Program Associate – ITI | Youth Program
Location: Ujjain – MP
About Quest Alliance:
At Quest Alliance, we transform learning ecosystems through education technology, capacity building, and collaboration to build 21st-century skills for learners and facilitators.
We are a not-for-profit trust that focuses on research-led innovation and advocacy in the field of teaching and learning. We engage with educators, civil society, government institutions, and corporate organizations to demonstrate and enable scalable and replicable solutions in school education and vocational training.
At Quest, you will get the opportunity to apply your skills and contribute to addressing issues around quality education and skills training. The organization gives you the space to learn and grow in a fun and engaging environment. We have an eclectic group of people working at Quest drawn from diverse disciplines, including Education, Technology, Design, Youth Development, and Business.
About Role
QUEST Alliance is looking for a proactive and committed Program Associate – Ujjain Zone to lead Youth Program interventions across Government ITIs of the Ujjain zone in Madhya Pradesh.
As a Program Associate, you are more than a zonal implementation lead — you are a key driver of change within your zone. You will help shape how learners, trainers, and institutes experience QUEST Alliance programs by bringing local insights, contextual understanding, and field realities into implementation planning, facilitation approaches, and stakeholder engagement.
The Program Associate will work closely with Government ITIs, zonal directorates, district stakeholders, trainers, principals, and ecosystem partners to ensure effective implementation of program interventions and MoU commitments across the Ujjain zonal ITIs of Madhya Pradesh State. The role will focus on strengthening interventions related to Meaningful Career Transitions & Industry Engagement, Trainer Development and Capacity Building, Employability Skills and Future Skills Integration, Digital Learning Adoption through MyQuest App, Institutional Mainstreaming and Ownership, Principal Leadership Program, and Change Projects within the ITI ecosystem.
This role requires strong facilitation skills, government liaisoning abilities, stakeholder management, polite communication, negotiation skills, planning abilities, and a solution-oriented approach to work effectively within the Government ITI ecosystem. The Program Associate will work closely with zonal directorates, institute stakeholders, thematic teams, and the reporting manager to ensure high-quality implementation, monitoring, documentation, and sustainability of interventions across the zone.
Key Responsibilities
Program Implementation and Quality
- Ensure effective rollout of the Youth Program across assigned model, nodal, and Government ITIs in the Ujjain zone with a systemic mainstreaming lens in coordination with zonal directorates and institute stakeholders.
- Develop operational plans and implementation roadmaps aligned with program timelines, quality standards, deliverables, and targets.
- Conduct regular visits to allocated ITIs to monitor implementation progress, provide handholding support, facilitate demo sessions, and strengthen institute ownership of interventions.
- Anchor and support implementation of QUEST interventions across the Ujjain zonal ITIs of Madhya Pradesh State.
- Collaborate with the Reporting Manager to review implementation processes, track progress, identify challenges, and adapt implementation strategies based on field realities.
- Identify implementation risks proactively and ensure timely mitigation strategies to maintain continuity and quality of program delivery.
- Support institutes in gradually becoming independent and self-sufficient in implementing Employability Skills and QUEST interventions.
- Ensure effective implementation and monitoring of Principal Leadership Programs and institutional Change Projects within identified ITIs.
- Facilitate Student Hub formation and strengthen institute ownership to promote learner leadership, participation, and peer engagement.
- Support meaningful career transition initiatives through industry engagement, placement readiness, exposure opportunities, and learner-centered interventions.
- Collaborate with placement teams to support placement targets, especially in nodal and women ITIs.
- Hold and manage day-to-day implementation operations with reliability, responsiveness, accountability, and alignment to QUEST Alliance values and priorities.
Employability Skills Delivery and Facilitation
- Plan and facilitate structured demo sessions for learners and facilitators focused on employability skills, life skills, career readiness, AI awareness, green skills, and future skills.
- Ensure 100% onboarding of facilitators and learners on the MyQuest App and ensure regular access to QUEST digital content. & Support learner engagement and completion targets by ensuring at least 70% learner completion on the MyQuest App.
- Organize monthly Kaushal Samwad meetings with Master Trainers and provide handholding support for conducting district-level Kaushal Samwad activities.
- Lead trainer development and engagement activities to strengthen the capacity of ITI trainers for effective implementation of Employability Skills curriculum and related interventions.
- Guide trainers and institute teams towards self-sufficiency in delivering Employability Skills curriculum, career readiness modules, and digital learning practices.
- Lead or co-facilitate Training of Trainers (ToTs), workshops, orientation sessions, and other capacity-building programs ensuring high-quality facilitation and learner-centered approaches.
- Support trainers in planning and conducting sessions related to employability skills, career readiness, life skills, AI awareness, green skills, and future skills.
- Provide continuous mentoring, feedback, and implementation support to trainers and institute stakeholders.
- Support contextualization of content, session planning, TOTs, and institute engagement strategies based on zonal geographical needs and field realities.
- Facilitate career readiness interventions under Meaningful transition and industry engagement such as resume building sessions, mock interviews, guest lectures, exposure visits, market scans, OJT coordination, pre-placement, placement, and post-placement engagement activities.
- Improve and promote inclusive environments within ITIs and support implementation of gender-related and inclusion-focused activities across the zone.
Partnership Building, Management and Capacity Building
- Build and sustain strong working relationships with Government ITIs, trainers, principals, district officials, zonal directorates, industries, and ecosystem stakeholders in the Ujjain zone.
- Act as the key point of contact for institutes in the allocated zone.
- Ensure effective communication, coordination, and collaboration with thematic teams including placement, training, documentation, data, and technology teams.
- Support donor visits, stakeholder visits, review meetings, and government engagements with relevant field insights and implementation data.
- Strengthen institute-level ownership and engagement for long-term sustainability of interventions.
- Facilitate collaborative planning and review discussions with institute leadership teams and stakeholders.
- Support industry engagement initiatives to strengthen meaningful career transitions and learner opportunities.
- Maintain professional, polite, and solution-oriented communication with all stakeholders.
Communication and Documentation
- Ensure timely and accurate submission of reports, implementation updates, and communication records.
- Maintain documentation of program activities including session reports, case studies, success stories, photographs, and learner/trainer engagement records.
- Submit comprehensive monthly and quarterly implementation reports highlighting progress, achievements, challenges, risks, and impact stories.
- Ensure institutes and stakeholders are regularly informed about program progress, activities, and implementation updates.
- Support documentation requirements during donor visits, reviews, and stakeholder engagements.
Data Management, Monitoring and Evaluation
- Ensure student engagement, progression, completion, and outcome data are regularly updated in the central database.
- Support monitoring and evaluation activities including baseline, endline, assessments, and review processes.
- Use appropriate monitoring and reporting tools effectively and ensure data quality standards are maintained.
- Ensure all relevant data, reports, and monitoring formats are submitted within agreed timelines.
- Analyze implementation data and support review discussions for continuous program improvement.
- Ensure documentation and evidence of program impact are maintained through structured monitoring systems.
Self-Learning, Team Collaboration and Organizational Contribution
- Invest in continuous self-learning and understanding of the skilling ecosystem, vocational education, employability, future skills, AI, green skills, and organizational priorities.
- Work collaboratively with zonal and state teams to strengthen implementation quality and innovation in program delivery.
- Demonstrate openness to QUEST Alliance’s implementation model, values, and ways of working.
- Contribute creative ideas, new strategies, and innovative approaches for learner engagement, institute strengthening, and intervention planning.
- Participate actively in team meetings, reviews, training programs, and organizational learning spaces.
- Adhere to all HR, finance, safeguarding, and organizational policies of QUEST Alliance.
Required Skills and Competencies
- Strong facilitation and training skills
- Government stakeholder management and liaisoning
- Communication and negotiation skills
- Relationship building and networking abilities
- Planning and organizational skills
- Problem-solving and decision-making abilities
- Documentation and reporting skills
- Ability to work independently and collaboratively
- Adaptability and solution-oriented thinking
- Understanding of vocational education and skilling ecosystem
- Basic proficiency in MS Office and digital platforms
- Willingness to travel extensively within the Ujjain zone and outside when needed
Employee Benefits:
- Comprehensive Personal Accident Insurance covering up to Rs.10,00,000 annually
- Mediclaim Insurance covering up to Rs.3,00,000 annually, supported through our insurance partner
- Reach for the Stars (RFS) amount of up to Rs.5,000 to support your self-learning and knowledge-building efforts
- Internet allowance of up to Rs.750/month, reimbursable based on actual usage to support flexible and hybrid working arrangements
- For employees with children under the age of 6 years, Quest offers childcare or day care fee support through a monthly matching contribution of up to Rs.3,000, helping you create a supportive work-life balance
- Access to emotional health and wellbeing programs such as:
- Group sessions worth Rs.7,500 per session fully covered by the organization
- 1:1 counselling session (worth Rs.1,800 per session), fully covered by the organization
Salary: The pay band for the position starts at Rs. 32,000/- per month (cost to company)
At Quest Alliance, we pride ourselves on being an Equal Opportunities employer, embracing applications from all segments of the community. We are committed to ensuring that every applicant and employee is treated with fairness and respect, regardless of gender, sexual orientation, marital status, social status, caste, religious belief, age, or any other factor that is irrelevant to performance. Your individuality is valued and respected within our organization.
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