Vacancy Announcement
ETHIOPIAN AGRICULTURAL TRANSFORMATION AGENCY
Position: Planning, Monitoring, Evaluations and Reporting (PMER) Director
Term of Employment: One year with possibility of extension
Duty Station(s): Addis Ababa
Required Number: One
Salary & Benefits: Competitive
Application Deadline: March 31, 2021
BACKGROUND:
The Ethiopian Agricultural Transformation Agency (ATA) is a strategy and delivery-oriented government agency created to help accelerate the growth and transformation of the country’s agriculture sector. The ATA envisions that, by 2025, smallholder farmers are commercialized with greater incomes, inclusiveness, resilience and sustainability, contributing to Ethiopia’s achievement of middle-income country status.
The agency focuses on two primary national approaches to catalyze agricultural transformation. First, we support the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Resources (MoA), its affiliate institutions, and other partners to identify and address systemic bottlenecks within an Agricultural Transformation Agenda. Second, we support Regional Governments to accelerate development of high-priority commodity value chains in clearly defined geographic clusters, through the Agricultural Commercialization Clusters (ACC) Initiative.
Our major activities include conducting strategic and analytical studies, providing technical implementation support, coordinating platforms to better integrate partners and projects, and designing and directly leading a number of implementation projects. Our headquarters are in Addis Ababa, and we have regional offices in Amhara, Oromia, SNNP, and Tigray regional offices, allowing us to work closely with a wide range of public, private and development sector partners across the country.
Our Culture
We have an exceptional team of highly competent employees with a proven track record of success in managing complex activities and achieving transformational results. Our culture is one where talented, dedicated and adaptable individuals are committed to doing their best and exhibit great team work to achieve excellent results.
At ATA, we provide an exceptional platform for people who want to achieve their highest potential and make a meaningful contribution in changing the country’s agricultural sector. We offer rewarding work in a young, fast-paced growing organization with passionate, committed, motivated colleagues and excellent career development and training. We recognize our most valuable assets are our staff and are committed to providing our employees with the tools, training, and mentorships necessary to achieve their career goals.
POSITION SUMMARY:
The Director of the Planning, Monitoring, Evaluations and Reporting (PMER) will lead the Monitoring & Evaluation, Data Service & Tools, Planning & Reporting and Learning team. The director will provide leadership and oversight support to design, conduct baseline, evaluation and learning studies; planning & reporting; Learning & Knowledge Management and provide capacity building. The Director will work closely with senior management and leaders across the organization, in addition to a variety of high-profile stakeholders and partners. The Director will lead the PMER team to generate significant learning and insights to improve the design and operation of current and future interventions, both at the ATA and with our partners to transform the agriculture sector.
The PMER Director provide leadership and direction to Planning, Monitoring, Evaluation, Learning and operational research frameworks that contribute to program excellence and achievement the ATA program/project outcomes. Under the supervision of the Senior Director of Strategic Services, the Planning, Monitoring and Evaluations and Reporting Director is accountable for:
· Planning, tracking, and reporting of ATA programs, projects and operations for different stakeholders.
· Program/project Monitoring & Evaluation processes, standards and tools are defined.
· Lead in generating, documenting, sharing and application of project/program learning from programs/ projects implemented by Ethiopian Agricultural Transformation Agency
· Data management systems, protocols, tool, and policies are well-defined and followed.
· Generating, documenting, sharing and application of project/program learning from programs/ projects implemented by Ethiopian Agricultural Transformation Agency.
This position will report directly to the Senior Director of Strategic Services. Strategic Services Vertical also oversees the Project Portfolio Management Office, Analytics, Cross-cutting Initiatives and Partnerships & Resource Mobilization. The Director will closely work with these units and other project staffs. The Director will be a key thought partner to the Senior Director in refining the strategy for the Strategic Services Vertical.
ESSENTIAL DUTIES:
1. Support enhanced quality Monitoring & Evaluation throughout the project cycle.
- Provided support in defining the monitoring process, approaches and tools; monitor outcomes and results.
- Act as a thought partner to help project teams develop meaningful results frameworks and monitoring & evaluation plans.
- Lead the M&E team to achieve maximum impact through actionable, insightful and collaborative project design, baseline and evaluation studies.
- Lead the M&E team to produce high-quality and timely baselines and evaluations of the ATA’s work with smallholder farmers, including partnering with a variety of consultants and research organizations.
- Work closely with research to move from individual project evaluations to cross-project meta-analysis and modelling to understand the drivers of change in agriculture.
2. Lead in generating, documenting, sharing and application of project/program learning from programs/ projects implemented by Ethiopian Agricultural Transformation Agency
- Synthesize and communicate learnings from evaluations and progress reviews to ensure continuous improvement of policy development, project planning and implementation, both within the ATA and with our partners.
- Lead operations research within the framework of projects being implemented by ATA for generating and applying learning.
3. Ensure planning, tracking and reporting of ATA programs, projects and operations for different stakeholders.
- Lead organizational planning processes, develop result frameworks as well as M&E plans for programs/projects and maintain compendium of organizational indicators.
- Provide leadership and oversight to the planning & reporting of project teams of the organization, Partners, and stakeholders.
- Lead the development of standard data collection processes, tools and requirements, ensure data quality and consistency, automate data aggregation and ensure interoperability.
4. Ensure Data management systems, protocols, tool, and policies are well-defined and followed.
- Provided oversight to organizational Data service management, Data collation and aggregation and Data analysis and visualization.
- Lead the ATA data management plan that is consistent with ATA guidelines.
5. Tailored capacity building and mentor in planning, monitoring, evaluation and learning to build the expertise of staff.
- Work with Project and portfolio management unit to create systems and capacity building initiatives for the effective and efficient management of projects in ATA
- Proactively coach and develop PMER staffs and independent contractors (ICs)
- Design and facilitate capacity building to project leadership in the areas of Monitoring and Evaluation using optimal means of delivery, such as group trainings, individual advisory or mentorships, external trainings, PMP certification, etc.
- Assess the effectiveness of the capacity building initiatives against the identified core competencies and make revisions when necessary.
6. Manage the performance of all PMER staff and conduct operational activities.
- Coaching for Performance: Manage performance review of PMER staff
- Reporting: Director of PMER reports to the Strategic Services Senior Director
- Approvals: Review/approve leaves, PMER’s plan, performance goals/targets, budgets, reports, procurement, travel, etc.
7. Miscellaneous
- Undertake other duties as assigned by the Senior Director of Strategic Services.
Job Requirements
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:
- Master’s degree in Monitoring and Evaluation, Development Economics, Economics, Agricultural Economics, Development Studies, Statistics or another relevant field.
- At least 10 years hands-on experience in managing a monitoring and evaluation system and/or impact evaluation, preferably in the fields of agriculture or rural development, based on planning frameworks such as logical framework, results framework, outcome mapping.
- Deep understanding of the theory and application of performance evaluation as well as impact evaluation, including best-practice tools and approaches.
- Hands-on experience with data management and analytical software such as SPSS/Stata.
- An understanding of Ethiopia’s agricultural system, with a broad perspective on how the entire system operates and how public, private, NGO and informal actors interact.
- Excellent analytical, problem-solving, and data gathering and analysis skills.
- Ability to thrive in a fast-moving, start-up environment, with an emphasis on high performance, teamwork, accountability and results.
- Strong set of personal values including integrity, honesty and desire to be of service.
- Fluency in English is essential.
How to Apply
APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS
We invite all candidates meeting the required qualifications to submit (i) a cover letter and (ii) CV (maximum 3 pages) to https://apply.ata.gov.et
Please DO NOT submit scans of certificates with your application.
Women are highly encouraged to apply.
Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.
More Information
- Job City Addis Ababa