🇸🇱 Job Vacancies @ Concern Worldwide – 2 Positions

• All Programme and Project Coordinators and Project managers, Gender and Equality Advisor, Advocacy and Communication Manager, Partnership Manager and Grants and Information Manager
• MEAL focal persons from Partners
• Country Management Team (CMT) Members
• Key Finance, Systems and HR Staff
• Desk Officer and relevant MEAL head office advisors

S/he will support PDQ Coordinator in proposal design activities related to ToC, Logfames, MEL plans etc as well as support in contextual analyses, baseline studies and specific studies.

With support of the PDQ Coordinator, and in coordination with Advocacy and Communications Manager s/he will also coordinate the implementation and maintenance of the country program learning agenda.

S/he will support the Accountability Supervisor to ensure accountability and feedback mechanisms are embedded and functional within all programmes and supports adherence to Concern’s commitments under the Core Humanitarian Standard (CHS).

Programme design, development and implementation

• Support programme development activities including proposals, log frames, contextual analyses, baseline studies, specific studies and project reviews when called upon.
• Ensure that Concern’s PCMS and PM&E guidelines are followed in programme/project development ensuring the key components of the theory of change and log frame are prepared to a high standard.
• Identify appropriate indicators from Concern’s Standard Indicators, and liaise with PALU to develop new indicators and tools whenever gaps emerge at the programme design phase.
• Work with the PDQC, programme and project leads and partners to ensure that programmes have specific, measureable, achievable, realistic and time bound indicators.
• In collaboration with the Programme and project leads, plan and manage budgets for MEAL staff and activities.
• Ensure budget allocated to MEAL activities is utilized effectively and any necessary adjustments are requested in a timely manner.

Monitoring and Evaluation

• Manage the Programme Toolkit for all projects and programmes in country (including logframes, MEAL plans, activity, output, and outcome tracking).
• With programme teams and partners, ensure that all Programmes/Projects have and regularly review MEAL plans across all projects and programs.
• Ensure that all Programmes develop, implement and update MEAL plans that correspond to the approved donor proposals and budgets (aligning to Consortia lead MEAL plans where we are a sub).
• Ensure that monitoring outputs (e.g., ongoing analysis of monitoring data, annual follow up surveys) are generated accurately, reflecting the status of progress toward reaching targets, and are disseminated in a timely manner to managers for effective decision-making.
• Support periodic assessments monitoring and evaluations such as baseline, mid-term reviews, and end-line evaluations along with operational research and other research where agreed with Line Manager;
• In collaboration with the IT department, manage digital data gathering (DDG) devices and processes.
• Support the MEAL team and partners in developing and improving data collection tools.
• Support the MEAL team and partners for the analysis and interpretation of  data for reporting as well as learning
• Work with the MEAL team to ensure recommendations generated through MEAL activities are communicated to programme staff, partners, management, and other stakeholders.

Accountability.

• Support the Accountability Supervisor, to work on accountability processes and ensure compliance with the requirement of Concern’s Programme Participants Protection Policy, Anti-Fraud Policy and Core Humanitarian Standards (CHS) including the complaint and response mechanism (CRM) to ensure maximum protection of programme participants and the efficient and transparent use of Concern’s resources.
• Advise on the establishment and maintenance of proper feedback mechanisms in line with accountability standards (CRM), including refining digital feedback mechanisms for beneficiaries.
• In collaboration with the Accountability Supervisor, support field staff and partners to ensure that projects are designed and carried out with participation from communities and that information is shared with affected communities.

Learning

• With Advocacy and Communications Manager support efforts to promote documentation and sharing of programme impact and learning, ensuring sharing of lessons learnt between programmes in country and other country programmes and Concern offices, government and other non-governmental organisations.
• Support the MEAL team and MEAL staff in partners in analysing M&E data and summarising it into accessible, understandable, useful information for programme teams to use for decision-making.
• Ensure learning reviews are harmonized; regularly conducted and documented for all projects, appropriate to length, scale and complexity.
• With Advocacy and Communication Manager ensure dissemination of learnings through appropriates channels for all audiences.
• Support external consultants and evaluators.
• Actively promote sharing of learnings from baselines, end-lines, reviews and evaluations internally and externally.
• Provide input to project learning reviews and donor reports, as required.

People’s management and Capacity Building

• Line manage the Accountability Supervisor, MEL managers and MEL officers (in the case the programme/project has no MEL manager), contributing to their capacity building and career development through technical support and on-the-job training and coaching.
• Monitor and review performance of supervisee(s) and hold staff accountable for meeting their success criteria; give corrective feedback where required and take decisive action in the case of poor performance – seeking advice from HR and Line manager where needed.
• Ensure that supervisees are aware of and comply with all of Concern’s policies and procedures and are updated on changes.
• Develop and implement needs-based training for Concern staff and partners on PCMS and PM&E tools, concepts, and their application.
• Research, analyse and disseminate to staff relevant/ new approaches, concepts and frameworks, and learning from Concern, stakeholders, and the wider development sector

Other responsibilities 

• Ensure all aspects of MEAL activities adhere to programme quality standards and policies.
• Be aware of, understand and comply with all of Concern’s policies and procedures (P4, finance, logistics, HR, security management etc).
• Contribute to ongoing security management and planning as necessary.
• Promote and protect the reputation of Concern in external settings, ensuring the organization’s experience and expertise is well communicated and consistently presented, and that we are seen as a professional organization.
• Promote Equality, especially gender, within the organization and across programmes, in line with Concern’s Equality Policy and, and ensures targeting and project implementation is informed by How Concern Understands Extreme Poverty (HCUEP).
• Actively participate in any emergency response if called upon to do so (within the existing programme area or in a new one).
• Undertake other related duties as may reasonably be assigned by line manager

• University degree in relevant field (related to M&E, development, research, data analytics, etc.).
• Minimum 3-5 years of experience in M&E/MEAL (positions where M&E/MEAL is the primary area of responsibility).
• Minimum of 2 years’ experience in line managing staff.
• Experience in capacity development of staff and partners.
• Clear understanding and vision for using data and information to support Programme teams in applying adaptive and results- based programme management.
• Clear understanding and experience in managing and directly implementing primary quantitative data collection (surveys, etc.).
• Clear understanding and experience in managing and directly implementing primary qualitative data collection (key informant interviews, focus group discussion, participatory qualitative methods, etc.).
• Demonstrated capacity in quantitative and qualitative data analysis and interpretation.
• Clear understanding and experience in managing quality assurance in data collection and performing quality checks on data.
• Experience of supporting proposal/project design – logframes/results frameworks
• Excellent computer skills particularly Microsoft office (high proficiency in Excel, word, PowerPoint).
• Experience managing budgets.
• Excellent written and presenting skills in English
• Experience with Digital Data Gathering (DDG)
• Able to work independently, multi-task, and take initiative, but also able to delegate responsibilities, harness team efforts, and ask for help as needed

Desirable

• Experience with education, livelihoods, and health projects in Sierra Leone
• Experience with emergency project in Sierra Leone
• Experience with research methodologies
• Experience in the use of statistical analysis software such as SPSS, Stata, R, etc.
• Experience in designing digital tool

• Raising awareness and being updated on HIV & AIDS issues.
• Protecting him/herself and colleagues.
• Sharing information with colleagues and avoiding stigma and discrimination.

Therefore, each staff member of Concern is expected to be sensitive to equality issues in their relationships with colleagues and in their work and to participate in implementation of gender mainstreaming plans, both at the workplace and in programmes.

Concern has an organisational Code of Conduct (CCoC) with three Associated Policies; the Programme Participant Protection Policy (P4), the Child Safeguarding Policy and the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Policy. These have been developed to ensure the maximum protection of programme participants from exploitation, and to clarify the responsibilities of Concern staff, consultants, visitors to the programme and partner organisation, and the standards of behaviour expected of them. In this context, staff have a responsibility to the organisation to strive for, and maintain, the highest standards in the day-to-day conduct in their workplace in accordance with Concern’s core values and mission. Any candidate offered a job with Concern Worldwide will be expected to sign the Concern Staff Code of Conduct and Associated Policies as an appendix to their contract of employment. By signing the Concern Code of Conduct, candidates acknowledge that they have understood the content of both the Concern Code of Conduct and the Associated Policies and agree to conduct themselves in accordance with the provisions of these policies. Additionally, Concern is committed to the safeguarding and protection of vulnerable adults and children in our work. We will do everything possible to ensure that only those who are suitable to work or volunteer with vulnerable adults and children are recruited by us for such roles. Subsequently, working or volunteering with Concern is subject to a range of vetting checks, including criminal background checking.  

• Concern in Sierra Leone: Members of Country Management Team (CMT) especially the Country Director (CD), Programme Coordinators, Programme Development & Quality (PDQ) Coordinator, Grants & Information Manager, Partnership Manager and Advocacy & Communications Manager.
• Concern Head Office and global offices: Concern Regional Director (RD), Desk Officer (DO), International Funding Support Unit (IFSU) Manager & Staff, SAL (Strategy, Advocacy & Learning Directorate) Technical Advisors, Concern UK and Concern USA business development and fundraising staff.

External Stakeholders: Donor institutions, UN Agencies, international & national partners (NGOs, private sector, etc.) and relevant National and District level Government institutions.

Responsibilities:

• Lead the regular updating of the Sierra Leone funding strategy, analysing funding gaps and proposing means of addressing these. With the support of the IFSU and other Concern colleagues in business development and fundraising in Ireland, UK and USA, identify prospective donors, with a particular emphasis on building effective relationships with ‘non-traditional’ donors including banks, trusts, foundations and private sector.
• Lead on actions identified in the funding strategy, and create networks and potential collaborations or consortia, including regional programming, in close coordination with the PD, CD and RD.
• Research and analyse funding opportunities and constantly monitor donor, government, UN agency, etc. changing priorities. With the Grants & Information Manager, track and share relevant calls for proposals and ensure they are up on the Concern Worldwide Grants Management System (GMS).
• Working closely with the Advocacy & Communications Manager, actively support in the planning of donor engagement initiatives and processes.
• Support in the development of Concern’s wider Country Strategic Plan (CSP) for Sierra Leone and its ongoing implementation and review.

Donor Engagement:

• Organise and participate in donor engagement meetings in collaboration with the CD, PD, and other relevant coordinators/staff in Sierra Leone and head office colleagues.
• Provide expertise in effective positioning of Concern and preparation for specific opportunities with institutional donors (government and inter-governmental award issuing organizations, as well as foundations, corporations and other awarding non-governmental organizations).
• Working with the relevant Programme Coordinators, the Programme Development and Quality Coordinator and the Advocacy & Communications Manager, coordinate and seek input on generic expressions of interest, concept notes, briefing notes, and programme factsheets to be used in donor meetings and visits.
• Support senior management to cultivate and strengthen institutional relationships with donors, partner organizations, non-traditional donors and other stakeholders.

Proposal and Bid Development:

• Reporting to the PD, ensure the effective coordination of the development of concept notes, proposals, contract bids, and other submissions to donors – ensuring the effective engagement of key programme and support staff in Sierra Leone and drawing on technical support from head office.  (As appropriate, this may mean the Business Development & Knowledge Capitalisation Coordinator acts as overall coordinator or plays a supportive leadership role in the submission development team).
• If requested, coordinate medium to large and multi-country proposal development processes to ensure timely submission of high-quality proposals that are responsive to donor rules & requirements and Concern’s policies, strategies, technical and other standards.
• With the Country Financial Controller (CFC), or other senior finance team colleagues, lead and support proposal budget processes and propose recommendations to ensure competitive proposals are put forward.
• Lead in the development of consortia applications (where Concern is the lead agency) and in developing Concern’s portion of and contribution to such applications (where Concern is a member).
• Serve as a lead or support writer on proposals and bids, contributing technical and non-technical input as appropriate/necessary.  Integrate inputs from Concern staff and partners into a clear, responsive, high quality and coherent proposal/bid, which demonstrates a compelling vision/purpose and competitive content and presentation.
• Lead in developing Expressions of Interest, Concept Notes and unsolicited proposals based on solid programme approaches and identified development/humanitarian and funding gaps.
• Support in ensuring that proposals & contract bids etc. are developed in a participatory manner and that the design process adheres to Concern’s commitments under the Core Humanitarian Standard (CHS) and takes into account Concerns cross cutting approaches.
• Prior to submission to the PD for final review, participate in the review of drafts of proposals and other types of donor submission documents and ensure incorporation of feedback and responses to reviewers with the aim of achieving as high a standard of quality as possible.
• Keep abreast of changes in Concern’s policies, strategies etc. and the evolving national and international context to ensure that proposal and bid development incorporate and reflect up to date best practice and approaches.

Knowledge Capitalization:

• In close collaboration with the PDQC and Advocacy & Communications Manager, support in the generation of high quality communications materials for sharing with donors using our MEL data that demonstrate the impact of Concern’s work and learning, including briefing sheets, audio/visual material, learning papers etc.
• Collaborate with communications and fundraising teams based in Ireland, US and the UK to support in the development of materials for donors.

Internal Engagement:

• Train and mentor relevant staff in proposal development, external representation to donor and partner organizations, government institutions, UN agencies, etc., intelligence-gathering, and promotion of Concern’s work within their roles – as may be required, or support others leading such training.
• Play a supporting role in the maintenance of an effective knowledge management system to capture and share lessons learned within Concern and further afield – including contributing to the development and effective use of Concern Worldwide’s new Digital Workplace, the Grants Management System (GMS), and other knowledge exchange and management initiatives.

External Engagement:

• Promote and protect the reputation of Concern in external settings, contributing to the effective communication and consistent presentation of the organisation’s experience and expertise, and that we are looked upon as a professional organisation, guided by policies and our Code of Conduct & Associated Policies.
• Support the development and implementation of Concern’s Advocacy & Communications Strategy in Sierra Leone within your role.
• Support and guide identification of partners and negotiation of Concern’s role in proposal consortia, ensuring a competitive position that adheres to the Concern’s values, policies and strategic direction.
• Working with the CMT and PDQ Coordinator, support the Advocacy & Communications Manager in the development of high quality communications materials and the organisation of visibility events to support Concern’s advocacy and public communications work in Sierra Leone.

Other:

• Within your role, and supporting CMT and other relevant management staff, adhere fully to and promote Concern’s Code of Conduct & Associated Policies and other key Concern policies (including Equality, How Concern Understands Extreme Poverty (HCUEP), Approach to Emergencies, Anti-Fraud policies) within the organisation.
• Contribute to the ongoing reviews and updating of Concern in Sierra Leone’s Security Management Plan (SMP), the country strategic plan, and other cross-organisational Concern initiatives.
• Support in updating Concern’s new Digital Workplace (related to business development), and the outward facing ‘Knowledge Hub’ with information from Concern Sierra Leone’s programme.

Any other tasks as may be mutually agreed with the Programmes Director and /or the CD.

• Bachelor’s degree in international development, humanitarian studies, international relations, or a related field.  A Master’s degree in a relevant subject is desirable.
• Minimum of four years of relevant development experience, with at least one year’s experience in a similar role.
• Experience of leading and producing competitive proposals in programming contexts similar to that faced by Concern in Sierra Leone.
• Demonstrated experience of effectively positioning his/her organization for new funding and productive institutional relationships with donors, UN, government, non-traditional donors and a range of partner organisations, etc.
• Demonstrated experience of coordinating multi-disciplinary proposal development teams and processes to produce very high quality concept notes, proposals, bids, etc. under tight deadlines.
• Comprehensive familiarity with a broad range of institutional donor priorities/strategies, rules, and requirements (familiarity with EU, FCDO and USAID regulations, policies, procedures and priorities is advantageous).
• Experience of working in, coordinating/leading consortia or other forms of partnership implementation.
• Excellent communication and presentation skills and fluency in English – both written and verbal.
• Demonstrated ease and familiarity with relevant computer software packages – MS Office (Excel, Word, PowerPoint, etc.), information management systems, communications software, and graphic design software etc.
• Strong facilitation and training skills.
• Able to work on own initiative, a high level of critical thinking with strong problem solving abilities.
• Good team player, flexible and culturally sensitive.
• Proven ability to work calmly in a high-pressure environment.

Desirable

• Experience of working with partner organisations and building organisational & individual capacities.
• Direct experience of knowledge capitalisation and communications work.
• Knowledge of the Core Humanitarian Standards (CHS), Sphere and other relevant global standards.
• Experience in M&E systems and approaches, and accountability mechanisms and frameworks.
• Clear understanding and knowledge of equality issues related to development / humanitarian work and a demonstrable commitment to the ethos and values of Concern in relation to ending inequality and extreme poverty.
• Experience of working in complex and volatile contexts.
• Experience of working in Concern and/or knowledge of Concern Worldwide policies, strategies, programme approaches.

Candidates with previous experience working abroad – in the West Africa region or further afield, ideally in a similar role.

• Raising awareness and being updated on HIV & AIDS issues.
• Protecting him/herself and colleagues.

Sharing information with colleagues and avoiding stigma and discrimination.

Therefore, each staff member of Concern is expected to be sensitive to equality issues in their relationships with colleagues and in their work and to participate in implementation of gender mainstreaming plans, both at the workplace and in programmes.

Concern has an organisational Code of Conduct (CCoC) with three Associated Policies; the Programme Participant Protection Policy (P4), the Child Safeguarding Policy and the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Policy. These have been developed to ensure the maximum protection of programme participants from exploitation, and to clarify the responsibilities of Concern staff, consultants, visitors to the programme and partner organisation, and the standards of behaviour expected of them. In this context, staff have a responsibility to the organisation to strive for, and maintain, the highest standards in the day-to-day conduct in their workplace in accordance with Concern’s core values and mission. Any candidate offered a job with Concern Worldwide will be expected to sign the Concern Staff Code of Conduct and Associated Policies as an appendix to their contract of employment. By signing the Concern Code of Conduct, candidates acknowledge that they have understood the content of both the Concern Code of Conduct and the Associated Policies and agree to conduct themselves in accordance with the provisions of these policies. Additionally, Concern is committed to the safeguarding and protection of vulnerable adults and children in our work. We will do everything possible to ensure that only those who are suitable to work or volunteer with vulnerable adults and children are recruited by us for such roles. Subsequently, working or volunteering with Concern is subject to a range of vetting checks, including criminal background checking.