Responsibilities
Reporting Unit/Supervisor: Nigeria MEL Manager
Location: Abuja, Nigeria with possibility of travels
TechnoServe Background:
TechnoServe works with enterprising people in the developing world to build competitive farms, businesses and industries. We are a nonprofit organization that develops business solutions to poverty by linking people to information, capital and markets. Our work is rooted in the idea that given the opportunity, hardworking men and women in even the poorest places can generate income, jobs and wealth for their families and communities. With more than four decades of proven results, we believe in the power of private enterprise to transform lives.
Context:
TechnoServe is in the process of launching Catalyst - a collection of technology tools, support resources and institutional knowledge that project teams can leverage to reduce the cost of collecting, analyzing and reporting data. This collection of tools includes Salesforce as an integrated M&E data management solution that works from a standardized data model. Salesforce.com, as a platform, allows for easy database creation and a flexible data structure that our teams use to input data via mobile devices from the field and a web browser. Salesforce integrates with our selected mobile data collection tool, Commcare, through the OpenFn platform. The integration of these three products allows project teams to receive and report on data in near-real time. The built-in reporting tools allow teams at all levels to quickly analyze data and identify areas where more information is needed or data cleaning may be required. If further analysis is required, data can easily be exported into .csv or Excel format and imported into a variety of other data visualization and analytics tools (Tableau, SAS, Excel, BI software, etc.).
The field office in Nigeria is actively seeking to integrate into, and inform the ongoing design of Catalyst. The intended outcome is to facilitate rapid deployment of M&E data management software at project inception and facilitate a deeper dive into data analytics and performance management of field staff. Country-level managers will be able to aggregate and review data/reports from multiple projects and control access to the database so people are able to access relevant information related to their project. Integration into Catalyst will also enable us to track our data over an extended time horizon across programs, value chains, geographies and generate insights/learnings that will allow us to expand our thought leadership in key sectors and better leverage our long-term data to improve program design and focus our efforts on interventions that deliver the greatest impact to our beneficiaries.
Position Description:
The West Africa MIS Consultant is responsible for carrying out all the management information system (MIS) tasks for all active projects in Nigeria and, pending approval, select active projects in TNS’s other West Africa offices. Overall, the consultant will be responsible for the configuration, operation, maintenance, and customization needed to implement Catalyst (“the system”) in Nigeria and, pending approval, select active projects in TNS’s other West Africa offices. This includes oversight of the mobile data collection tool (Commcare), integration tool (OpenFn), and the data management and reporting platform (Salesforce). They will ensure that the system can satisfactorily respond to the data needs of both individual programs and regional/country management needs. The consultant will provide regional leadership with recommendations and guidance for creatively and cost-effectively responding to the data management needs and when appropriate will design and execute software builds under the guidance of TechnoServe’s Senior Manager, Global Technology. With her/his contributions, the system will be able to:
- Increase standardization in M&E quality
- Improve data analysis and visualization
- Improve data management and security
The position will collaborate with and receive advisory support from TechnoServe’s Global IT Department and the East and West Africa MEL Advisor.
Responsibilities:
The West Africa MIS Consultant will be responsible for delivering the following:
Configuration
- Support onboarding of new projects into the system by providing necessary user logins and supporting with basic setup.
- Work with project teams to create a high level timeline of survey deadlines and other major milestones in the project.
- In Commcare, create and manage electronic surveys that are used to collect the data.
- Support project teams in configuring CommCare on mobile devices, installing survey applications, and other mobile applications as necessary (barcode scanners, etc.)
- Assist with creating M&E reports based on the project's teams specifications.
- Ensure project setup is completed in a timely manner, travelling to project location as necessary to support rollout.
Operation
- Manage the mobile surveys and resulting data for various project across Nigeria and, pending approval, select projects in TNS’s other West Africa offices.
- Train MEL managers and project teams on basic structure and use of the CommCare.
- Provide ongoing training to project staff in using the system to collect, manage, and report data
- Maintain knowledge database
- Contribute to the Global M&E System support team helpdesk by tracking and responding to user requests in a timely and effective manner.
- Provide one-on-one advising support as necessary so that projects can maximize the value received from the system.
- Review Global M&E System guides and documentation for accuracy
- Create, modify, and delete user accounts as requested
- Manually upload CommCare case and lookup table data as necessary to support project teams with the creation of large numbers of records and any mass modification of existing records
- Develop and distribute reports to project teams
Maintenance
- Support teams to drive data quality by proactively developing data validation and security procedures, identifying areas with data quality issues and recommending potential solutions
- Implement app and other software upgrades as needed
Upgrade
- Consolidate and track feature requests
- Creatively and proactively respond to user bottlenecks, developing ad hoc tools as needed
- Provide vision for system upgrades, contributing actively to leadership from Global IT
- Serve as the primary contributor to on-going builds and upgrades
- Serve as a critical contributor to major builds and upgrades, providing input on task allocation, data modeling and system structure
Responsibilities might require providing support to other countries within the West Africa region, until the global M&E system is fully deployed
| Minimum: B.Sc/B.A Experience: 3-5 year(s) |
Location: Abuja Job Type: Permanent |
Salary: Negotiable Expires: 15-07-2018 |
General Requirements
Key Qualifications, Knowledge, Skills, and Experience
- Bachelor’s (4 years) degree with a technical major, such as engineering or computer science, information systems, informational technology and/or software engineering. Master’s degree a plus
- Three or more years’ experience in systems administration, with particular emphasis on data management for business analytics, monitoring and evaluation, or other business needs that require close to real-time data use
- Experience deploying and managing field based surveys using mobile data collection platforms.
- Proven experience working in multi-disciplinary teams and demonstrate flexibility in working style. Ability to communicate, transfer knowledge and explain complex technology
- Strong attention to detail; specifically with data quality/cleaning techniques
- Ability to work with large amounts of data with varying degrees of quality
- Ability to manage multiple projects at once and work independently to prioritize requests from project teams
- Ability to proactively identify and address complex problems in a way that responds to end user needs
- Ability to work independently and remotely while contributing to a team effort
- Knowledge of Salesforce terminology, language and administration a plus. Demonstrated interested in learning the platforms required
- Experience using CommCare or other ODK-based platforms a plus. Demonstrated interested in learning the platforms required
- French language skills preferable
