Knowledge Management Advisor

The Organisation

Plan International is an independent development and humanitarian organisation that advances children’s rights and equality for girls.

We believe in the power and potential of every child. But this is often suppressed by poverty, violence, exclusion and discrimination. And it’s girls who are most affected.

Working together with children, young people, our supporters and partners, we strive for a just world, tackling the root causes of the challenges facing girls and all vulnerable children.

We support children’s rights from birth until they reach adulthood. And we enable children to prepare for – and respond to – crises and adversity. We drive changes in practice and policy at local, national and global levels using our reach, experience and knowledge.

We have been building powerful partnerships for children for over 85 years, and are now active in more than 80 countries.

ROLE PROFILE

Title: Knowledge Management Advisor

Functional Area: Knowledge Management

Reports to: P4G Program Manager

Location: Garoua Program Influencing and Implementation Area.

Travel required: Yes

Effective Date: April 2023

Grade: D1

ROLE PURPOSE
 
Plan International is an independent child rights and humanitarian organization committed to children living a life free of poverty, violence and injustice. Plan International actively unites children, communities and other people who share its mission to make positive lasting changes in children’s and young people’s lives.  Plan International supports children to gain the skills, knowledge and confidence they need to claim their rights to a fulfilling life, today and in the future. Plan International places a specific focus on girls and women, who are most often left behind. Plan International has been building powerful partnerships for children for more than 75 years, and are now active in more than 70 countries.

Plan International Cameroon through its P4G Project seeks to improve project quality through enhancing Knowledge Management (KM). Thus, the KM Advisor is expected to design and to lead that ambition.
 

DIMENSIONS OF THE ROLE

Generally, guides staff and the office in Garoua on how to create, capture, store, share and apply knowledge to more effectively achieve Plan’s goals, in the context of the project’s goals. 
Instils knowledge management in the working approach and promotes a culture of learning across all functions.
Responsible for the promotion and facilitation of the project’s Knowledge Management Framework
Member of the Garoua PIIA program team 
Contributes to national KM and change management initiatives

ACCOUNTABILITIES
 

Develop, support and facilitate knowledge transfer and information management related to the P4G project in Cameroon. This would include the documentation of key project activities, processes and learning points.
Work collaboratively with the P4G project team members to collect, gather and analyze key data, best practices and lessons learnt to produce knowledge management documents in accordance with Plan International and donor compliance requirements.
Conduct a Knowledge Management Assessment of the P4G project to provide the leadership with an understanding of its current strengths, gaps, and opportunities for intervention in order to introduce a fully operative Knowledge management Framework. The KM Assessment provides the basis for a route map guiding the project in the initial steps of implementing Knowledge Management.
Develop a robust and resourced Knowledge Management Framework to ensure that all necessary KM elements (Accountabilities, Processes, Technologies and Governance) are in place, and interconnected; in order to certify that there are no gaps in the system, and that knowledge flows freely through the project.
Assess effectiveness of the KM tools/activities being used in the project and contribute to documentation and sharing. S/he will work with IT staff to maximize the value and utility of ICT for KM initiatives, promote the use of ICT for KM activities.
 

Lead, encourage and promote the use of Planet, Workplace, SharePoint, MS Teams, Plan Academy, SAP, etc within the project as a means of improving ways of working such as better document management within teams, collaborate with national, regional, and CNO network members for support as well as sharing. This includes working with the site administrator to ensure that the project’s SharePoint site is kept up to date.
 

Play a key role in knowledge integration and dissemination internally and externally, and introduce new tools/systems that can increase the visibility of this project.
 

Carry out any other assignments as tasked by his/her supervisor.
        

AS OUR IDEAL CANDIDATE YOU WILL HAVE:
Proven experience in knowledge management, communication, network facilitation or a related field. Successful experience managing projects would be an added asset.
Strong communication and interpersonal skills.
Fluency in French and English (verbal and written communication) is a requirement.
Exceptional ability to build productive working relationships with diverse colleagues across the organization and with country offices and partners.
Experience reviewing, analyzing and synthesizing information to produce high quality project documents (including knowledge management documents and communication materials).
Strong critical thinking skills and demonstrated capacity to provide a knowledge management lens to technical areas, particularly monitoring and evaluation and research processes.
Post graduate degree in social, communications, monitoring & evaluation or related field is an asset.
 

DEALING WITH PROBLEMS:

Knowledge Management is a crucial component for ensuring high quality outcomes and impact in rights based and gender transformative programming. Likewise, meeting high standards of KM is a crucial requirement for continuous improvement. Barriers that the Knowledge Management Advisor will have to deal with include:

Plan for Girls Project staff have technical competency gaps regarding:
Understanding of knowledge management and the need for a systematic approach to
it, 

Quantitative and qualitative data management, 

Development and implementation of policies and procedures for data creation, sharing, dissemination and feedback to/from relevant right holders and duty bearers, and 
The investment of the learning through all their activities.  
There are insufficient and/or inadequate budget allocations for KM activities 
Almost all projects in Cameroon are struggling to put in place and consistently implement a coherent KM practice in alignment with the country strategy.
 
PLAN INTERNATIONAL’S VALUES IN PRACTICE

We are open and accountable

Promotes a culture of openness and transparency, including with sponsors and donors.
Holds self and others accountable to achieve the highest standards of integrity.
Consistent and fair in the treatment of people.
Open about mistakes and keen to learn from them.
Accountable for ensuring we are a safe organization for all children, girls & young people
We strive for lasting impact

Articulates a clear purpose for staff and sets high expectations.
Creates a climate of continuous improvement, open to challenge and new ideas.
Focuses resources to drive change and maximise long-term impact, responsive to changed priorities or crises.
Evidence-based and evaluates effectiveness.

We work well together

Seeks constructive outcomes, listens to others, willing to compromise when appropriate.
Builds constructive relationships across Plan International to support our shared goals.
Develops trusting and ‘win-win’ relationships with funders, partners and communities.
Engages and works well with others outside the organization to build a better world for girls and all children.
 

We are inclusive and empowering

We empower our staff to give their best and develop their potential
We respect all people, appreciate differences and challenge equality in our programs and our workplace
We support children, girls and young people to increase their confidence and to change their own lives. 

KEY RELATIONSHIPS

Internal:

P4G Program Manager & Team.
CO KM Focal Point
WACA countries KM Focal points
RH KM Lead
CNO KM Advisor
GH Hub KM Advisor
 

External: 

Plan for Girls Project Partners
KM agencies
TECHNICAL EXPERTISE, SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE
 

Knowledge:

Understanding of Knowledge Management and status in the country and engaging/sharing learning with peers in the sector
Knowledge of the external research environment and ability to identify and partner with academic institutions for research
Knowledge of Plan International’s KM framework and ability to bring other Plan staff and partners on board Plan’s vision and approaches at the same time as learning from others
Knowledge of challenges and undermining factors in the Cameroon context
 

Skills 

Ability to develop and critically review KM platforms/systems and tools
Ability to carry out project and strategy level learning reviews and processes
Ability to develop and lead a supportive network of KM focal points to jointly learn from, develop and innovate KM practice and methodologies
Ability to identify, design, lead/manage/coordinate and promote knowledge management tools, processes and initiatives
Ability to adapt and tailor KM methodologies, processes and tools to different target groups and contexts
Ability to effectively communicate about KM processes, products, approaches and findings to different of audiences
Ability to provide hands on support to the country to design, implement and evaluate effective KM approaches and tools including as part of country strategy development
 

Behaviour:

Promoting and supporting alignment between projects, country KM practices and Plan’s global KM frameworks;
Promotes and ensures adherence to ethical and child protection requirements with particular attention to the protection of personal data/information;
Supporting network of KM focal points to jointly learn from, develop and innovate in KM practice and methodologies
 

PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT:

The holder of the position will be based in a Garoua – Cameroon. She/he will dedicate 50% of her/his time to animating the project network and delivering on the project’s goals. Travel requirement to the communities is limited.

LEVEL OF CONTACT WITH CHILDREN:

Low level: The position will have sporadic contact with children at the occasion of field visits

Location: Garoua

Closing Date: 12th March 2023

Equality, diversity and inclusion is at the very heart of everything that Plan International stands for.

We want Plan International to reflect the diversity of the communities we work with, offering equal opportunities to everyone regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation.

Plan International is based on a culture of inclusivity and we strive to create a workplace environment that ensures every team, in every office, in every country, is rich in diverse people, thoughts, and ideas.

We foster an organisational culture that embraces our commitment to racial justice, gender equality, girls’ rights and inclusion.

Plan International believes that in a world where children face so many threats of harm, it is our duty to ensure that we, as an organisation, do everything we can to keep children safe. This means that we have particular responsibilities to children that we come into contact with and we must not contribute in any way to harming or placing children at risk.

A range of pre-employment checks will be undertaken in conformity with Plan International’s Safeguarding Children and Young People policy. Plan International also participates in the Inter Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. In line with this scheme we will request information from applicants previous employers about any findings of sexual exploitation, sexual abuse and/or sexual harassment during employment, or incidents under investigation when the applicant left employment. By submitting an application, the job applicant confirms their understanding of these recruitment procedures.

Please note that Plan International will never send unsolicited emails requesting payment from candidates.