Job Description

About the job Program Lead - Food Systems, India
Summary
Our partner organization is looking for a strategic leader to drive their new Food System program in India, focused on building climate-aligned, sustainable food value chains. Their goal is to increase private sector demand for sustainable and responsible food value chains in India. Based in New Delhi, this role will shape their strategy, lead high-impact partnerships particularly in the rice and dairy sectors and build a multi-stakeholder coalition to accelerate private sector action. You will work closely with businesses, policymakers, and civil society to deliver systemic change, while collaborating with our global teams.
The partner organization drives climate action. Fast. Their goal is a world of net zero carbon emissions by 2050, with greater prosperity for all. They focus on systems with the highest emissions and where their networks have the greatest opportunity to drive change. They do this by building large and influential networks and holding organisations accountable, turning their commitments into action.
About the Role:
Their Food System program aims to catalyse systemic private sector action sustainably in India's food sector. It will do so by creating a credible evidence base of industry action, engender programmatic alignment between institutions operating in this space, and by enabling greater impetus for voluntary corporate commitments. Among allied industry sectors in the Food System, there will be a special focus of engagement with rice and dairy sector companies as well.
An immediate objective is to create a multi-stakeholder coalition of mutually reinforcing partnerships and commitments that will enable higher ambition and action from the private sector, while also protecting the environment, improving food nutrition and addressing livelihood impacts caused due to such changes in our food system. The role will facilitate high-level CXO/ CSO dialogues through meetings and workshops for deepening engagement with the private sector, and with the public sector actors. It will leverage ongoing research and existing knowledge to refine our strategies and establish partnerships with key stakeholders. It will involve the designing of and convening the multi-stakeholder coalition platform, securing industry partnerships from major food companies, and establishing monitoring mechanisms to measure impact and enhance transparency.
Towards building the coalition, the role will work with team of associates, a project manager and a research organisation partner. Besides driving strategies for extensive industry engagement with food companies in the value chain, the responsibilities also entail evaluating sustainability reports, India's Business Responsibility and Sustainability Reporting (BRSR) mandates and the evolving nature of Environment Social and Governance (ESG) imperatives, examining global and domestic standards/frameworks, and establishing a governance structure for the coalition.
Cultivating philanthropic relations, expanding programmatic work and nurturing the growth of the Food System team in India are some of the key responsibilities. They are building our new program on Food, and are hoping to emulate the journey of RE100, EP100, EV100, SteelZero and ConcreteZero. This is an India-focussed role.
Key Responsibilities:
The role will report to the Director of Systems Change in India and shall work closely with our global lead on Food System. Your key activities will include:
Project Management & Delivery

• Lead the Food program in India to ensure timely delivery of project milestones and deliverables, financial reporting and budget forecasting, and operational plans. Providing mentorship to the team in delivering our projects effectively, and in guiding them in their development is key to this job role.
• Manage relationships with internal stakeholders in India and globally, including regular program reviews and reporting.
• Maintain relationships with external stakeholders such as India-based partners including industry associations, NGOs, think-tanks for effective delivery of our projects.
• Contribute to organizational knowledge through market research, articles and blogs.

Program Development & Strategy

• Develop and expand our strategy with new ways of corporate engagement and advocacy, including engagement with industry associations, coalitions, CSOs, NGOs, research and think-tank organizations, and other industry-facing programs.
• Lead the Food System team to drive corporate outreach, engagement, membership design, while liaising with global teams.
• Cultivate positive relationships and communication with businesses to maximize their involvement in our work and leverage it for new membership design for the Food System in India.
• Conduct and lead regular meetings between senior members of partner organizations.
• Provide predictive and analytical advice on key issues on energy, climate policy and the interconnected role of businesses. Provide regular briefings and represent Climate Group at key leadership forums.

Develop researched material, prepare regular policy briefs and develop or refurbish existing toolkits and templates for effective engagement in our ongoing projects. * Develop the team for thought-leadership and build organizational capacities.
Fundraising & Finance

• Develop new concepts whilst ensuring resources are in place to implement India strategy, while also collaborating with the global fundraising team for new project and program development.
• Lead the team to support maintaining funder relations not just through impactful project delivery, but also with regular check-ins and ideation meetings.
• Drive timely financial reporting and budget forecasting related projects.
• Working with internal teams to ensure timely payment of financial commitment from donors, payments to vendors, and monetary contributions from companies.

Communication & Events

• Lead the team in delivering impactful meetings, workshops and conferences.
• Work with the India and global teams to ensure that communications and events align and support the aims of the project and the teams mission.
• Support effective external communication of the programs and their impacts through articles, blogs, X feeds, LinkedIn, etc. with support from India and global Communications teams.
• Represent the organization when required to external stakeholders in conference calls and conferences.

About You:
The partner organization is looking for a strategic, mission-driven leader with a strong track record in program development, stakeholder engagement, and team management. You're passionate about climate action , and ready to drive change at scale.
You possess an academic foundation in food systems, value chains, or food technology, complemented by relevant research or analytical experience with a focus on climate, sustainability, or developmental impact. You have a demonstrable understanding of the food system in India or globally and have engaged with businesses to support transitions toward more sustainable practices.
Your professional background includes working with food producers or processing companies such as those in the dairy, rice, or related sectors and collaborating with public institutions or government stakeholders. You approach complex challenges with a systems lens and are adept at building cross-sectoral partnerships to drive meaningful outcomes.
They value strengths and the desire to learn if you meet the majority of the criteria listed below, please apply.
Essential:

• Strategic thinker with experience in program design and delivery
• Strong private sector engagement skills, especially at senior levels
• Proven leadership and team management experience
• Excellent communication and relationship-building abilities
• Ability to work independently and manage complex projects
• Analytical mindset with a problem-solving approach
• Commitment to the organization's mission

Desirable:

• Experience in understanding broader climate and sustainability
• Familiarity with ESG, BRSR, and corporate commitment campaigns
• Experience with advocacy, capacity building, or technical assistance
• Experience in developing knowledge products, webinars, and workshops.

Location:
You'll be based in our New Delhi office and will enjoy the benefits of flexible and hybrid working: 2 days in the office and 3 days from home.
The role will require occasional international travel.