MONITORING AND EVALUATION ADVISOR - INOVASI
Project Overview and Role:
Indonesia’s education system has made remarkable progress over the last two decades. Increased spending and a range of policy reforms have led to gender-balanced, near-universal school enrolment. Achievement against access targets has been good, but the challenges of improving quality and equity remain. A majority of Indonesian children do not acquire the fundamental skills needed to participate in the economy, society or further education, and are falling further behind their peers in the region and globally.
The Government of Australia (GoA), through the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), is partnering with the Government of Indonesia (GoI) to improve education quality by supporting improved effectiveness and efficiency of Indonesia’s basic education systems.
Phase II of the Innovation for Indonesia’s School Children (INOVASI) program, builds on Phase I of both INOVASI and the Technical Assistance for Education System Strengthening (TASS) program. The integrated program supports national and sub-national partners (e.g. districts, civil society organisations) to pilot school-level approaches to strengthen teaching and learning, and respond to requests for targeted policy support at national level. Phase II is planned to run from July 2020 to December 2023. It will collaborate closely with the GoI at the district, provincial and national level to develop and implement action-oriented research and pilots to answer the broad question: “What works to improve student learning outcomes in Indonesia?” It will focus on three sub-topics of investigation: the quality of teaching in the classroom, the quality of support for teachers, and learning for all. The Program is managed by Palladium on behalf of DFAT.
The Monitoring and Evaluation Advisor will support INOVASI to implement the Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Plan, which is integrated into a broader Monitoring, Evaluation, Research and Learning (MERL) Plan. INOVASI has a keen interest in using monitoring and evaluation to: (1) optimise achievement of program outcomes; (2) learn from implementation to improve practices and activities in the future; (3) provide internal and external accountability for resources used and results obtained; and (4) take informed decisions about the program. INOVASI II commenced July 2020. The program’s Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Plan was completed in October 2020 and is being updated in May 2021. The Monitoring and Evaluation Advisor will be responsible for supporting the Monitoring, Evaluation, Research and Learning (MERL) Manager to implement the M&E plan. The Monitoring and Evaluation Advisor will provide up to 60 days inputs annually, both from their home base and in Jakarta, Indonesia, subject to travel restrictions.
Primary Duties and Responsibilities:
Under the direction of INOVASI’s Deputy Program Director (Learning) and in coordination with the Program Director, the Research and Learning Advisor, and Deputy Program Director (Systems & Policy), the Monitoring and Evaluation Advisor will:
- Provide technical advice to ensure that the M&E Plan is effectively implemented;
- Quality-assure M&E processes and outputs, ensuring M&E activities are informed by contemporary good practice;
- Coordinate closely with the Research and Learning Advisor to ensure that the Research & Learning plan is well integrated into the overall MERL plan, and that advice to the Monitoring, Evaluation, Research and Learning (MERL) Manager is consistent and synergistic;
- Update the M&E Plan on an annual basis, or when required;
- Support the MERL Manager to deliver six-monthly M&E reports on program performance, to incorporate into INOVASI six-monthly-progress reports (SMPR) and other routine M&E reports, which comply with DFAT requirements.
- In collaboration with other members of the INOVASI leadership team, support the timely completion of high-quality program annual workplans and six-monthly progress reports, and help to ensure that all products comply with DFAT policies, procedures and standards;
- Design and implement internal evaluations, as required;
- Conduct and report on routine strategy testing, including undertaking (a) Close consultations with the leadership team and the Research and Learning Advisor; (b) Reviewing program theory as being the basis for any changes to program delivery (and MERL); and (c) proposing a schedule format for strategy testing with the Program Director;
- Oversee external evaluations; coordinate with DFAT appointed independent reviewers and M&E consultants, as needed;
- Coordinate with the Communications Manager to communicate findings to the team, DFAT, and Indonesian government partners;
- Coordinate with the Gender and Disability specialists, and Planning & Quality Assurance Manager, in relation to measuring performance against Gender and Social Inclusion Plans, and collection of data related to quality indicators;
- Instill a culture of monitoring, evaluation, research and learning in the team; build the capacity of staff and partners, especially in interpreting evidence against outcomes and key measures and considering implications;
- Work closely with other members of the leadership team to promote a collaborative culture in which teams operate cohesively and efficiently and work to achieve INOVASI’s objectives to ensure maximum impact is achieved;
- Other duties as may reasonably be required by the Program Director consistent with the applicant’s qualifications and experience.
Required Qualifications:
- 15 or more years’ relevant professional experience in the design and implementation of monitoring and evaluation, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
- Strong academic background and or internationally recognised professional status in the field, i.e. evaluation, social sciences, statistics; and/or specialised training/certification in monitoring & evaluation.
- Expertise in qualitative research methods, and experience in quantitative methods, statistical design and analysis, and sampling strategies.
- Ability to work independently, and coordinate with teams with a mix of M&E skills, capacities and exposure.
- Experience with DFAT M&E standards is highly desirable. Experience with M&E in adaptive programs would be an advantage.
- Excellent communication, problem solving and inter-personal skills and ability to form productive relationships with senior government stakeholders.
- Excellent writing skills in English. Competence in Bahasa Indonesia would be highly desirable.
- Extensive experience in a donor environment. In particular, knowledge of the Australian Government’s aid program in Indonesia would be an advantage.
Palladium is a global leader in the design, development and delivery of Positive Impact – the intentional creation of enduring social and economic value. We work with foundations, investors, governments, corporations, communities and civil society to formulate strategies and implement solutions that generate lasting social, environmental and financial benefits.
For the past 50 years, we have been making Positive Impact possible. With a team of more than 2,500 employees operating in 90 plus countries and a global network of more than 35,000 technical experts, Palladium has improved – and is committed to continuing to improve – economies, societies and most importantly, people's lives.
Palladium is a child-safe organisation, and screens applicants for suitability to work with children. We also provide equal employment to all participants and employees without regard to race, colour, religion, gender, age, disability, sexual orientation, veteran or marital status.
