Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) Specialist

About Athena Global Alliance

Athena Global Alliance is a decade old, niche consulting firm in impact investing, with a current focus in emerging market financial services.  Athena is administering a program in Indonesia to support lending to small and growing businesses, with a focus on women-owned/women-led businesses, called BIDUK. The MEL Specialist position is expected to collaboratively support a small, but growing, global team for the BIDUK project in Indonesia. 

This role is part time, and best suited for an individual consultant or small firm.  The position requires local, Jakarta-based, support, fluent in both Bahasa Indonesian and English. The ideal candidate will have experience designing and overseeing the implementation of MEL systems with international donors and Development Financial Institutions, as well as experience in contributing to adaptive performance management and capturing rapid learning.  The chosen candidate will be able to work independently and effectively collaborate with international remote teams.

You can read more about Athena Global Alliance here: www.athenaglobalalliance.com and our lead program, BIDUK, here: https://ixc.dfat.gov.au/projects/frontier-brokers/

Key Aspects of the Role


As part of their main responsibilities, the MEL Specialist will:

·        Coordinate planning and implementation of all, monitoring, evaluation and learning activities in order to support continuous improvement and quality performance towards program              outcomes;

·        Act as the main coordinator for the effective implementation of the program MEL Framework;

·        Together with the Program Manager, help to build a culture of learning and adaptation acting as a mentor and guide to the program team and its partners;

·        Embed and integrate into the Jakarta-based team;

·        Accompany the Jakarta-based team during site visit and meeting with counterparts, as needed.

This position reports to the Athena Director, who is remotely based. 


Learning and knowledge management

·        Develop, implement and institutionalize a learning and adaptive culture of working within BIDUK to ensure effective capturing and use of data (quantitative and qualitative),                              information  and learning; utilization of this information and learning; and continuous improvement towards program outcomes.

·        Plan and develop light-touch internal quarterly updates documenting results and the uptake of decisions made to inform improvements.

·        Help facilitate learning and review events to gather evidence (quantitative and qualitative) against progress towards intermediate outcomes and outcomes, document and support                  reporting to donors on results and next steps for implementation.

·        Contribute to internal quarterly reviews on progress against the work plan, facilitating discussions on evidence presented to inform strategy revision as needed.

·        Mentor team members in monitoring, evaluation, learning and adaptation based on their needs and roles to support the development of a learning culture and integrated MEL system            used and owned by the team and key partners.


Data collection and management

·        Lead on the planning and coordination of routine and systematic monitoring of BIDUK activities, and track progress against the work plan and achievement towards intermediate                     outcomes and end of program outcomes (EOPO).

·        Develop, update and maintain tools for the effective and streamlined capture of quantitative and qualitative data throughout the program lifecycle. This will include development of               new and refinement of existing monitoring tools for use by BIDUK and BIDUK partners to effectively capture results (intended and unintended) and outcomes. This includes developing a tool for effectively capturing and providing rationale for adaptation.

·        Develop and maintain a monitoring database to capture quantitative and qualitative information gathered through the various tools. This includes a system for effectively capturing and          reporting on adaptation across the various aspects of BIDUK (institutional, products and services)

·        Provide orientation opportunities for the other team members to familiarize with the MEL tools and their application.


Reporting

·        Support on the preparation of quarterly and annual reports, including the development and maintenance of a workplan for report preparation with timelines and clear responsibilities.

·        Support the Program Manager with drafting reports for programmatic metrics and outcomes to donors.

·        Contributes to effort to report on learnings to key stakeholders.

·        Provide inputs to team members and partners, screen and check data and ensuring timely submission of quality draft to the Director for final review and submission to donors.


·        Analyse and document lessons learned and support the development of case studies through the provision of data and information captured in the MEL system.


The Successful Applicant


Required Skill:

To fully be successful in this dynamic organization, you should be/have:

·        An undergraduate degree in economics, social sciences, international relations/development, finance, business or any relevant field

·        At least 5 years of experience working in the field of monitoring and evaluation, developing and applying monitoring tools, data systems, Excel and analysis of qualitative and                              quantitative data and information learning

·        Experience with an International NGO, global organization company, impact investing or similar type organization

·        Demonstrated experience in outcome monitoring

·        Demonstrated experience in facilitating the use of learning and supporting adaptation for program improvement and quality towards achievement of outcomes

·        Excellent facilitation and training skills and experience including in interactive and participatory methodologies.

·        High level of computer and technology proficiency including telecommunications/remote working platform like skype, zoom, what’s app, drop box, google docs, etc.

·        Superb problem solving, analytical and decision-making skills

·        Ability to deliver to tasks on time and with quality results

·        Excellent report writing skills and communication skills in English

·        Fluency in Bahasa Indonesia and English


Desired skills:

·       Advanced degree in higher or related skills

·       Experience understanding and applying Theory of Change on donor funded programs

·       Experience with DFAT (Australian Government) Programs.

·       Good contextual knowledge of small medium enterprises and lending in Indonesia

·       Experience in working in a fast-paced or start-up environment

·       Knowledge of reporting and the mechanics of diverse institutional donors/development partners (EU, USAID, DFAT, DFID, SIDA, etc.)

·       Success in writing proposals/decks and receiving grant or donor funding and/or other types of investment.


Salary: Competitive, based on candidate experience and salary history

To apply, please send a one-page cover letter highlighting your experience and a CV or resume to:

admin@bidukindonesia.id

All applications will be treated in confidence. Only short-listed candidates will be notified and invited for interviews. Please submit your letter of application and CV/resume in English by email not later than January 30, 2020 and include your availability as well as remuneration expectations.

Early application is encouraged as we will review applications throughout the advertising period and reserve the right to close the call for applications early.

Equity, diversity and inclusion is fundamental to the Athena culture. We strive to create a workplace environment that ensures inclusivity, respect, opportunity and collaboration.


We provide equality of opportunity and will not tolerate discrimination on any grounds. We foster an organizational culture that embraces and exemplifies our commitment to racial and gender equality, girls’ rights, and diversity & inclusion for everyone, while supporting staff to adopt good practice, positive attitudes and principles of racial and gender equality and inclusion.