Organization: US Agency for International Development
Country: United States of America
Closing date: 09 Jun 2015
The OTI Senior Program Performance Management Specialist is a full time Personal Services Contract (PSC) position at the GS-14 equivalent level and located in Washington, DC. Applications for this position are due no later that June 9, 2015 at 5:00pm Eastern Time. For the full information about this position, as well as instructions on how to apply, please read the entire solicitation at www.otijobs.net
INTRODUCTION
As a member of the OTI Applied Best Practices and Coordination (ABC) Team, the Senior Program Performance Management Specialist position utilizes the experience and skills gained from working with political transition, stabilization, and conflict mitigation programs, to provide support and guidance for country program staff to help ensure the successful implementation of OTI program activities in the field, and will directly supervise the Monitoring and Evaluation Specialists.
OTI’s success now and in the future depends in large part on its ability to achieve an overarching organizational goal: the effective transfer and ongoing analysis of knowledge and experience – comprised of values, management processes, lessons learned, best practices, standards, and innovations – in real time, with a variety of stakeholders. These stakeholders include: OTI staff in the field and headquarters; OTI’s implementing partners around the world; USAID Missions overseas; other USAID offices and bureaus in Washington; other U.S. Government agencies and branches; other donors; other transition, stabilization and reconstruction practitioners; host government and/or other local counterparts; and the U.S. public. All of the above increases OTI’s level of transparency and accountability.
To this end, the OTI ABC Team supports a model of organizational learning across the office that ensures:
- Increased transparency and accountability between the headquarters and field teams;
- Increased opportunities for peer-to-peer dialogue;
- Easier access to content and learning resources for a variety of stakeholders;
- More guidance available in online format;
- Provision of tools to surface and apply OTI’s programming lessons to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of OTI programs.
The Senior Program Performance Management Specialist supports OTI’s mission to provide fast, flexible, short-term assistance targeted at key political transition and stabilization needs by building the knowledge, skills and abilities of OTI staff to continually improve country program performance. The Senior Program Performance Management Specialist does this by: designing and providing innovative solutions that are adapted to OTI’s fast-paced global needs; developing and facilitating learning and training events; and providing support services ranging from procurement to linkages with private sector partners. ABC supports learning and innovation through the application of technology – including OTI’s knowledge management platform, mapping, data visualization, and other analytic tools – to continually improve OTI country program analysis, management and performance. ABC will ensure the effective integration of lessons and knowledge into OTI’s learning and training resources. ABC coordinates closely with other units, teams, and divisions within OTI to achieve these goals.
DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
The work of the Senior Program Performance Management Specialist requires teamwork, the exercise of discretion, judgment, and personal responsibility. As a member of a highly operational office, the incumbent is willing and able to perform a wide range of administrative functions to help ensure programmatic success. The incumbent has a high level of integrity and attention to detail to ensure the use of OTI systems and procedures to maintain effective and efficient management of funds, programming, and monitoring and evaluation. The incumbent is highly flexible and willing to work under conditions of ongoing change, and remains professional and respectful of colleagues and authority in a diverse workforce. She or he places a premium on the building of positive relationships with his or her respective team both in the field and in Washington, and with key stakeholders both in and outside of USAID. The incumbent is able to prioritize and complete tasks without follow-up by the supervisor, while also filling in gaps as needed to ensure the responsiveness of the team. The Senior Program Performance Management Specialist is a strategic thinker, articulates innovative ideas, presents solutions, and is a positive role model for colleagues both in and outside of OTI.
Under the direct supervision of the DCHA/OTI Applied Best Practices and Coordination (ABC) Team Leader or his/her designee, the Senior Program Performance Management Specialist will perform the following duties:
At the GS-14 level:
· Fill critical needs for program guidance, management and implementation staffing in Washington, DC and the field including providing support to new OTI country program start-ups, country program management and close-out;
· Advise on a range of program performance management processes designed to integrate learning into strategic planning and program implementation on an ongoing basis;
· Provide technical assistance based on research and personal field experience to enable OTI country programs to develop cutting-edge program monitoring and evaluation systems, and continually refine and improve them;
· Provide on-call technical assistance regarding ongoing monitoring and evaluation of OTI programs at all phases of the program life cycle;
· Exercise independent judgment to determine best practices for programs and, in collaboration with senior leadership, provide advice on implementing new programmatic policies incorporating those best practices;
· Provide training, and/or mentoring for OTI program staff and implementing partner staff on a variety of issues (e.g. OTI activity database reporting and use, activity cycles, methodologies and innovations) relevant to the field of monitoring and evaluation in complex environments;
· Develop improved business practices and information management products for program performance management, monitoring and evaluation;
· Foster real-time exchange of information about monitoring and evaluation across OTI programs worldwide and among Washington colleagues, including high-level government officials and private sector leaders;
· When required, serve as a liaison with other DCHA offices, other USAID divisions and other USG and non-governmental entities on monitoring and evaluation processes;
· When required, represent and articulate OTI’s mission and global programs to development counterparts, including visitors, senior officials, donors and foreign government officials;
· Conceptualize, update and revise guides, and manuals related to action learning, monitoring and evaluation, and program performance management processes;
· When necessary, advise or lead country teams in refining strategic objectives;
· Report to the Chief of the Program, Learning and Innovation or his/her designee;
· As needed, serve on short-term assignments with other USAID offices or bureaus in direct support of OTI programs. These placements shall not exceed three months;
· Provide other services as required to fulfill OTI’s program objectives as assigned by supervisor.
EDUCATION/EXPERIENCE REQUIRED FOR THIS POSITION
(Determines basic eligibility for the position. Applicants who do not meet all of the education and experience factors are considered NOT qualified for the position. See detailed instructions for demonstrating Education/Experience under "Applying")
At a minimum, the applicant must have:
(1) Master’s degree with seven (7) years of work experience;
OR
Bachelor’s degree with nine (9) years of work experience;
AND
(2) Five (5) years of project management experience with a U.S. Government foreign affairs agency, international assistance organization, or non-governmental organization in community development, economic development, mediation/arbitration, conflict resolution, democracy and governance, international law, human rights activities, and/or political analysis;
(3) Four (4) yearsof overseas field experience working in a developing country, of which two (2) years must include experience working in one or more countries undergoing political transition;
(4) Four (4) yearsof supervisory experience, including mentoring, guiding or training staff.
How to apply:
For full information about this position, as well as instructions on how to apply, please visit www.otijobs.net
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