The Program Officer (PO) will lead high quality research, analysis and decision analytics for the GE team’s work in Women’s Empowerment Collectives (WECs) to deepen the quality, depth and breadth of evidence on WECs; including gaining a better understanding of cost effectiveness, significance, elements and innovations in this space. As a resourceful collaborator, you will also be expected to:
Areas of Responsibility:
- Guide data and measurement work including developing and strengthening a global ‘centre of excellence’ of data, evidence, and research on women and girls’ empowerment collectives (WECs).
- Conduct evaluation scoping and landscaping work to support new portfolios of work around WECs, exploration work on less reached groups (adolescents and the poorest), and research and writing consortia.
- Lead MLE and other “community of excellence” grants, convenings, and efforts that help get evidence on WECs ‘off the shelf’ and used by governments, implementers, and foundation staff.
- Coordinate learnings and serve as a focal point across foundation investments to ensure that data, findings, and insights on WECs are captured, analyzed and the results fed back into GE strategic decision-making processes and team materials. This includes coordination with other foundation teams whom are also investing in WECs (e.g. Agricultural Development, Financial Services for the Poor, India Country Office, and some Global Health programs).
- Contribute to identifying topics for new primary research and technology innovation with high potential and supporting other GE team data, measurement, and evaluation work.
- Ensure that learnings and findings from our India and East Africa WEC portfolios are brought together into clear and coherent MLE frameworks and other outputs. Contribute to learning meetings with potential grantees, donors, and funders including field visits to support proposal development.
- Capture, analyze and visualize data coming in from grants, contracts and partners. Use data to question team hypotheses and support better decision making.
- Draft sections of key documents, reports, and presentations for a variety of purposes and audiences, summarizing developments and recommendations for program areas and external partners.
- Support the shaping of the team’s measurement, learning and evaluation strategy particularly for, but not limited to, our work on WECs.
- Help design and operationalize processes and systems which will feed data and analysis from grants and research back into key strategy and portfolio management decisions.
Educational Background:
Master’s or other advanced degree with 5+ years of experience, or equivalent experience.
Skills/Experience:
We are looking for people who enjoy the opportunity of working on complex problems and collectively creating solutions that have the potential for transformative change in the lives of people around the world. You must be prepared to work across a diverse set of disciplines, bridging a wide range of expertise all the while being a team player, with a demonstrated ability to work with flexibility, efficiency and diplomacy in an exciting, challenging environment.
The responsibilities of this role require that you should have an unquestioned commitment to gender equality and as a creative problem solver, have an aptitude for research (landscaping), analysis, and measurement. Additionally, you should have:
- Comfort with quantitative analysis and communicating and synthesizing findings into easily understandable visuals and written materials.
- Demonstrated initiative and ability to resolve unstructured problems with little oversight, creativity, high energy, and a positive attitude.
- Background in data analysis, statistical analysis skills, evaluation, and knowledge management and learning.
- Ability to prioritize work based on minimal direction and multiple competing priorities. Be highly organized and work with efficiency.
- Ability to multi-task and set priorities in an efficient and self-managed, self-motivated manner.
- Experience in grant-making, portfolio design, delivering on grant or other investment approaches whether from philanthropy or international funding environment.
- Excellent written, facilitation and oral communications skills effective with a broad and diverse audience. comfortable with writing and ability to produce evidence-based written materials clearly and quickly.
- Demonstrated ability to work in a complex and at times uncertain environment to develop and successfully design, develop and deliver a portfolio or work and implement a work plan to achieve established goals.
- Able and willing to question and challenge colleagues, including managers and partners in constructive, respectful, and open manner.
- Ability and comfort working in a highly matrixed environment.
- Ability to travel 20% both domestically and internationally.
Education and Experience
- Experience designing and leading research, evaluation, or learning grants around gender equality. Experience/knowledge of women’s empowerment collectives (savings groups, self-help groups, producer collectives, etc.) is an asset.
- Technical expertise in gender analysis specifically, and the use of data, measurement and evaluation including qualitative and quantitative research methods, research and evaluation design.
- In-country experience is an asset but not required (e.g. Africa and/or South Asia)
- Commitment to the foundation’s core values, mission and programs with an approach that is consistent with the foundation’s guiding principles while holding oneself to the highest ethical standards.
Job Function:
Organization Info
Listing Stats
Post Date:
Aug 23 2018
Active Until:
Sep 23 2018
Hiring Organization:
Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
industry:
Nonprofit