Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) Director Job at RTI International

RTI International is one of the world's leading research institutes, dedicated to improving the human condition by turning knowledge into practice. Our staff of more than 4000 provides research and technical expertise to governments and businesses in more than 40 countries in the areas of health and pharmaceuticals, education and training, surveys and statistics, advanced technology, international development, economic and social policy, energy and the environment, and laboratory and chemistry services. RTI International is implementing a USAID funded Leadership, Advocacy, Empowerment, and Development (LEAD) project in Nigeria, a project aimed at improving governance and service delivery at the local government level. This project ends in September 2017. The position is open to residents of Nigeria only. We are recruiting to fill the position below:     Job Title: Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) Director, USAID/Nigeria State2State (S2S) Job ID: LI-JMD1 Location: Nigeria Position Summary

• RTI's Governance and Economic Development (GED) Division pursues innovative approaches and builds on best practices to create the foundation for and to promote democratic governance and economic development. Working alongside global partners, public institutions, the private sector, and civil society, we help build more effective, accountable, and responsive institutions and policies at the national, regional, and local levels of government.
• The GED Division is currently accepting applications for the Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) Director position for an anticipated USAID-funded State2State (S2S) activity in Sokoto, Bauchi, and up to 4 additional states in Northern Nigeria.
• The overall goal of S2S is to increase the effectiveness, accountability and transparency of selected state and local governments (LGAs) in Nigeria.
• This will be achieved by strengthening systems to improve the delivery of services in key sectors (basic education, primary health care, and water, sanitation and hygiene - WASH); increasing the efficiency of key governance operations (with a focus on public financial management [PFM] and procurement, as well as monitoring and evaluation); increasing government’s responsiveness to citizen needs and priorities; and improving government and civil society capacity to manage conflict.
• State2State builds on and expands the Mission’s currently ongoing “Leadership, Empowerment, Advocacy and Development” (LEAD, 2009-2017) activity, implemented by RTI.

• The MEL Director reports to the Chief of Party and will be responsible for leading and managing the monitoring, evaluation and learning (MEL) activities for the project.
• S/he will establish systems for gathering, reporting and analyzing performance data for impact and sustainability of project implementation. Candidate should possess strong management, administrative and communication skills (including report writing).

• Lead Project’s M&E, knowledge management and capacity building objectives. This includes the design and implementation of a robust results, PMEP, and knowledge management framework to aggregate and disseminate useful and actionable information based on sound evidence generated from activities.
• Provide technical assistance to state, LGA and CSO partners as required on monitoring evaluation systems capacity building and assessments
• Synthesize and analyze lessons to determine policy implications, distil and articulate best fit innovations for dissemination with community of practice for phased approach to project implementation
• Facilitate incorporation of research design and methodologies in the application of learning to project design and management.
• Directly supervise and mentor project M&E/knowledge management staff. Build internal project staff capacity to implement MEL strategy.
• Coordinates and manages all monitoring and evaluation (M&E) tasks and deliverables for the project.
• Establish systems for gathering, analysing, and reporting performance data for impact and sustainability of project implementation.
• Coordinate and manage all MEL tasks and deliverables for the project and ensure that all required reports and documentation for the project’s internal management systems and for external reporting are produced according to USAID/Nigeria guidelines.
• Oversees data collection processes and data quality; develops documentation of best practices; and facilitating the use of data to drive program design and decision making in support of an adaptive management (CLA) approach to project implementation
• Facilitate learning from M&E findings with implementation teams and other relevant stakeholders. This could include facilitating regular reflection sessions both within the project team and with the implementation partners to respond to evaluation findings where appropriate.

• A minimum of a master’s degree in social science, international development, or a relevant field, with 12 years of experience in international development program design and implementation. 6 years’ experience in program monitoring and evaluation.
• Demonstrated team player with effective cross-cultural interpersonal skills; able to develop and communicate a common vision among diverse partners and lead multidisciplinary teams.
• Ability to resolve sensitive and complicated work issues with senior high-level country counterparts, donor representative and senior-level staff.
• Proficiency in Excel, Word, and other MS Office software; data analysis software (such as SPSS or Stata);
• Ability and willingness to live in Nigeria and travel frequently within Northern Nigeria.
• Prior experience working in Nigeria preferred
• Position is contingent upon award and funding.
• Experience in MEL, knowledge management and communications, particularly for research.
• Demonstrated understanding with knowledge management programs, facilitating communities of practice and social networking, and knowledge of USAID’s Collaboration, Learning and Adaptation (CLA) approach preferred.
• Skills in qualitative and quantitative analytical methods, data collection and analysis, and establishing M&E systems. Demonstrated ability to lead baseline data collection and analyses.
• Knowledge of and experience with M&E frameworks, and reporting systems. Experience with USAID programming highly preferred.
• Verbal and written fluency in the English language along with strong communications, interpersonal, and presentation skills.

• Candidates are encouraged to apply as soon as possible.
• Only short listed applicants will be contacted.