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Monitoring & Evaluation and Learning Manager - Nigeria

Maiduguri | Abuja

  • Organization: Mercy Corps
  • Location: Maiduguri | Abuja
  • Grade: Mid/Senior level - Mid/Senior - Internationally recruited position
  • Occupational Groups:
    • Education, Learning and Training
    • Monitoring and Evaluation
    • Managerial positions
  • Closing Date: Closed

About Mercy Corps

Mercy Corps is a leading global organization powered by the belief that a better world is possible.
In disaster, in hardship, in more than 40 countries around the world, we partner to put bold solutions
into action — helping people triumph over adversity and build stronger communities from within.
Now, and for the future.

Program / Department Summary

Mercy Corps has been present in Nigeria since 2012, focusing its interventions on adolescent girls' empowerment, economic development and conflict mitigation. With the insurgency spilling over from the Northeast of Nigeria and causing displacement of millions of individuals, Mercy Corps started its humanitarian response in 2014 to address the rising humanitarian needs. With funding from institutional donors, foundations and private corporations, Mercy Corps continues to provide assistance to meet the basic needs of vulnerable populations in the areas of food security, shelter, water and sanitation, protection, and livelihoods.

With the recognition of the protracted crisis in Northeast Nigeria, Mercy Corps' strategy and expansion plans aim to address the root causes of the crisis and seek to build long term resilience of communities with integrated programs focusing on the recovery of markets and livelihoods, social cohesion and social protection, and youth empowerment with emphasis on adolescent girls and boys. With multiple funding streams from large institutional donors and foundations, Mercy Corps' programs in Northeast Nigeria continue to scale up and serve communities by transitioning them from humanitarian aid to early recovery programs.

General Position Summary

The Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEaL) Manager is a key position of the Northeast portfolio. This position is directly responsible for designing and delivering the Monitoring & Evaluation functions and building the capacity of the national team to assume responsibility for the implementation of those functions. The MEaL Manager is responsible for playing a lead role in strategy discussions and program implementation and providing technical assistance on monitoring and evaluation to each program component. S/he will be responsible for cross-cutting programmatic information management, monitoring and evaluation, ensuring that information collected is reflected upon, used to improve ongoing activities, and is incorporated into consistently high quality reports. More than just measuring results, the programs' monitoring and evaluation systems are an integral part of project planning and allow strategic and informed management of interventions.

Essential Job Responsibilities

SYSTEM DEVELOPMENT

  • Lead the development of Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEaL) system that serves the needs of the overall early recovery and development programs in Northeast Nigeria- both for portions implemented by Mercy Corps and for the local partners where applicable
  • Create and maintain program database, conduct analysis, prepare reports and ensure utilization and learning.
  • Create effective and easy to use tools and processes to facilitate project monitoring, and train MC, partner and municipal staff on MEaL tools and procedures.
  • Work with Program team and partners to ensure monitoring and evaluation instruments, are effective and being used appropriately.
  • Play a central role in supporting the baseline, external mid-term evaluation and final evaluation as well as lead the design, field-testing, data collection and analysis of any additional evaluation initiatives required.
  • Implement a monitoring and evaluation plan that includes clearly defined performance indicators designed to measure the project's expected results.
  • Implement a plan to monitor and verify compliance with leverage requirements.
  • Implement a plan to collect baseline data for each performance indicator before the project starts.

Technical oversight

  • Contribute to program implementation to ensure adherence to Mercy Corps, donor and international standards, including the use of standardized indicators and documentation methodologies
  • Lead the institutionalization of learning in the program structure by supporting the program team to develop results chains, monitoring systems and feedback loops that enable frequent and regular learning sessions and periodic activity redesigns
  • Support community accountability mechanisms at field level by promoting complaints and feedback mechanisms and ensure that activities are carried out according Mercy Corps Humanitarian Principles and policies
  • Work with technical sector managers to develop specific sector log frames and sector toolkits.
  • Provide leadership and training in the development of the Plan, tools, survey design, methodology, data analysis, and other services as may be required for program monitoring and evaluation
  • Assist in the recruitment of competent MEaL program staff and organize the program team to perform MEaL activities
  • Build the capacity of all relevant team members and program partners' staff to develop and maintain an excellent MEaL system, including the periodic reflection and analysis of program monitoring data
  • Ensure that the four main local partners achieve robust MEaL systems and management that feed into the main CSP MIS, and providing orientation to more than a dozen other partners receiving support from the program
  • Provide guidance, recommendations, supervision, and leadership to ensure that the MEaL systems meet the needs of programs, managers, and senior leadership
  • Address shortfalls in monitoring, evaluation and information management that affect program implementation

Team Management

  • Create and sustain a work environment of mutual respect where team members strive to achieve excellence.
  • Promote accountability, communicate expectations and provide constructive feedback via regular performance reviews.
  • Supervise, hire and orient new team members as necessary.
  • Provide team members with information, tools and other resources to improve performance and reach objectives.
  • Contribute to country team-building efforts, help team members identify problem-solving options and ensure the integration of all team members into relevant decision-making processes.
  • Facilitate trainings and regular coaching sessions to ensure all program staff are concurrent with MEaL systems, tools and methodologies
  • Strengthen the capacity all staff's understanding of and contribution to the MEaL.

Finance & Compliance Management

  • Ensure compliance with donor and Mercy Corps regulations related to emergency programming.
  • Draft and/or review scope of work to hire and manage any technical consultants, including review for technical efficacy and contract budget.

Influence & Representation

  • Provide leadership to ensure that monitoring and evaluation systems amongst all implementers are well coordinated, allowing for comparison of data across individual sub-grants and compilation of data for the program as a whole
  • Ensure that the partnership of program agencies can conduct meaningful analysis of collected data and incorporate findings into implementation
  • Document and disseminate key findings from program studies and evaluations in accessible forms that can influence program design and donor and policy makers' priorities
  • Participate in program planning and review workshops and meetings

Security

  • Ensure compliance with security procedures and policies as determined by country
  • Proactively ensure that team members operate in a secure environment and are aware of policies.

Organizational Learning

  • As part of our commitment to organizational learning and in support of our understanding that learning organizations are more effective, efficient and relevant to the communities they serve, we expect all team members to commit 5% of their time to learning activities that benefit Mercy Corps as well as themselves.

Accountability to Beneficiaries

  • Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically
    to our beneficiaries and to international standards guiding international relief and development work, while actively engaging beneficiary communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.

Supervisory Responsibility

MEaL function team staff based in Biu and Maiduguri.

Accountability

Reports Directly To: Director of Northeast Programs

Works Directly With: Operations, Finance, Program Managers, technical advisors, and others

Knowledge and Experience

  • University degree in a directly related field, such as International Development, Statistics, Economics, or Agriculture, with coursework in operations research, quantitative analysis, etc
  • Minimum 5 years of active MEaL work experience in development programming required; ideal candidate will have both theoretical and practical background in MEaL and skilled in qualitative and quantitative MEaL methodologies and techniques
  • Excellent computer skills, including experience with: Excel, PowerPoint, Epi-Info, Epi-Data, SPSS, Access, SQL, and any other statistical packages
  • Experience developing and working with MIS and GIS.
  • Experience with development and management of grants
  • Proven ability to work productively with a variety of stakeholders to run participatory processes and meet tight deadlines with an emphasis on producing quality products
  • Demonstrated ability to transfer knowledge to diverse audiences through training, mentoring, and other formal and non-formal methods
  • Previous experience of working in insecure environments (ideally including experience in an emergency response).
  • Experience managing national and international staff.
  • Must be able to work independently while being a strong team player.

Success Factors

The successful candidate will be conscientious, with excellent judgment and will display an entrepreneurial spirit that is both creative and flexible. S/he will combine strong communication skills, creativity, initiative, participatory leadership and tactful decisiveness to assist in the development and implementation of Mercy Corps' MEaL strategy. S/he will ensure products are on time and of the highest standard. Multi-tasking, prioritizing, problem solving and simultaneous attention to detail and strategic vision are essential. S/he must have the confidence and humility to work effectively with a large variety of people who will be diverse culturally, economically and in social status – as well as be sensitive to political and cultural nuance - be able to consistently apply excellent judgment to a variety of demanding and fast-changing situations while working as part of a team and coordinate with project personnel.

Living Conditions / Environmental Conditions

The position is based in Maiduguri, Borno State, Nigeria and it requires frequent travel to other field locations as well as Abuja. Considering the frequent travel from/to different field locations, this position will require flexibility in terms of accommodation and logistics. Housing in the field will be in hotels or guesthouses where available. Security in the field locations require additional vigilance and accessibility will be reassessed continuously. Access to good medical services in the field is limited. Phone communication, internet, electricity and water is available but might be erratic.

The location is eligible for hardship and R&R benefits. Given the nature of the response, working hours require flexibility and working through weekends/evenings might be necessary.

PI100130035

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