MEL Manager - Plan International Ghana

Plan International is an independent non-profit organization that advances children’s well-being and equality for girls. Working together with children, young people, our supporters and partners, we strive for a just world, tackling the root causes of the challenges facing girls and all vulnerable children.   We support children’s rights from birth until they reach adulthood. And we enable children to prepare for – and respond to – crisis and adversity. We drive changes in practice and policy at local, national and global levels using our reach, experience and knowledge.   We employ more than 9,000 people in programme countries, working with over 85,000 communities. We have been building powerful partnerships for children for almost 80 years, and are now active in more than 70 countries.

The M&E Manager will be responsible for all aspects of monitoring and evaluation related to the Making Ghanaian Girls Great (MGCubed) project including quality assurance and programme improvement as well as meeting the project’s evaluation requirements. The role will involve managing the implementation of the M&E Framework and Evaluation Strategy for the project and managing the project’s M&E systems, processes and tools. The M&E Manager will contribute to Project reports and lead in the documentation and dissemination of lessons learnt. The M&E Manager will manage a Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) Officer and coordinate a team of Regional and District Coordinators for data collection.

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Dimensions of Role:

The MEL Manager will be responsible and ultimately accountable for developing and implementing the MGCubed project’s knowledge management system, all with the ultimate objective of improving project effectiveness.

You will have a passion for working for girls’ rights and/or improving education. You will work closely with community organisations, education stakeholders and Plan programme staff to implement appropriate tools and data collection techniques to systematically measure project progress and ensure continuous learning.

You will ensure that Plan International’s global policies for Child Protection (CPP) and Gender Equality and Inclusion (GEI) are fully embedded in accordance with the principles and requirements of the policy including relevant Implementation Standards and Guidelines as applicable to their area of responsibility. This includes, but is not limited to, ensuring staff and associates are aware of and understand their responsibilities under these policies and Plan International’s Code of Conduct (CoC), their relevance to their area of work, and that concerns are reported and managed in accordance with the appropriate procedures. You have responsibility for ensuring safeguarding procedures or policies, including on adult Sexual Exploitation, Harassment and Abuse, are adhered to.

MGCubed is a 4 year, DFID-funded Girls' Education Challenge project supporting marginalised girls and children with disabilities in two regions of Ghana. MGCubed aims to address the challenges of teacher quality, teacher absenteeism, and poor learning environments through the provision of quality educational content in rural Ghanaian schools. Using solar-powered and satellite-enabled distance learning infrastructure to deliver interactive learning sessions to students, teachers, communities and government officials, MGCubed aims to improve learning outcomes for marginalised pupils, support pupils to transition successfully through school, and contribute to sustained improvements in the Ghanaian education system.

Typical Responsibilities - Key End Results of Position:

“What” is done and “why”, but not “how”; include indicators for success                                                                           

Internal Monitoring

• Lead the implementation and continuous development of MGCubed’s monitoring, evaluation and learning systems and tools in order to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness, quality and performance of project activities, in collaboration with the Plan International UK M&E Specialist. 
• Oversee data quality assurance processes throughout monitoring and evaluation activities to ensure MGCubed meets rigorous evidence standards at every stage (design, data capture, analysis, reporting).

• Maintain the Project logical framework in collaboration with Plan International UK M&E Specialist, ensuring indicator achievements are updated on a regular basis and shared with the Project Manager.
• Oversee the effective implementation of the project’s beneficiary reverification process and manage the beneficiary database.
• Implement MGCubed’s M&E strategy, ensuring milestone targets and donor requirements are met.
• Coordinate monthly, quarterly and annual reports bringing together data from across the project to reflect implementation progress and impact. 
• Support the Project Manager in decision-making and donor reporting by providing timely and relevant information based on M&E data.
• Coordinate and oversee the monitoring activities of a team of Regional and District Coordinators.
• Identify the M&E training needs of team members and other stakeholders and work with the Project Manager to plan and implement training that meets these needs.
• Ensure that project monitoring data is regularly analysed and communicated to inform ongoing learning and key programmatic decisions. For example, you will be expected to participate in regular project steering committee meetings through which project plans and strategies will be approved.
• Support in monitoring compliance of child protection and safeguarding and do no harm standards.
• Coach, train, and mentor the MEL Officer with the aim of strengthening her/his technical capacity and providing professional development guidance in conjunction with the Project Manager.
• Create/revise tools and data collection procedures with the support of the Project Manager and Plan International UK M&E Specialist.
• Review weekly reports to identify challenges for the project implementation.
• Coordinate and chair regular M&E focused meetings.

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External Project Evaluation

• Support Plan International UK M&E Specialist on all issues related to project evaluations.
• Actas the link between the External Evaluation team and Plan International Ghana.
• Lead on all communications between Plan Ghana and the External Evaluation team, including communicating deadlines and requirements.
• Support the Plan International UK M&E Specialist in commissioning External Evaluation teams when required.
• The M&E Manager will be responsible for reviewing and coordinating all documents produced by the External Evaluation team, in collaboration with the Plan International UK M&E Specialist.
• Responsible for ensuring all monitoring and evaluation activities are conducted in line with Plan International’s child safeguarding and ethical principles/MERL standards and promote accountability to beneficiaries.
   
  Documentation and Dissemination of lessons
   
• Lead in the dissemination of Project results and best practices through internal and external knowledge sharing forums.
• Lead the development of briefings, presentations and other project documents for dissemination.
• In collaboration with the project team, stakeholders and consultants (when relevant), compile raw data, choose data representations, and document lessons learned and best practices. 
• Design and implement dissemination plans to share knowledge and findings with relevant stakeholders, including women’s organizations, government, donors, etc.
• Participate at relevant external events, including interaction with the Ministry of Education.
• Build relationships and share learning with M&E and education sector staff in other organisations.

Project Database and Data Collection System

• The M&E Manager will be responsible for managing the programme database (Salesforce) for the MGCubed Project. This includes ensuring the system meets data management needs and providing technical support and training to staff.
• The M&E Manager will be responsible for managing the mobile data collection system (Taroworks) and its integration with the database. This includes providing technical support and training to ensure all office and field staff can use the application successfully. The M&E Manager will lead on the use of the mobile data collection system.
• The M&E Manager will be the main liaison between the Programme and the Taroworks and Salesforce teams.
• The M&E Manager will ensure the effective integration of MGCubed systems with Plan International Ghana systems and databases and quality assure these systems at the project level.

Communications and Working Relationships:

Working contacts inside and outside the organization; include the purpose and level (high, medium, low) of the contact

High level contact: Internal: the MGCubed team and Plan International UK M&E Specialist Medium level contact: Plan Ghana M&EL Manager, Plan Ghana technical advisersLow level contact:  Relevant stakeholders in the Ministry of Education and Ghana Education Service

Knowledge, Skills, Behaviours, and Experience Required for the role:

Gained through education, training, & experience

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Qualifications and Experience

• Advanced degree in Statistics, Measurement in Education, Planning, monitoring & evaluation, Development research, Social Sciences or other relevant fields.
• Minimum of 5 years’ working experience in a similar role.
• Demonstrable expertise in developing and implementing M&E systems.
• Exceptional quantitative and qualitative data processing and analysis skills, including adapting/developing monitoring tools and surveys. 
• Proficiency with Excel, including data analysis techniques.
• Experience managing large and complex databases.
• In-depth knowledge of the processes, procedures and systems in project planning, management, monitoring and evaluation in education programme delivery.
• Previous experience of using Salesforce as a database (desirable)
• Previous experience of managing data collection processes and using mobile data collection software.
• Proven experience in facilitating and delivering trainings using participatory approaches.
• Experience collating and analysing comprehensive monitoring and evaluation data from multiple sources to prepare succinct reports and creative materials tailored for the needs of diverse audiences.
• Previous experience of managing a small team.
• Experience of working in the NGO setting will be desirable.
• Experience working with DFID or another large institutional donor is desirable.
• .  
• Knowledge in Gender programming and working with Women’s Rights Organisations is an advantage.
• Capacity building experience in project design, implementation, reporting, and evaluation.

Skills required for the post.

• Excellent English language skills, including reading, writing, speaking and listening.
• The ability to multi-task and cope with a degree of pressure at peak times.
• Strong collaborative and interpersonal skills and ability to work with people from a variety of cultures and backgrounds.
• .  
• Strong understanding and proven application of project cycle management.
• Skills in the design, entry, analysis of data in Microsoft Excel and Access as well as for Microsoft word and PowerPoint; knowledge of statistical software (e.g. SPSS) preferred.
• Self-starter who takes initiative and works with minimal direct supervision.
• Flexible, able to shift directions quickly and occasionally work long hours to meet tight reporting deadlines.
   

Demonstrated behaviours needed by the postholder to successfully perform the role:

• Passion for learning about relevant trends in education programming and M&E, and personal values aligned with Plan International.
• Commitment to working transparently and with integrity.
• Inclusive and empowering approach to leadership and project management.
• Demonstrated creativity and willingness to innovate.
• Flexible and adaptable work style to respond to an evolving context.
• Ability to work under pressure, prioritize and meet deadlines.

• Communicates clearly and effectively.
• Committed to respecting deadlines.
• Accountable for ensuring we are a safe organisation for all children, girls and young people.