Meal And Innovation Manager

Contract Duration: 11 months

ABOUT THE ROLE

Lindii Peace Foundation (LPF) is seeking an experienced, strategic, and results-oriented MEAL and Innovation Manager to lead the development, implementation, and continuous improvement of the organization's Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) systems and innovation agenda across its humanitarian and development programmes.

The MEAL and Innovation Manager will provide technical leadership in results measurement, programme monitoring, data management, accountability to affected populations, evaluation, organizational learning, and evidence-based decision-making. The role will ensure that programme performance is systematically measured, reported, and used to strengthen programme quality, demonstrate results, meet donor requirements, and inform strategic decisions.

The successful candidate will work closely with senior management, programme managers, project teams, field personnel, and relevant external stakeholders to ensure that MEAL systems are integrated throughout the programme cycle, from project design and planning to implementation, evaluation, reporting, and close-out. The Manager will also identify and promote innovative approaches, strengthen organizational learning, and support adaptive programming to improve effectiveness, efficiency, accountability, and impact.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

MEAL Strategy, Systems Development and Oversight

• Lead the development, implementation, and periodic review of LPF's organizational MEAL strategy, frameworks, procedures, and tools.
• Establish and maintain standardized MEAL systems that support consistent monitoring, reporting, evaluation, accountability, and learning across projects and operational locations.
• Provide technical guidance to programme teams in developing project-specific MEAL plans, results frameworks, logical frameworks, theories of change, indicator tracking tables, and performance measurement plans.
• Ensure that project indicators, baselines, targets, means of verification, and data collection methods are clearly defined, measurable, and aligned with approved project documents and donor requirements.
• Integrate MEAL considerations into programme design, proposal development, budgeting, implementation planning, review, and close-out processes.
• Develop and maintain MEAL standard operating procedures, data management protocols, reporting templates, and quality assurance mechanisms.
• Ensure that monitoring and evaluation systems are practical, proportionate to project requirements, and responsive to the operating context.
• Review the effectiveness of existing MEAL systems and recommend improvements to strengthen programme quality, organizational accountability, and results measurement.

Programme Monitoring and Performance Management

• Lead the development and implementation of monitoring plans to track programme activities, outputs, outcomes, targets, and overall performance.
• Establish mechanisms for routine monitoring of project implementation against approved workplans, indicators, budgets, deliverables, and reporting schedules.
• Coordinate periodic field monitoring visits, programme verification exercises, service-quality assessments, and post-distribution monitoring activities.
• Ensure that monitoring findings are documented, analysed, and communicated to relevant managers and programme teams in a timely manner.
• Identify implementation gaps, performance risks, emerging challenges, and deviations from approved targets, and recommend appropriate corrective actions.
• Maintain a systematic follow-up mechanism to ensure that recommendations from monitoring visits, assessments, evaluations, and programme reviews are implemented.
• Work with programme managers to promote the use of monitoring findings in operational planning, resource allocation, and programme adaptation.
• Provide management with regular performance updates, highlighting achievements, underperformance, risks, and areas requiring strategic attention.

Data Management, Analysis and Quality Assurance

• Lead the development and maintenance of reliable systems for collecting, storing, analysing, verifying, and reporting programme data.
• Establish and oversee data quality assurance procedures to ensure that reported information is accurate, complete, consistent, timely, and verifiable.
• Conduct or coordinate routine data quality assessments, data audits, spot checks, and verification exercises across projects and field locations.
• Oversee the development and use of databases, indicator tracking systems, dashboards, and digital data collection platforms to improve the availability and use of programme information.
• Promote the appropriate use of digital tools such as KoboToolbox, ODK, Power BI, and other relevant data management and visualization platforms.
• Analyse quantitative and qualitative data to identify trends, measure progress, assess programme effectiveness, and generate actionable insights.
• Ensure that programme data is disaggregated appropriately, including by sex, age, disability, location, and other relevant characteristics, where applicable and safe.
• Establish and enforce appropriate protocols for data protection, confidentiality, access control, retention, and responsible information sharing.
• Ensure that data management practices comply with organizational policies, donor requirements, and applicable data protection standards.

Accountability to Affected Populations

• Lead the development, implementation, and monitoring of effective community feedback, complaints, and response mechanisms across LPF programmes.
• Ensure that feedback and complaints channels are accessible, safe, confidential, inclusive, and appropriate to the needs of affected populations.
• Establish clear procedures for receiving, documenting, categorizing, referring, responding to, and closing feedback and complaints within agreed timelines.
• Ensure that sensitive complaints, including safeguarding concerns, sexual exploitation and abuse, harassment, fraud, and misconduct, are referred through appropriate confidential reporting channels.
• Analyse feedback trends to identify recurring concerns, service-delivery gaps, community priorities, and opportunities for programme improvement.
• Work with programme managers and relevant departments to ensure that community feedback informs programme design, implementation, adaptation, and review.
• Promote meaningful community participation throughout the programme cycle and support measures that strengthen transparency and responsiveness.
• Monitor the effectiveness of accountability mechanisms and recommend improvements based on community feedback, monitoring findings, and lessons learned.

Evaluation, Research and Evidence Generation

• Lead the planning and coordination of baseline studies, needs assessments, midterm reviews, endline assessments, impact evaluations, and other research activities as required.
• Develop or review evaluation terms of reference, methodologies, sampling approaches, data collection tools, analysis plans, and reporting frameworks.
• Coordinate internal evaluations and support the engagement and oversight of external consultants or evaluation teams where required.
• Ensure that evaluation processes are methodologically sound, ethical, inclusive, and aligned with relevant donor and organizational requirements.
• Review assessment and evaluation reports to ensure that findings, conclusions, and recommendations are supported by credible evidence.
• Promote the use of evaluation findings to assess programme relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, sustainability, and, where appropriate, impact.
• Support the development of evidence-based recommendations for programme improvement, future project design, and strategic planning.
• Ensure that evaluation findings and management responses are documented, communicated, and followed up appropriately.

Innovation, Adaptive Management and Programme Improvement

• Lead the development and implementation of an innovation agenda that encourages practical, evidence-based improvements across LPF programmes.
• Identify opportunities to improve programme delivery, operational efficiency, community engagement, data management, and service quality through innovative approaches.
• Work with programme teams to identify persistent implementation challenges and develop practical solutions informed by evidence and community needs.
• Support the design, testing, documentation, and evaluation of innovative tools, approaches, technologies, and programme models.
• Establish appropriate processes for assessing the feasibility, effectiveness, scalability, and sustainability of pilot initiatives and innovative practices.
• Promote adaptive management by ensuring that monitoring findings, evaluation evidence, community feedback, and lessons learned inform timely programme adjustments.
• Document successful innovations, implementation experiences, and good practices for organizational learning and potential replication.
• Encourage collaboration across programme teams to share ideas, test improvements, and institutionalize effective approaches.
• Ensure that innovation initiatives are consistent with humanitarian principles, safeguarding requirements, data protection standards, and the needs of affected populations.

Organizational Learning and Knowledge Management

• Develop and coordinate organizational learning processes that enable LPF to capture, analyse, document, and apply lessons from programme implementation.
• Facilitate periodic programme reflection sessions, after-action reviews, learning workshops, and management review meetings.
• Ensure that lessons learned, good practices, case studies, success stories, and programme evidence are systematically documented and accessible to relevant personnel.
• Establish and maintain appropriate knowledge management systems and repositories to support institutional memory and organizational improvement.
• Work with programme managers to translate learning findings into practical recommendations, revised implementation approaches, and improved programme procedures.
• Promote the dissemination of relevant learning products among staff, management, partners, donors, and other stakeholders, subject to confidentiality requirements.
• Support the development of evidence-based reports and knowledge products that demonstrate programme achievements, challenges, innovation, and impact.
• Monitor the implementation of agreed learning recommendations and assess whether they contribute to improved programme performance.

Donor Reporting and Compliance

• Provide technical leadership and quality assurance for the preparation of MEAL-related inputs to donor reports, project updates, proposals, and other reporting deliverables.
• Ensure that reported achievements are supported by verified data, appropriate evidence, and clearly documented means of verification.
• Review project performance reports to confirm consistency between reported results, approved indicators, implementation records, and donor commitments.
• Maintain an overview of MEAL reporting schedules, evaluation requirements, data submission deadlines, and other project-specific obligations.
• Work with programme and grants teams to ensure that MEAL requirements are incorporated into donor proposals, logical frameworks, budgets, and project implementation plans.
• Support donor monitoring visits, programme reviews, evaluations, and verification exercises.
• Identify potential reporting and compliance risks and advise relevant managers on corrective measures.
• Ensure that MEAL documentation is properly organized and readily available for internal reviews, donor verification, and audits.

Team Leadership and Capacity Development

• Provide technical leadership, supervision, coaching, and performance management for MEAL personnel, where applicable.
• Develop and implement capacity-building plans to strengthen staff competencies in monitoring, evaluation, accountability, learning, data management, and innovation.
• Conduct training and provide technical guidance to programme managers, project officers, field staff, and other relevant personnel on MEAL systems and tools.
• Build staff capacity in indicator tracking, data quality assurance, digital data collection, reporting, feedback management, and evidence-based decision-making.
• Promote a culture of accountability, collaboration, continuous learning, and responsible use of programme data.
• Support the development of clear roles, responsibilities, workplans, and performance expectations for MEAL personnel.
• Identify technical capacity gaps and recommend appropriate training, mentoring, and professional development interventions.

Coordination and Stakeholder Engagement

• Work closely with senior management and programme teams to ensure that MEAL findings inform organizational priorities, programme decisions, and resource allocation.
• Coordinate with relevant government departments, implementing partners, community structures, and other stakeholders on monitoring, assessment, and learning activities, as appropriate.
• Represent LPF in relevant MEAL, accountability, information management, research, and learning coordination forums when delegated.
• Promote the sharing of appropriate evidence, lessons learned, and good practices with partners and stakeholders, subject to organizational approval and confidentiality requirements.
• Maintain professional working relationships that support collaboration, accountability, and the effective implementation of MEAL activities.
• Perform other relevant duties assigned by the supervisor that are consistent with the objectives and responsibilities of the position.

KEY DELIVERABLES

• An operational organizational MEAL strategy and standardized MEAL tools, procedures, and reporting frameworks.
• Functional project-level MEAL plans, indicator tracking systems, and performance monitoring mechanisms.
• Regularly updated and quality-assured programme databases, dashboards, and performance reports.
• Documented monitoring visits, data quality assessments, verification exercises, and corrective-action follow-up.
• Functional community feedback and complaints mechanisms with documented referral and response processes.
• Timely and credible inputs to donor reports, proposals, evaluations, and programme reviews.
• Completed or coordinated baseline studies, needs assessments, evaluations, and other evidence-generation exercises as required.
• Documented lessons learned, learning products, good practices, and innovation initiatives.
• Evidence of programme adaptations and improvements informed by monitoring, evaluation, and community feedback.
• Improved staff capacity and consistent application of MEAL standards across relevant programme teams.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

Minimum Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Monitoring and Evaluation, Statistics, Economics, Social Sciences, Development Studies, Public Health, Information Management, Research, or a related field.
• At least 5 years of relevant professional experience in monitoring, evaluation, accountability, learning, programme quality, research, or information management, preferably in humanitarian or development settings.
• Demonstrated experience developing, implementing, or overseeing MEAL frameworks, systems, tools, and reporting processes.
• Proven experience in programme performance monitoring, indicator tracking, data analysis, data quality assurance, and results-based reporting.
• Experience coordinating assessments, evaluations, field monitoring, and other evidence-generation activities.
• Demonstrated understanding of accountability to affected populations and the design or oversight of community feedback and complaints mechanisms.
• Experience using digital data collection and analysis tools, databases, dashboards, and data visualization platforms.
• Strong report-writing, analytical, communication, coordination, and problem-solving skills.
• Demonstrated ability to work with multidisciplinary teams, manage competing priorities, and deliver quality outputs within deadlines.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office applications, particularly Excel, Word, and PowerPoint.

Desirable Qualifications and Experience

• A postgraduate degree in Monitoring and Evaluation, Development Studies, Public Health, Statistics, Research, or a related discipline.
• Professional training or certification in MEAL, project management, data analysis, accountability, research methods, or related areas.
• Experience working with local or international NGOs, UN agencies, or donor-funded humanitarian and development programmes.
• Experience working in emergency response or complex operational environments, particularly in Northeast Nigeria.
• Familiarity with donor compliance and reporting requirements and relevant humanitarian quality and accountability standards.
• Experience with KoboToolbox, ODK, Power BI, statistical analysis software, or other relevant digital MEAL platforms.
• Demonstrated experience supervising or mentoring MEAL personnel and building the capacity of programme teams.
• Experience designing, testing, or scaling innovative approaches to programme implementation, monitoring, learning, or community engagement.

CORE COMPETENCIES

• Strategic Leadership: Ability to develop and implement MEAL priorities that support organizational objectives and programme quality.
• Technical MEAL Expertise: Strong understanding of monitoring, evaluation, accountability, learning, research methods, and results measurement.
• Data Analysis and Quality Assurance: Ability to assess data reliability, interpret findings, and translate evidence into actionable recommendations.
• Innovation and Adaptive Management: Ability to promote practical solutions, test new approaches, and use evidence to improve programme implementation.
• Accountability and Integrity: Commitment to transparency, ethical practice, confidentiality, and responsiveness to affected populations.
• People Management and Capacity Development: Ability to guide teams, coach staff, and strengthen organizational MEAL capacity.
• Communication and Reporting: Ability to communicate complex findings clearly and prepare high-quality technical reports.
• Collaboration and Stakeholder Engagement: Ability to build productive relationships across teams and with relevant external stakeholders.
• Planning and Organization: Ability to manage multiple deliverables, establish priorities, and meet reporting deadlines.
• Learning and Continuous Improvement: Commitment to organizational learning, reflection, knowledge sharing, and evidence-based decision-making.

SAFEGUARDING, CODE OF CONDUCT AND ORGANIZATIONAL VALUES

Lindii Peace Foundation is committed to safeguarding children, adults at risk, programme participants, and staff from abuse, exploitation, harassment, and other forms of harm.

The successful candidate is expected to:

• Comply with LPF's Code of Conduct, safeguarding policies, Prevention of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA) requirements, and other applicable organizational policies.
• Maintain professional boundaries and treat colleagues, programme participants, and community members with dignity and respect.
• Protect the confidentiality of programme participants and ensure that personal and sensitive data are collected, stored, analysed, and shared responsibly.
• Report safeguarding concerns, suspected misconduct, fraud, exploitation, or abuse through established reporting channels.
• Promote inclusion, impartiality, accountability, transparency, and respect for diversity in all professional activities.
• Participate in mandatory safeguarding, Code of Conduct, and other organizational training.

APPLICATION PROCESS

Interested and qualified candidates should submit the following documents:

• An updated Curriculum Vitae (CV) outlining relevant qualifications, professional experience, leadership responsibilities, and achievements.
• A cover letter explaining their suitability for the position, including experience in MEAL leadership, programme quality, data management, accountability, learning, and innovation.