The UNDP Grenada Project Coordinating Unit (PCU) seeks to recruit a local Technical Specialist – Monitoring and Evaluation (TS-ME) with excellent research and evaluation skills. The duties will be diverse and multi-faceted; therefore, excellent professional skills are vital for this role.
The successful candidate must have excellent interpersonal and communication skills and must be able to adapt to the changing needs of the programmes and projects. To ensure success, the Technical Specialist – Monitoring and Evaluation must be flexible, organised, and self-motivated.
Background
Under the direct supervision of the Coordinator, the Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist (TS-ME) will contribute their professional expertise to the effective implementation of the evaluation policy. Ensures that the monitoring and evaluation requirements for the Country programme and projects are met and facilitates thematic and crosscutting evaluations. The TS-ME will ensure that objective evaluations are designed and implemented to assess the relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, impact, and sustainability of Project results. The TS-ME will ensure that evaluations are carried out credibly and systematically; that evaluation lessons and recommendations are used relevantly and contribute to the implementation of Project priorities and outcomes.
The TS-ME will work within the context of ongoing Projects within the Grenada Unit and will be primarily responsible for providing high-quality technical advice, research, as well as knowledge and capacity development services for the Project. S/he will work with governments, inter-governmental organisations, UN agencies, NGOs, donors, and the private sector to achieve the intended programmatic objectives and outcomes.
Duties and Responsibilities
Summary of Key Functions:
Design, Implementation, and Monitoring:
- Facilitates, with the PCU, the implementation of evaluation policies, strategies, and the coordination of the evaluation process.
- Facilitation of knowledge building and knowledge sharing on monitoring and evaluation.
- Ensures the implementation of evaluation policies and strategies, focusing on the achievement of results.
- Facilitates the planning, preparation, and management of thematic, country programme/project evaluations, and other types of evaluations conducted in the PCU.
- Promotion of evaluation standards, quality assurance/control, and capacity development in the PCU.
- Facilitates evaluation of the work plan, including the identification of topics and projects/programmes to be evaluated.
- Coordination of specific evaluation missions for development projects, sectoral/thematic evaluations, or desk evaluations/studies on selected sectors/themes.
- Ensures effective coordination of the evaluation process in the PCU, focusing on the achievement of results.
- Provision of technical advice at the design stage of programmes/projects setting up a framework with defined indicators at the design stage to facilitate the evaluation at the later stages.
- Preparation of analytical documents on areas evaluated, effectiveness, and impact of UNDP projects.
- Follow up on the implementation of evaluation recommendations. Ensuring the optimal use of evaluations and assisting with the preparation of timely management response to all mandatory evaluations and developing a communication plan.
- Identification and formulation of evaluation findings, lessons learned, and recommendations to be integrated into broader knowledge management efforts, disseminated in learning events, and channelled into decision-making processes.
- Contribution to the implementation of Evaluation Knowledge Management and Learning Strategy.
Development Impact:
- Lead the integration of relevant methodology in planning, monitoring, and implementation.
- Leverage existing results and solutions at the national and regional levels to deliver tangible and measurable results in target sectors.
- Ensure a cross-sector and interdisciplinary approach to developing and testing solutions, including analysis of opportunities and risks relating to natural resources, climate, natural hazards, and socio-economic development concerns.
- Support refinement and monitoring of results frameworks at the country and project level, with the alignment of baselines, targets, indicators, and work plans.
- Use participatory approaches to design and implement monitoring plans, including data collection methods and methodologies to measure causality and intervention impact, participatory and evidence-based monitoring, and evaluation (M&E) methods to promote ownership and measure change among target groups.
Learning and Knowledge Management:
- Design and deliver the capacity building to develop/enhance skills in-country for long-term application of tools and approaches provided through programming.
- Evaluate, capture, codify, and synthesise lessons and stimulate the uptake of best practices and knowledge, including the development of knowledge materials as relevant.
- With the team, identify and support the transfer of successful models, approaches, and solutions to the wider portfolio and the global UNDP knowledge network.
Functional Competencies: Monitoring and Evaluation
- Results-Based Programme Development and Management.
- Contributes to results through primary research and analysis.
- Assesses project performance to identify success factors and incorporates best practices into project work.
- Researches linkages across programme activities to identify critical points of integration.
- Monitors specific stages of projects/programme implementation.
- Participates in the formulation of project proposals and ensures substantive rigour in the design and application of proven successful approaches and drafts proposals accordingly.
- Generates new ideas and approaches, researches best practices, and proposes new, more effective ways of doing things.
- Documents and analyses innovative strategies and new approaches.
- Understands and applies fundamental concepts and principles of a professional discipline or technical speciality relating to the position.
- Possesses basic knowledge of organisational policies and procedures relating to the position and applies them consistently in work tasks.
- Analyses the requirements and synthesises proposals.
- Strives to keep job knowledge up-to-date through self-directed study and other means of learning.
- Demonstrates good knowledge of information technology and applies it in work assignments.
- Global Leadership and Advocacy for UNDP’s Goals.
Required Skills and Experience
Education:
Master’s degree or equivalent in International Relations, Political Science, Economics, Process Management, Development, or Social Sciences.
Experience:
- 5 years of experience addressing issues specific to Caribbean SIDS surrounding, or other international development issues. Or an additional 2 years in the absence of a master’s degree.
- 4 years of experience in monitoring and evaluation with a background in the analysis of socio-economic issues and related policy matters.
- Experience in developing and implementing participatory research approaches, and in quantitative and qualitative research methods. Evidence of published work is an asset.
- High level of competency and experience in results-based management, including project design, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation.
- Experience developing and delivering training on gender equity and analysis.
- Sound understanding of national and local development planning processes in the Caribbean.
- Previous work experience in a UN organisation is an asset.
- Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages, experience in handling of web-based management systems.
CLOSING DATE FOR APPLICANTS
To apply for this position, please submit your motivation letter and CV to [email protected] by 5 pm on Monday, 27 July 2020.
