Officer, Planning, Monitoring, Evaluation and Reporting (PMER)

Organizational Context

The IFRC is part of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement (Movement), together with its member National Societies and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). The work of the IFRC is guided by the following fundamental principles: humanity, impartiality, neutrality, independence, voluntary service, unity, and universality.

The IFRC is led by its Secretary General, and has its Headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. The Headquarters are organized into three main Divisions: (i) National Society Development and Operations Coordination; (ii) Global Relations, Humanitarian Diplomacy and Digitalization; and (iii) Management Policy, Strategy and Corporate Services.

The IFRC has five regional offices in Africa, Asia Pacific, Middle East and North Africa, Europe, and the Americas. The IFRC also has country cluster delegation and country delegations throughout the world. Together, the Geneva Headquarters and the field structure (regional, cluster and country) comprise the IFRC Secretariat.

The Country Cluster Support Team for Central Asia is based in Bishkek and oversees IFRC support to five National Societies: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. The IFRC is seeking a Planning, Monitoring, Evaluation and Reporting (PMER) officer to provide planning monitoring Evaluation and Reporting support to the Central Asia IFRC Office and the five Central Asian National Societies (listed above) for their ongoing programmes, unified planning and capacity enhancement on PMER, as well as other programmes and operations.

Job Purpose

The PMER Officer is responsible for maintaining the PMER framework for the operation and for further developing and ensuring quality PMER systems and processes and for the effective delivery of these during the operation. This role provides direct technical advice and guidance to operational leadership and to technical programme managers in all areas of PMER - planning, monitoring, evaluation/review, reporting, learning and accountability. The Officer will also be responsible for strengthening PMER capacity of the NS(s) in the Central Asia Region and ensuring core competencies in PMER. The PMER Officer will ensure PMER is central to operational strategy and delivery and that PMER standards and deadlines are adhered to in the operation, to support quality programming, accountability and learning. Where possible engagement with major donors, especially as far as building and maintaining relations, developing proposals are concerned, will be an integral part of the job. The PMER officer will work closely with Programme Manager and all thematic focal points within the Central Asia Country Cluster team, as well as the Red Crescent Societies technical counterparts and IFRC network members in order to ensure the effective delivery of programmes and operations in Central Asia within IFRC network.

Job Duties and Responsibilities

Reporting

• Establish and manage a reporting timetable and deadlines for the programmes and operations, communicate this with programme staff and monitor this timetable to ensure all agreed deadlines have been met.
• Coordinate all reporting activities closely with the operational leadership and Regional PMER team – including agreeing a reporting timetable and deadlines.
• Manage efficient and effective quality control and delivery of reporting on the programmes and operations (e.g. Ops Updates, situation reports, information bulletins, and other relevant reports) and ensure all reports are clear, accurate and informative.
• Ensure that all reporting on the operations and programmes is compliant with the IFRC’s standards and formats.
• Collaborate with technical and support managers, particularly finance, to ensure compatibility between narrative and financial information in all reports and for any pledge-based reporting.
• Support the efficient and effective delivery of emergency reporting on the operations (including ops updates, situation reports, information bulletins, facts & figures or other relevant reports).
• Support the efficient and effective delivery of mid-term and annual reporting on the Unified Planning.

Check that all reporting on the operations is compliant with the IFRC’s standards and formats.

• Maintain good communications with technical / operational counterparts within IFRC and NS staff and volunteers to ensure reports are informed by accurate and relevant information.
• Manage the evidence-base of monitoring and evaluation work on the operation, to inform accountability to donors and partners.
• Develop capacity building strategies for NS reporting focal points, based on assessing PMER needs and capacities

Planning

• Lead and guide the IFRC network`s unified planning process to develop quality plans, ensuring engagement and compliance from all management, technical and support teams to a results-based and adaptive process.
• Maintain good communications and liaise with technical / operational counterparts, particularly IM and CEA, and with NS staff and volunteers, to ensure that plans are informed by accurate and relevant information and by the voice of those affected.
• Ensure compliance with IFRC standards for unified planning and support strategic planning efforts in National Societies.
• Set up systems and guidance to support the development of quality plans.
• Provide technical advice and support to the Head of Country Cluster Office (HoCC) and teams to ensure quality plans (e.g. design of the Logframe and indicators) and support the coordination of the plans from the different teams/NSs to bring together a coherent and high-quality unified plan.
• Verify that monitoring and evaluation activities are incorporated into the plan and budget and plan for their implementation of the relevant monitoring systems and Reporting deadlines from the outset.
• Ensure that PMER is well represented and supported in the operational planning and budgeting and in operational management.

Job Duties and Responsibilities (continued)

Monitoring

• Support the development and implementation of a M&E plan for the programmes and operations, including outlining data sources, collection methods (quantitative and qualitative methods), frequency, and audience.
• Design and establish system(s) to collect reliable and timely monitoring data that captures the operation’s implementation and informs operational management and quality programming.
• Assist with the development and implementation of monitoring tools and activities to capture and provide reliable and timely monitoring data to inform quality programming.
• Work closely with Information Management (IM) and Community Engagement and Accountability (CEA) teams to ensure that planned monitoring is well informed by available information / data and engages with and reflects the voice of the affected population.
• Support or prepare analysis of monitoring, through reports, data visualization and ensure it is evidence based, user-friendly and accessible for those managing the operation, to inform decision-making.
• In synergy with IM, provide support to National Societies in developing context-appropriate internal monitoring systems.

Evaluation / Review

• Prepare, design and implement any necessary surveys, such as baseline surveys, reviews, evaluations or lesson learning exercises or other relevant studies, in response to operational requirements.
• Participate in any internal reviews of operational progress, including lesson learning reviews.
• Verify all review or evaluation work is evidence based and considers the outcomes, as well as the outputs of the response, to ensure that this informs future operational decision-making and quality programming.

Learning

• Ensure that learning from all monitoring, reviews or evaluations in accessible and relevant, and can be used to inform operational decision-making and the direction of the operation.
• Set up systems and forums for capturing and sharing operational learning.

Accountability

• Contribute to the accountability focus of all PMER work across the operation, working closely with the CEA team to ensure accountability to affected populations.
• Promote a culture of accountability with management and across all sectors.

Support the evidence-base of monitoring and evaluation work on the operation, to inform accountability.

Education

Required:

• Graduate degree in a relevant humanitarian or Social Sciences, ideally studies relating to data management, statistics etc.
• Post-graduate qualification in a PMER or related field

Experience

Required:

• Minimum 3 years’ experience working for the humanitarian or civil society sector
• Minimum 3 years’ experience working in planning, monitoring or reporting fields
• Background in data collection, management, analysis and presentation methods and tools, and ability to set up systems and procedures for reliable data collection and management

Preferred:

• Experience in working with Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement
• Experience working in an emergency response context
• Demonstrable track record of managing a high value programme for an NGO or a CSR programme for a corporation

Knowledge, Skills and Languages

Required:

• Skills in supporting organizational learning, accountability and performance
• Strong analytical and written skills, including report writing and presentation skills
• Strong skills in designing and using PMER concepts, tools, and best practices
• Knowledge and skills around results-based planning (logframe) and setting up robust planning systems for complex programmes
• Knowledge of assessment, survey and monitoring methodologies and experience implementing them
• Fluently spoken and written English and Russian

Preferred:

• Knowledge of institutional reporting and finance systems (planning, reporting systems, financial database, data collection tools, business objects etc)
• Knowledge of Evaluation and review for disaster response or recovery work
• Good command of another IFRC official language (French, Spanish or Arabic)

Competencies, Values and Comments

Movement context, principles and values, National Society Capacity Strengthening
Coordination, Assessment, Direction Setting and Quality Programme Management
Information Management, Resource Management, Safety and Security, Transition and Recovery, Community engagement and accountability, Protection, Gender and Inclusion, Environmental Sustainability, Collaboration and teamwork, Conflict Management, Interpersonal Communication, Cultural awareness, Judgement and decision making, Motivating Others, Personal resilience, Integrity