Senior Monitoring Evaluation and Learning Manager

Everyone deserves the opportunity to build a better future. This simple idea has been at the heart of TechnoServe’s work around the world for over 50 years. TechnoServe is a pioneer in leveraging the power of business and markets to create sustainable pathways out of poverty. The low-income communities in which we work are full of enterprising people. Their small-scale farms and businesses are the keys to economic development. But they face many challenges: low literacy, lack of access to jobs and markets, unpredictable political dynamics and, increasingly, the effects of climate change. For many women and young people, the challenges are even more daunting. Working with TechnoServe staff, people around the world are lifting themselves out of poverty. The results are amazing...when incomes increase and living conditions for families get better, they are able to access health care and education previously out of reach. Communities and even whole countries are better off. **Job Summary**: The Senior Regional Monitoring Evaluation and Learning (MEL) Manager is the most senior MEL position in the region and is tasked with providing leadership across the MEL function, ensuring the foundational building blocks for managing to impact are in place. Primary responsibilities include: developing and rolling out standards; backstopping staff; directly managing evaluations, audits, and research projects; supporting recruitment and onboarding new staff; supporting new proposal development; and developing MEL management systems. Additionally, the Senior MEL Manager will manage a Data Specialist as a direct report and facilitate his/her work in developing and maintaining technology systems for data collection and utilization. The Senior MEL Manager position requires strong technical MEL expertise, but is also fundamentally a leadership position. Success in the roles requires effective communication with senior staff, an ability to build and manage relationships remotely, strong project management skill, and strategic thinking. The Southern Africa portfolio includes 20+ projects, ranging from small pilots with lightweight MEL approaches, to large scale (>$20M) value chain projects with multiple MEL staff across several countries. Some projects focus on agriculture or food processing, however, the majority are part of TechnoServe’s Entrepreneurship Practice. Therefore, while this position will be embedded in the Southern African Region, it will collaborate closely with Entrepreneurship Practice leaders to develop and advance best practices. This will involve providing some direct support to projects throughout TechnoServe’s global portfolio. This position sits within TechnoServe’s Global Impact Team and reports to the Global Impact Director, based in Washington DC. At TechnoServe, in order to promote project learning and smooth adaptive management, most MEL staff report to project or country directors. Having the Global Impact Team sit outside of these reporting lines allows it to remain objective while providing high-level leadership, coordination, and backstopping. **Primary Functions & Responsibilities**: - Provide direct technical assistance to projects (60% LOE):_ - Lead internal evaluations or special studies; Manage external evaluators. - Provide support and technical oversight to junior MEL staff (e.g. regular check-ins and sign-off on deliverables for projects that only have junior MEL Associates). - Provide advisory and direct technical assistance on specific MEL deliverables. - Support the effective utilization of data and technology systems through managing and facilitating the work of a Data Specialist. - Execute the core functions of the Global Impact Team, including (20% LOE):_ - Promote TechnoServe’s Global MEL Standards through staff training, conducting diagnostics, and developing MEL improvement plans. - Support or lead annual/semi-annual global initiatives in the region, including Corporate Measurement and the Program Quality Survey. - Provide inputs to the Program Development team, including reviewing the MEL section of proposals and advising on logical frameworks. - Hire and onboard country-level and project-level MEL staff - Promote knowledge sharing across the Southern African region and between regions. Provide leadership to the Entrepreneurship Practice (10% LOE) - Work closely with practice area leadership to develop standards, best practices, and tools to improve the quality of MEL across the practice. This includes standard indicator guidance, analysis guidelines, database standards, monitoring dashboards, and data collection tools. - Facilitate the analysis and dissemination of findings for our Global Entrepreneurship Database Initiative. - Play a leading role in developing practice area learning agenda. - Provide regional leadership (10% LOE):_ - Support the exchange of information and knowledge by participating and contributing to internal and external fora. - Work with the So