Developmental Evaluator

Developmental Evaluator
USAID Democracy, Human Rights, and Governance (DRG): Learning, Evaluation and Research (LER) Activity III, Civic DEFENDERS Developmental Evaluation

Project Background

Under the USAID DRG LER III contract, the Civic DEFENDERS team in USAID/Washington will use this tasking to conduct a developmental evaluation of the Civic DEFENDERS global program to provide ongoing independent insights that inform adaptations and improvements to project performance and management. Civic DEFENDERS is a new $92.5 million global award that will support civil society, independent media, and human rights defenders in responding to digital repression.

The activity has four components: (1) improving the digital security of civic actors; (2) strengthening civil society policy advocacy for rights-respecting legal and policy frameworks on digital issues; (3) increasing access to the uncensored internet; and (4) providing holistic legal, psychosocial, and physical security support to civic actors experiencing digital repression. Civic DEFENDERS has an explicit focus on supporting local actors, as well as women, LGBTQI+ persons, religious and ethnic minorities, indigenous communities, and other marginalized groups that are disproportionately targeted with digital repression.

Countries of operation have not been identified yet and will be selected during the inception phase and on an ongoing basis through a consultative process with Missions, Regional Bureaus, the DRG Bureau, and the implementing consortium. The activity will likely maintain a mix of long-term, multi-year support to local actors and shorter-term interventions in response to emergent needs. The activity is intended to work on a demand-driven basis in any USAID context where digital repression of civic actors is particularly acute. Civic DEFENDERS is the follow-on to Greater Internet Freedom (GIF), which works in 40 countries and has a consortium of over 100 organizations, approximately 90% of which are local. Civic DEFENDERS is likely to have a more targeted approach but is likely to work in up to 20 countries at any given time.

Position Overview

The Civic DEFENDERS team is determined that a developmental evaluation-an approach to evaluation that supports the continuous adaptation of development programs-is the most suitable method for capturing and making sense of learning and evidence across the Civic DEFENDERS global operations. The evaluation will provide insights about how the initiative may be adapted in response to changing circumstances.

The developmental evaluator for Civic DEFENDERS will be embedded in the project and will meet, communicate, and coordinate with the implementing consortium on an ongoing basis. To help inform Civic DEFENDERS global learning needs, evaluator will travel to a select number of Civic DEFENDERS countries as a key part of their activities. Countries of travel will be selected based on consultations between the contractor, the implementing consortium, and USAID, and may be chosen to better understand promising practices or successes, identify and address causes of programmatic or managerial issues, assist the project in better engaging particular local and/or marginalized communities, or for other reasons to be determined.

Position Details

SI is seeking a Developmental Evaluator to lead this process. Working closely with the Civic DEFENDERS team, the Evaluator will facilitate and elicit learning around both programmatic and managerial approaches and issues that hinder and enable achievement of its objectives. The evaluator will lead and work with partners to frame the developmental evaluation questions and procedures, which will be created through co-creation efforts during the developmental evaluation launch. The Developmental Evaluator should have high levels of comfort communicating and collaborating in remote environments.

The developmental evaluation will take place over five years of the Civic DEFENDERS' planned programming. The tentative period of performance (POP) for this position is November 2024 through October 2029, and the expected level of effort (LOE) is part-time.

Responsibilities

The Developmental Evaluator will conduct a developmental evaluation of the Civic DEFENDERS' global operations (countries of operations TBD to provide timely insights about how the initiative should be adapted in response to changing circumstances.

1. Communications and Kick-off: The Evaluator will fully engage with the program, the prime recipient, and the project consortium during the 3-6 month inception period.
2. Implementation Plan: The Evaluator will lead the development of the Implementation plan, including planned timelines, deliverables, products, events, staffing, and budget. The implementation plan will be updated on an ongoing basis.
3. Developmental Evaluation: The Evaluator will lead the developmental evaluation remotely with the Civic DEFENDERS team in Washington, DC to elicit MEL input from each of its countries of operation (TBD).
4. Technical Products: The Evaluator will lead the development of technical products, to include memos, one-pagers, case studies, toolkits, dashboards and/or other products intended for dissemination and use by the implementing consortium and USAID in making programming and management adjustments during project implementation. The exact number, frequency, and type of documents will be determined by the contractor and USAID.
5. Presentations: The Evaluator will present at quarterly meetings, events, and/or workshops highlighting the developmental evaluation's work and findings for USAID and the implementing consortium.
6. Final Report: The Evaluator will lead the development of the final report (maximum 10 pages), including summary of work undertaken, deliverables, findings, dissemination, and usage of developmental evaluation products in program adaptations.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree and 7 years of relevant work experience OR a Master's degree and 5 years of relevant work experience OR a PhD and 3 years of relevant work experience
• Proven experience in monitoring and evaluation, leading and developing co-creation and utilization workshops, and global learning contexts
• Familiarity working on evaluations focused on democratic progress and resilience
• Knowledge of the threats to global democracy and democratic advances
• Experience in data and analysis
• Excellent oral and written communication skills
• Excellent organizational skills and ability to keep to a timeline in a remote environment
• Professional level English required

About Social Impact

Social Impact, Inc. (SI) 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 1996, we have worked in over 100 countries for clients such as US government agencies, bilateral donors, multilateral development banks, foundations, and nonprofits.

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 regardless of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, or protected veteran status.

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