Research & Knowledge Management Coordinator (Applications will only be accepted if submitted through the URL link provided below)

About Mercy Corps

Mercy Corps is a leading global organization powered by the belief that a better world is possible. In disaster, in hardship, in more than 40 countries around the world, we partner to put bold solutions into action — helping people triumph over adversity and build stronger communities from within. Now, and for the future.

Mercy Corps has been present in the Middle East since the 1980s and currently works in Yemen, Lebanon, Palestine, Jordan, Syria, and Iraq. Working in Lebanon since 1993, Mercy Corps is committed to generating positive opportunities for women, men, boys and girls from Lebanese, Syrian, and Palestinian communities, with a strong focus on engaging youth.  Mercy Corps exists to alleviate suffering, poverty and oppression by helping build secure, productive and just communities. Our programs focus on four sectors:  Economic Opportunities, Governance and Social Stability, Youth, and Humanitarian interventions. The Mercy Corps Lebanon team consists of over 150 staff working across four offices throughout Mount Lebanon, South Lebanon, Tripoli and the Bekaa.

Program Summary

The Bolstering Agriculture Systems’ Ability to Invest, Nourish, and Employ (BASATINE) consortium, led by CARE International with Mercy Corps, Al Majmoua, George N. Frem Foundation, Berytech and LOST,  is implementing a 38-month intervention to support farmers and other value chain and associated sector actors in areas of Bekaa and Akkar, focused on the production of wheat and vegetables, seeking a territorial approach and promoting linkages with other value chains. Through complementary interventions designed in alignment with the humanitarian-development-peace nexus, the program will immediately address food insecurity and provide needed income and technical support to farmers to survive this tumultuous time, as well improve the capacity of food systems to maintain employment and growth in the longer-term via stronger domestic production and system linkages. This will ultimately contribute to greater economic stability, particularly for women, improved rural development, and more positive social cohesion between host/refugee communities at a local level.

Mercy Corps will lead the Market Systems and Monitoring, Evaluation, Research, and Learning components of the consortium.

General Position Summary

The Research and Knowledge Management Coordinator is a key member of the BASATINE consortium, overseeing research and learning activities across the program’s outcomes. Working closely with the Consortium MERL Manager (Mercy Corps) and the Consortium Coordinator (CARE), the Research and Knowledge Management Coordinator will oversee the consortium’s research and learning agenda, identifying gaps in knowledge in agriculture, social stability, gender, and market systems to support the development of ongoing research and learning efforts and to help design two research projects within the consortium.

The Research and Knowledge Management Coordinator will also play a leading role in the dissemination and management of research and learning by the consortium, convening internal and external stakeholders in regular meetings, one-on-one discussions, and workshops.

Essential Job Responsibilities

Research & Learning

• • Design and lead consortium’s research and learning agenda;
  • Working closely with MEL and program staff, identify gaps in knowledge and incorporate them into the consortium’s research and learning agenda;
  • On an ongoing basis, provide advisory, support, and facilitation for the gathering and analysis of evidence that helps answer research questions within the consortium’s research and learning agenda;
  • Review the program’s MEL approach, ensuring the incorporation of research and active learning as part of monitoring and evaluation tools;
  • Ensure uptake of MEL findings as part of the consortium’s research and learning agenda, leveraging available resources and data for program learning;
  • Design and oversee programmatic research, contributing to the consortium’s evidence base;
  • In collaboration with the Consortium MERL Manager and the Consortium Coordinator, design scopes of work for research consultants based on the consortium’s research agenda;
  • Ensure that research and learning products are appropriately and effectively disseminated to stakeholders;
  • Facilitate the design of independent research projects commissioned by the BASATINE consortium, including development of scopes of work, consultant recruitment and management, and review of research products;
  • Work with Mercy Corps and CARE headquarters units to ensure alignment with global research priorities where applicable and possible;
  • Support the integration of research and learning into regular lessons learned meetings for the consortium.

Stakeholder Mapping and Engagement

• Actively contribute to consortium meetings and workshops, providing an analysis of the evidence and recommendations produced;
• Identify and map stakeholders to be involved in the dissemination of the consortium’s research and learning products;
• Design an engagement strategy for selected stakeholders to ensure regular uptake of new research and evidence produced by the consortium;
• Lead the implementation of knowledge dissemination workshops, with at least one major workshop per year;
• Work with the consortium partners to ensure that the stakeholder engagement on research and evidence uptake is effective and lead stakeholder engagement where needed.

Capacity Building

• Ensure that consortium members possess the research knowledge, capacities, and tools needed to maintain the consortium’s research and learning agenda.

Accountability

• Apply Do No Harm standards to ensure activities do not have detrimental effects on vulnerable communities;
• Conduct themselves both professionally and personally in such a manner as to bring credit to Mercy Corps and not jeopardize its humanitarian mission;
• Other assigned tasks, as necessary.

Organizational Learning

As part of our commitment to organizational learning and in support of our understanding that learning organizations are more effective, efficient and relevant to the communities they serve - we expect all team members to commit 5% of their time to learning activities that benefit Mercy Corps as well as themselves.

Supervisory Responsibility

N/A

Accountability

Reports Directly To: Consortium MERL Manager

Works Directly With: BASATINE Consortium Coordinator

Knowledge and Experience

• • BA/S or equivalent, preferable in social sciences, business administration, public administration, international development or other relevant disciplines; Graduate degree preferred.

• • Demonstrated experience in quantitative and qualitative social research and in monitoring, evaluation, research and learning;
  • Experience leading research and learning agendas;
  • Experience in leading workshops, discussions, and technical meetings;
  • Previous experience working with consortia desired;
  • Experience in agriculture, social stability, gender, and/or market systems research desired;
  • Fluent in both spoken and written Arabic and English;
  • Previous experience working with international and/or local NGOs;
  • Excellent reporting skills;
  • Strong team coordination, listening, and consensus building skills.

Success Factors

The successful Research and Knowledge Management Coordinator will be bright, energetic, hard-working and eager to learn.  They will take a deep personal interest in humanitarian and development assistance.  They will be attentive to detail and able to carry out assigned tasks in a timely manner and according to a very high standard of quality.  They will be creative and flexible, contributing to developing and encouraging new and innovative solutions, but at the same time will not have any difficulty in adhering to systems and procedures. They will strictly follow all protocols related to safety and security, and hold self accountable for making decisions, managing resources efficiently, achieving and role modelling Mercy Corps’ values.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges. We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives.

We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening and evolving to become more diverse, equitable and inclusive than we are today.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Mercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer that does not tolerate discrimination on any basis. We actively seek out diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be collectively stronger and have sustained global impact.

We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunities are available to all. We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status or any other protected group in the locations where we work.

Safeguarding & Ethics

Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work, whether team members, community members, program participants or others, are treated with respect and dignity. We are committed to the core principles regarding prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary General and IASC. We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members. As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and to adhere to Mercy Corps Code of Conduct Policies and values at all times. Team members are required to complete mandatory Code of Conduct elearning courses upon hire and on an annual basis.