Ethiopia: Director, Performance Management Unit

Vacancy Announcement

ETHIOPIAN AGRICULTURAL TRANSFORMATION AGENCY

Position: Director, Performance Management Unit

Term of Employment: Fixed term with possible extension

Duty Station(s): Addis Ababa

Required Number: 1

Salary & Benefits: Competitive

Application Deadline: March 25, 2018

BACKGROUND:

The Agricultural Transformation Agency (ATA) has been established by the Government of Ethiopia (GoE) to identify and address systemic bottlenecks to Ethiopia’s agricultural development. The Agency does this through problem-solving, implementation support, and capacity building of stakeholders involved in implementation of interventions that address the systemic bottlenecks. The Agency reports to the Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources Development and is Secretary to the Transformation Council chaired by the Prime Minister.

Theprogrammatic *focus of the Agency responds to a core set of needs identified by the Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources Development and the Transformation Council. Within the Agency, issues are divided into four different pillars: Crops & Natural Resources which includes Inputs and Plant Protection, Soil Health & Fertility, Irrigation and Drainage, and Mechanization; Cross Cutting Initiatives, which includes Inclusive Growth, Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation, and Planning and MLE; Livestock, which includes Animal Health and Genetic Improvement and Feed & Feeding; and Agribusiness and Markets including Market Development, Rural Finance, ICT, and Private Sector. In addition, the Agricultural Commercialization ClustersInitiative is another critical focus area for the Agency. Across the programs, the ATA engages public, private and non-governmental stakeholders to support strategic planning, manage and strengthen implementation capacity and test innovative models.*

Our Culture

We have an exceptional team of highly competent employees with a proven track record of success in managing complex activities and achieving transformational results. Our culture is one where talented, dedicated and adaptable individuals are committed to doing their best and exhibit great team work to achieve excellent results.

At ATA, we provide an exceptional platform for people who want to achieve their highest potential and make ameaningfulcontribution in changing the country’s agricultural sector. We offer rewarding work in a young, fast-paced growing organization with passionate, committed, motivated colleagues and excellent career development and training. We recognize our most valuable assets are our staff and are committed to providing our employees with the tools, training and mentorships necessary to achieve their career goals.

POSITION SUMMARY:

The Director of the Performance Management Unit (PMU) will lead the PMU team to plan, evaluate and report on the performance of (1) the Agricultural Transformation Agenda, (2) the ATA’s organizational goals, and (3) individual ATA projects. The Director will work closely with senior management and leaders across the organization, in addition to a variety of high-profile stakeholders and partners. The Director will lead the PMU team to generate significant learning and insights to improve the design and operation of current and future interventions, both at the ATA and with our partners in the Transformation Agenda.

This position will report directly to the Senior Director of Strategic Services. The mission of the Strategic Services department is to improve the impact and effectiveness of the ATA’s and our partners’ work with smallholder farmers. Strategic Services also includes the Project Management Office, Communications, and the Delivery Unit at the Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources. The Director will also work closely with the Analytics and Partnerships teams. The Director will be a key thought partner to the Senior Director in refining the strategy for the Strategic Services department.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES:

• Lead the PMU team to achieve maximum impact through actionable, insightful and collaborative planning, reporting and evaluation
• Lead annual planning for Transformation Agenda deliverables with a range of government partners, and collaborate with the Senior Management Team and the Analytics team to plan the Transformation Agenda for GTP III and beyond
• Report on the progress of the Transformation Agenda on a quarterly basis to Parliament and the Transformation Council
• Coordinate planning of ATA’s organizational goals and targets and semi-annual reviews of the ATA’s progress against those goals
• Lead the PMU team to produce high-quality and timely baselines and evaluations of the ATA’s work with smallholder farmers, including partnering with a variety of consultants and research organizations
• Synthesize and communicate learnings from evaluations and progress reviews to ensure continuous improvement of policy development, project planning and implementation, both with the ATA and with our partners
• Act as a thought partner to help project teams develop meaningful results frameworks and monitoring & evaluation plans
• Develop a monitoring system for ATA projects to ensure accountability, accuracy of reporting and quick learnings
• Over time, move beyond backward-looking reporting to develop forward looking assessments of the likely results of Transformation Agenda deliverables
• Proactively coach and develop a team of 7 staff and several contractors
• Regular seek feedback on and improve processes and standards for planning, reporting and evaluations

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Master’s degree in economics, international development, Project management, Monitoring and Evaluation, business, statistics or other relevant field required.
• At least 10 years’ relevant professional experience in M&E or performance management, with at least 5 years of experience leading teams in this work, preferably at an international organization
• Agricultural development experience strongly preferred
• Critical thinker that pursues insight relentlessly – you come alive figuring out what happened, why did it happen, what might happen and how should we change going forward
• Clear, concise and structured written and oral communication – you are able to distill large amounts of information into what is most important for the audience and the situation
• Demonstrated ability to build relationships and influence people without authority – you get things done even when people don’t report to you and have different priorities
• Collaborative, flexible and results-oriented problem solver – you can learn from anyone and value what works over what is supposed to happen
• Passion for sharing learnings and coaching and developing others to maximize their potential
• Strong set of personal values including integrity, honesty and desire to be of service
• Fluency in English and Amharic required

APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS

We invite all candidates meeting the required qualifications to submit (i) a cover letter, (ii) CV (maximum 5 pages), and (iii) a completed ATA Application Form athttp://apply.ata.gov.et

Please note that CVs, cover letter and other application materials WILL NOT be considered unless accompanied by a fully completed ATA Application Form. Also, please DO NOT submit scans of certificates with your application form.

Womenare highly encouraged to apply.

NB. Only short listed candidates will be contacted.