United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland: Start Network Evaluation Advisor

About the Start Network

The Start Network is a consortium of 24 leading NGOs working together to connect people in crisis to the best possible response. In order to meet the needs of crisis-affected people in a future of great uncertainty and complexity, we believe that the humanitarian sector must change. We promote a way of working that enables international and local humanitarian actors to coexist. We envision a self-organising system where the agencies best placed to respond to a crisis are empowered to do so. To realise this vision, we are working to catalyse a humanitarian sector that is more diverse, decentralised and collaborative.

The consortium works in three principal areas 1) Start Fund (financing for emergency response); 2) Start Build (strengthening civil society capacity); and 3) Start Beta (creating platforms for partnerships and learning). Innovative financing mechanisms and anticipatory crises response tools are also being developed.

The network extends to nearly 7,000 partner agencies, comprised of over a quarter of a million staff working in 200 countries and territories. The Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Team is presently hosted by Action Against Hunger UK.

About the role

The monitoring evaluation and learning function has grown to require dedicated expertise in evaluation management. Currently, the team services the Network on nearly £80 million of programming over three years in four main programmes implemented through the Network: the Start Fund, the Disasters and Emergencies Preparedness Programme (DEPP), the West Africa and Ebola Preparedness Programme and the Cameroon refugee response.

This role is based within the Start Network MEL Team hosted by ACF-UK and report to the head of the team. The role will also link closely with other members of the MEL team, ACF-UK’s Evaluation, Learning and Accountability (ELA) Unit and the central Start Team to design and manage appropriate evaluation approaches that emphasize: (1) evaluation management according to international standards, (2) learning and adaptive management and (3) evaluation approach that is tailor made to the network.

To do this, the Start Network Evaluation Advisor will manage the independent evaluation components for each stream of work, which include:

• Impact and performance evaluation: Three-year evaluation partnership of the DEPP (50%)

• Performance and process evaluations: Independent evaluations of the Start Fund (20%)

• Performance and process evaluations: Independent evaluations of the West Africa Ebola Preparedness and Cameroon CAR programmes and real-time evaluations (20%)

• Other as required (10%)

The role will require both traditional evaluation management, coordination expertise and significant ability to innovate and build partnerships within a consortium context to ensure a participatory, inter-agency process from beginning to end. The successful candidate will have significant expertise in international quality standards and good practice approaches for: (1) evaluation management, (2) network-level learning from evaluations and (3) evaluation approach.

The Start Network endeavors to provide a new global public good to the humanitarian sector to transform emergency response and preparedness. The Start Network Evaluation Advisor within the MEL team will contribute to the evidence base and learning that will enable this radical change to happen.

For further information on the role, please visit our website to download the job description.

Closing date: 18th October 2015, only candidates with the right to work in the UK may apply.

Unfortunately due to the number of applications we receive we are only able to contact shortlisted applicants. Thank you for understanding.