Head, Outcome & Impact Evaluation at Mastercard Foundation

THE WORK AT THE FOUNDATION

We have entered a very exciting time at the Foundation as we scale up our operations across Africa to realize our Young Africa Works strategy. Our role at the Mastercard Foundation is to be a catalyst. Our Young Africa Works strategy focuses on working with others to spur systemic change so young people have the opportunity to find work that is dignified and fulfilling.

The Foundation has opened offices in Rwanda, Kenya, Ghana, Senegal, Ethiopia, Nigeria and Uganda, building a broader leadership presence in Africa to develop specific strategies that support youth employment.  Within a country, we work with governments, the private sector, educators and other funders to improve the quality of education and vocational training, prepare young people for the work force, expand access to financial services for entrepreneurs and small businesses, and connect job seekers to dignified and fulfilling work.

We are ambitious and driven. Our values transcend and rise above everything else as our guide. We encourage you to bring your bold ideas, curiosity, and expertise to your work. We laugh at ourselves and with each other. We are a team. Our journey together makes our impact even more meaningful

If you are an experienced Outcome & Impact Evaluation professional looking to increase your impact, read on!

THE OPPORTUNITY

Reporting to the Head of Impact; The Head, Outcome & Impact Evaluation will be responsible for leading, overseeing and managing a team of outcome Lead evaluation managers who plan, commission and manage Evaluations and Reviews across all locations and programs of the Foundation in Africa and Canada. The Head Outcome & Impact Evaluation will be expected to evolve evaluation practice in the Foundation to reflect new MEL innovations, establish progressive Evaluation standards for the Foundation, develop the overall Evaluation Plan for the Foundation in consultation with ExCo and Country Heads, and oversee evaluation reporting to the Executive Committee and the Board of the Foundation.

The successful candidate will be based in any of our listed offices in Africa (Ghana, Rwanda, Kenya).

WAYS YOU CAN CONTRIBUTE

• Build and manage a talented team of outcome and impact evaluation managers with experience across thematic sectors across Africa, globally, including indigenous Canada.
• Lead the development and implementation of a Foundation wide Evaluation Plan and budget in consultation with the Head of Impact, ExCo, the Board, Country and Program Heads.
• Manage the team to ensure that the Foundation has broad evaluation coverage across the geographic and thematic priorities of the Foundation and at Portfolio, Country Strategy and Regional and Mission levels, and strategic coverage of the areas of work that are most important.
• Lead evaluation reporting to the Executive Committee (and Board if requested) the key results of evaluations. This will be done in collaboration with the Head of Impact and the relevant Lead Outcome manager.
• Lead the development of Evaluation Standards for the Foundation drawing on innovative and advanced practice in adaptive management, market-based evaluation, innovation and systems evaluation.
• Ensure that ongoing evaluations benefits from the Innovation work of the Impact Labs and Indigenous Evaluation incubators in Africa and Canada, and that the ongoing evaluation work of reflects these new advances.
• Ensure that Regional and Country Impact staff have the support needed to plan and manage evaluations at regional and country and partner level, including country strategy and annual program Impact reviews, aiming to generate formative, independent, credible, and useful evidence and insights by assessing the performance and results of Foundation’s Young Africa Works country strategic plans.
• Manage and report on the budget of the Outcome and Impact Workstream.
• Lead the development of Evaluation Policy, Approach and Standards for the Foundation drawing on leading evaluation practice in innovative in indigenous evaluation, adaptive management, market-based evaluation, innovation and systems evaluation.
• Support the use of Evaluation Standards throughout the Foundation, particularly to ensure that the outcome evaluation team incorporate the standards in all evaluations conducted for the Foundation.
• Lead the definition of the scope and types of Evidence required to establish and measure impacts in short, medium, and long run.
• Develop protocols for commissioning, executing and managing Evidence and Evaluations, assessing competencies in evaluation teams, and applying Quality Assurance Standards (QAS).
• Provide strategic management advice and support to the Head of Impact and other Foundation senior leaders on Outcome and Impact Evaluation (what to evaluate, why and when).
• Advise on key strategic issues emanating from evaluations and identify issues that should be elevated to risk management and strategic review.
• Participate as a member of the Core Impact Management Team, working collaboratively across the Impact and Program Teams in all evaluation related work
• Build collaborative work arrangements with risk management, research and knowledge management as appropriate.
• Promote MCF’s evidence and insights culture of accountability and learning internally and externally.
• Ensure that Evaluation results and Evidence and Insights are communicated in a way that empowers young women and men. Working closely with MCF Communications prepare presentations of these, tailoring messages to specific audiences and platforms.
• Participate and represent the Impact Team in external professional evaluation forums and networks as may be authorized by the Head of Impact.
• Participate in MCF internal evidence and evaluation expertise groups to enable sharing of experience and development of good practice.
• Engage and collaborate actively with Mandated Institutions (in-country) that have mandates and capacity for commissioning evaluations and using and disseminating evidence/evaluation results for policy and related work.
• Manage outcome evaluation managers, consultants and provide guidance as required to ensure appropriate development and enable high performance.

WHO YOU ARE

• Advanced University degree in International Development, Evaluation, Economics, Social Science, or another relevant field is an asset.
• Membership in professional evaluation associations, notably in emerging African and Indigenous Evaluation networks, American Evaluation Association, European Evaluation Association, IDEAS (International Development Evaluation Association); and professional certificate in evaluation is highly desired.
• Minimum 12 years of relevant professional experience managing an evaluation function in a medium to large international organization with Africa as a priority focus.
• Minimum 5 years’ experience conducting country strategy and program evaluations in diverse development and or private sector managed initiatives.
• Experience in evaluating large partnerships.
• Majority of career focused on complex outcome focused evaluations across multiple thematic sectors and geographies.
• Experience with risk related evaluations (related to the risk framework of an organization).
• Experience in evaluation of market systems interventions with private sector, and with public sectors.
• Extensive experience with programmatic, system level evaluation and extensive experience using participatory techniques for facilitating inclusive evaluations.
• Experience with youth-targeted development investments and associated evaluation
• Experience presenting Evaluation, Evidence and Insights findings to high-level Boards, Governments, and other relevant stakeholders.
• Experience leading and managing evaluation team(s) and in supervising professional staff.
• Management and leadership skills, including strategic analysis and strategic communication.
• Familiarity with and participation in policy and practice debates on evidence and insights, particularly arising from evaluation.
• Exceptional understanding of data systems and insights for triangulating evidence for Impact measurement and decision-making.
• Familiarity with networks and work with youth groups, including youth in vulnerable circumstances.
• Strong understanding and commitment to the use of indigenous knowledge and techniques of enquiry to enrich evidence with communities and citizens.
• Mixed methods in evaluation including the harvesting of outcome and impact narratives that are qualitative as well as quantitative.
• Excellent research and analytical as well as writing and communication skills.
• Familiarity with innovation in MEL, the use of big data and tech-enabled data collection and analysis youth and citizen-led MEL.
• Possess excellent verbal, written, and presentation skills with the ability to articulate information to a variety of constituents across cultures.
• Possess professional maturity, sensitivity with different cultures, and impeccable integrity that exemplify the Foundation’s values.
• You have a commitment to Mastercard Foundation’s values and vision