Research & Evidence Manager-Girls Improving Resilience Through Livelihood Program Management Unit (PMU), Mercy Corps

Location: Kenya or Uganda

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

Girls Improving Resilience through Livelihoods (GIRL) is a three-year, multi- country program being implemented in Kenya, Uganda, Haiti and currently expanding to Nigeria. The program seeks to improve the well-being of adolescent girls and young women by increasing their access to skills and knowledge, health resources, formal education, and economic opportunities. GIRL also fosters an enabling environment by working with communities to transform unhealthy social norms and create opportunities for girls to access education and economic opportunity. Key to GIRL is a robust learning and research agenda that reaches across three countries to contribute to the evidence base on what works to secure access to opportunities for adolescent girls within the most marginalized communities and to better understand their contribution to household resilience. This evidence and learning will be shared to elevate Mercy Corps’ influence in the adolescent girl space and to bolster fundraising efforts to scale the model. The Program Manager will support the successful implementation of the GIRL program across the three target countries, driving innovation and learning to refine a replicable and evidence-based GIRL programming model, and will play a critical role in leading regional and global expansion efforts for Mercy Corps’ adolescent girl programming.

General Position Summary

The Research & Evidence Manager (REM) reports to the Program Director and has primary responsibility for planning, facilitating, and managing the program’s monitoring, evaluation, research, and learning plan. The REM will collaborate with the country Program Managers to support and lend guidance to the teams in ensuring adherence to the program implementation strategy. The Manager will also develop compelling deliverables that will drive engagement and add value to the GIRL-H’s work across all the implementation countries.

S/he collaborates with the Program Director and Mercy Corps Technical Support Unit (TSU) to provide strategic input and guidance on all research and learning activities, directly contributing to or managing research goals, planning, design, analysis, reporting, distribution, and training. The Manager will be a diligent researcher and writer to quickly develop deep knowledge of program-specific issues and priorities.

Essential Responsibilities

Research Strategy and Planning 

• Contribute to the MERL Plan/Strategy and, more specifically, the Research & Learning Agenda. Contribute to the program strategy, develop, and manage the annual program calendar.
• Lead or contribute to the design and implementation of all Research and Learning activities implemented in all the three implementation countries.
• Manage the process for and contribute to the selection decisions of external research and evaluation partners where applicable
• Produce and distribute relevant research and progress reports conducted by the program to internal stakeholders.
• Manage and directly work on the program’s data management and dashboard system.

Research Analysis, Production, and Distribution 

• Provide primary or secondary analysis of all research data, involving quantitative and qualitative methods, to support the development of or contributions to critical findings.
• Directly contribute to and manage the creation of research and progress reports and presentations, including drafting the findings and presentations and collaborating with stakeholders on design and production.
• Manage the process and ensure research and program progress findings/reports/presentations are announced and distributed.
• Support the creation and production of original content for dissemination via publications, newsletters, and other media as directed by the Program Director.

MERL Project Management 

• Manages MERL activities, including creating and managing plans, schedules, budgets, deliverables, and stakeholder contributions.
• Manage day-to-day relationships with the evaluation partners where applicable.
• Track and report on MERL and program activities, outputs, and outcomes.
• Manage the program data and record storage in compliance with the organization policies
• Participate in regular team meetings to review progress and deliverables
• Ensure compliance with donor and Mercy Corps regulations related to gender, resilience, and safes spaces programming

 Regional Systems and support functions

• Support country team adherence to Mercy corps and donor policies and procedures
• Provide dedicated support to country team sin the event of an emergency.

Human Resources, Safeguarding and Diversity

• Support Mercy Corps global and regional initiatives for Human Resources, including safeguarding and diversity.

Risk Management

• Engage and support GIRL Program across the region to ensure that adequate risk management systems are in place and reported
• Collaborate with GIRL Country PMs to support preparedness and response to major disruptive events.

Supervisory Responsibility:

MEL Officers in focus countries

Accountability

Reports Directly To: GIRL-H Program Director

Works Directly With: Program Manager in the PMU and Country Program Manager

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.

Knowledge and Experience

• Masters or equivalent experience in International Development, Political Science, women’s studies, college degree required, advanced degree preferred.
• A  minimum of  6  years of continuous research experience,  of  which 3 years is directly overseeing research planning, statistical analysis, and project management to development programs.
• Demonstrated expertise participating in the design, analysis, and distribution of research and progress reports.
• Excellent analytical skills, including distilling useful findings from a body of data, relating findings to external factors and context
• Excellent written and oral communication skills, including proven success in the ability to present ideas and concepts effectively.
• Demonstrated expertise communicating with and managing relationships with external research partners
• Excellent project management skills, including demonstrated ability to set and manage priorities and multiple tasks.
• Excellent attention to detail, organized and process oriented.
• Ability to deliver high-quality work quickly in a dynamic organization under time pressure.
• Ability to train and build the capacity of programs and research staff in using various research processes.
• Demonstrated ability to effectively use SPSS or other statistical software, Excel for data processing and dashboard creation, Commcare and other ODK based data collection and management platform.
• Ability to speak Swahili strongly preferred.

Success Factors

The successful candidate will have excellent team and interpersonal relationship skills, with demonstrated ability to work effectively in complex environments. S/he will combine strong communication skills, creativity, initiative, participatory leadership, and tactful decisiveness to assist in program implementation. 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 diverse group of people – as well as be sensitive to political and cultural nuance. S/he must 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 program personnel.

Living Conditions / Environmental Conditions

The position is based in Kenya or Uganda may involve 30% travel to support country programs, which may include travel to insecure locations where freedom of movement is limited and areas where amenities are limited.  Candidates should have the right to work in any of the highlighted countries based on a local contract

Ongoing Learning

In support of our belief that learning organizations are more effective, efficient, and relevant to the communities we serve, we empower all team members to dedicate 5% of their time to learning activities that further their personal and/or professional growth and development.

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 based on 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 encounter 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.

Application: https://jobs.jobvite.com/careers/mercycorps/job/oOHQifwn?__jvst=Employee&__jvsd=sG7PojwO&__jvsc=Jobvite&bid=n6ykbZwD