CLA Advisor, USAID/West Africa, CLAMP

Collaborating, Learning, & Adapting (CLA) Advisor, Collaborating, Learning, Adapting, & Monitoring (CLAMP) Activity, USAID/West Africa, Onsite, Accra, Ghana

Social Impact is a global development management consulting firm. We provide monitoring, evaluation, strategic planning, and capacity building services to advance development effectiveness. We work across all development sectors including democracy and governance, health and education, the environment, and economic growth. Since 1997 we have worked in over 100 countries for clients such as US government agencies, bilateral donors, multilateral development banks, foundations, and nonprofits.

Background:
USAID/West Africa’s Regional Economic Growth Office (REGO) teams carry out Mission programs in support of broad-based and inclusive economic growth in agriculture, trade and investment, environment, and energy. This mandate extends to activities in support of food security, trade facilitation, investment promotion, energy security, climate change and natural resources management. With a geographic focus in 20 countries, REGO also supports core regional organizations focused on economic growth, environment, and agriculture to increase their capacity to fully carry out their individual mandates. The REGO consists of four (4) teams; Agriculture, Environment, Trade, and Energy/Power.

The geographic focus of this activity will directly correspond with USAID/West Africa’s Economic Growth activities. Currently, these activities are being implemented primarily in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde, Côte d’Ivoire, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo. Additional countries that could be added to this activity in the future include Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, and Mauritania.

Purpose:
The purpose of this activity is to advance economic growth through evidence-based monitoring, collaborating, learning and adapting. Specifically, this will be accomplished by providing technical assistance and helping build the capacity of staff, implementing partners, and regional/local stakeholders (e.g., ECOWAS, CILSS, CORAF etc) of the Regional Economic Growth Office (REGO) of USAID/West Africa to increase collaboration and share knowledge across activities and projects, and/or enhance existing Collaboration, Learning, and Adapting (CLA) capacities by providing USAID’s knowledge management resources and expertise.

Position Description:
SI is seeking a Collaborating, Learning, &Adapting (CLA) Advisor to serve as the leader and point person for all CLAMP CLA tasks. In addition to providing leadership, oversight, and guidance to the CLA Specialist, the CLA Advisor will provide technical support to CLAMP in the conception, design, development, and implementation of CLA related tasks including facilitation of learning events. The CLA Advisor will also support REGO’s implementing partners in developing and implementing appropriate CLA tools.

The expected period of performance for this activity is four years. This is a full-time position stationed in Accra, Ghana.

Please submit your CV in English for best consideration of your candidacy. CVs must not exceed a maximum of 10 pages.

Responsibilities:

• Lead learning, knowledge management, and adaptive programming activities under the CLAMP Activity.
• Facilitate strong CLA management practices in USAID West Africa/REGO processes and throughout the program cycle.
• Serve as a convener for dialogue and learning around emerging issues. Assist in identifying and responding to key learning issues, and coordinate efforts amongst implementing partners (IPs) working toward common intermediate results (IRs).
• Develop and implement a learning plan for REGO’s IPs that outlines key learning questions, stakeholders and their roles, and broad stakeholder engagement at multiple levels.
• Support strategic communications, including producing publications and organizing public events with partners and other stakeholders.
• Conduct business process re-engineering, including assisting in negotiating change management around monitoring, evaluation, and learning related issues.
• Lead facilitation, including facilitating processes and workshops.
• Facilitating learning, collaboration, and coordination among implementing partners and other collaborators with the greatest impact on results
• Produce reflections on the implications of new learning.
• Develop product plans for adapting programs.
• Establish a network of key stakeholders and organize periodic, appropriate opportunities for USAID to interact with them based on strategy implementation and evidence-based experience.

Qualifications:

• Master’s degree in a field related to development assistance or organizational learning such as economics or development studies, public, business, or development administration; knowledge management.
• Minimum of eight years of demonstrated experience in strategic planning; monitoring and evaluation; project design; facilitation of learning; and knowledge management, including experience in applying learning to improve international development programs and systems change for adaptive management of development organizations or agencies.
• Experience working with USAID Missions or USAID-funded activities on CLA, and/or knowledge management.
• Prior experience Supporting USAID CLA efforts in one or more of the outlined countries included in this activity.
• Demonstrable knowledge of and experience applying USAID’s CLA framework, or a similar organizational learning theories and approaches
• Demonstrated ability to effectively interact with local professionals, international donor organizations, civil society and private sector, host country government counterparts, and other implementing partners.
• Significant experience leading knowledge management, and adaptive programming activities.
• Ability to facilitate strong CLA management practices in IP processes and throughout complete programmatic cycles.
• Sectorial experience with Economic Growth, Agriculture, Environment, Trade, and or Energy/Power preferred.
• Professional Proficiency in English and French.
• Excellent writing skills in English.
• A commitment to valuing diversity and contributing to an inclusive work and learning environment.

Come join our energetic and innovative team! We offer you the opportunity to play a leading role in the growth of our company, work as part of a creative and committed team, and make a difference in the well-being of our world.

To learn more about Social Impact, please visit our website: http://www.socialimpact.com.

SI is an EEO/AA/ADA Veterans Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability or protected veteran status.

Only selected candidates will be contacted for an interview. Please, no phone calls.