About the Program

Investing in Women: Women in Inclusive Sustainable Economic Recovery (IW) is a multi-country Australian Government initiative in Southeast Asia that seeks to accelerate women’s economic empowerment through increased and equitable opportunities in the private sector, contributing to inclusive, sustainable economic recovery and growth in targeted countries. Our objective is to support women to thrive in the workplace and succeed in business.

IW continues the ambitious agenda of advancing women’s economic empowerment through:

• Workplace Gender Equality (Workstream 1) – We support Business Coalitions that work with influential businesses on shifting workplace cultures, practices, and policy barriers to achieve workplace gender equality, with member companies together employing more than one million people;
• Enabling Policy Reforms (Workstream 2) – We support locally identified reform agendas that promote women’s workforce participation, generate support for the business case for WGE, and build the case for the value and importance of the care economy to business, the economy and women’s economic empowerment;
• Campaigns and Communities of Practice (Workstream 3) – We support locally driven campaigns in Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam that highlight positive examples of gender equality to strengthen public support for women’s economic participation. Through fostering a community of gender equality advocates, IW will continuously build evidence that supports the broader adoption of progressive attitudes and behaviours; and
• Gender Lens Investing (Workstream 4) – We work to increase investment in Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) that disproportionately benefit women in Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam. We do so by increasing capital providers’ demand for Gender Lens Investing strategies and products, catalysing the supply of financial instruments available to small businesses owned or led by women, and investing in the growth of SMEs that support women through a ‘fund of funds’ strategy.

In collaboration with corporations and business leaders, policymakers and implementers, capital providers, entrepreneurs, and advocates, we are working with those who are driving change for women's economic equality in our region. More information about Investing in Women can be found on the website: www.investinginwomen.asia

About the Opportunity

The Senior MERL Advisor will play a critical role in designing, managing, and reporting on Monitoring, Evaluation, Research, and Learning (MERL) activities for the IW program. This individual will lead technical work in key areas such as Workplace Gender Equality, Policy and Reform, and Gender Lens Investing, while collaborating closely with teams and partners to track progress and ensure meaningful insights through data collection and analysis.

Reporting to the MERL Director, the Senior MERL Adviser will be responsible for the following:

• Support the Program in implementing, monitoring and reporting against program activities, tracking results and lead outcome evaluation activities for one (or more) workstream;
• Design and implement quantitative and qualitative data collection (surveys, interviews, focus groups, case studies), analysis, research and reporting for review of workstream progress against the Theory of Change;
• Work with IW workstream team(s) and counterparts within partner organisations (where appropriate) to:
  • gather, interpret and analyse primary quantitative data collected through their operations
  • provide advice on their development and implementation of program tracking, monitoring and evaluation systems
  • provide MERL capacity building support to workstream partners as requested by workstream teams, including support for workstream learning activities;
• Support the MERL Director to recruit and manage short term advisers carrying out MERL activities, research or analysis
• Liaise and meet regularly with IW workstream team members and relevant IW partners to ensure the MERL team is up to date on program activities and challenges.
• Provide written and verbal reporting of MERL findings to key IW staff and stakeholders, including through powerpoint presentations and infographics.
• Together with the Workstream Director, lead workstream learning agendas, including through internal consultations and learning events, partner engagement, analysis of available evidence, and dissemination of learning products for internal and external audiences.
• Support periodic review and update of the IW Theory of Change and MERL system.

Track progress against workplans ensuring efficient, effective and timely delivery, and report these to the Director, identifying any potential risks and areas requiring further support. Oversee and support the inputs and tasks of MERL Analysts related to the relevant workstream(s).

Employment type and location: Project-based role based in Canberra, Australia. Other locations in Australia will be considered.

Duration: Up to 30 June 2027; anticipated to commence in December 2024.

About You

We are seeking a skilled MERL professional with a strong background in quantitative and qualitative data analysis, research, and reporting. The ideal candidate will have experience in gender equality programming, along with the ability to communicate findings clearly to diverse stakeholders. A flexible, collaborative individual, they will be passionate about driving learning and improvement in program outcomes.

Key Selection Criteria

For your application to be considered by the Panel, interested applicants must submit a response to each of the following Key Selection Criteria (KSC):

• KSC 1: Tertiary qualifications (or equivalent experience) in social sciences, preferably with a focus on quantitative and qualitative MEL, data collection/research and analysis of data. Experience with gender equality programming highly regarded.
• KSC 2: Ability to present findings clearly and concisely (in writing and verbally) and to target communication to meet the needs of different stakeholder groups and end-users of information.
• KSC 3: Experience engaging with senior counterparts and stakeholders to coordinate and execute evaluation activities, disseminate findings and build knowledge capacity.
• KSC 4: Highly competent in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, with competency in other software such as PowerBI, SPSS and Strata also desirable.
• KSC 5: Flexible and a team player, experienced in working effectively with a range of stakeholders. Experience with private sector stakeholders highly desirable.

Don’t meet every single requirement? Studies have shown that women and people of colour are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single requirement for a position. At Abt Global we are dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive and authentic workplace, so if you are excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every role requirement, we encourage you to apply in any case. You may be just the right candidate for this or for other roles.

How to Apply

We are an equal opportunity employer and encourage applications from experienced and capable women.

Please click "Apply Now" and submit your application online. Upload your cover letter, CV and response to the KSCs. Submit your CV and KSC response as a single Word or PDF document, and address how you meet the requirements of this role. We are unable to proceed with an application without the KSC statements.

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About Us

Abt Global is a mission-driven, global leader with a proven track record in complex program implementation in the international development sector. We offer bold solutions and technical excellence in Health, Economic Growth, Governance, Research & Evaluation, Environment & Energy, Gender Equality & Social Inclusion. Working with our many partners, we have driven measurable social impact for more than 55 years, to achieve our mission of improving the quality of life and economic well-being of people worldwide. We operate in remote and challenging environments and employ more than 3,700 staff in over 50 countries. For more information about us and what we do, visit our website at https://www.abtglobal.com/

Equity

Abt Global values individuality and celebrates difference with a strong commitment to diversity, equality, racial equity, gender, and disability inclusion. We strongly encourage people from culturally and linguistically diverse communities and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to apply for this position. We offer flexible work arrangements and a culturally safe environment for staff members from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds.

Safeguarding

We are deeply committed to safeguarding, to protect and prevent harm and abuse to individuals we work for and who work for us. Our recruitment and selection procedures reflect our commitment to protecting children and vulnerable adults from abuse and exploitation. We will not tolerate discrimination, harassment, child abuse, sexual abuse or exploitation in any form, and expect everyone to be treated with respect and dignity.