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Manager - MELS

  • Company

    Heifer International

  • Location

    Noida(Uttar Pradesh)

  • Employment Type

    Full-Time

  • Functional Category

    Monitoring, Evaluation & Learning

  • Experience

    7 - 8 years

About Heifer International

In 1944, Heifer International’s founder, Dan West, began outlining a simple but groundbreaking plan to tackle hunger around the world. West, a farmer from the Midwest and Church of the Brethren member, had recently returned from feeding weary refugees during volunteer service in the Spanish Civil War. He had seen firsthand that giving people food was a short-term solution, whereas providing them with animals offered a steady supply of nutritious food for an entire family. His philosophy still inspires Heifer’s work today. Partnering with farmers across a range of different livestock and crops, we create unique solutions to local challenges. Today, Heifer International has operations in 19 countries around the world, working alongside local farmers, business owners and their communities, as they mobilize and envision their futures. Together, we build inclusive, resilient economies, so communities can develop effective ways to end global hunger and poverty in a sustainable way. To date, we have supported more than 52 million farming families across Africa, Asia and the Americas and in the past five years alone, we have worked alongside 2.7 million families to close the living income gap or set them on a path to doing so. Between now and 2030, we will support an additional 10 million people to reach a living income by scaling up our signature programs. To achieve this, Heifer International relies on its passionate, committed and highly skilled staff.

Overview of the Role

The Manager – MELS will lead the operationalization and strengthening of MELS systems across PGPL’s projects and portfolios. Bridging between the Associate Director – MELS & Program Quality and the MELS Officer/Sr. MELS Officer, the position plays a pivotal role in: Ensuring high-quality MEL planning and execution, Leading project-level evaluations and outcome monitoring, Driving data quality, analytics, and reporting, and Ensuring learning integration across projects and partners. The Manager – MELS will directly supervise the MELS Officer/Sr. MELS Officer and ensure alignment of their work with project and organizational MEL frameworks. The role bridges strategic direction from the Associate Director with operational execution at the field and project levels.

Job Description

Strengthen Monitoring, Evaluation, Learning, and System (MELS) at Organization Level (30%)
• Lead the development and periodic revision of MEL Plans for all projects, ensuring alignment with the organization’s program model.
• Guide and support the MELS Officer/Sr. MELS Officer in executing project-level MEL tasks, ensuring alignment with organizational standards.
• Ensure effective rollout and management of Project Management Information System (PMIS).
• Standardize MEL tools, SOPs, quality assurance protocols, and reporting templates across all projects.
• Coordinate quarterly and annual data reviews, ensuring data integrity and consistency across all programs.
• Support digital transformation initiatives in MEL—including automation, dashboards, Power BI, and AI-enabled quality checks.
• Ensure integration of standard indicators, harmonized PIRS definitions, and alignment with Heifer’s MELS standards.

Project Level MEL Execution and Quality Assurance (30%)
• Lead implementation of baselines, midline, endline surveys, outcome monitoring, and special studies across projects.
• Prepare and review ToRs for external evaluators; supervise consultants and research partners.
• Review data sets, conduct data cleaning, and ensure analysis is accurate and ready for reporting.
• Oversee routine Data Quality Assessments (DQAs) at partner and field levels.
• Ensure real-time tracking of log-frame and IPTT indicator progress for all projects.
• Support adaptive management through technical advisories and evidence-based recommendations.

Data Analytics, Reporting, and Knowledge Management (15%)
• Lead consolidation and analysis of program data for monthly, quarterly, and donor reporting.
• Lead data validation, triangulation, and synthesis before reports are shared with external stakeholders.
• Develop dashboards, analytical briefs, and presentations for leadership and stakeholders.
• Develop periodic program performance briefs for decision-making.
• Support the Associate Director in generating evidence for proposal development, resource mobilization, and program design.
• Document and disseminate learning products, case studies, and program insights.
• Organize learning events and cross-project knowledge exchange sessions.

Capacity Building (15%)
• Provide direct supervision, mentoring, and performance oversight to the MELS Officer/Sr. MELS Officer to ensure consistent quality of MEL implementation across projects.
• Build capacities of program teams, partner NGOs, enumerators, and field staff on MEL tools, data systems, and analytical methods.
• Support onboarding of new project staff on MELS guidelines, systems, and digital tools.
• Lead training on SurveyCTO, data quality protocols, ODK, dashboards, and evaluation methodologies.
• Support in building a culture of evidence-driven decision-making within the program team.

Sub Award Design, Program Quality, and Donor Compliance (5%)
• Support development of MEL budgets, theory of change, logical framework, PIRS, and evaluation frameworks for new proposals.
• Contribute to donor reporting, especially sections related to outputs, outcomes, and impact.
• Track sub-award performance (physical and financial) and provide MEL-related guidance to sub awardees.
May perform other job-related duties as assigned (5%)

Required & Preferred Qualifications

Skill

• Proven ability to validate, analyze, and synthesize complex data for decision-making.
• Experience developing MEL components for proposals (log frames, ToC, indicators, PIRS, MEL budgets, evaluation costing).
• Experience coordinating with external evaluators, research agencies, and managing evaluation contracts.
• Strong analytical skills with experience in quantitative and qualitative methods.
• Proficiency in at least one statistical or analytical software (SPSS, STATA, R, or equivalent).
• Advanced Excel and Power BI skills for dashboards and performance tracking.
• Strong understanding of MEL planning, logframe/results framework, IPTT, and data quality standards.
• Ability to interpret data and generate actionable insights aligned with program strategies.
• Ability to lead technical teams and coordinate MEL execution across multiple projects.
• Sound understanding of integrated development issues and critical analysis of the root causes of poverty in India.
• Knowledge of development issues, trends, challenges and opportunities and implications to community development.

Education

Master’s degree in development studies, Economics, Statistics, Agriculture, Public Policy, Management, or other relevant fields. Advanced training in MEL, research methods, or data analytics is preferred."

Experience

More than 7 years of program management experience, including at least 4 years in managerial role leading agricultural/livelihood projects At least 3–4 years leading MEL functions at project or portfolio level, including evaluation design, sampling, data management, and analysis Demonstrated experience managing or quality assuring baselines, midlines, endlines, and outcome monitoring. Strong experience in digital MEL systems, including ODK/SurveyCTO, PMIS, and data visualization platforms.