Room to Read South Africa - Director Research Monitoring & Evaluation

DIRECTOR, RESEARCH, MONITORING & EVALUATION SOUTH AFRICA JUNE 2022

About Room to Read Private Sector Brain, Nonprofit Heart We’re people from around the world, from diverse industries, who are passionate about education. Taking best practices from our diverse disciplines, we live our values by improving lives.

We’re personally invested in the nations where we work; from places like Tanzania and South Africa to Bangladesh and Cambodia, 87% of us are from the countries where we work.

Efficient Financially, Effective Globally We maximize our resources and hold ourselves accountable to our partner communities, investors, and internal stakeholders. We set ambitious, measurable goals and track them.

Ever a learning organization, we take calculated risks and use creativity to accomplish goals.

And we build upon our partnerships to grow sustainably and create systemic change around the world.

Best In Class Our programs and fiscal efficiency have earned consistently positive recognition from the media, as well as from leaders in the nonprofit and corporate sectors. We are proud to have a reputation that is strong and authentic as an innovative leader in global education. Our work and impact is validated by respected journalists, academics, policy makers and our peers.

Learn more at www.roomtoread.org.

Room to Read believes that World Change Starts with Educated Children.

We envision a world where children can pursue

Room to Read collaborates with local

a quality education that prepares them to be fulfilled and make positive change — in their families, communities and the world.

communities, partner organizations and governments to test and implement innovative models that can be integrated into the education system to deliver positive outcomes for children at scale.

Founded in 2000, Room to Read is achieving this goal by providing support during the two most critical time periods in a child’s education: primary school for literacy acquisition and secondary school for girls’ education.

Our Literacy Program trains and coaches teachers, creates quality books and curricular materials and establishes libraries filled with diverse children’s books in local languages that can be enjoyed at school or home.

To date, Room to Read has reached 23 million children in over 48,000 communities across Bangladesh, Cambodia, Grenada, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Jordan, Laos, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Rwanda, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Uganda, United States, Vietnam and Zambia, and plans to benefit 40 million children by 2025.

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The Role Role:

Director, Research, Monitoring & Evaluation

Location:

Pretoria, South Africa

Salary:

Competitive - please contact us for details

Job Summary The Director Research, Monitoring & Evaluation (RM&E) is a new position being created to strengthen Room to Read South Africa’s RM&E portfolio and contribute to the leadership of Room to Read South Africa.

The incumbent will lead a Pretoria-based RM&E team, provide strategic and technical leadership, define and implement a research agenda tailored to the country strategy and programming, liaise with government counterparts, academia and sector experts and serve as a thought-leader at the country and global level. The RM&E Director will also build

the capacity of the South Africa RM&E team and partner with the South Africa programs team to improve learning and impact.

The position will report directly to the Country Director and sit on the Country Management Team. This position will work in collaboration with the Room to Read Global office RM&E team.

This position will be based in Pretoria but will require frequent travel to all areas where Room to Read operates and occasional international travel for presentations, conferences, etc.

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Responsibilities •

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Lead the implementation of the RM&E portfolio for Room to Read’s South Africa Country Office, heading up a small team based in Pretoria.

As part of the Country Management Team, contribute to the overall strategy, leadership and decision making for Room to Read South Africa.

Collaborate with program and operations departments at the global and country level to design a comprehensive research strategy for the South Africa Country office with a focus on literacy programming.

Ensure high quality implementation of research, evaluation and implementation monitoring activities.

Lead the RM&E technical design, budgeting, and work planning for new projects within the South Africa portfolio.

Conduct complex analyses and create reports for evaluations and research studies.

Contribute to the development and implementation of innovative measures related to literacy programming.

Oversee implementation of high-quality monitoring and data quality assurance processes in the field.

Design an internal learning strategy to

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increase evidence uptake and action within the South Africa portfolio. Collaborate with global RM&E team members to bring lessons from South Africa to the broader organization.

Manage South Africa RM&E budgets, collaborating with global offices to plan and secure human and financial resources to support activities.

Design and manage competitive procurement processes for data collection, research partners and consultants.

Increase the visibility and uptake of Room to Read South Africa’s evidence and data through high quality publications including working papers, journal articles, participation in sector working groups, presentations, etc.

Expand relationships with South African government counterparts with respect to research and evidence building, and influence evidence-based policy making at the national level.

Contribute to strengthening Room to Read’s research and evaluation methods and technical capacity globally.

Motivate, inspire, and support team members and colleagues. Develop capacity of more junior team members.

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Candidate profile Required: •

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Robust knowledge of RM&E for foundational literacy, including frameworks, research and evaluation strategies, measurement approaches, and the existing evidence base.

Extensive experience leading the design and implementation of an array of research and evaluation projects in South Africa, ideally with a focus on literacy programming.

Strong quantitative analysis skills, with proven ability to work with data software packages such as SPSS/STATA. Ability to design and produce high-quality complex technical reports with innovative analyses and data visualizations.

Experience developing and delivering compelling technical presentations to the sector.

Robust network within the education research and funding community and public sector in South Africa.

Strong leadership and project management skills, with a history of developing strategies and managing towards the achievement of goals.

Proven ability to collaborate across diverse teams and deliver high-quality, complex RM&E solutions.

Experience with engaging policy makers and influencing outcomes at the sector level.

Experience with competitive procurements, project management and budget development and management .

Prior success working closely and building relationships with diverse groups of people.

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Orientation toward capacity building of more junior colleagues.

Ability and desire to travel within South Africa and internationally.

Minimum Master’s degree in a relevant discipline, PhD preferred.

Published as primary or co-author in an academic journal or conference.

10+ years of relevant experience.

Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English.

South African nationality, with the ability to relocate to Pretoria, if not already based there.

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Experience leading technical teams.

Experience working for an implementing organization.

Experience with digital transformation strategies to support data collection, analysis, and visualization.

To be successful at Room to Read, you will also: •

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Have passion for our mission and a strong desire to impact a dynamic nonprofit organization Be a proactive and innovative thinker who achieves results and creates positive change Have a very high level of personal and professional integrity and trustworthiness Embrace diversity and a commitment to collaboration Thrive in a fast-paced and fun environment

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How to Apply All correspondence, at this stage, should be via Oxford HR. To apply for this post, click on the “Apply” button on the job advert page, complete our online application form, and submit your CV and cover letter as two different documents, which should be prepared before applying as they will be considered in the application process.

The cover letter should be no more than two pages long and explain why you are interested in this post and how your skills and experience make you a good fit.

The documents should be saved in MS Word in the following format: Your First Name-Your Last Name-Document Name-Date (mmyyyy) e.g., Malika-Cook-CV-012022-R2R.

Timeline Closing Date 08 August 2022 - early applications are encouraged as applicants will be screened and interviewed on a rolling basis.

Note: Previous candidates need not reapply.

About Oxford HR Equality Statement Room to Read is proud to be an equal opportunity employer committed to identifying and developing the skills and leadership of people from diverse backgrounds. Staff are expected to work collectively and individually to promote a constructive and sensitive approach to others from a variety of backgrounds, where the work of others is valued and respected.

Selection Process All candidates will receive an update regarding their application after the closing date. We advise candidates to add the role email to their safe senders list and regularly check their spam folder.

Queries If you have any queries on any aspect of the appointment process, need additional information, or would like to have an informal discussion, please email roomtoread@oxfordhr. co.uk in the first instance.

Oxford HR operates globally - mainly within

Oxford HR has many years of experience in

the international development and charity sectors. We carry out retained executive search mandates at board and senior management levels. We also offer human resource and organisational development consultancy.

search as well as an extensive network of international development, social sector, corporate, public sector, and academic contacts from across the world. We carry out comprehensive and often international searches designed to meet the specific needs of our client.

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