Director of Monitoring & Evaluation - The ELMA Philanthropies Services (U.S.) Inc.

Job Description

The ELMA Philanthropies Services (U.S.) Inc.

Director of Monitoring & Evaluation

Organization

The ELMA Philanthropies Services (U.S.) Inc. was established in 2005 as the services arm of The ELMA Foundations to develop program strategies, identify and explore grantmaking possibilities, monitor grant performance, and establish philanthropic relationships for the ELMA group of foundations. The main foundation is The ELMA Foundation, whose mission is to improve the life prospects of African children and youth, and the families and communities that care for them, through its support of sustainable efforts that build African capacity to relieve poverty, advance education, and promote health. The ELMA Foundation focuses on education, health, and economic opportunities for youth. It is currently active in ten countries in Africa and is already among the leading grantmakers active on the continent. The ELMA Relief Foundation responds to disasters around the world, especially those that affect children disproportionately. The ELMA Philanthropies is based in New York, NY, USA, and in Cape Town, South Africa.

Programming

The ELMA Philanthropies focuses programming in these areas:

• 1. Education - targets quality primary and secondary schools, which includes strengthening promising schools and providing learner support; also focuses on teacher training and development;
• 2. Health - includes the care and treatment of the top five causes of death of children in Africa (malaria, pneumonia, diarrhea, perinatal conditions and HIV/AIDS); also focuses on health systems strengthening which includes human resources for health and prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV;
• 3. Synergies - presently spans both the education and health areas, supporting early childhood development to prepare young children with basic skills and give them the capacity needed to begin primary school; and
• 4. Economic opportunities for youth - now in a pilot phase in Namibia and South Africa, focuses on vocational training in fields where there are jobs for youth in their teens and early twenties.

The ELMA Philanthropies' work across all program areas builds on three fundamental ideas: 1) African capacity-building - preferentially supporting African or Africa-based organizations and individuals whenever feasible, contributing to the establishment of lasting institutions, and strengthening Africa's ability to find local solutions to resolve its problems, 2) Synergy - providing support that embraces the child or youth in a holistic fashion, and 3) Inclusiveness - promoting opportunity for disadvantaged children and adolescents, with close attention to valuing girls and young women.

The ELMA Philanthropies targets ten countries in Africa (Angola, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe), and further expansion to eastern Africa is foreseen. The

ELMA Relief Foundation supports timely humanitarian assistance in the form of emergency food and shelter, medical assistance, and help towards emotional recovery. This is primarily in response to natural disasters such as cyclones, earthquakes, floods, or hurricanes around the world, including recent disasters in Haiti, Myanmar, and Peru.

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Position

The ELMA Philanthropies seeks a Director of Monitoring & Evaluation, a newly created position, to manage all activities related to evaluation and performance tracking in support of programming across the ELMA countries of interest. Based in New York, NY, and reporting to the President, the Director of Monitoring & Evaluation will be a member of the senior management team. S/he will have the capacity to run an evaluation function of an evolving organization and help shape The ELMA Philanthropies' thinking at a strategic level, working with both senior staff and the Board. Additionally, s/he will provide hands-on, practical support to The ELMA Philanthropies' program staff, as well as guidance for selected grantees in the field. This is a compelling opportunity for an experienced evaluation professional to create the monitoring and evaluation function of a major foundation from the ground up, helping to measure its impact, learn from programming, and inform strategies to continually increase program impact.

The ideal candidate will be equally confident reporting on The ELMA Philanthropies' impact to a corporate Board of Directors and partnering with leading international NGOs on evaluation challenges. Thus, the ideal candidate will bring both: a) nonprofit programming expertise, and b) analytical for-profit sector experience. The Director will be a mature evaluation professional with a broad-based understanding of evaluation methodologies and program operations. S/he will have significant international experience, preferably in Africa.

A chief goal of The ELMA Philanthropies is to increase impact continually by selecting grantees with the greatest potential to achieve success on a large scale. The Director of Monitoring & Evaluation will play a critical role in achieving this goal and, to that end, will have responsibility for spearheading several initiatives that will help inform, refine and support The ELMA Philanthropies' programming. These are in four areas: 1) at the individual grant level - as grants are initially considered, work closely with Program Officers to determine how each would be evaluated and identify important outputs and outcomes; 2) at the program focus or "cluster" levels (e.g., early childhood development), evaluate programming achievements on an ongoing basis and measure achievements against key information and achievements in the field; 3) strategic advice to The ELMA Philanthropies' top leadership on the overall achievements of programming; and 4) learning from evaluations over time to build internal knowledge and capacity, and thereby improve programming.

This position will include the following tasks, among others: creating and refining measurement and tracking tools to assist Program Officers in monitoring grantees; reviewing and interpreting benchmark data by which to measure potential and existing grantees; leading the effort to use learning from past grants to inform strategy; assessing The ELMA Philanthropies' impact on the fields in which it focuses; keeping staff apprised of developments in each of its fields of work; and being an essential voice during the grantee selection process. Finally, s/he will work with the programming and grants management teams to ensure programming knowledge is captured, shared and understood.

S/he and designated staff will periodically travel to the Cape Town office and to selected program sites for first hand assessment of progress.

Responsibilities

Individual grant selection & performance tracking

• As a member of the Senior Management team, assess the quality and effectiveness of potential grantee organizations;
• Support Program Officers in determining what measures of success will be, specifically looking at outputs and outcomes; help plan evaluation as grants are being conceptualized;
• Refine tools and measures to be used from the outset to measure outputs and outcomes that are known both to the Program Officer and potential grantee for ongoing monitoring;
• Oversee processes to collect data systematically regarding grantees' progress toward meeting their stated objectives:
• For large grants that require independent external evaluation, advise on the selection of the outside evaluator and on evaluation design, and review and comment on evaluation reports.

Performance tracking across related grants

• Analyze data and contribute to reports documenting grantees' performance and challenges by "cluster." For example, assess progress on all grants supporting teacher training and development;
• Develop knowledge in each of the fields of practice to inform future approaches to programming strategy, increasing The ELMA Philanthropies' impact;
• Select and oversee work by independent consultants as required to evaluate the performance of The ELMA Philanthropies' grantees in specific clusters;
• Effectively collect and interpret data to determine what each of the cluster of grantees is learning; set benchmarks for greater impact.

Overall programming achievements and strategy

• Advise top management and the Board on how overall programming is meeting The ELMA Philanthropies' mission and strategic goals;
• Help shape and refine the long-term desired impacts in each area of programming;
• Looking forward, help the program team develop the most effective and efficient programming strategies to achieve The ELMA Philanthropies' mission.

Learning & strategy

• Ensure that lessons learned across individual grants and clusters inform The ELMA Philanthropies' strategy development and due diligence processes;
• Build capacity across The ELMA Philanthropies to continually refine its evaluation approach, and use results to drive programming strategies;
• Serve as The ELMA Philanthropies' information network; responsible for staying apprised of external evaluations related to The ELMA Philanthropies' fields of work.

Qualifications

Required

• An advanced degree in a social science or related discipline, and 10+ years experience in program evaluation;
• Sophisticated and diverse analytical and study design skills; facility in diverse quantitative and qualitative methods;
• Experience in the for-profit sector as an analyst or management consultant;
• Significant international experience, sensitivity to the complexities of grantmaking in developing countries;
• Able to work in a start-up or rapidly growing organization; flexibility and adaptability to rapid change; comfort with very fast-paced environment;
• Willingness and ability to work "behind the scenes;" views success as the product of the team;
• Comfort functioning autonomously; excellent organizational and time management skills; high-performing, entrepreneurial and hands-on;
• Skilled presenter with an ability to communicate evaluation strategy and findings to a variety of audiences, including the Board;
• Experience managing consultants and vendors;
• Excellent written and oral communications skills; ability to be succinct in both;
• Ability to work nontraditional hours and travel internationally as needed; and
• Maturity of judgment and diplomacy; impeccable personal integrity and the ability to manage confidential information.

Preferred

• Prior experience within one or more of The ELMA Philanthropies' fields of work: poverty, health, education;
• Professional experience in Africa, preferably in multiple geographies; sensitive to working in the varied cultures of Africa; understand the challenges faced by programs in the countries where The ELMA Philanthropies focuses;
• A PhD in a social science or related field
• Track record of and commitment to organizational capacity-building.

Application Process

The ELMA Philanthropies Services is an Equal Opportunity Employer and encourages candidates of all backgrounds to apply for this position. The Bridgespan Group, a nonprofit organization attracting, connecting, and supporting leadership for the nonprofit sector, serves diverse organizations and is committed to building high-performing teams that mirror the communities we serve. Please register (free of charge) at and apply online through this listing on the Bridgespan job board.