Senior Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist – Nigeria – LEARN to Read

  • Full-time

Company Description

Education Development Center (EDC) is a global nonprofit that advances lasting solutions to improve education, promote health, and expand economic opportunity. Since 1958, we have been a leader in designing, implementing, and evaluating powerful and innovative programs in more than 80 countries around the world.

EDC promotes equity and access to high quality education and health services and products that contribute to thriving communities where people from diverse backgrounds learn, live, and work together. We support an inclusive workplace culture that embraces many perspectives and broadens our understanding of the communities we serve, enhancing and enriching our work.

EDC is committed to equity, diversity and inclusion in the workplace.

Job Description

The upcoming LEARN to Read activity will provide technical assistance to states of the Nigerian federation with the greatest need to improve learner reading outcomes to expand their early grade reading in languages children use and understand. Nigerian students will also enroll in, regularly attend, and stay in school, particularly in grades 1 through 3. The activity will take an integrated approach by working with and through the systems of select states, Local Government Education Authorities (LGEAs), and schools to effectively leverage their financial, human and materials resources to increase equitable access to education and to improve students’ reading outcomes.

Position Description

The Senior Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Specialist is responsible for providing overall leadership, coordination and technical supervision of the monitoring, evaluation and learning activities for the activity. This person will also lead the continuing refinement of the project's results-based M&E System, responsive to evolving programmatic design and implementation strategies. The Senior M&E Specialist will work closely with the Database Manager to ensure that data collection and data storage meets data quality standards, liaising with the EDC Home Office M&E Advisor on all data quality, analysis, and reporting issues, as needed. The Senior M&E Specialist will also draft reports and lead the development of data collection for technical and operations research, as well as work with the project team to conduct regular data quality assessments. The Senior M&E Specialist will report to the Chief of Party.

The Senior M&E Specialist will supervise ongoing data collection and train field-based M&E staff, lead work to draft reports and collect project data, lead the development of data collection for operations research, and work with M&E staff to conduct data quality assessments regularly.

The Senior M&E Specialist is responsible for managing and ensuring implementation of the project's M&E Strategic Framework, M&E Plan according to agreed quality and standards, liaising with state partners at all levels and USAID on M&E issues, reporting to USAID. This person will support coordination and collaboration among project implementing partners and project stakeholders for informed decisions.

Essential functions include (but are not limited to):

Job Responsibilities

  • Take the lead in organizing and conducting all monitoring and evaluation activities, as well as learning activities to ensure compliance to common or core standards. Ensure that internal reflection and discussion of findings with field staff, technical specialists, and management happens on a regular basis, at a minimum quarterly;
  • Work with US-based M&E team to continue to develop and implement the Activity’s Strategic M&E Framework, M&E Plan,) and capacity development approach;
  • Oversee the development of all monitoring forms for data collection, as well as written procedures for data collection and entry, with appropriate input from other departments;
  • Supervise the data storage process to ensure that appropriate support documentation is on file and easily located to back up project indicator data;
  • Manage the M&E team, including coordinating roles, responsibilities and performance. Liaise with technical leadership staff to oversee and support M&E activities at state levels;
  • Identify M&E-related technical needs at central and field levels that lead to the development and refinement of the M&E system to respond to evolving program designs and implementation strategies;
  • Where appropriate, conceptualize operations research and other learning activities of the project in collaboration with home office staff, COP, DCOP, Technical Director and Director of Finance and Operations;
  • Manage technical orientation and training activities to achieve M&E objectives and plans, including in data collection, data processing, data analysis and other areas;
  • Support outreach and communications by providing summary data and interpretation for inclusion in publications and reports, tailoring for consumption by different audiences;
  • Coordinate and facilitate regular M&E discussions for or among USAID, stakeholders, partners, EDC teams and others to share findings and learning from monitoring and evaluation data and/or analyses;
  • Oversee the aggregation and compilation of M&E data (quantitative and qualitative) for monthly, quarterly and annual reports. Oversee and ensure timely completion of all USAID data reporting; 
  • Understand the terms of the USAID contract, specifically expected project results and products, and ensure compliance with requirements;
  • Participate in relevant technical or senior leadership meetings and take part in the decision-making process as needed;
  • Ensure collaborative relationship between the Director/specialist's team and other departments, ensuring each one understands and is supportive of the requirements of the other, and the timely resolution of issues and concerns;
  • Proactively anticipate any potential or actual problems or risks, discuss with management, and submit appropriate recommendations to eliminate or minimize the threats or risks;
  • Provide timely data reports for inclusion in quarterly and annual reports, as well for other deliverables and deadlines as needed, such as meetings, events and presentations;
  • Supervise staff effectively; monitor and evaluate performance, and submit performance reports for supervisees, in a timely manner; and provide timely interventions to improve performance if needed;
  • Provide support to other special initiatives as may be needed;
  • Demonstrate a high level of professionalism when dealing with sensitive and confidential documents and issues, and with co-workers and EDC partners; and
  • Other duties, as assigned.

Qualifications

The candidate for the position of Senior Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist shall have at a minimum the following qualifications:

Education:

Master’s Degree in the social sciences or a related field

Skills and Experience:

  • A minimum of 8 years of progressively responsible experience with M&E systems design and implementation, data collection, and report writing;
  • Substantial experience monitoring and evaluating education sector programs;
  • Demonstrated experience in monitoring results and indicators;
  • Experience with electronic data collection and analysis required;
  • Experience with qualitative and quantitative data analysis methods and tools, such as SPSS, QDA Miner, etc. preferred;
  • Expertise in data visualization preferred;
  • Good working knowledge of USAID reporting requirements preferred;
  • Must be able to work within a cross cultural setting, negotiate diplomatically, and function well under pressure;
  • Ability to work hands-on, independently, and within team in difficult work environment; and
  • Willingness to travel to provinces covered by the project.

Language:

Professional proficiency and fluency in written and spoken English. Basic fluency in written and spoken Hausa is preferred, but not required.

Additional Information

Due to the volume of applications submitted, only finalists will be notified.  No phone calls, please.

EDC is committed to enhancing the diversity of its workforce and ensuring an equitable and highly inclusive work environment. EDC is a smoke-free workplace, and offers a supportive work environment, competitive salary, and excellent benefits. Women, minorities, and individuals with disabilities are encouraged to apply.