Head - Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) and Science of Scaling at IITA - International Institute of Tropical Agriculture

Description

• The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) invites applications for the internationally recruited position of Head- Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) and Science of Scaling.
• The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) is a not-for-profit institution that generates agricultural innovations to meet Africa’s most pressing challenges of hunger, malnutrition, poverty, and natural resource degradation. Working with various partners across sub-Saharan Africa, we improve livelihoods, enhance food and nutrition security, increase employment, and preserve natural resource integrity. IITA is a member of CGIAR, a global agriculture research partnership for a food-secure future. Please visit http://www.iita.org/ for more information on IITA.
• IITA has a Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) unit reporting to the Deputy Director General that is also in charge of gathering and sharing evidences  of impacts. The Head - Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning and Science of Scaling shall provide leadership for institutionalizing MEL and will be a member of the IITA Foresight, Impact Assessment and Scaling Program, focusing on addressing key research questions related to the monitoring, learning and scaling of the institute's innovations. This will include documenting and sharing data and learnings on research and scaling & delivery activities in the institute. The Head will also provide strong leadership for establishing and nurturing a strong, integrated, and effective institutional M&E framework for IITA. This will be with the objective to create the conditions for an effective science of scaling program based on project monitoring data at IITA and partners levels.
• ·      Leadership tasks include but are not limited to, guiding the institution into building a strong MEL culture and practice; obtaining, institutionalizing, and managing software platforms to automate the aggregation and presentation of necessary MEL data; providing oversight to ensure quality data collection, analysis, and reporting to IITA management, donors, and other stakeholders promptly; building and overseeing the implementation of a strategy for capacity development of MEL personnel, focal persons as well as key partners to ensure best practices.
• ·      The Head of MEL and Science of Scaling shall provide support to hubs/projects/programs on proposal/strategy development, baseline and special studies, annual reporting, mid-term, and final evaluation methodologies; and facilitate critical reflection, and learning across the institution based on information generated from the MEL system. This will include the production and dissemination of reports for tracking progress toward IITA KPIs. She/He will contribute to reporting to the board of trustees on these KPIs.
• ·      The Head of MEL and Science of Scaling shall lead the development and implementation of processes for monitoring and data collection from IITA key scaling projects. She/He will ensure buy-ins through the capacity building of project managers to produce evidence-based information that can be used to learn and communicate about successes and failures in scaling activities at IITA.

Position Responsibilities

Institutional MEL Leadership (40%)

• Develop Institutional MEL framework and related infrastructure that supports data collection and analysis across the institute (programs, projects, etc), with a higher focus on data related to the institute’s KPIs.
• Work with the impact assessment team to streamline methodologies for measuring results. Collate/aggregate impact assessment results to provide a broad picture of IITA’s progress toward its KPIs.
• Review progress on achieving institutional objectives and provide IITA Management with information about important lessons learned and replicable practices.
• Lead the alignment of IITA's Institutional Performance Indicators and the CGIAR System Level Strategic Outcomes for overall performance and contributions of IITA to the CGIAR.
• Lead the integration of results-based management into all programs and projects interventions, ensuring appropriate results frameworks are developed to support monitoring activities.
• Lead the generation of verifiable information for strategic decision-making by aggregating data from all reporting levels.
• Introduce processes for simple quality and verifiable data generation in order to document scaling pathways and resulting outputs and outcomes.
• Represent IITA on the CGIAR MEL groups, and regional MEL communities of practice and maintain/develop MEL-related collaborative relationships with strategic partners on behalf of IITA.
• Coordinate the institute-wide MEL Community of Practice (MEL COP) that includes MEL professionals and focal persons of projects both at HQ and in hubs.
• Collaborate with other research support units to implement knowledge management systems that provide up-to-date information on institutional performance and operational effectiveness. Also, identify and minimize existing M&E procedures leading to duplicated efforts to save IITA's resources.
• Provide leadership for increasing appreciation of the need for quality MEL across the Institute, as well as increase confidence within the Unit by mentoring and appreciation of its personnel.
• Develop staff capacity in maintaining data quality standards and conduct data quality audits of all sources of M&E data that are reported and support the use of appropriate software systems within the hubs, country offices, and programs/projects as well as linkage to the institution-wide software system.
• Prepare, publish, and share communication materials documenting research outcomes and impacts and lessons learned across IITA, One CGIAR Initiatives and projects.
• Perform any other job-related tasks as may be assigned by the supervisors. 

Hub/Program/Project Level M&E (30%)

• Lead the mapping of programs and projects to IITA KPIs across the hubs for appropriate alignment and reporting.
• Provide strategic guidance for the implementation of MEL including institutionalization and automation of M&E processes across all IITA hubs, projects, programs
• Provide support to Hub MEL teams to generate verifiable information to support the hub strategic plans and to make strategic decision-making.
• Support program/project teams in the development and implementation of MEL systems that satisfy institutional and donor standards, which include:
• ¨    MEL plans with clearly defined results framework (addressing institutional and donor needs) and reflecting causal models.
• ¨    Procedures for collection, collation, analysis, reporting, and use of data for decision-making.
• ¨    Monitoring, documentation, and learning approaches that are integrated, aligned, and mainstreamed into project activities and coordinated with stakeholders.
• ¨    Plans for evaluation studies on outcome and impact-level achievements.
• Guide the hub MEL teams to review progress on achieving the hub objectives (per the hub strategies) and provide hub teams with information about important lessons learned and replicable practices.
• Lead the implementation of knowledge management systems across the hubs that provide up-to-date information on hub and institutional performance, and operational effectiveness.
• Collaborate with the impact assessment team to provide support for the assessment of project and programs impacts.

Science of scaling (30%)

• Provide guidance in identifying and assembling key components of the science of scaling in collaboration with the R4D and P4D Directorate. Such will include a compendium of innovations being scaled, the different scaling pathways, the stakeholder engagement process, etc.
• Align the Science of scaling framework to programs, projects and overall IITA scaling strategy.
• Guide the design and development of a framework (e.g., research questions regarding the effectiveness of different scaling pathways being used) to implement the Science of Scaling across IITA projects and programs in collaboration with the P4D Directorate.
• Mainstream the Science of scaling framework in the overall MEL activities of projects, programs and overall institutional MEL framework.
• Lead the design, development and use of appropriate data collection tools and processes to implement the Science of scaling across IITA.
• Synthesize the data and learnings from implementing the Science of scaling framework to support the overall IITA KPIs and as inputs into the P4D strategic plan.
• Develop staff capacity to conduct MEL to support the science of scaling across hubs, country offices, and programs/projects.

Requirements

Educational Qualifications

• The candidate should hold at least an advanced degree (MSc/PhD) from a reputable university in agricultural sciences, monitoring and evaluation or any other social sciences.

Core Competencies

• At least 15 years of relevant work experience.
• Excellent track record in developing M&E frameworks at Institution and project levels.
• Proven leadership skills and providing guidance to a team of staff across projects.
• Demonstrated record on documenting and sharing technology uptake and lessons learned in the process.
• Excellent communication skills evidence by capacity to prepare and deliver clear and concise presentations.
• Work experience within multicultural teams and international organizations or companies and highly knowledgeable of Africa’s social, agricultural, and rural development and economic development issues, questions, and challenges.
• Fluency in English or French language with a working knowledge of the other.