Country Manager Ukraine, International Counter-FIMI Programme

About Zinc Network

Zinc Network uses behavioural science and AI to address the toughest problems of our time. We do this with networks of local actors who help us advance meaningful, measurable change.

We have 50+ team members from diverse professional and cultural backgrounds, including democratic governance specialists, behavioural scientists, researchers, content producers, digital experts, and service designers. We work with a broad range of governmental, NGO, and private sector clients, including the UK Home Office (HO); the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO); UN agencies and missions; Microsoft; and the Internet Watch Foundation.

We conceptualise and create award-winning programmes, interventions, and campaigns that change the way that people think, feel, and act across a wide range of pervasive social issues, including disinformation and hate speech, violent extremism, poor governance, threats to children and young people's online safety, gender-based violence, and more.

The role

Zinc seeks a Country Manager for Ukraine for a forthcoming donor-funded programme that will strengthen partner countries' capabilities to understand, identify, and mitigate the threat posed by Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference (FIMI). This multi-country programme will design and deliver innovative activities and interventions with governments of partner countries, tailored to local requirements and based on existing partner capability. The position is contingent upon funding.

The Country Manager will be responsible for the day-to-day management and implementation of all programme activities within Ukraine, ensuring seamless delivery on time, within budget, and aligned with the overall project strategy. They will serve as the primary liaison between government stakeholders and the capacity-building team, whilst reporting to the Project Director on all strategic and operational matters.

Programme Objectives

Key Outcome: Strengthen partner governments' capability and capacity to counter FIMI

Key Deliverables: Deliver innovative and tailored change management, capacity-building and training activities for governments of partner countries, including but not limited to:

· Open-source research.

· Technical assistance on legislation development.

· Building relationships with social media and tech platforms.

· Developing strategic communication campaigns.

· Threat assessment methodologies.

· Delivering cross-border coordination mechanisms.

Key responsibilities

· Manage day-to-day implementation of capacity building interventions within Ukraine, ensuring delivery on time, within budget, and aligned with project strategy

· Establish and maintain relationships with key government officials, department heads, and technical staff

· Professionally represent Zinc Network to government partners, counterparts, donor agencies, and other programme stakeholders across multiple countries

· Facilitate effective communication and coordination between multiple government departments and agencies

· Support the development of locally relevant training materials and capacity building approaches

· Provide clear guidelines, responsibilities, and deadlines to all stakeholders involved in programme activities

· Coordinate with Zinc’s operations team on all logistical requirements, including venue bookings, equipment procurement, and travel arrangements

· Act as first point of contact for issue resolution and escalate matters to the Project Director as required

· Monitor progress against milestones and proactively identify and resolve implementation challenges

· Maintain comprehensive records of all activities, outcomes, and lessons learned

· Ensure compliance with Zinc Network’s processes, policies and procedures, including security protocols and safeguarding

Requirements

The ideal candidate

The Country Manager will be a highly organised and experienced professional with deep understanding of Ukraine's political landscape and FIMI threats. They must have demonstrated experience working with Ukrainian government stakeholders and a strong background in counter-disinformation efforts. We are looking for a natural relationship-builder who can navigate complex stakeholder environments whilst maintaining rigorous project management standards and delivering measurable results.

Qualifications:

· Bachelor's degree or higher in international relations, political science, public policy, communications, or related field

· Proven experience working in Ukraine with substantial government stakeholder engagement

· Proven project management experience, preferably with donor-funded programmes

· Demonstrated experience in advisory roles with government departments or agencies

· Strong background in counter-disinformation, information integrity, or related national security challenges

· Deep understanding of Ukraine's political landscape, media environment, and FIMI threat landscape

· Experience with capacity building programmes and coordinating multiple stakeholders

· Strong project management, analytical, and stakeholder relationship-building skills

· Experience with data collection, analysis, and performance monitoring systems

· Professional level fluency in Romanian and English (written and oral); Russian advantageous

What we can offer you

The opportunity to work with colleagues from a diverse range of professional and cultural backgrounds including the very best ex-diplomats, television producers, digital media strategists, linguists, researchers, and behavioural scientists from both the public and private sector.

Across Zinc Network there’s a commitment by everyone to deliver meaningful, change across all the subject areas, social challenges, and policy goals we’re striving to achieve.

Area of selection

We’re committed to hiring a diverse workforce from different professional and cultural backgrounds, and to that end we encourage a variety of people to apply to join our company to represent the diverse range of subjects associated with our projects.

Conditions of employment

Candidates who receive a job offer will be required to:

· Disclose any previous disciplinary action against them resulting from a substantiated safeguarding (including any breaches involving trafficking- related activities) or workplace investigation.

· Undergo background checks including employment verification, sexual offender registry, identity confirmation, and anti-terrorism vetting.

How to apply

Please include a CV showcasing how your background meets the position requirements. If you require an accommodation to be made at any point throughout the recruitment process, please let us know when contacted.