Monitoring, Evaluation & Learning Advisor at John Snow Inc - JSI

John Snow, Inc., and our nonprofit JSI Research & Training Institute, Inc., are public health management consulting and research organizations dedicated to improving the health of individuals and communities throughout the world. JSI's mission is to improve the health of underserved people and communities and to provide a place where people of passion and commitment can pursue this cause. For 35 years, Boston-based JSI and our affiliates have provided high-quality technical and managerial assistance to public health programs worldwide. JSI has implemented projects in 106 countries, and currently operates from eight U.S. and 81 international offices, with more than 500 U.S.-based professionals and 1,600 host country staff. JSI is deeply committed to improving the health of individuals and communities worldwide. We work in partnership with governments, organizations, and host-country experts to improve quality, access and equity of health systems worldwide. We collaborate with government agencies, the private sector, and local nonprofit and civil society organizations to achieve change in communities and health systems.

GENERAL INFORMATION:

JSI Research & Training Institute, Inc. (JSI) is a public health management consulting and research organization dedicated to improving the health of individuals and communities throughout the world. JSI is currently implementing the Routine Immunization Project. The project’s overarching goal is to strengthen routine immunization programs to 1) sustainably overcome the entrenched obstacles contributing to stagnating and declining immunization rates in the supported states, and 2) address the barriers to reaching zero-dose and under-immunized children with life-saving vaccines and other health services. 

The Project will provide technical assistance to support routine immunization strengthening in 5 states, applying a co-creation approach to improve equitable coverage with a focus on identifying, understanding, and reaching zero-dose and under-immunized children. 

Position SUMMARY:

The Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, and Learning (MEAL) Specialist, under the leadership of the Project Director manages information and reporting processes and products to ensure professional, high-quality communication about the Routine Immunization programmatic activities and results. The MEAL Specialist will also play an important role in improving information management and data quality, and in strengthening knowledge sharing and learning across the organization and with the international health and development communities. The MEAL Specialist will assume responsibility for full-cycle monitoring and evaluation of the RI programs, developing appropriate methodologies and tools to design evaluations.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Bolster assessments and studies with rich, dynamic visualizations and analysis using methods such as story-mapping, proximity analysis, buffering analysis, and cluster analysis.
• Deliver comprehensive GIS support, including customized maps, dashboards, and infographics as requested to inform decision making and strengthen the data lifecycle using ICT
• Give additional analytical breadth and depth to geospatial analysis efforts, drawing on rich geospatial data and incorporating GIS-related data into programming at the strategy and activity levels to create prediction models using machine-learning methods.
• Use periodic and rapid data collection to pinpoint disparities in implementation & successes in addressing key gaps within programming.
• Provide GIS training and mentoring and develop targeted workshops to build Mission, IP, and local MEL firm capacity to: incorporate GIS and GPS data for decision making, use GIS software for simple mapping, and analyze real data.
• Manages information and reporting processes and products to ensure professional, high-quality communication about the project’s activities and results. 
• The MEAL Specialist will also play an important role in improving information management and data quality, and in strengthening knowledge sharing and learning across the organization and with the international health and development communities. 
• The MEAL Specialist will assume responsibility for full-cycle monitoring and evaluation of the project, developing appropriate methodologies and tools to design evaluations under the leadership of the Senior MEAL Advisor.
• Develop, implement, and assess monitoring frameworks for the projects. 
• Update the overall framework for project M&E systems in collaboration with MEAL Advisor, donor and senior project staff, including requirements, reporting, baseline, and evaluation surveys; develop and monitor project management plan to systematically document performance
• Facilitate design of “SMART” objectives, logic models, monitoring frameworks, and evaluation plans during annual work-planning process; Ensure the alignment of M&E activities with program goals
• Contribute to the development of annual work plans to identify project targets and ensure inclusion of M&E activities
• Maintain existing indicator tracking tools; develop additional databases and tracking tools as needed to demonstrate the effectiveness of project interventions
• Ensure adherence to specific monitoring and reporting requirements for the donor
• Analyze data for accuracy, flag validation or quality issues, and contribute to system fixes
• Aggregate and analyze data from across the project’s information platform to contribute to management decision-making and reporting
• Ensure quality and timely submission of country quarterly progress reports; manage the preparation of additional reports to the donor as required
• Generate monthly indicator reports for tracking progress against key indicators as needed
• Conduct field visits for data validation and to monitor the quality and completeness of data sets; coordinate data collection at project sites to monitor program development and ensure timely compilation and reporting of data; capture and document lessons learned; and champion the scaling up of best practices
• Provide technical leadership and support to project and partner staff in planning and implementing M&E systems and activities, data-based program decision-making, and results reporting; provide training as needed
• Support the development, design, writing, and concept notes for related programming, information management, and reporting
• Create and integrate graphics in reports and information products to help visualize data in a meaningful way
• Edit content and presentation of all reporting and deliverables before submittal to ensure superior quality and professionalism
• Coordinate responses to requests for information
• Contribute to developing and reporting of project reviews, assessments, surveys, and other analytic or evaluation processes and products
• Promote strong data collection techniques and data quality through traditional methods as well as innovative approaches to remote data collection.
• Support the development and implementation of the project learning plan.
• Support report composition for all project deliverables and ad hoc requests.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor’s degree required, master’s degree in statistics, demographics, public health, or international development preferred
• Minimum of five years of experience working in the field of monitoring and evaluation
• Hands-on knowledge of Esri ArcGIS desktop software, including ArcMap and ArcPro.
• Strong understanding of geodatabases and geodatabase applications.
• Previous experience in developing GIS project deliverables 
• Experience in strategic planning and performance management, including indicator selection, target setting, reporting, database management, and developing M&E and performance monitoring plans
• Knowledge of the major evaluation methodologies (qualitative, quantitative, mixed methods, and impact) and data collection and analysis methodologies
• Experience in planning and managing surveys, developing and refining data collection tools, and with data quality assessments and oversight
• Ability to handle multiple tasks simultaneously in a fast-paced environment, set priorities, and meet deadlines
• Ability to synthesize complex information and communicate it effectively to diverse audiences; ability to design and implement efficient workflows and procedures
• Ability to manage critical relationships with diplomacy and tact and engage a wide range of stakeholders including institutional partners, host country government officials, potential donors, and peer organizations
• Fluency in English; excellent written and oral communication skills, including facilitation and cross-cultural communication.
• Strong attention to detail, organizational. and time management skills
• Computer proficiency in Windows environment (Microsoft Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint) and proficiency in online research (e.g., PubMed).
• Experience with NHMIS facility data tools, data quality assessments, and oversight; knowledge of data cleaning processes.
• Advanced user of DHIS2, SPSS, Stata, R, or Python. Advanced knowledge of MS Office applications (PowerPoint, Excel) and modern communications tools (internet, email, social media, and teleconferencing). Knowledge of multivariate data analysis.
• Excellent knowledge in partnership engagement, data cleaning and preparation, data analysis and exploration, and statistical knowledge. Additional advantage if knowledgeable in data science tools such as SQL skills, Excel, and Tableau for data visualization.
• Ability to speak any Nigerian language. 

     JSI is an Equal Opportunity, Affirmative Action Employer committed to workplace diversity. We are committed to providing equal employment opportunities for all qualified applicants and employees without regard to age, race, color, national origin, ancestry, creed, religion, gender, disability, marital status, gender identity, sexual orientation, sexual preference, genetic information, political affiliation, or protected veteran status in any employment decisions. Women are encouraged to apply. 

Method of Application