecasting, timely reporting of risks, including financial and identify opportunities and mitigation actions.

Programme and Pro ject Management

• Follows up with the Centre of Excellence and other key internal support teams (Finance, IGRM, Contract Management) as required to ensure adherence to project closure standards.
• Assists with the setting up and uploading/saving of key data to a central repository for core project documentation including lessons learned
• Works collaboratively with and supports country based colleagues and the UK-facing team to ensure consistency of approach and joined up ways of working, that reporting deadlines/RODA (Reporting ODA) are met and financial management systems/admin trackers and tools are managed effectively to record spend.
Uses digital platforms and technological advancements to improve efficiency, impact and quality of project delivery

Business Development

• Supports the identification and development of professional networks, relationships and partnerships to increase the British Council’s impact and reputation.
• Ensures high quality and accurate pipeline data for country/pillar.
Conducts specific pipeline and partner/competitor analysis to contribute to business development planning and prioritisation.

Role specific knowledge and experience:

Minimum / Essential Requirements

• Experience of managing projects from start to finish and familiarity with project life-cycles.
• Proven experience of managing project finances and managing documents.
• Experience working in project or programme management.
• Experience of using technology in project delivery.
Confident user of information technology (Word; Excel; PowerPoint), Microsoft 365 functionality and working knowledge of British Council SAP system (or similar software)

Desirable Requirements

• Working knowledge of British Council SAP system (or similar software)
Good understanding and experience of supporting monitoring and evaluation.

Education and Qualification

Language Requirement:

• The British Council systems and global processes operate in English. Written and verbal proficiency in English is required to CEF Level C1 English
• Local language native speaker / CEFR C1

A connected and trusted UK in a more connected and trusted world.

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Statement

We are committed to equality, diversity and inclusion and welcome applications from all sections of the community as we believe that a diverse workforce gives added depth to our work. The British Council is a Disability Confident Employer. The Disability Confident scheme helps challenge attitudes, increase understanding of disability and ensure staff are drawn from the widest possible pool of talent. We guarantee an interview for disabled applicants who meet the minimum role requirements. We welcome discussions about specific requirements or adjustments to enable participation and engagement in our work and activities.

Safeguarding Statement

The British Council is committed to safeguarding children, young people and adults who we work with. We believe that all children and adults everywhere in the world deserve to live in safe environments and have the right to be protected from all forms of abuse, maltreatment and exploitation as set out in article 19, UNCRC (United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child) 1989. Appointment to positions where there is direct involvement with vulnerable groups will be dependent on thorough checks being completed in line with legal requirements and with the British Council’s Safeguarding policies for Adults and Children.

If you experience any difficulties with submitting your application, please email askhr@britishcouncil.org