Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Specialist 14 views0 applications

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.

Mercy Corps has been present in Ethiopia since 2004 working to drive bold and transformative ideas, working closely with government, the private sector and civil society actors to build a more resilient country, ensuring that programs are responsive to and influenced by participants and stakeholders. With the launch of Mercy Corps Global Strategy, Pathway to Possibility, the country office is poised to operationalize its three-year strategy with a vision to enhance the resilience of climate- and conflict-affected communities through market systems development for improved livelihoods, access to food, and safe and clean water to thrive in the face of crises. In Ethiopia, our strategy focuses in the three impact priorities: 1) Addressing Urgent Needs; 2) Accelerating Climate Solutions; 3) Driving Economic and Food Security. Currently, we operate in regional states – Afar, Somali, Amhara, Tigray and Addis Ababa. Working with a diverse base of donors, Mercy Corps Ethiopia empowers people to recover from crisis, build better lives and transform their communities for good.

Location: Addis Ababa

Position Status: Full-time

Salary Level: (Refer to the relevant salary scale)

Risk Level: ☐ Level 3 X ☐Level 2 ☐Level 1

(Level 3: Frequent contact with participants, direct contact with children, access to sensitive data, and/or high level of accountability.

Level 2: Some contact with participants; unplanned non-direct contact with children.

Level 1: Likely to have no contact with participants or sensitive data)

The Program / Department / Team (Program / Department Summary)

Empowering Families, Enriching Lives: Scaling LIWAY’s Childcare Models for Two-Generational ECD is a two-year and four-month project (September 2024 – December 2026) in Addis Ababa, funded by the Conrad Hilton Foundation. This initiative is dedicated to improving early childhood development (ECD) while fostering economic empowerment by addressing systemic gaps in childcare access and workforce participation. By implementing scalable and evidence-based childcare solutions, the project aims to create sustainable and market-driven models that enhance the well-being of vulnerable families, particularly internally displaced people, refugees, and host communities.

The project focuses on expanding access to affordable, high-quality childcare by establishing new childcare centers and upgrading existing ones in underserved areas. These centers will provide a safe and nurturing environment where children receive essential care, nutrition, and early learning opportunities that promote cognitive, emotional, and social development. By reducing the childcare burden on women, the project enables them to engage in education, skills training, and employment, ultimately increasing household income and economic stability. Recognizing the interconnected nature of childcare and workforce participation, the project integrates childcare support into labor market interventions, ensuring women and youth have better access to job opportunities, vocational training, and entrepreneurship programs.

A key component of the project is its commitment to evidence-based policy advocacy. By conducting rigorous research on childcare needs, economic impacts, and best practices, the project generates valuable data that informs decision-making at both local and national levels. This research supports the development of policies that institutionalize childcare as a fundamental service, ensuring financial accessibility, regulatory improvements, and greater private sector involvement in childcare provision. The project also strengthens partnerships with government agencies, private sector actors, and development organizations to drive systemic reforms and promote sustainable childcare solutions.

Utilizing a Market Systems Development (MSD) approach, the project catalyzes market-based solutions that create jobs and increase incomes for women, youth, and displaced communities. It enhances job matching services, supports technology-driven employment solutions, and fosters collaboration with employers to integrate childcare support into workforce strategies. By building the capacity of childcare providers, offering financial incentives, and linking childcare services with employment initiatives, the project ensures long-term sustainability and scalability.

The Position (General Position Summary)

The Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) Specialist will work with the Mercy Corps Program team as well as our local partner organizations to manage and ensure the collection of quality M&E data for the program. The MEL Specialist will be responsible for supporting the Empowering Families, Enriching Lives: Scaling LIWAY’s Childcare Models for Two-Generational ECD Project to lead and manage the monitoring and data collection of the project, lead the required surveys, analyze data to provide insight to project team, and contribute to report writing. S/he will ensure that performance monitoring and results reporting tools and processes across the entire program are in place. The MEL Specialist will be an integral member of the project team and be responsible for leading the learning and reflection processes throughout the life project cycle and collect feedback from program participants and other stakeholders.

Essential Responsibilities

STRATEGY AND PLANNING

• Develop M&E Plan(s) for programs and proposals.
• Establish a robust system for collection, reporting and validating program data, utilizing platforms such as Excel, Tola, Access, CommCare, Power BI, etc.
• Work closely with the program teams and local partners to ensure effective monitoring, evaluation, and reporting of program activities and results.

COORDINATION, MONITORING & REPORTING:

• Coordinate reporting with local partners, including tracking deadlines, ensuring adherence to monitoring formats and requirements, and ensuring reporting quality and accuracy.
• Compile progress against indicators and report back to the team according to the monitoring plan.
• Integrate program indicator plans on TOLA and regularly update data and evidence on the platform.
• Develop quarter and annual report.
• Manage data collection activities, evidence tracking and real-time dashboard management, review and present data to program staff, manage evaluations.
• Consolidate program MEL data against the stated program objectives, indicators and targets, conduct a review session with program team to analyze gaps, progress, success.
• Develop a Data Quality Assessment Plan.

DATA INTEGRITY:

• Conduct routine spot checks on the monthly data collection and reporting.

EVALUATION ACTIVITIES:

• Lead and actively engage in supplementary evaluation M&E activities, including baseline, mid-term, and end-line surveys, evaluations, and household surveys.

SUPPORT CARM IMPLEMENTATION

• Collect feedback or complaints from the program participants and close feedback loop.
• Record feedback in program level database.
• Sensitize community, program participants and program teams on CARM.
• Prepare and send monthly CARM report digitally using CommCare.
• Conduct field visits, spot checks, and follow up on specific feedback cases.
• Capture programmatic adaptation as the result of CARM.

KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT:

• Develop, document, and disseminate program learning briefs, success stories, and lessons learned.
• Collaborate with the country MEL team to publish knowledge products.

CAPACITY BUILDING:

• Identify training needs within the program team and local partners related to M&E activities.
• Deliver training sessions to build the capacity of team members and partners in effective monitoring and evaluation practices.

DATA VISUALIZATION:

• Utilize data visualization tools to present M&E findings in a clear and accessible manner.
• Develop interactive dashboards utilizing Power BI and/or Microsoft Azure, along with visual reports, to effectively communicate program progress and showcase its impact.

FEEDBACK MECHANISM:

• Establish and manage a robust feedback mechanism within the program.
• Systematically collect, analyze, and use feedback for program adaptation and improvement.

RISK MANAGEMENT:

• Contribute to the identification and analysis of potential risks to program success.
• Develop and implement risk mitigation strategies in collaboration with the program team.

CROSS-FUNCTIONAL COLLABORATION:

• Collaborate with other departments and programs within Mercy Corps, fostering cross-functional learning and integration of best practices.

INNOVATION:

• Explore and introduce innovative technologies and methodologies to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of M&E processes.
• Stay abreast of industry trends and emerging tools for improved data collection and analysis.

ADAPTIVE MANAGEMENT:

• Support the program team in implementing adaptive management principles, utilizing M&E findings for real-time decision-making and adjustments to program strategies.

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT:

• Facilitate community engagement activities related to M&E, ensuring the active involvement of beneficiaries in the monitoring and evaluation process.
• Promote transparency and accountability to the communities served.

FINANCE & COMPLIANCE MANAGEMENT

• Ensure compliance with donor and Mercy Corps regulations.
• Draft and/or review scope of work to hire and manage any technical consultants, including review for technical efficacy and contract budget.

INFLUENCE & REPRESENTATION

• Identify, build, and manage collaborative partnerships with,sub-grantees, donors, local governments, and other stakeholders.
• Communicate effectively to ensure that overall project targets and donor obligations are met.

GEDSI (GENDER, EQUALITY, DIVERSITY AND SOCIAL INCLUSION)

• Be a thought partner in the recruitment of diverse team and promoting inclusive and safe work environment including supporting early career team members to fulfil their professional goals.
• Lead by example to promote gender equality and inclusive workplace culture in a day-to-day interaction with team members, partners, and program participants.

  Supervisory Responsibility: No

  Accountability

Reports Directly To: Project Manager

Works Directly With: Project officer

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.

Success Factors

• Fluency in English and Amharic (additional local languages are an asset).
• Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple tasks, meet deadlines, and work effectively under pressure.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to effectively convey technical information to a diverse audience.
• Excellent presentation, reporting, and negotiation skills.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office 365 (Word, Excel, Outlook, Teams, PowerPoint) and familiarity with data analysis tools and visualization software.
• Must have the flexibility and resilience to work in challenging environments and embrace adaptive management processes.
• 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

Team Engagement and Effectiveness

Achieving our mission starts with how we build our team and collaborate. By bringing together individuals with a variety of experiences, backgrounds, and perspectives, we strengthen our ability to solve complex challenges and drive innovation. We foster a culture of trust and respect, where every team member is valued for their contributions, empowered to reach their full potential, and motivated to do their best work.

We recognize that building a strong and effective team is an ongoing process, and we remain committed to learning, improving, and growing together.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Mercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all employees and qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, sex, sexual orientation, religion or belief, national origin, age, disability, marital status, veteran status, or any other characteristics protected under applicable law.

Safeguarding & Ethics

Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with 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 and have signed on to the Interagency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. 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.

As an applicant, if you witness or experience any form of sexual misconduct during the recruitment process, please report this to Mercy Corps Integrity Hotline ([email protected]).

Minimum Qualification & Transferable Skills

• BA/S or equivalent, preferably in Economics, statistics, and other development studies.
• 4 years’ M&E experience
• Fluent in both spoken and written English and Amharic language.
• Previous experience working on donor funded programs in refugee’s context preferred.
• Demonstrate proficiency in field survey/data collection techniques, data entry, verification, and analysis using mobile data collection platforms/tools such as CommCare, ODK, Survey CTO, and expertise in statistical data analysis software like SPSS, STATA, and others.
• Good understanding and skills in data management.
• Strong computer literacy with a full knowledge of MS Office applications.
• Strong team coordination, listening, and consensus building skills.