Programme Officer- Monitoring Evaluation and Learning (MEL)

Who we’re looking for

The role

This role is ideally suited for someone with 2-5 years’ experience in farm project auditing,certification, or voluntary verified programmes, in (organic) cotton. As the Programme Officer – Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning you will report to the Programme Manager, South Asia as well as the International MEL Manager located in both India & Amsterdam. Based in India your role will majorly be providing guidance and support to the Third-Party Verifiers in OCA’s Farm programme. You will coordinate & align your work with internal & external stakeholders focusing on building the core indicators off the programme.

Key responsibilities

25%     Farm Programme and Project coordination

To fully understand the projects, you are monitoring you engage and support the local Farm programme team and their activities. You identify areas for improvement and specific capacity needs and conduct regular needs assessments and gap analysis of projects to ensure they get the support needed for continuous improvement including but not limited to capacity building for field staff. This vacancy involves travel to project locations, together with third-party verifiers’ field staff. You maintain good communication to the Programme Manager about at-risk deliverables and monitor budgets and associated timelines regularly.

You work closely with the Programme Manager to flag non-performance and initiate improvement plans for all third party and implementation partners.

50%     Impact Validation and verification Guidelines

Developing and maintaining excellent relationships with OCA’s third-party verifiers and relevant organisations to meet programme deliverables. Understand, improve and communicate relevant guidelines and SOP’s and serve as a response problem-solver for verifiers. You will be the first point of contact and decision maker for third-party verifiers for each OCA project. You document and develop clear, detailed, and timely reports with OCA’s third-party verifiers, including identification of non-conformities and supporting evidence. Ensure timely flow of data from participating projects and ensure that the data received is checked and verified with support from OCA’s data analyst. Support the analysis of agronomic and project data, to ensure accurate referencing to regional contexts. Share the results report with project partners to facilitate learning and encourage the continuous improvement of partners involved. Work closely with OCA’s data analyst to provide system input, knowhow and maintain a consistent and uniform global data set.

Work with the international MEL team at OCA to develop timely and relevant reports and progress updates. Manage the deliverables and relationships with OCA’s third-party agency as per the MEL frameworks developed at OCA. Update and schedule due diligence audits for new Implementing Partners.

25%     OCA Platform representation and participation

You will support in the report writing for OCA’s grant and stakeholders and liaise with the communications team to develop material and assets from India. You coordinate annual TPV alignment meetings including but not limited to in-person events, webinars etc. Serving as an ambassador of OCA’s mission and activities and be comfortable presenting OCA externally.

Additional ad hoc tasks as assigned by the Programme Manager, South Asia within the scope of the OCA’s programmes.

What you bring

Critical

• Relevant university degree (Masters or Batchelors degree) ideally in Agriculture or Sustainability. (Degree level will be evaluated in combination with relevant work experience)
• Minimum of two to five years’ work experience. Understanding of agriculture voluntary validation, auditing or certification standards.
• Experience in working with a Certification Body, preferably in certification of Organic Cotton.
• Multi-disciplined and strong internal and external communicator with confident presentation and excel skills
• Can demonstrate strong project management skills and work collaboratively with external & internal stakeholders

Desirable

• Excellent interpersonal skills, along with the ability to work in a collaborative manner with a team
• Sensitised to working with multi-cultural communities
• Energised by working for a not-for-profit organisation in agriculture
• Experience using and providing consultation on (field) data tools and Microsoft applications

Join our team                                                                                              

We will work closely with you to support your transition to the team with a robust onboarding experience, considering your individual circumstances.

Based in New Delhi, we offer a passionate, international and collaborative environment that champions our team’s diversity of interests, skills and backgrounds. OCA expects all employees to work at least half of their workweek from the office and might change this to a complete work from office culture in the future. We’re warm and informal and welcome all who share our values of team spirit, initiative, and accountability. The preferred start is 1 April 2023, with a 1-year contract, salary and benefits in line with sector standards and experience.

Help us realise the true potential of organic cotton        
If this role sounds perfect for you, please send your CV and cover letter in English to secretariat@organiccottonaccelerator.org with the subject: Application for Programme Officer – Monitoring Evaluation and Learning – New Delhi.

We thank all applicants for their interest; however only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. OCA is currently unable to provide sponsorship for work permits, and candidates need to have a pre-existing right to work in the location where they will be based.