Mercy Corps
***This position is subject to funding and donor approval of final candidate**
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 operating in Somalia since 2008. With a team of around 100 people and programs operating throughout the country, Mercy Corps’ overall goal is to build a peaceful and prosperous Somalia where all people feel secure, are economically empowered, and are meaningfully engaged. Mercy Corps’ current portfolio focuses on humanitarian response and resilience; inclusive economic growth; enhancing trust and accountability between communities and their government; and improving youth livelihoods and education opportunities. All Mercy Corps interventions in Somalia are implemented in a conflict- and gender-sensitive manner.
Mercy Corps is planning to submit a bid in response to a USAID opportunity for the Local Governance and Reconciliation Activity (LGRA). This will be a five-year activity of up to $40 million to promote more effective and legitimate local governance that offers a credible alternative to Al-Shabaab rule in southern Somalia through:
- supporting districts to prevent and manage conflict impartially and promote greater participation of citizens in decision-making, particularly among women, youth and historically marginalized communities.
- improving the performance – or effectiveness – of the Somali state by supporting districts to mobilize and manage resources, and identifying and responding to citizen priorities.
The Position
Mercy Corps is seeking a Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) Manager to provide overall leadership, coordination, and technical supervision for all MEL aspects of the LGRA. This position is expected to start in May 2023 and is contingent upon funding and donor approval.
Essential Responsibilities
TECHNICAL LEADERSHIP
• Develop, set-up, and oversee the program MEL system, including the Activity Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning Plan (AMELP) and research plans, MEL tools and technology, instrument design, data collection methodology and processes, data and information management systems, and data analysis to assess and share the impact of the program.
• Align the AMELP with Mercy Corps’ Global MEL Policy and Program Management Policy.
• Ensure the program uses the necessary MEL systems and tools to inform, improve, and feed into broader country-level MEL systems and strategy.
• Take the lead in aligning, collecting, analyzing, and reporting on program indicators (e.g., performance, operational, context, etc.) and community accountability and response mechanisms through the program’s MEL systems, including consortium partner systems, and other external systems as relevant.
• Support teams in collecting sex and age disaggregated data and using gender-sensitive, socially inclusive, and digital data collection methods to understand and respond to program results with diverse audiences, decision makers, and stakeholders.
• Lead development and operationalization of the program’s collaboration, learning, and adaptation strategy. Strengthen team capacity for collaboration, learning, and adaptation (CLA) including creating a culture of learning and systems thinking to stimulate an adaptive, iterative management approach.
• Lead the integration of community accountability and reporting mechanisms into the MEL system design.
• Design and facilitate regular, strategic planning sessions and learning events, assisting LGRA in a learning journey as well as development of its annual plans.
• Present program M&E results, research, and learning to external stakeholders and the program team in a way that influences decision-makers and promotes adaptations from learning.
INFORMATION MANAGEMENT
● Ensure that the MEL systems meet the data, evidence, and learning needs of the program and help address shortfalls in MEL, CLA, and data management that affect program implementation.
● Ensure adherence to Mercy Corps’ MEL Policy, including the use of TolaData, adherence to Mercy Corps’ Program Record Retention Policy and Responsible Data Policy, and regular Data Quality Assessments.
● Develop program and operational reporting templates that facilitate the acquisition, aggregation and flow of information and learning within the program as well as externally.
● Maintain a comprehensive reporting and accountability schedule as well as review program reports to ensure that reports contain accurate, clear, and high-quality data and presented in the proper format.
TEAM MANAGEMENT AND CAPACITY
● Oversee program MEL staff and subcontractors, such as external evaluators and enumerators.
● Build the capacity of all relevant program and partner team members to develop and maintain an excellent MEL system and CLA practices, including regular reflection and analysis of program quantitative and qualitative data.
● Strengthen linkages with other internal resources, including the Digital Library, Hub, and Workplace, to enhance organizational learning where relevant to MEL.
● Create and sustain a work environment of mutual respect where team members strive to achieve excellence.
Supervisory Responsibility
MEL staff, Community Accountability and Reporting Mechanism (CARM) Officer, and contractors
Accountability
Reports Directly To: Chief of Party
Works Directly With: Deputy Chief of Party/Technical leads, other program staff, M&E / CLA, finance and operations teams, HQ Regional Program Team, HQ Technical Support Unit, Program Performance and Quality team, consortium partners
Accountability to Participants and Stakeholders
Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our program participants, community partners, other stakeholders, and to international standards guiding international relief and development work. We are committed to actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.
Minimum Qualification & Transferable Skills
● 5-7 years of work experience managing MEL work at a program or country level, including supervising staff.
● BA/S degree in degree in statistics, economics, monitoring and evaluation, development studies or other relevant fields required. Postgraduate degree preferred.
● Direct experience working on MEL for governance and reconciliation programs is preferred.
● Demonstrated ability to develop, manage and implement project M&E systems, including relevant performance indicators, baselines, and annual targets and ensure compliance to USAID requirements.
● Demonstrated ability to supervise the collection and analysis of data and reporting on performance indicators by other team members and project counterparts.
● Demonstrated ability to oversee project reporting, data collection and management, and indicator documentation in alignments with the activities approved Annual Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Plan.
● Experience of working on USAID programs and working in East Africa, preferably in Somalia.
● Professional proficiency in written and spoken English.
Success Factors
The successful MEL Manager will combine exceptional management skills, high technical capacity and experience in maintaining donor and partner relationships. They will have an outstanding ability to develop, implement and manage innovative programs within the current and future program structure of Mercy Corps in the region. They will also have proven experience with cross-cultural teams and capacity building, individual staff development, and strong mentoring skills. Multi-tasking, prioritizing, problem solving and simultaneous attention to detail and strategic vision are essential. The most successful Mercy Corps staff members have a strong commitment to outstanding program performance, teamwork and accountability, thrive in evolving and changing environments and make effective written and verbal communication a priority in all situations.
Living Conditions / Environmental Conditions
The MEL Manager is based in Mogadishu. The location is unaccompanied. Accommodation is in group housing, with limited freedom of movement beyond the house/office. Staff have access to basic services (electricity, water, sporadic internet etc). Medical facilities are basic. Mobility in Somalia is restricted and must first be cleared with the Security Advisor. This post is eligible for Hardship and R&R. The standard Somali work week is Sunday – Thursday.
Mercy Corps team members represent the agency both during and outside work hours when deployed in a field posting or on a visit/TDY to a field posting. Team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and MC’s policies, procedures, and values at all times and in all in-country venues.
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges. We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives. We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening, and evolving to become more diverse, equitable and inclusive than we are today.
Equal Employment Opportunity
Mercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer that does not tolerate discrimination on any basis. We actively seek out diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be collectively stronger and have sustained global impact.
We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunities are available to all. We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status or any other protected group in the locations where we work.
Safeguarding & Ethics
Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work, whether team members, community members, program participants or others, are treated with respect and dignity. We are committed to the core principles regarding prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary General and IASC. We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members. As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and to adhere to Mercy Corps Code of Conduct Policies and values at all times. Team members are required to complete mandatory Code of Conduct eLearning courses upon hire and on an annual basis