Research, Monitoring, and Evaluation Officer

Room to Read seeks to transform the lives of millions of children in developing countries by focusing on literacy and gender equality in education. Working in collaboration with local communities, partner organizations and governments, we develop literacy skills and a habit of reading among primary school children, and support girls to complete secondary school with the relevant life skills to succeed in school and beyond.

We are non-governmental, non-religious and work with many local NGOs and community based organizations to implement our programs. We currently work in Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Laos, Nepal, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Vietnam, and Zambia – countries with a desperate lack of resources to educate their children. Since our inception, Room to Read’s worldwide team has impacted over 7 million children by constructing more than 1,600 schools, establishing over 15,000 libraries, publishing 800 new children’s book titles in 11 local languages, and rewarding over 20,000 girls with long-term, holistic scholarships.

Room to Read has an annual budget of approximately US$43.7 million and our global staff numbers over 500. Our global headquarters is located in San Francisco, and we have smaller fundraising offices in Delhi, New York, Hong Kong, London, Mumbai, Sydney, and Tokyo. We have an Asia Regional Office located in New Delhi and program offices in Colombo, Dar es Salaam, Dhaka, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Kathmandu, Lusaka, New Delhi, Pretoria, Phnom Penh, and Vientiane. 

Position Overview:

The Research, Monitoring and Evaluation (RM&E) Officer is a part of Room to Read’s RM&E Team at the Global Office (GO). The RM&E Team is responsible for designing and implementing the RM&E strategy for the organization. It provides technical support for local in-country teams engaged in the ongoing monitoring of program activities as well as technical support for periodic evaluations and research activities that assess the results of these program activities. The Global RM&E Team collaborates with the Regional Offices (ROs) in providing this technical support, with the ROs generally taking the lead in providing assistance in monitoring, and the GO generally taking the lead in providing assistance in evaluation and research.

The RM&E Officer’s primary responsibilities will include providing support and assistance to the Global RM&E Team in San Francisco as well as to the local in-country teams, with a primary focus on global monitoring activities, and a secondary focus on managing cross-national and in-country research. The position will report directly to the Global Director of Research, Monitoring and Evaluation and will be based in San Francisco, CA.

The duties and responsibilities listed below are all carried out in collaboration with GO, RO, and country-level program and RM&E staff.

Duties & Responsibilities:

Monitoring:

• Collaborate with the Global RM&E Director to support global monitoring activities in-country and at the GO, with a focus on Global Indicators (GIs)
• Take the lead in producing the annual internal and external Global Monitoring Reports
• Take the lead in communications with Country Offices with respect to GI development, data collection, and data quality checking, including training in-country RM&E teams on GI data quality checking

Research & Evaluation:

• Develop concept papers and Requests for Proposals for research and evaluation projects
• Select external contractors to conduct research and evaluations
• Provide leadership in research and evaluation design, and the development of survey instruments, training methods and materials for enumerators and data entry personnel, working closely with external contractors
• Oversee data collection and analysis, periodic reports on evaluation progress, and results reports
• Manage communications with external contractors and Room to Read  in-country program teams
• Manage budgets for internal and external research and evaluations

Other:

• Assist with planning and coordinating conferences and trainings for the in-country RM&E Officers and Program staff, which includes developing training materials and workshops
• Provide information for foundation, corporate and individual reporting requirements
• Help maintain and update the projects database (an online repository of project-level information)
• Other duties as necessary

Qualifications:

Required:

• Master’s Degree in a related field (such as education, international development, statistics, or other subject concerned with Room to Read’s vision and mission)
• A minimum of 5 years of related professional experience
• Experience and/or technical competence in several (or all) of the following areas: 

    research, monitoring and evaluation

    successful implementation of, and results in a wide range of tasks

    managing research projects

    managing consultants, preferably in an international setting

    international education

    student assessments

    working closely and building relationships with diverse groups of people

• Strong quantitative and qualitative analytical skills, including experience using software packages such as SPSS and Stata
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English
• Ability and desire to travel internationally frequently (25% to 50% per year)
• Legally eligible to work in the United States; no sponsorship provided

Preferred:

• Effectiveness  in working or volunteering in a nonprofit organization that is focused on maintaining high-quality work and low overhead
• Prior experience in a fast-paced, growth-oriented global or regional organization
• Proven track record of juggling multiple priorities simultaneously and taking initiative
• Prior experience living and/or working in a developing country setting

To be successful as a member of the Room to Read team, you will also:

• Have a passion for our mission and a strong desire to impact a dynamic nonprofit organization
• Be an innovative and creative thinker; you’re not afraid to try something new and inspire others to do so
• Have a very high level of personal and professional integrity and trustworthiness
• Have a strong work ethic and require minimal direction
• Work well independently as well as part of a team
• Thrive in a fast-paced and fun environment

Compensation:

Room to Read offers a competitive salary with excellent benefits. Benefits include health, dental, vision, long-term disability insurance, life insurance, commuter benefits and a 401K match. The non-monetary compensation includes a unique opportunity to be part of an innovative, meaningful, fun, and rapidly growing organization that is changing transforming the lives of millions of children in developing countries by focusing on literacy and gender equality in education.

Application Procedure:

Please send a cover letter and CV by email, with "RME Officer” in the subject line, (no letters, calls, faxes, or drop-ins) to hiring@roomtoread.org. While every application will be carefully reviewed, we are not able to send personalized responses to all applicants due to high applicant volume. Applications are accepted until the position is filled.

Room to Read is an equal opportunity employer committed to identifying and developing
the skills and leadership of people from diverse backgrounds.