MEAL Program Manager II, Asia

Job Summary:

You will provide direct technical and management leadership of Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, and Learning (MEAL) activities to multiple countries in the Asia region. Your technical skills and knowledge will enable program teams to design effective monitoring systems, ensure accountability to beneficiaries and donors, deliver effective evaluations, and advance learning, in alignment with donor and agency standards. Your work will ensure that CRS collects quality data that enables adaptive management, learning, and positioning. Your management skills will support MEAL and program staff to develop MEAL capabilities and enable country teams to ensure high-quality programming and continuously work towards improving the impact of its programming. You will be called upon to provide MEAL leadership in both development and emergency contexts.

Roles and Key Responsibilities:

• Provide management support, guidance, and technical oversight of all MEAL systems in new and existing projects, supporting throughout the project cycle to ensure effective design, start-up, implementation and close-out are in line with CRS policies and procedures, donor guidelines, and industry best practices.
• Effectively coach MEAL talent, supporting their routine work as well as helping advance MEAL quality. Develop strategically tailored individual development plans, and support performance planning cycle for MEAL staff. Advise on MEAL objectives for non-MEAL staff.
• Coordinate and oversee the development of data management systems, ensure systems are fit for purpose, functional and supportive of adaptive management.
• Support the establishment of feedback, complaints, and response mechanisms (FCRM) and periodically review their effectiveness and functionality, ensuring accountability to beneficiaries and timely use of feedback information.
• Design evaluation processes that enable learning and documentation of results. Develop terms of references (TORs) that are robust and appropriate to the project scope and context.
• Identify opportunities for cross-learning and facilitate data-informed learning events in collaboration with technical advisors, country and regional program leadership. Support research and facilitate the generation and dissemination of learning pieces and knowledge products that contribute to the Asia strategic learning agenda.
• Ensure integration of innovations and best practices, including advancing use of technology in MEAL.
• Contribute to the proactive pursuit of opportunities for new funding to ensure responsible growth in line with agency, regional, and country strategic priorities. Serve as the MEAL lead to ensure quality proposals per agency and donor standards. Contribute to MEAL budgeting and staffing plans and activities for proposals.
• Collaborate with the MEAL Regional Focal Point, fellow MEAL Managers, regional / global technical advisors, and other MEAL and non-MEAL program staff to design and deliver capacity strengthening activities in MEAL for staff and partner organizations in assigned countries as well as other countries in Asia as needed.

Required Languages:

Professional fluency in written and verbal English required.

Travel:

Must be willing and able to travel up to 30%

Supervisory Responsibilities:

To be determined

Key Working Relationships:

• Internal : MEAL staff in assigned countries, Heads of Programming, Country Managers, Program Quality Managers, Program and Project Managers and staff, Business Development Specialists, Regional and Global Technical Advisors or Focal Points, and Deputy Regional Director for Program Quality as needed.
• External : Other International Nongovernmental (INGO) MEAL and Program actors, implementing partners, research and academic institutions.