Strategic Learning Advisor (SLA), RFSA, Haiti

Overview

Job Description

Job Title: Strategic Learning Advisor (SLA), RFSA, Haiti Reports to: Chief of Party, Haiti RFSA Department: LACRO Salary Grade: 10
NOTE: This position is contingent upon donor approval.

About CRS

Catholic Relief Services is the official international humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States. CRS works to save, protect, and transform lives in need in more than 100 countries, without regard to race, religion or nationality. CRS’ relief and development work is accomplished through programs of emergency response, HIV, health, agriculture, education, microfinance and peacebuilding.

Job Summary:

The SLA will promote coordination, collaboration and continuous learning across all RFSA activities. The SLA will ensure active, intentional and adaptive learning within and across sectoral activities, as well as knowledge sharing and application, activity-based capacity strengthening, evidence and data use and collaborating, learning and adapting (CLA). The SLA will develop and manage a system that captures, analyzes and disseminates learning, take the lead in collecting best practices and lessons learned and organize relevant reviews of program activities. The advisor will also ensure robust stakeholder coordination with stakeholders (local partners, USG, governmental partners, international donors, multilateral organizations and private sector actors, etc). The SLA should have demonstrated experience in food security, knowledge management, organizational learning and capacity strengthening.

Roles and Key Responsibilities:

• Contribute to the development and implementation of agency-wide strategies, standards, tools, and best practices in CLA that effectively engage partners, donors and governments. Help ensure a cross-sectoral approach integrating gender, protection mainstreaming, and disaster risk reduction.
• Provide technical solutions to regional and CP teams, remotely and on-site, for strategic planning and how to best apply program design and implementation standards, best practices, partnership principles, tools, and M&E, ensuring high-quality implementation.
• Contribute to capacity strengthening initiatives in CLA for staff and partner through helping develop learning and training strategies and agendas/curriculums, conducting trainings and workshops, and mentoring and coaching to CP staff.
• Contribute to knowledge management and learning through collecting and analyzing program data, evaluating strategic projects, assisting with measuring program impact, capturing and sharing lessons learned and best practices, and research and internal reports.
• Provide leadership to ensure effective accountability systems across all aspects of the project as well as utilization of feedback to influence management and adaptation of project.
• Provide leadership to ensure all aspects of the program re compliant with USAID/BHA environmental requirements. Support the Environmental Compliance Officer to provide monitoring data and capacity building to ensure the program has a positive environmental impact.
• Establish and maintain relationships with donors, peer organizations, research and other institutions. Participate in forums in the area of CLA to collect and share best practices and promote CRS’ work.
• Design and manage the project learning and adaptation strategy, system and tools with a focus on promoting knowledge acquisition, management, documentation and dissemination.

Required Languages – English and French fluency required

Travel – Must be willing and able to travel up to 30-50 % domestically with periodic international travel.

Supervisory Responsibilities: Accountability Officer, Environmental Compliance Officer

Key Working Relationships:

Internal: RFSA Resilience and Sustainability Senior Advisor, RFSA Gender, Youth, and Social Dynamics Lead, RFSA M&E Lead, RFSA Private Sector Engagement Lead, CRS Country Representative, Head of Operations, Finance Manager, Cayes Head of Office
External: Country Directors of Partners, Senior Management for ACF and Caritas Haiti RFSA teams, Washington University staff, Donor, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Social Affairs, other related government authorities and suppliers

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Excellent relationship management skills with ability to influence and get buy-in from people not under direct supervision and to work with individuals in diverse geographical and cultural settings.
• Strong strategic, analytical, problem-solving and systems thinking skills with capacity to see the big picture and ability to make sound judgment
• Strong written and oral communication skills
• Strong presentation, facilitation, training, mentoring, and coaching skills
• Proactive, resourceful and results-oriented

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience working with large donors, USAID/FFP and/or USAID/FTF preferred.
• Strong conceptual knowledge about theories of change, logic model, food and nutrition security indicators, M&E plan, data quality assurance, data utilization and gender integration into M&E.
• Experience on innovative learning practice including Internal Change Management for CLA, Evaluative thinking and Adaptive management.
• Demonstrated ability to transfer knowledge to diverse audiences (capacity strengthening) through training, mentoring, and other formal and non-formal methods, using adult learning methodologies.
• Demonstrated experience and expertise in developing and operationalizing a comprehensive monitoring and evaluation plan focusing on learning; familiarity with FFP M&E and Reporting Policy and Guidance for the components of an M&E plan.
• Demonstrated expertise and experience in developing and operationalizing routine monitoring system focused on learning to track both lessons learned and promising practices to inform learning decision making across the DFSA.
• Strong skills to facilitate learning events to capture and analyze lessons learned, success/failure factors, promising practices and best practices.
• Demonstrated experience to create an environment conducive to learning, incorporating the Agency’s Evaluative Thinking framework and resources.
• Knowledge of CRS’s program quality standards and MEAL standards and Catholic Social Teaching preferred.
• Experience with facilitation, capacity strengthening and partnership building through formal and informal training, with the capacity to empower staff through opportunities for professional growth and development.
• Ability to self-manage and succeed in matrix management model, with demonstrated proactive and flexible nature in resolving problems and leading a productive, committed team.
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills and the ability to work effectively with groups.
• Strategic communication skills, including producing publications and organizing public events.
• Detail-oriented and excellent time management skills with the ability to meet deadlines and deliver required results in a timely and quality manner.
• Flexibility to work both in a team and independently.
• Demonstrated personal accountability and driven to serve others.
• Cultural sensitivity, patience, flexibility and ability to work well in a multi-sectoral and multi-cultural team and to work closely, understand and support local Church partners.
• Ability to work in a challenging and stressful environment with unexpected challenges.