Monitoring, Evaluation, Research and Learning (MERL) Advisor

Job Location: Washington, DC     

Telework Eligible: Yes, at least 3 days per week in-person reporting at Washington, DC office.

Remote Eligible: No.

Summary Statement

The Global Health Training, Advisory and Support Contract (GHTASC) delivers effective global health programming to advance the mission of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), Bureau for Global Health (GH) through institutional support and workforce development services from junior, mid-level, senior and expert advisory and administrative professionals.

Credence and its partner, the Public Health Institute (PHI), are both employers for GHTASC, and are seeking a Monitoring, Evaluation, Research and Learning (MERL) Advisor under GHTASC. This position will be hired under Public Health Institute (PHI).

The Office of Maternal and Child Health and Nutrition, within USAID's Bureau for Global Health (GH/MCHN), serves as the Agency's technical and policy lead on maternal newborn and child health, immunization, nutrition, and environmental health, with a focus on preventing child and maternal deaths and improved nutrition, and supporting other related Agency priorities. Cross-cutting activities managed by the Office in support of this goal include private sector partnerships, social and behavior change, MCHN policy, multilateral partnerships, gender, innovation, monitoring, evaluation, research/research utilization and learning (MERL), knowledge management and knowledge translation.

MCHN's Research and Policy Division (GH/MCHN/RP) is responsible for technical leadership, guidance, and coordination to advance a systematic approach to the use of measurement related efforts including innovation, monitoring, evaluation, research/research utilization and learning to accelerate the uptake, sustained and effective use of, and scale-up of maternal, newborn, child, water, and sanitation (WASH) and nutrition programming. RP is one of four divisions in the MCHN Office, which also includes the Maternal and Newborn Health Division, the Child Health and Immunization Division and the Nutrition and Environmental Health Division. RP staff support the MERL needs of other MCHN Divisions as well as USAID Missions, the Bureau for Global Health, and the Agency at large.

Position Summary:

The Monitoring, Evaluation, Research and Learning (MERL) Advisor will primarily support the Office of Maternal Child Health and Nutrition’s office as a PHI Institutional Support Contractor (ISC). In this role, the mid-level Monitoring, Evaluation Research and Learning (MERL) Advisor for Maternal, Child Health and Nutrition (Advisor) will conduct data analysis and provide technical assistance, and capacity building in monitoring, evaluation research, and learning (MERL) in support of achievement of preventing child and maternal deaths (PCMD). The Advisor will be responsible for undertaking practical, measurement and data visualization approaches focused on the highest priority problem areas and interventions relevant to the needs of USAID PCMD priority countries. The incumbent will undertake analytical work in support of efforts to inform strategic plans and programmatic decisions of the Agency, the Global Health Bureau and USAID country missions. The Advisor will provide technical assistance in MERL and the Agency’s Collaborating, Learning, and Adapting (CLA) approach focused on the work of MCHN and relevant mission bilateral projects and initiatives.

Major Areas of Responsibility:

• Contribute to USAID's global technical leadership in MERL focused on measurement, data use, and reporting on MCH, Nutrition and WASH.
• Provide expert MERL support to USAID/W, Missions, and USAID global and bilateral projects.
• Contribute to USAID's annual reporting, portfolio reviews and budget development processes and support special initiatives.
• Support and as appropriate conduct analysis, documentation, knowledge management and dissemination activities working in collaboration with other MCHN technical advisors and the office’s communications team.
• Communicate on MERL issues and priorities with USAID mission and USAID/W technical staff to help stakeholders consider technical priorities and measurement issues.

Full salary range for this position is $97,500 to $152,620 per year, with the starting salary determined based on candidate’s knowledge, skills, experience, as well as budget availability.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

Global/HQ Technical leadership in MCHN data analysis, monitoring, evaluation, research, and learning

• Conduct quantitative and qualitative analyses of MCHN data, external data sets, and USAID surveys and evaluations to provide input into strategic planning, policy development, MERL reporting, and future program design related to advancing achievement of PCMD.
• Respond to recurrent and ad-hoc data analytic requests from MCHN/RP measurement team leader, MCHN office leadership and Technical Advisors, the MCHN Communication Team, and relevant leadership and working groups, as requested.
• Manage the MCHN Measurement team knowledge management practices including data collection, organization, sharing of results, and storage working in partnership with the MCHN Office’s Knowledge Management Advisor and MCHN/Communication Team, as appropriate.
• Support global sharing and adoption of MER best practices from the USAID MCHN Program as well as other global health partners.
• Develop and maintain data dashboards and other approaches for MCHN HQ and mission related activities to provide data insights on needs, progress, and challenges to achievement of program cycle and the PCMD vision.
• Coordinate with relevant Global Health Bureau data staff to facilitate data validation, reproducibility, and ensure results are accessible to cross-office audiences and increase the visibility of the RP Division’s work.
• Serve as the MCHN office indicator owner for the MCH Performance, Plan, and Report (PPR);
• Participate in relevant internal USAID MERL, and M&E technical working groups, task forces, and professional meetings.
• Participate in professional continuing education, skills training, and USAID training activities, as appropriate; and,
• Prepare and submit papers to professional journals and meetings related to MCHN MERL/M&E.

Support to Country level MERL for Mission and host country programs and action plans.

• Conduct analysis of internal USAID management data including Mission Operating Plans (OP) and PPR as well as external data sources to support effective and impactful mission program cycle planning and implementation.
• Provide technical and analytical support to PCMD countries and serve as MCHN liaison and/or data lead for one or more PCMD MCHN Pivot country mission teams; and,
• Provide technical support and guidance to USAID missions on measurement of PCMD for planning, implementation, impact, and reporting as well as build capacity of mission staff for effective use of MERL for planning, implementation, and reporting.
• Ability to travel internationally to developing country program sites up to 25% of the time.
• Work at least 3 days per week in-person at Washington, DC office.

Qualification Requirements:

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Master’s degree with 6 years of relevant experience, bachelor’s degree with 8 years of relevant experience, Associate’s degree and 10 years of relevant experience, or High School graduate and 12 years of relevant experience.
• US Citizenship or US Permanent Residency with the ability to obtain and maintain a Facility Access clearance is required. For Permanent Residents, this means having resided in the US for at least 3 of the past 5 years.

Other Qualifications:

• Strong organizational skills
• Experience with data, implementation research, and monitoring and evaluation programs; preferably USAID programs
• Knowledge of USAID rules, regulations, program cycle, and CLA toolkit
• Demonstrated skills in data analysis, strategic planning, monitoring systems, program coordination and implementation, and evaluation; preferably related to maternal and child health or other public health programs
• Proficiency in Tableau Desktop and Tableau Prep or other data visualization software
• High level of proficiency in Google Suite: Sheets, Slides, Docs, Drive and related applications
• Strong written and verbal communication skills with experience delivering technical presentations to a broad group of technical and non-technical audiences
• Strong interpersonal, facilitation, and team building skills, and ability to work across agencies and cross-culturally with diverse teams on sensitive issues
• Ability to be effective in high-pressure situations, handle multiple tasks simultaneously, problem solve in a fast-paced environment and set priorities
• Demonstrated ability to work independently
• Familiarity with maternal and child health indicators and data systems, preferred but not required.
• Experience creating and implementing knowledge management practices, preferred but not required
• Experience with working against ambitious completion deadlines for data cleaning, data analysis, and data visualization, preferred but not required.
• Willingness to travel internationally, up to 25% of the time
• Ability to work at least 3 days per week in-person at Washington, DC office. 

Competencies:

• Innovation: Takes initiative to propose new ideas/approaches and demonstrates ability to find new and better ways to accomplish work. 
• Client Service: Communicates with clients, handling any issues politely and efficiently; understands and is available to clients; maintains pleasant and professional image. 
• Accountability: Takes ownership of work responsibilities and holds high standards. Keeps commitments and takes appropriate actions to ensure obligations are met.  Pursues efficiency and effectiveness and adheres to organization policies and procedures. 
• Interpersonal Skills: Works in cooperation with others and communicates effectively with co-workers, supervisors, subordinates, clients, and other outside contacts. 
• Continual Learning: Assesses and recognizes own strengths and weaknesses; pursues professional development that is aligned with organizational role, contribution, and goals; proactively shares knowledge with others to foster learning across the organization. 

Prior to submitting your application, your resume must include relevant paid and non-paid experience showing dates held with month, year and hours worked per week for each position. Please ensure that all relevant experience and education is documented on your resume. There is no limitation to resume length; updates to resumes will not be accepted during the interview and selection process.