MEL Manager – Sightsavers, Nairobi

Key Responsibilities:

Strategic Leadership

• Ensure high-quality data collection and analysis to support program performance monitoring, learning, and strategic decision-making.
• Oversee the planning, execution, and monitoring of Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) plans, adapting strategies to address emerging challenges and evolving needs.
• Collaborate with the Programme Director and PMU colleagues to monitor and evaluate program performance, identifying risks and opportunities while ensuring MEL insights inform program strategy and delivery.
• Manage MEL budgets to ensure strategic allocation and cost-effective resource utilization, maximizing the impact of MEL activities across the program.

Technical Oversight and Capacity Building

• Maintain high standards and consistency in MEL delivery across all program countries.
• Provide technical training and facilitate peer learning among country-level MEL Managers and other staff involved in MEL activities.
• Contribute to the development and implementation of management protocols and Delegation of Authority (DoA) frameworks to clarify roles, responsibilities, and reporting lines for MEL staff.
• Oversee the design and functionality of MEL data systems, ensuring they are user-friendly and aligned with program learning and reporting needs, in coordination with database developers and managers from the Data Analytics and Reporting Team (DART).
• Develop and oversee monitoring systems and data quality assessment protocols to ensure the program produces high-quality, accurate, and reliable data, in collaboration with MEL and DART colleagues.

Learning Synthesis and Knowledge Management

• Lead the development and implementation of robust knowledge management systems to capture, synthesize, and disseminate learning across countries and teams.
• Produce program learning products for dissemination to internal and external stakeholders.

 Monitoring, Reporting, and Evaluation

• Ensure effective monitoring and reporting of program results by coordinating with global MEL colleagues and DART, maintaining alignment with the results framework and organizational reporting standards.
• Design and coordinate the implementation of baseline, annual, and endline data collection and analysis.
• Lead and coordinate reporting against the results framework and contribute to donor and organizational reporting.

Stakeholder Engagement

• Represent the program’s MEL work to donors and partners, ensuring alignment with expectations and timely, high-quality reporting.
• Build strong relationships and collaborate with Country Directors and CO management to ensure alignment on MEL priorities and deliverables.

Risk Management and Quality Assurance

• Proactively identify and manage risks related to MEL delivery, quality, data protection, and compliance, escalating issues to the Programme Director and Senior MEL Manager (Inclusion) as necessary.
• Lead MEL risk management and quality assurance processes, ensuring compliance with organizational and donor standards.

Skills and Experience

• The ideal candidate will hold a Master’s degree in a relevant field (e.g., international development, social inclusion, social sciences) or possess equivalent experience.
• Experience in a MEL leadership role within the international development sector, particularly in economic empowerment programs across various countries, is essential. Proven experience in designing and implementing MEL frameworks and managing MEL in multi-country programs is required.