Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) Manager

Job Title: Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) Manager

Sector: Evaluation & Learning

Employment Category: Fixed Term

Employment Type: Full-Time

Open to Expatriates: No

Location: Shire 3, Ethiopia

Job Description

Background

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises and helps people to survive and rebuild their lives. Founded in 1933, the IRC offers lifesaving care and life-changing assistance to refugees forced to flee from war or disaster. IRC has been working in Ethiopia since 1999 and is implementing integrated, community-managed programs aimed at improving the quality of lives and recovery of livelihood of the disaster-affected populations through promoting individual participation, strengthening institutions, and emergency response.

Position Overview

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) is looking for a dynamic, analytical, and highly motivated individual for the position of MEAL Manager to be based at Shire Field Office. The position requires an experience in NGO in design, management, monitoring, evaluation, and client responsiveness mechanisms, tracking systems/tools, M&E software and processes and setting client responsiveness mechanism in emergency, collect and respond for client’s feedback and compliant timely. The MEAL Manager contributes to the overall program quality through the coordination and implementation of enhanced monitoring and evaluation system, accountability, and learning strategies across all grants in the field office. The role holder is expected to respond for the growing MEAL need in the field office by providing guidance and direct support to the program team and MEAL team (MEAL officer and MEAL Assistances) on Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) Standards, Practices and Guidance.This position is based in Shire Field office and have frequent travels to the project intervention locations/sites (Refugee, IDP and host community etc..) to provide technical support. The MEAL Manager will report to the Field Coordinator and technically work closely with Country office MEAL unit to ensure the implementation of key MEAL activities in the field office.

Responsibilities

Leadership and Partnership

• Manage all technical aspects and actions of MEAL regarding the Field Office program, respond to program needs, foster high standards and practices for quality data, analysis, and reports. Enable accountability to clients, partners, and donors.
• Improve MEAL systems and approaches and foster learning.
• Represent IRC at technical meetings, forums, and other events & build partnership within IRC and other areas of expertise.
• Champion design, access, and use of data by leaders and partners for shared learning and evidence-based decision-making.
• Collaborate with MEAL teams within and outside IRC to support harmonization of MEAL systems and approaches, sharing capacity and experiences.

Technical Oversight

• Lead the MEAL system and processes for the field office programs in harmony with the MEAL Country and Global Strategy throughout the project cycle which include:
• Use learning, evidence, and data from previous projects to inform project proposal design.
• Develop logical frameworks, MEAL plans, digital data collection tools, processes for online data management.
• Establish and ensure timely data flow, quality checks, and audits, and updating of data visualization.
• Supervise MEAL field activities.
• Undertake regular analysis of monitoring data and work closely with CO MEAL unit and Field coordinator and managers to facilitate decision-making for real-time program adaptation.
• Produce quality reports and updating dashboards with key findings that foster learning and decision-making and share in project cycle management meetings and team meetings.
• Identify, detail, and share lessons learned to improve services and results for our clients.
• Engage in the design, method, and conduct of surveys such as baseline and end line, and the commission of evaluations in coordination with colleagues and partners.
• Advocate for and support the expansion of standard mobile data technology and online dashboard to enhance timeliness and quality of data collection, analysis, and visualization.
• Join and contribute to IRC’s effort in meeting its internal and external accountability commitments through the implementation of sound accountability, client feedback, and response mechanisms.
• Ensuring that the latest and most developed CR practices are in place in the field office and client feedback are systematically collected, recorded, analyzed, and utilized for program adaptation, learning and to inform future program designs and decision making.
• Ensure that all projects’ Indicators are tracked and reported on a monthly basis into the field office BOX database and regularly monitor the project performance against target and give update for the field program team and GU as required.
• Contribute to the greater sharing and use of data (including client feedback data), research and learning within the field office, to ensure interventions are responsive to needs and informed by a sound understanding of the humanitarian context in project intervention area.
• Capture, Store and share/disseminate key findings from monitoring, assessment, and other learning activities and organize and support culture of learning in the field office that is focused on using data for making programmatic and evidence-based decisions.

Human Resources

• Coordinate, lead, mentor and support a dynamic small to medium team of MEAL staff in the field office; foster timely and high-quality achievement, and an inclusive and respectful team climate.
• Promote the growth and development of others in IRC teams and partners in MEAL: Lead and craft high-quality technical training and learning materials for partners, colleagues, and junior staff.
• Participate in the recruitment and onboarding of Field Office MEAL officers, assistants, and (if relevant) external consultants.

KEY WORKING RELATIONSHIPS:

• Position Reports directly to Shire Field Coordinator and work closely with Country MEAL unit.
• Position directly supervises: MEAL Officer and MEAL Assistances in the field office

Other Internal And/or External Contacts

• Internal: Field Coordinator, Program/project Managers throughout the Field office
• External:Partner MEAL staff; Clients, supervise external consultants in partnership with technical team in the ground (if relevant).

Qualifications

Education

• A Minimum of bachelor’s degree in a relevant field (Such as: Development studies, social sciences, Statistics, Economics, public health and/or other relevant fields of study) – technical degree together with additional relevant work experience may substitute for education.

Work Experience

• A Minimum 4 years of working experience in Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning-related functions.
• Technical skills in setting up quality MEAL processes and creating logical frameworks and data analysis that leads to learning and action.
• Proficiency and experience with mobile data collection such as Kobo, Commcare, ODK Collect is vital as well as proficiency with Microsoft Excel, SPSS, STATA, or other similar software. Knowledge of Tableau, PowerBi, or GIS software tools are additional assets.
• Demonstrated analytical, systematic-thinking, and problem-solving skills.
• Proven ability to transfer knowledge to diverse audiences through training, mentoring, and other formal and non-formal methods together with presentation and reporting skills are a strong asset.
• Ability to lead, mentor and empower a small to medium professional MEAL team.
• Self-motivated with good organization, planning skills, including prioritizing work and multi-tasking.
• A strong understanding of accountability and proven ability to build Client Feedback Systems.

Personal Specifications

• Ability to work under pressure, long working hours, and high workload.
• Ability to independently organize work and prioritize tasks.
• Self-motivated, honest, highly responsible, and punctual.
• Ability to work both independently and as part of a team.

Professional Standards: The IRC and IRC workers must adhere to the values and principles outlined in IRC Way – Standards for Professional Conduct. These are Integrity, Service, and Accountability. In accordance with these values, the IRC operates and enforces policies on Beneficiary Protection from Exploitation and Abuse, Child Safeguarding, Anti Workplace Harassment, Fiscal Integrity Anti-Retaliation and Combating Trafficking in Persons.

Gender Equality: IRC is committed to narrowing the gender gap in leadership positions. We offer benefits that provide an enabling environment for women to participate in our workforce including parental leave, gender-sensitive security protocols, and other supportive benefits and allowances

Equal Opportunity Employer: IRC is an Equal Opportunity Employer. IRC considers all applicants on the basis of merit without regard to race, sex, color, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, disability, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.