Community Accountability Reporting Mechanism (CARM) Officer at Mercy Corps

Under the supervision of the Program and Quality Manager (PaQ) Manager, the CARM Officer will work on establishing/maintaining and continuously strengthening the accountability system in the organization. S/he will be managing day-to-day accountability feedback mechanisms that includes handling of beneficiary feedback and building a feedback loop into adaptive program management. The CARM Officer will lead the design and implementation of CARM in Kenya. S/he will be responsible for internal and/or external referrals, to compile reports on processed feedback and provide recommendations to the programs for improving the response.

Essential Job Responsibilities

DESIGN AND IMPLEMENT CARM SYSTEM AND TOOLS

• Develop and implement community accountability reporting mechanisms to capture feedback from program participants, community, and stakeholders, including complaint handling mechanisms and data management systems.
• Lead data entry and management in the CARM database.
• Communicate and disseminate feedback/complaints standard operating procedures, policies, and tools as appropriate to program participants, program staff and other
• Handling of centralized telephone based and email feedback
• Maintain accurate and up to date records of feedback received and actions taken in response to feedback.
• Support MEL and program teams in utilizing the community accountability and reporting mechanisms to advance learning and adaptation.
• Conduct regular analysis of feedback received from in program participants, community, and stakeholders to identify trends, issues and areas of improvement.
• Develop and implement capacity building initiatives for staff and partners on community accountability and reporting mechanism.
• Develop and maintain relationships with stakeholders such as community representatives, local authorities, and other partners to promote the use of the community accountability mechanism.
• Ensure all feedback channels guarantee total confidentiality of the information shared, to protect the privacy and safety of the complainant/informant, the subject if the feedback/complaint and other witnesses.
• Ensure that feedback is responded to in a timely and effective manner and that appropriate actions are taken to address issues raised by program participants, community, partners and stakeholders.
• Regularly assess the effectiveness of all the feedback channels (both for MCK and partners) by evaluating the community level of awareness on CARM at relevant frequency and incorporate findings into revised approaches.
• Follow-up with relevant stakeholders on agreed upon system corrections, adjustments, and actions, informing, and strategizing with the PaQ
• Contextualize the CARM policy to support implementation of accountability actions in country.
• In collaboration with program teams develop program specific strategies to provide beneficiaries, communities, partners and stakeholders with available information on CARM and feedback channels throughout the program cycle with clear repartition of tasks.
• Organize CARM technical meetings to discuss emerging issues and adjust the system based on evidence from the
• Ensure visibility of the CARM system within the organization, community, partners and
• Develop training materials and conduct accountability related training.

REPORTING

• Develop clear feedback channels and establish standard operating procedures for receiving and responding to feedback.
• Provide feedback to the beneficiaries and stakeholders accordingly, whenever
• Analyze feedback data to identify common themes and trends, as well as potential issues that need to be addressed and work with appropriate action takers to develop appropriate responses and action plans.
• Ensure timely feedback to PaQ Manager and program teams on feedback and concerns raised by    communities on project
• Prepare monthly dashboards and bimonthly reports on feedback received, including summaries of key themes and trends as well as any action taken in response to feedback.
• Ensure the reports are shared with relevant stakeholders including the leadership, Program CARM Leads and Focal points; CARM community of practice, PaQ manager, program managers/leads, MEL teams, programs team members, donors and other stakeholders.

STAFF TRAINING AND CAPACITY BUILDING

• Develop CARM training modules that help staff and partners understand the importance of a feedback mechanism, how to use it and how to respond to feedback.
• Conduct training and awareness sessions for staff and partners to ensure they understand CARM and how to use it effectively.
• Work with staff and partners to ensure that CARM is implemented correctly and feedback is collected regularly.
• Promote compliance with the Core Humanitarian Standard (CHS) commitments and quality criteria in programs.

INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL COORDINATION

• Share feedback findings with relevant staff and management to ensure that issues are addressed in a timely and effective manner.
• Coordinating with program managers and other relevant staff to ensure that CARM feedback is integrated into program design, monitoring and evaluation.
• Coordinate with ethics and safeguarding team to ensure that CARM is aligned with organization mission and vision.
• Collaborate with Programs and finance departments in proposal and budget development to ensure CARM is planned for and budgeted for in the program designs and budgets.
• Liaise with the grants department to assess partner feedback mechanism identify strengths, gaps, and capacity of partner feedback mechanism at due diligence stage.
• Closely work with partners, government agencies, private business/enterprise, and other stakeholders to ensure they are aligned with requirements and expectations cited in the CARM policy.
• Establish strong relationships with external partners and stakeholders that ensure CARM is meeting the needs of program participants aligned with expectations of stakeholders.
• Ensure coordination and working relationships with CARM counterparts in other relevant international NGOs, and local NGOs and associations whenever

CODE OF CONDUCT

• Ensure all field and office based activities are conducted in full respect to the humanitarian principles and in organized and dignified
• Conduct himself/herself both professionally and personally in such a manner as to bring credit to Mercy Corps and to not jeopardize its humanitarian
• Other duties as assigned by the

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

ACCOUNTABILITY TO BENEFICIARIES

• Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our beneficiaries and to international standards guiding international relief and development work, while actively engaging beneficiary communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field
• Team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and MC's policies, procedures, and values at all times and in all in-country

Knowledge and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field such as social sciences, international development, humanitarian aid or a related field.
• At least four years of related work experience, preferably with an international or local Non- Governmental Organization (NGO).
• Proven interest and commitment to humanitarian and development principles and a demonstrable understanding of conflict contexts and remote
• Knowledge in project management, monitoring and evaluation including experience with remote data collection, analysis, reporting and visualization concepts.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with the ability to engage with program participants, stakeholders, and colleagues at all levels.
• Experience in working in multi-cultural and diverse environments with sensitivity to different cultures and customs.
• Experience in creating and designing Power BI reports and dashboards.
• Proven track record of implementing feedback and complaints mechanisms in complex programs and projects.
• Excellent Computer skills: proficiency in MS Office package, and some knowledge of database management would be an
• Experience in leading and managing teams.
• Report writing skills are
• Fluency in spoken and written English and Kiswahili languages is required