POSITION DESCRIPTION

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WORLD VISION

POSITION DESCRIPTION

Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist

DEPARTMENT: Operations Department

PROJECT SUMMARY:

The purpose of the project Strengthening the role of Local Communities (Mjesna Zajednicas/MZs)is to foster the engagement of citizens in municipal decision making, in the provision of municipal quality services and in the implementation of local development initiatives. The project shall specifically contribute to the revitalization of Mjesne Zajednice (MZs) as existing spaces for citizens’ participation and social inclusion and to increase the life quality of citizens who are deprived of public services, or who are barely addressed in planning and monitoring of service delivery.

The tentative project objectives to be confirmed during the 1st phase of project implementation are defined as follows:

1)Definition of MZs’ organizational structures and their relationship with the municipalities in a participative process, owned by all key stakeholders, in order to establish effective ways of cooperation among them and to increase the citizens participation in municipal endeavours.

2)Strengthening necessary capabilities of stakeholders working in or with MZs, in order to establish efficient mechanisms for a demand oriented delivery of municipal services, and thus, to achieve a higher citizens’ satisfaction.

3)Introduction of an enabling regularly framework, in order to strengthen the role of MZs within the local governmental structures in BiH.

POSITION SUMMARY:

The M&E Specialist has overall responsibility for providing coordination and leadership for strategic information, dissemination, and monitoring and evaluation of the project. The M&E Specialist is responsible for all project monitoring, evaluation and reporting activities and evidence gathering.

This person will carry out both formative (pre-intervention) and summative research (post-intervention). While post-project research will sum up the Project’s accomplishments in accurate, objective way, the research carried out during the project is meant to contribute to Project success. M&E is an essential management tool, allowing Project leaders to assess progress against benchmarks and make changes that improve outcomes and move toward success. The project is designed to achieve definite objectives, and M&E will be essential to reaching those objectives by monitoring progress at regular intervals. As such the M&E Specialist is part of the Project Management team.

The applicant must demonstrate strong experience in sub-grantee management, including building the capacity of local organizations and subgrantees in monitoring, evaluation, and reporting. Coaching, advising, and enforcement are essential functions of this position.

As the nature of this project is local governance and social accountability, the most competitive candidates will have experience in monitoring and evaluation of voice and accountability programs.

Essential Job Functions:

Plan and oversee M&E activities ensuring effective use data in decision-making:

  1. Setting up the system.

Develop the overall framework for project M&E in accordance to the project and document M&E plan.

  • Conduct readiness assessment regarding M&E. What are the incentives at the system level, which are the beneficiaries, what is the existing capacity?
  • Identify the requirement for collecting baseline data, prepare terms-of-reference for and arrange the conduct of a baseline survey, as required.
  • Clarify M&E responsibilities of different project personnel.
  • Contribute to the development of the annual work plan, ensuring alignment with project strategy, agreement on annual targets and inclusion of M&E activates in the work plan.
  • Clarify process for monitoring and evaluations on sub-grantees.
  • Prepare detailed M&E budget.
  • Prepare calendar of M&E activities.
  • Identify other M&E staff that the project needs to contract
  1. Implementation of M&E

Oversee and execute M&E activities included in the Annual Work Plan, with particular focus on results and impacts as well as in lesson learning.

  • Based on the annual work plan and in particular the programs budgets, design the framework for the physical and process monitoring of project activities.
  • Promote a results-based approach to monitoring and evaluation, emphasizing results and impacts.
  • Assist in the development of project reports. Guide staff and executing partners in preparing their progress reports in accordance with approved reporting formats and ensure their timely submission. This includes quarterly progress reports, annual project reports, inception reports, and ad-hoc technical reports.
  • Prepare consolidation progress reports for project management including identification of problems, causes of potential bottlenecks in the project implementation, and providing specific recommendations.
  • Check that monitoring data are discussed in the appropriate forum and in a timely fashion in terms of implications of future action. If necessarycreate such discussion forums to fill any gaps.
  • Undertake regular visits to the field to support implementation of M&E and to identify where adaptations might be needed.
  • Foster participatory planning and monitoring by training and involving primary stakeholder groups in the M&E of activities.
  • Facilitate, act as resource person, and join if required any external supervision and evaluation missions.
  • Monitor the follow up of evaluation recommendations
  • Identify the need and draw up the ToRs for specific project studies. Recruit, guide and supervise consultants or organizations that are contracted to implement special surveys and studies required for evaluating project effects and impacts.
  • Organize (and provide) refresher training in M&E for project and implementing partner staff, local organizations and primary stakeholders with view of developing local M&E capacity.

III. Lessons learned

Design and implement a system to identify, analyze, document and disseminate lessons learned.

  • Consolidate a culture of lessons learning involving all project staff and allocate specific responsibilities.
  • Ensure that ToR for consultants recruited by the project also incorporate mechanisms to capture and share lessons learned through their inputs to the project, and to ensure that the results are reflected in the reporting system described above.
  • Document, package and disseminate lessons not less frequently than once every 12 months.
  • Facilitate exchange of experiences by supporting and coordinating participation in any existing network projects sharing common characteristics. These networks would largely function on the basis of an electronic platform but could also entail other methods and tools such as workshops, teleconferences, etc.
  • Identify and participate in additional networks, for example scientific or policy-based networks that may also yield lessons that can benefit project implementation.
  • Develop strategy and system for data management, impact measurement and evidence documentation.

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by people assigned to this job. They are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, skills, efforts, or working conditions associated with the job.

EDUCATION:

BA in Social Science, International Development, Public Policy or anyrelevantdiscipline.MA degree preferred.

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EXPERIENCE:

Mandatory and non-negotiable:

  • 5+ years’ experience and demonstrated practical skills in monitoring and evaluation.
  • Demonstrated ability and skills in analysis and report writing
  • Excellent knowledge of monitoring and evaluation principles and practices is essential;
  • Knowledge and significant experience inthe development and implementation of monitoring and evaluation frameworks and systems required for community development programs are essential.

Preferred:

  • Experience in design and implementation of Monitoring and Evaluation systems in advocacy, community mobilization, or policy/accountability projects.
  • Demonstrated knowledge of management information systems.
  • M&E Experience specifically in good governance projects.

SKILLS:

The M&E Specialist will have demonstrated skills in gathering reliable data from populations in developing countries and in presenting data to decision-makers as a part of a management process. To accomplish this, the M&E specialist should have at least several years of proven experience with:

  • The logical framework approach and other strategic planning approaches;
  • M&E methods and approaches (including quantitative, qualitative and participatory);
  • Planning, design and implementation of M&E systems, tools, and guides;
  • Training in M&E development and implementation and/or facilitating learning-oriented analysis sessions of M&E data with multiple stakeholders;
  • Data and information analysis;
  • Report writing;
  • A solid understanding of local governance and social accountability, environmental management, joint management, and gender issues;
  • Familiarity with and a supportive attitude towards processes of strengthening local organizations and building local capacities for self-management;
  • Willingness to undertake regular field visits and interact with different stakeholders, especially primary stakeholders;
  • Computer skills;
  • Excellent oral and written English skills required.

Specific Knowledge Requirements:

  • Research skills — surveys, focus groups, knowledge, practice and coverage studies — data analysis, and how to make effective presentations.
  • Knowledge of LQAS, 30-cluster sampling survey methodology preferred.
  • Statistical software such as SPSS, EPI INFO, and other statistical tools preferred.

SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS:

This job will require a criminal background check.

Working Environment / Conditions:

Standard office environment. Frequent travel required, ability to work collaboratively and sensitivity in a culture and to cope with situations of interethnic tensions.