MEAL Senior Technical Advisor at World Vision Kenya

Job Description:

The MEAL Senior Technical Advisor is a senior representative that ensures the quality and effectiveness of multi-million dollar humanitarian responses and programmes to better meet the needs of those most affected by crises and disasters.  This is done by: 

• Deploying to responses and humanitarian programmes to establish and improve MEAL systems, processes, and capability 

• Developing tools, guidance, and new approaches to support responses to better apply the most effective MEAL practices 

• Building local capability to lead MEAL during crises 

These activities are done through close coordination with regions to provide support where it is most needed and where programming risks are highest. 

Coordination with the global DME team (Global Programmes and Resources) is critical to ensure humanitarian MEAL processes are closely aligned with organizational guidance and contribute tools and resources that apply across programming contexts.   

Location: This position can be based remotely in a location with World Vision International registration but requires up to 50% international travel.

Major Job Responsibilities:

(a) Deploy to Category Ill/SHR (and select Category II) emergencies and United Nations-funded programmes to establish, improve, and build the capability of MEAL

• Ensure responses demonstrate strong MEAL practices that enable effective needs-based and data-driven accountable programming 
• Ensure responses are aligned with DM’s MEAL guidance, and Disaster Management (DM) standards, and apply appropriate and contextualized MEAL tools  
• Responses reflect the consistent (where relevant) application of the latest MEAL tools and approaches based on DM’s priorities such as environmental assessment (NEAT+), COSMAT and market assessments, Disaster Management core indicators, learning for adaptation and vulnerability guidance (among others) across regions. 
• MEAL assessments are conducted in coordination with Support Offices (SO) to support resource acquisition 
• Ensure UN-funded programmes demonstrate reduced risk as a result of the application of food/cash-based MEAL tools (such as PDM) consistently across programmes with enhancements where necessary 
• Coordination with the humanitarian accountability Advisor where relevant issues are identified to leverage support for responses on accountability-related issues 

Develop tools, guidance, and new approaches to support responses to better apply the most effective MEAL practices.

• Core MEAL guidance and tools are regularly updated based on learning from field use.
• Take the lead in revising, developing, and maintaining the following tools/approaches – Conflict Sensitive Market Analysis Toolkit (CoSMAT), and other CVP monitoring tools.
• Ensure new or updated tools are piloted as appropriate through MEAL leadership and then rolled out globally 
• Ensure all new tools reflect collaboration with sector and technical specialists relevant to the tool. 
• For all guidance and tools, ensure appropriate revisions and/or simplification are done for use by local partners in responses. 

Build field capability to lead MEAL during crises.

• Learning programmes are conducted for MEAL staff on a regional basis appropriate to the needs of the MEAL staff in that region.  This is coordinated with regional leadership, Global Propgrammes and Resources DM&E, and with relevant World Vision Support Office (SO) leadership to leverage partnership capability and resources.
• Consolidate, revise, or develop required training materials based on identified capacity gaps and priorities 
• Ensure a roster of deployable MEAL staff is refined with a clear description of capabilities for easy access, ie whether staff can serve as MEAL Director, manager, or officer in response.

Engage and collaborate.

• Serve as the primary MEAL representative with regional leadership teams in designated regions to identify and resolve MEAL-related issues while identifying opportunities, paying special attention to risk.
• Engage with Humanitarian Emergency Affairs (HEA) and MEAL leaders in Support Offices to collaborate on donor MEAL priorities (ie environmental assessments for ECHO) and leverage partnership-wide capability/avoid duplication of effort 
• Engage with the global food assistance, CVP, and operations teams to coordinate field-level priorities for assistance 
• Serve as the senior MEAL representative for the ESCA working group to coordinate across the partnership on the testing and application of environmental assessments 
• Serve as the senior MEAL representative on the implementation of the Cash Roadmap at a strategic level  
• Engage with external agencies and bodies that support effective MEAL practices such as ALNAP, ODI, IAHE, or other evaluation associations on specific priorities and projects.
• Encourage and facilitate the documentation of best practices and lessons learned, directed toward multiple audiences to influence policy formation and strategy. 

Required Knowledge/Qualifications for the Role:

• Master’s degree in a related field (e.g., humanitarian action, social sciences, development and humanitarian policy)
• 8 years experience in the humanitarian and development sector with at least 5 years experience working in and with field operations
• 6 years of experience leading and facilitating quantitative and qualitative evaluative and learning exercises with field teams in humanitarian contexts
• Excellent analytical skills as demonstrated by the planning, execution, and report development of large-scale assessment and evaluation exercises
• Strong understanding of humanitarian principles and standards and how to practically apply them as well as the humanitarian system/architecture and donor priorities
• Strong technology skills including key data collection and analysis tools such as Kobo, LMMS, Smartsheets, SMAP, MaxQDA, and soon AmpImpact (OIOS)
• Ability to simplify in practice and articulation complex processes, especially for non-technical staff or field staff with less experience or capability
• Apt at clearly and concisely distilling data analysis findings for non-technical audiences, including through the use of appropriate data visualization techniques
• Adaptable to dynamic contexts and shifting priorities
• Strong skills in coordination, and project management, especially for large MEAL exercises
• Excellent communication skills including visually and virtually.

Preferred Knowledge and Qualifications:

• Field experience in fragile contexts
• Excellent networking and influencing skills
• Hostile Environmental Awareness Training (HEAT) Certification
• Ideally, coursework that would build strong statistical or research skills or demonstrate practical experience
• Experience in influencing through the strategic use of data

Travel and Work Environment, Language Requirement:

• Requires ability and willingness to travel internationally up to 50% of the time
• English is required, and French is a plus