Impact At Scale Demands Strong Program Leadership

The Results-Based Program Management (RBPM) is a three-month certificate program that empowers professionals managing social development programs with the skills & capabilities to plan, track, and deliver lasting outcomes at scale.

Format: Virtual; Instructor-led live sessions
Duration: 70 hours over 3 months
Program fees: ₹60,000 + Taxes
The WHY

Because Resources Alone Don’t Create Outcomes

Every year, over $250 billion is committed in India to social development programs. Yet too often, programs struggle to translate investment into clear, measurable results. What determines results is how programs are designed, managed, monitored and adapted in complex, real-world contexts.

The RBPM certificate program was created to help organisations strengthen governance and compliance as everyday practice, not just policy—enabling them to scale with stability and trust.

Chirag Bariya
Cohort ‘22
“I joined this course after stepping into a Project Lead role. It helped me clearly define objectives, outcomes, and outputs, and taught me how to use frameworks to design result-focused strategies and processes. The timing was perfect—it guided me through that transition.”
Project Lead
,
International Innovation Corps
Jitesh Dhoot
Results Based Program Management, Cohort ‘23
“The faculty at ISDM brought together theory and practice in a way that was both inspiring and actionable, making it possible for me to reimagine how I lead and collaborate in my workplace.”

Associate Director
,
Udayan Care
Why Outcomes, Not Outputs

Many programs track activities or outputs like workshops held, or meals served. The results-based program management approach shifts the focus to outcomes: the real changes achieved in people’s lives.

Why Program Management

Strong programs don’t run on passion alone. They require planning, systems, coordination, data, and leadership that can hold complexity.

Why This Program

Many development sector professionals learn program management on the job—without structured frameworks, peer learning or sector-specific context.

This program provides that structure, grounded in the development realities of India.

Program Details

Building The Capability To Deliver Results

The RBPM certificate program blends conceptual clarity with applied learning over three months. The participants get to understand results-based approaches and apply them across the program lifecycle.

The program consists of four modules, each strengthening a core dimension of results-based program leadership.

Module 1
Envisioning RBPM For Development

This module introduces development paradigms and the logic of results-based approaches. Participants examine how RBPM differs from traditional program management and explore different typologies of results in social change initiatives.

Module 2
Designing Development Interventions

Participants learn to design interventions using systems thinking. The module covers Situation Analysis, Theory Of Change, Theory Of Action, and Program Theory Matrices that connect intent, strategy and outcomes.

Module 3
Managing The Program Lifecycle

This module focuses on applying RBPM across various stages while maintaining alignment between actions and results. The stages include program initiation, planning, resource allocation, budgeting, monitoring and evaluation, and closure.

Module 4
Leadership For Program Success

The final module builds leadership capabilities essential for program success. It includes stakeholder management, prioritisation, data-informed decision-making, team leadership, and communication.

BENEFITS

Who Should Apply

This program is designed for professionals who want to strengthen their program and project management skills within the development sector.

You should apply if you:

  • Aspire to or currently work in roles such as Program Manager, Project Coordinator, District Lead, State Head, or similar programmatic positions
  • Are engaged in or interested in program design, implementation, and coordination
  • Are ready to take on managerial responsibility within development programs
  • Want to strengthen core management skills, including planning, coordination, monitoring, and decision-making
  • Are looking for exposure to program management frameworks in the development sector

What You Will Gain

By the end of the program, you are equipped to design, manage and lead results-focused programs.

Graduates leave the program with:

  • A strong foundation in results-based program and project management
  • Improved managerial capability for program initiation, planning, implementation, and monitoring
  • Practical skills in stakeholder management, communication, and data-driven decision-making
  • A recognised credential supporting career progression in the development sector
  • Access to a peer community of development professionals
Cohorts

Learning With Peers Delivering Outcomes

Each cohort brings together professionals working across the development ecosystem including NGOs, foundations, CSR teams, social enterprises and international organisations.

Classroom discussions, group work and peer exchange are enriched by the varied contexts participants bring. It helps surface trade-offs, challenge assumptions and deepen understanding of what it takes to deliver results in real-world settings.

Top Sectors Represented

10%
Financial Services
30%
Healthcare
15%
IT Services
05%
Media
12%
Education

Companies Represented

Faculty & Partners

Simrita Kaur Takhtar
Bricoleur

Simrita is an educator with over 14 years of experience in teaching and curriculum development across diverse learning environments, including private, low-budget, government, and alternative schools. She has taught history and has extensive experience designing, implementing, and monitoring early and primary education curricula.

Her work includes training teachers and school leaders, leading multi-grade multi-level programs in government schools in Goa, and contributing to curriculum design for community schools in Ivory Coast. She has also developed instructional design and curriculum strategies with organisations such as Gubbachi, Guardians of Dreams, and Language Learning Foundation, and authored social science textbooks for publishers including Oxford University Press. Outside of work, she enjoys fostering cats, reading children’s literature, and aspires to live a zero-waste lifestyle.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/simrita-kaur-takhtar-68a238130
Sajit Ravindran Nair
Senior Manager - Digital

Sanjit has over 15 years of experience working in various social purpose organizations. He has worked in the domains of Education, Disability, Livelihood and Healthcare.

Previously, Sajit was a part of Resource Mobilization, and Program management for livelihood projects across 17 states in India. His expertise also includes initiating and managing Grants. He also maintains donor relationships with National and International Organisations.

As part of his current responsibilities, Sajit is working to build knowledge infrastructure in collaboration with other teams. He ensures that there are no bottlenecks in the transfer of knowledge to students. Sajit also maintains and helps evolve a functional 'Learning Management System’.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/sajit-nair-isdm
Naghma Abidi
Program Director, Academics

Naghma has approximately 25 years of experience of working and consulting with Social Purpose Organisations and teaching at reputed institutions. Currently, she is part of the founding team and board of Rubaroo, Hyderabad, Trustee of Had Anhad, Indore, and Director, Social Synergy Foundation, Mumbai. The first two organisations work with adolescents and young people to empower them to be active citizens, whereas the Social Synergy Foundation works with small and medium-sized non-profits in India.

Her field experience has strengthened her teaching both graduate and post graduate students in the Delhi School of Social Work, School of Planning & Architecture, Ambedkar University and University of Pittsburgh. Her forte is designing and facilitating learning experiences. Through her work with Pravah, she has mentored many young people and youth-led organisations across nations.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/naghma-abidi-418b2a15
Dr Garima Sharma
Manager - Content

Dr Garima Sharma has over 12 years of experience in the social development sector, with a focus on self-help groups (SHGs), micro-credit, and micro-financing. She has worked on implementing development projects with organisations such as UNDP, NABARD, and Rashtriya Mahila Kosh under the Ministry of Women and Child Development. Her work combines grassroots development practice with research and program design.

She has also been actively involved in academia, teaching at Delhi University and at the School of Continuing Education, IGNOU. At IGNOU, she contributed to developing a Diploma program in Event Management and a MOOC titled Communication and Extension for Sustainable Development.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-garima-sharma-20a993157

Enrolments Open For New Cohort

Build the capability to lead programs that deliver results

Two students studying in a classroom with a blackboard behind them featuring handwritten notes on diplomatic etiquette and two small flags on the desk.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who should be attending this program?

This program is designed for:

  • Professionals looking to build a career in program and project management, including roles such as Program Managers, Project Coordinators, District Leads, and State Heads.
  • Professionals interested in programmatic work who are ready to take on managerial responsibilities.
  • Individuals who want to strengthen their management and leadership skills in program and project environments.
How long is this program? (What is the program duration?)Is it online or offline?

The program runs for 3 months and includes 60 hours of learning. All sessions are conducted online through live, instructor-led classes.

How much is instructor led, how much is self learning?

70 hours of the program are instructor-led, which includes 8 hours of mentoring sessions. Participants are also expected to spend 12–15 hours on self-learning, including readings and preparation outside of class.

Are we required to do assignments? If yes, how will they happen?

Yes, participants are required to complete assignments during the program.

Assignments will include group-based discussions, calls, and collaborative activities. These tasks will be tied to the topics covered in each module and will be assigned throughout the program.

What is the pedagogy of learning from our peers?

Peer learning will take place through real-world, group-based projects where participants collaborate, exchange perspectives, and work together to solve practical challenges.

How will certification happen?

Participants will receive a certificate upon successfully completing all program requirements, including attendance, assignments, and participation in program activities.

What is the cost of the program? Is there any scholarship for the participants? If yes, what is the criteria?

Fee for this program is INR 60,000 (plus 18% GST).

FACULTY

Shantanu Tiwari Roderrizo

Founder, Boards4Change

Naghma has approximately 25 years of experience of working and consulting with Social Purpose Organisations and teaching at reputed institutions. Currently, she is part of the founding team and board of Rubaroo, Hyderabad, Trustee of Had Anhad, Indore, and Director, Social Synergy Foundation, Mumbai. The first two organisations work with adolescents and young people to empower them to be active citizens, whereas the Social Synergy Foundation works with small and medium - sized non-profits in India.Her field experience has strengthened her teaching both graduate and post graduate students in the Delhi School of Social Work, School of Planning & Architecture, Ambedkar University and University of Pittsburgh. Her forte is designing and facilitating learning experiences. Through her work with Pravah, she has mentored many young people and youth-led organisations across nations. She holds degrees in Clinical Psychology and Applied Development Psychology and doctorate in Psychology from Ambedkar University, Delhi

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