What NGO teams do
Program teams plan activities against a logical framework agreed with donors, run them through field staff such as community mobilizers, health workers, teachers or livelihood coordinators, and report outputs every month. Monitoring and evaluation officers design indicators, collect data from the field, run baseline and endline surveys and write reports. Finance and compliance staff manage grant budgets, utilization certificates, the FCRA account where foreign funds are received, and audits. Fundraising and partnerships teams write proposals, manage CSR relationships and report to donors. Communications staff document stories and impact, and HR and admin handle contracts, travel and field logistics.
- Programs: program managers, project coordinators and field supervisors
- Field: community mobilizers, field workers, trainers and volunteers
- M&E: monitoring officers, data executives and research associates
- Support: finance and compliance, fundraising, communications, HR and admin
NGO structure at 50, 500 and 5,000 employees
A 50-person NGO usually has a founder or executive director, one or two program managers, project coordinators for each grant, field workers in the program villages, an accountant who handles grant finance and a part-time HR and admin person. The board of trustees meets every quarter. At about 500 employees, the NGO works in several states with state or regional program heads, thematic leads for areas such as health or education, a dedicated M&E team, a finance team with grant accountants, a fundraising and CSR partnerships team, and HR.
At 5,000 employees, typically a large national NGO or a foundation that runs schools, clinics or livelihood programs at scale, there is a CEO with directors for programs, finance, fundraising, HR and operations, state heads, district coordinators and thousands of field staff and community workers. Such organizations run structured training, internal audit, safeguarding and grievance systems, and program data platforms.
How program, finance and fundraising teams work together
Every rupee in an NGO comes with conditions, so program and finance teams must work from the same budget. Program managers plan activities within the approved budget lines, finance checks every expense against the grant agreement, and changes beyond the permitted variation go back to the donor for approval. Fundraising brings new grants but depends on programs for credible results and on M&E for evidence. HR handles contracts that end with the grant, field recruitment in remote districts, the POSH Internal Committee that any workplace with 10 or more employees must have, and safeguarding policies for work with children and vulnerable people.
Grant approvals and reporting lines
Field workers report to field supervisors or project coordinators, who report to the program manager, then the state or thematic head and the director of programs, who reports to the CEO or executive director, who reports to the board of trustees. Expenses are approved against the budget line: the project coordinator for small field spends, the program manager up to a set value such as ₹50,000, and the finance head and executive director above that. New grants, partnerships and changes to organizational policies need board approval. Leave for field staff is approved by the project coordinator once activities are covered, then by HR.
Typical NGO and social sector team structure
NGO and Social Sector designation hierarchy
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Book a free demoSee pricingFrequently asked questions
What is the hierarchy in an NGO?
NGO staff usually begin as volunteers, community workers or field workers and move up through field supervisor, project coordinator, program manager and state or thematic head to director and the executive director or CEO, who answers to the board of trustees or governing council. Finance, M&E, fundraising, HR and communications have their own managers under the leadership.
What does a program manager do in an NGO?
A program manager designs and runs a program or a group of projects. They plan activities and budgets with donors, lead project coordinators and field teams, track progress against targets and indicators, manage partners and government relationships, solve field problems, and write progress reports. They answer to the director of programs for results and for spending within the grant.
What is the difference between a project coordinator and a program manager?
A project coordinator runs one project, often tied to one grant and location: planning daily activities, supervising field staff, keeping records and reporting to the program manager. A program manager oversees several related projects, owns the program strategy and donor relationships, and manages the budget and team across locations.
Are NGO employees covered by labour laws?
Yes. People on an NGO's payroll are employees, so labour law applies to them as it does in any other establishment, subject to the usual thresholds: appointment letters, wage payment deadlines, PF and ESI where applicable, maternity benefit, gratuity, and a POSH Internal Committee once there are 10 employees. Staff hired for a grant period can be engaged on fixed-term contracts.