Program Manager

The incumbent in this role is responsible for all techno managerial, financial, operational and administrative areas coming under the broader
Key Result Areas (KRAs)

relating to
:

1. Startup Incubation & Acceleration Services,
2. Innovation Grants & Startup Investments,
3. Open Innovation, Startup Accelerator and Ventures programs in partnership with Corporate/Government;
4. Governance, Reporting & Stakeholder Engagement for Govt/Corporate Funds,
5. Strategic initiatives around Market Access & Investor Connect,
6. Managing Program Operations - Events/MarComm, National Ecosystem Connect, and
7. General Administration.

In managing the comprehensive scope of outcomes and activities, the incumbent is expected to staff, train, and manage a team of competent program leads and program associates apart from playing the role of the authorised representative of the company's CEO to all external stakeholders in government and corporate across all the schemes/programs implemented by Forge. In this role the person shall be expected to be engaged (not concurrently but sequentially) in various programs implemented under:

1. Forge Incubation / Acceleration Programs
2. Forge.Fund (Innovation Grants & Startup Investments)
3. Forge.OI (Managed Corporate/Government Innovation & Ventures Programs)

Position & Designation

Grade - Manager or Sr. Manager

Role & Responsibilities - Key Result Areas

1.Forge Incubation / Acceleration Programs

1A. Implementation of Innovation & Venture Advisory & Consultation Services

• Manage the implementation of various value-added services and programmatic interventions necessary to deliver strategic advisory to startups in accelerating their technology, product, business, and venture outcomes;
• Facilitate effective utilization by startup founders of knowledge resources, methods and tools developed by Forge to aid better execution on innovation and venture development;
• Build, upgrade and maintain a diverse pool of accomplished mentors capable of providing strategic advisory to startups to strengthen their overall planning and execution towards achieving critical milestones in a predictable and accelerated manner;
• Manage the process of offering startup acceleration and advisory services in tight alignment with the process of setting, monitoring, and reporting milestones for all startups in the Forge portfolio, especially those offered innovation grants and startup investments;
• Manage the process of screening, evaluating and selecting the startups for the program, including the decisions relating to incubation agreement, success linked payback model etc.
• Directly responsible for all managerial and administrative aspects relating to the execution of contracts and collection of fees from startups under the  incubation agreements;

1B. Program Operations - MarComm, Ecosystem Connect

• Lead/support the effective planning and implementation of events, conferences, visits, startup demos, ecosystem meetups, and other forms of physical, digital or hybrid events required towards creating a strong pipeline of high-potential startups for the various grants and investments programs implemented by Forge;
• Manage end-to-end the entire planning process and lead the effective execution of plans for organising Demo Days and Demand Days;
• Anchor the implementation of various activities and deliverables coming under the purview of Marketing Communications relating to outreach campaigns, event collateral, social media promotions etc.

2.Forge.Fund (Innovation Grants & Startup Investments)

2A. Innovation Sandbox & Outreach/Activation for Innovation Challenges

• Contribute to the technical evaluation of problem statements and for translation of qualified problem statements from Industry/Government partners into Innovation Challenge Briefs, apart from managing the creation of videos and other promotional materials/collateral required for the launch and outreach of successive editions of Industrial Innovation Challenges to invite innovation grant applications/proposals from startups;
• Take the initiative for actively scouting for startups to apply for Innovation Challenges and other forms of formal call-for-applications for supporting startups incubated by Forge to submit winning applications/proposals;
• Manage the screening and shortlisting of startup applications from innovators/startups, the coordination and facilitation of Forge Innovation Council proceedings, including the scheduling of startup pitch & review sessions in accordance with the SOPs and guidelines/templates practised by Forge;

2B. Innovation Grants - Management & Administration

• Responsible for managing end-to-end the complete process of grant appraisal and diligence for startups approved for sanction by Forge Grants Committee (Forge Innovation Council), all the way through to the execution of grant agreements in accordance with the guidelines of the respective Govt/Corporate sponsor/scheme;
• Manage the end-to-end process of grant administration relating to monitoring, evaluating and reporting the milestone wise progress/performance of the startups in accordance with the guidelines formulated by Forge and meeting the expectations of the Govt/Corporate sponsor/scheme;
• Support the Forge Finance team in submitting all mandatory periodic reports to the Govt/Corporate sponsors in accordance with the stated expectations/guidelines in a timely manner;

2C. Startup Investments - Management & Administration

• Responsible for managing end-to-end the complete process of investment appraisal and diligence for startups approved for seed investments by Forge Investments Committee (Forge Investment Council), all the way through to the execution of investment agreements in accordance with the guidelines of the respective Govt/Corporate sponsor/scheme;
• Coordinating with the legal, financial and corporate affairs professionals engaged by Forge in the implementation of specific scope of work and SOPs in respect of individual investment transactions;
• Manage the end-to-end process of fund administration relating to monitoring, evaluating and reporting the milestone wise progress/performance of the startups in accordance with the guidelines formulated by Forge and meeting the expectations of the Govt/Corporate sponsor/scheme;
• Support the Forge Finance team in submitting all mandatory periodic reports to the Govt/Corporate sponsors in accordance with the stated expectations/guidelines in a timely manner;

2D. Fundraising

• Support the CEO driving fundraising initiatives for sourcing funds for innovation grants and startup investments through grants from Government schemes, CSR funds etc., including end-to-end process of documentation, submission, and presentation of proposals on behalf of the company's CEO as the delegated authority and authorised representative;

3.Forge.OI - Corporate/Government Innovation & Ventures Programs

3A. Fundraising & Deal Sourcing

• Support the CEO in actively prospecting seeding and nurturing opportunities for engaging startups in strategic open innovation initiatives with government public sector and corporate industrial sector;
• Responsible for end-to-end deal sourcing activities all the way from prospecting leads to signing of MOUs and execution of client engagement agreements, including end-to-end process of documentation, submission, and presentation of proposals on behalf of the company's CEO as the delegated authority and authorised representative;
• Support the CEO in driving fundraising initiatives for sourcing funds for program implementation through grants from Government schemes, CSR Funds etc. through constantly seeking out and pursuing opportunities with Govt. of India, Govt of Tamil Nadu, Top Corporates, Industry Associations etc.

3B. Program Governance

• Independently lead the end-to-end planning and implementation scope for 1 large/major corporate/government program, leading a team of 4-6 full-time employees in Forge apart from several external experts and consultants engaged in the program implementation;
• Own the responsibility for all deliverables, outcomes, and results relating to program implementation across areas covering Events, Client Stakeholder Management, Fundraising & Revenues, Business Development & Partnerships, General Administration, MarComm etc.
• Responsible for the overall program governance of the corporate/government programs assigned towards delivering outcomes and achieving results aligned with the expectations of the client and in accordance with the commitment offered by Forge on scope, scale, quality and timelines of the respective programs;
• Develop and implement strategies to maximise value gained by the client from startup engagements while ensuring the startups gain a major upside on multiple fronts through these engagements with the government/corporate partners;
• Manage efficient monitoring and reporting of the programs on monthly, quarterly and annual basis, coordinating directly with the executives/stakeholders of the clients on behalf of the CEO and other executives of Forge;
• Collect and analyse data about program implementation in a systematic and structured manner to identify and unlock areas for strategic value-addition and interventions, increasing productivity of program management teams assigned to individual programs, and driving performance improvements to accelerate execution;