Research and Learning Manager

ABOUT THE STRUCTURE…

Solidarités International is an International NGO working with vulnerable populations, mainly victims of armed conflicts and natural disasters. Specialized for nearly 40 years in the coverage of vital needs, S.I. takes charge of emergency and reconstruction programs.

With respect for cultures and close to the people, Solidarités International implements its programs by combining its skills with those of its employees and local managers.

Solidarités International's teams, made up of around 270 expatriates and nearly 2200 local employees, are today present in 18 countries in Asia, Middle East, Africa and Caribbean where they are particularly committed to fighting diseases related to unsafe water but also in the essential area of food security and livelihoods.

ABOUT THE JOB

General objective:

Under the supervision of the MEAL Coordinator, the Research and Learning Manager supports the MEAL and technical coordinators in the development and implementation of an evidence-based demonstration strategy and learning activities. He/she:

• develops, manages and facilitates research initiatives, evaluations and studies;
• fosters knowledge creation and sharing;
• provides tools and methodologies to facilitate evaluation and learning events;
• disseminates findings and lessons learned to teams and other stakeholders;
• ensures that lessons learned are integrated into programmes;
• is responsible for the archiving of programme documents, tools and lessons learned.

GENERAL FUNCTIONS

Strategic orientation

• Participate in the development of a learning strategy and action plan, in line with the association's technical framework, the country strategy and demonstration priorities;
• Participate in the programming / country strategy exercise;
• Contribute to the development of partnerships with research actors and universities when relevant;
• Keep up to date with research and learning initiatives with respect to the country’s sectors of intervention and areas of concern.

Proposal development, Reporting, Communication & Representation

• Immediately report any problems or information impacting on the activities or safety of the teams to the MEAL Coordinator;
• Contribute to the parts of proposals and reports to donors related to cross-cutting themes and MEAL, in particular on evaluation, learning and research;
• Share and disseminate to field teams and other stakeholders results from learning and research activities once they are validated by the MEAL coordinator;
• Upon request, represent SI and work closely with counterparts in other partner organisations;
• Communicate and promote the use of learning outside the organization to partners and the humanitarian sphere more generally;
• Transmit his/her handover report before the end of his/her contract to the MEAL Coordinator.

Project management and coordination with other teams

• Ensure the consolidation/validation of the chronogram of activities and the follow-up of the field visits of various stakeholders;
• Participate actively in coordination meetings;
• Participate in monthly programme monitoring;
• Plan and monitor the budget related to his/her activities.

The main challenges:

• Setting up an overall research, evaluation and learning strategy for the SI Lebanon Country Programme
• Develop and consolidate methodologies for internal evaluation and program quality appraisal
• Reinforce learning culture within the entire Country Program
• Build links between monitoring, evaluation and information management in order to reinforce the collection, analysis and capitalization of relevant program information for future programs’ development and quality enhancement

Priorities for the 2/3 first months:

• Cooperate with the MEAL Coordinator and the Programmes Department to elaborate a research and learning strategy for the Country Programme
• Cooperate with the MEAL Coordinator and the Programmes Department on the undertaking of internal evaluation on on-going programmes in the WaSH and shelter fields
• Cooperate with relevant Programme staff to elaborate capitalization strategies for pilot programmes in the fields of WaSH, Shelter and Disaster Risk Management

Responsibilities and main activities:

TECHNICAL FUNCTIONS

Develop, manage and coordinate organisational and programme learning opportunities

At programme level:

• Develop and keep updated a learning plan at country level tracking learning initiatives and research opportunities, in line with the country and sectorial strategies;
• Develop articles, case studies and success stories, based on identified needs for demonstration with the coordination team;
• Train programme teams on the importance of learning to serve programme quality, and on the tools and facilitation techniques that help foster a culture of learning, adaptive management and collaboration;

At project level:

• Contribute to the design of activity, output and outcome indicators that can serve demonstration and evaluation purposes;
• Instill learning and reflection events within projects (Before Action Reviews, periodic project reviews, After Action Reviews / lessons learned workshops…), and facilitate the capture of tacit knowledge;
• Support project learning by analysing secondary data literature, research and/or evaluation outputs, project data and programme team feedbacks;
• Support Project Managers and Technical Coordinators in the documentation of innovations, activities and approaches (“capitalization”);
• Plan, devise, manage and facilitate project surveys, evaluations and studies (ex ante and ex post), ensuring that they are the most learning-oriented as possible, in collaboration with technical coordinators;
• Source external consultants as needed for project evaluations, surveys and studies.

Learning utilisation and dissemination

• Develop a recommendations and/or lessons learned repository for the country teams;
• Support internal communication to share good practices, recurrent challenges, and lessons learned;
• Leverage opportunities to disseminate research, evaluation and learning findings to all programme teams and ensure that they are integrated into aspects of design, implementation and reporting;
• Share valuable learning with the HQ Desk and DOAP counterparts in order to contribute to the institutional knowledge management.

ORG CHART POSITION (reporting and functional relationships)

Line manager: MEAL Coordinator

Line report(s): MEAL Coordinator

YOUR PROFILE

Specific skills and experience:

• Educational background: MA or Master Degree in a relevant field (social or natural sciences, humanities)
• Previous experience: At least 2 years in the field of humanitarian evaluations or academic research; experience in research on humanitarian action in Lebanon is a strong asset
• Solid knowledge of social and humanitarian research methodology (quantitative and qualitative)
• Previous experience with NGO is an asset
• Problem solving and analytical skills with the ability to assess challenges and recommend solutions
• Strong training/capacity-building skills
• Computer literacy with very good command of MS Office

Soft skills:

• Excellent diplomacy skills
• Good verbal and written communication skills
• Excellent reporting skills
• Flexible (will have to take on responsibilities that might not be directly on his/her JD)
• Mobility to visit different locations (day trip) in Lebanon on a regular basis (weekly).
• Adaptability to changing work environment and possible volatile security situation
• Stress management skills: ability to work under pressure to meet tight deadlines, with peaks of heavy workloads;
• Strong ethics
• Excellent coordination skills
• Ability to multitask
• Attention to detail
• Results-oriented/pragmatic

Language:

• Fluent English and Arabic: speaking, reading and writing skills
• French is an asset

Others: 

• Commitment to the fundamental principles of SI’s charter and ethics.

SI WILL OFFER YOU

A salaried post: 2,000 USD – Basic salary

Vacation: 1.5 Paid Leaves/month

Social and medical cover.