Head, Impact Capacity Development (ICD) at MasterCard

THE WORK AT THE FOUNDATION  

In Africa, the Foundation has opened offices in Rwanda, Kenya, Ghana, Senegal, Ethiopia, Nigeria, and Uganda, and is currently building broader continental partnerships to enable opportunity for young women and men. In Canada, the Foundation works in partnership with Indigenous communities, post-secondary institutions, and organizations across Canada to listen, learn, and best understand how we can act in meaningful ways.  Within Africa and Canada, the Foundation works with governments, the private sector, educators, young people, and other funders to improve the quality of education and vocational training, prepare young people for the work force, expand access to financial services for entrepreneurs and small businesses, and connect job seekers to dignified and fulfilling work. 

The EleV strategy of the Canada Program was co-created with Indigenous communities, young people, and partners to enable 30,000 Indigenous youth to complete their education and transition to dignified work aligned with their values and aspirations. As reflected in Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission Calls to Action, education is a key driver of improved socio-economic well-being. Through building partnerships with Indigenous communities, we look to expand our initiative, ultimately helping to support a generation of transformative Indigenous young leaders who will be change agents within their communities. We believe that by setting a bold target, we will encourage engagement across sectors and create momentum that will elevate the strengths and opportunities of Indigenous youth. In keeping with our approach, Indigenous communities and young people are the drivers of this transformation. The program promotes innovations to address longer-term systemic change to achieve economic prosperity and social well-being within Indigenous communities. 

The EleV team oversees current and emerging partnerships related to Indigenous education. Consistent with our overall vision and Youth Africa Works strategy, we will share learnings and opportunities to connect across the work of the Foundation. While operating in distinct contexts, the centrality of youth voice and vision, affirmation of culture and identity, and priority to enhance community capacity for self-determination are common threads upon which our work is strengthened and reinforced. 

UNDERSTANDING AND MEASURING IMPACT 

The Foundation has developed a comprehensive Impact Strategy that takes a holistic outcome-focused approach to measuring impact at individual, community, and systems level, that elevates the voices of young women and men in defining and measuring dignified and fulfilling work, and that values indigenous knowledge and new ways of knowing.  

Working with young women and men in Canada and within Africa represents a unique opportunity to develop, implement, and learn from programming and influencing activities in ways that value African and Indigenous ways of being and knowing. Impact measurement and the associated narratives are guided by youth-focused lenses and located within the nexus of nationally owned strategies and global best practices and thought leadership. The methodologies and tools used are determined and co-created in partnership with youth and other Indigenous vectors of knowledge in communities and countries where we work. 

If you are an experienced Capacity Development professional looking to increase your impact, read on! 

THE OPPORTUNITY  

Reporting to the Head of Impact, Impact Capacity Development, the Impact Lead, Impact Capacity Development (ICD) will be responsible for leading ICD unit for Africa and supporting the Team in adapting the global Capacity Development (CD) strategy and managing CD providers on the continent. The Impact Lead, ICD will provide strategic and technical leadership to strengthen the Impact team, the Foundation, and local partners’ capacity to implement the Impact Strategy. The Impact Lead, ICD will manage external service providers to deliver high quality, innovative services, lead team, and coordinate the provision of ICD support. You will also lead the development of strategic partnerships on the continent to further advance the Foundation’s contribution to the evolution of the Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) field in Africa. 

The successful candidate will be based in any of our African Regional hubs (Nairobi, Kenya, Kigali, Rwanda, and Accra, Ghana). 

WAYS YOU CAN CONTRIBUTE  

• Lead the design and implementation of the regional ICD strategy, built from participatory consultation with Regional Heads and Core Management Team, ensuring coherence and synergies of the regional activities with the overall ICD strategy and in line with the needs and priorities identified through ICD assessments.  
• Identify and manage collaborative partnerships with selected capacity development entities in the region (organizations, institutions, firms, networks), including regional or national capacity development experts to meet the demand of a fast- growing Impact team and to pursue sustainable ICD support for the Foundation and its partners. 
• Identify strategic opportunities to engage and collaborate with peers and internal and external stakeholders, maintaining and nurturing social capital and leading consensus building. 
• Support Country and regional experts to identify and leverage innovative experiences and establish mechanisms for disseminating ICD innovations and experiences sharing at regional level, in coordination with KM and communication staff. 
• Ensure requirements, lessons learned, and best practices for ICD are clearly documented for internal and external uptake.
• Ensure alignment of ICD regional strategy with the Foundation’s strategic objectives, cross-cutting priorities, and policies, procedures.
• In collaboration with ICD team, design and pilot ICD individual, team, and institutional ICD assessment tools and processes, and tailor and adapt processes and tools to the regional context.
• Conduct ongoing assessment of capacity needs and opportunities for the Regional Impact team.  ICD activities (e.g., training and workshops) should also be used for continual assessments and to estimate the resources needed to improve team performance. 
• Support Regional Leaders in the development of SMART goals, measurable performance indicators, annual workplans, performance monitoring systems and tools. 
• Lead the ongoing analysis of ICD implementation data and results in the region with a focus on adaptation, innovation, and potential for scaling-up and replication, within the context of the Impact Strategy. 
• Lead content curation and manage providers to create and design ICD opportunities for prioritized areas/topics, including training, mentoring, and coaching, peer learning, and other methodologies. All materials and processes should address priority areas of the Impact strategy, including strategic competencies (e.g., influencing, negotiating, strategic framing) and technical competencies (e.g., designing theories of change), applying evidence-based best practices for adult learning and the principle of "learning by doing".  
• Identify and implement knowledge management practices and tools to enable uptake of ICD content and knowledge exchange within the Impact team and across the Foundation, and to key target external audiences (e.g., Impact Partner Organizations) 
• Attract and build a talented team/network of ICD specialists to support implementation of the ICD strategy and deepen reflections and application of innovations in ICD. 
• Lead performance management to ensure delivery of workstream goals. 

WHO YOU ARE 

• Ten (10) plus years' experience designing, leading, and managing MEL and related capacity development initiatives in Africa, with at least 5 years at Senior Management level. 
• Experience leading needs assessments and designing and managing implementation of capacity development strategies in complex, fast-paced environments. 
• Demonstrated experience in strengthening the strategic and technical capabilities of social change organizations. 
• Strong experience motivating, inspiring, and leading high-functioning teams, driving purposeful collaboration, leveraging team assets to reach results. 
• Experience in Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) sector, with experience in building capacity in MEL and/or systems thinking. 
• Experience in innovative and participatory approaches to learning tailored to user needs, with demonstrated commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. 
• Experience working in Africa for a global or regional organization in the private sector or an NGO. 
• Experience living and/or working in multiple countries in Africa and solid understanding of the contemporary challenges and opportunities facing young people in Africa regarding accessing dignified and fulfilling work. 
• Experience living/working in a global context will be helpful.   
• Proven capacity for knowledge management and analysis, synthesis, and uptake of learning data. 
• Ability to develop and maintain strong relationships with stakeholders in public and private sector. 
• Excellent grasp and demonstrated experience in theories, methods, and technology in capacity development field. 
• Strong written and oral communication skills, including leading dynamic presentations and preparations of briefs, learning materials, and reports. 
• Excellent facilitation, training, and mentoring skills in a variety of organizational development settings.  
• Understanding of systems thinking, thinks in an integrative, holistic systems way, and capacity to bring system transformation into role.  
• You are proactive and balance "analysis" with "doing", sets high standards for self, and commits to organizational goals.
• Ability to think strategically and with vision and to formulate and execute plans efficiently and effectively. Strong problem-solving skills combined with a track record of pivoting in response to opportunities and challenges. 
• Ability to collaboration across many enterprise units, generate enthusiasm and communicate with all levels of management and staff, and inspire others by modeling great drive and commitment to the Impact team’s vision and Foundation’s mission. 
• Flexible, adaptable, and able to execute a range of job duties and changing priorities. 
• Possess excellent verbal, written, and presentation skills with the ability to articulate information to a variety of constituents across cultures. 
• Possess professional maturity, sensitivity with different cultures, and impeccable integrity that exemplify the Foundation’s values.  
• You have a commitment to Mastercard Foundation’s values and vision.