Knowledge Management Officer (Kyiv) at Mercy Corps

About Mercy Corps

Mercy Corps is powered by the belief that a better world is possible. To do this, we know our teams do their best work when they are diverse, and every team member feels that they belong. We welcome diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be stronger and have long term impact.

The Program Summary

We aim to reach 500,000 vulnerable people with multi-purpose cash assistance, in-kind humanitarian support, and protection services across four countries. Almost all our impact will be delivered in partnership: with Ukrainian, Polish, Romanian and Moldovan civil society organizations through a granting program that matches humanitarian action with capacity strengthening, and with peer international NGOs through a consortium in Ukraine.  Mercy Corps is responding with large-scale consortium programming with a focus on Multi-Purpose Cash Assistance (MPCA). The Consortium is a partnership between four international humanitarian aid agencies to model and deliver innovative, effective cash and other humanitarian assistance programs to support affected people  within Ukraine.

The Position

The Knowledge Management Officer will work within the Program Learning Team (PLT), part of the Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) Department, to help deploy knowledge and information management strategies for tracking program progress and measuring program impact. They will promote knowledge sharing through Mercy Corps’ processes and systems by strengthening links between knowledge sharing platforms at an organizational level and the MEL system. This role will be essential in helping crystallize the collective “know-how” of Mercy Corps teams into easily accessible, user-friendly, and accurate documentation.

The position requires some experience in communication with a wide range of stakeholders and report writing, which will be used to review consistent data, reporting, and technical briefs. The candidate should be able to employ the use of traditional and digital learning approaches to develop and implement innovative, creative, and effective ways to strategically capture and share technical knowledge, leverage good practices, and improve the effectiveness of Mercy Corps programming in Ukraine, Poland, Romania, and Moldova.

The position will likely require regular travel to the field, including partner implementation locations.

Essential Responsibilities

 Monitoring & Evaluation (MEL) Systems and Implementation:

• Work with Program and MEL staff to incorporate program learning, primarily from Cash and Shelter/Non-Food Items (NFI) distribution activities, in ongoing reports, presentations and communications shared internally and at consortium level.
• Create and update MEL and Program Learning processes, procedures, and documentation, maintaining documentation standards, styles, and guidelines.
• Ensure Mercy Corps staff utilize existing knowledge management processes.
• Assist the implementation of MEL systems at several levels by providing support to field-based teams, reviewing the accuracy and quality of reports.
• Collaborate with Program and MEL teams across the response to drive improvements in knowledge management processes and tools, and capture learning through the existing documentation structure.
• Assist in the monitoring and analysis of data flows between partners, MEL and Program data collection systems, and recommend solutions to correct errors that impede data flows and limit data quality.

Reporting and Documentation:

• Ensure that learning is incorporated into new tool design and that indicators are contextualized where applicable.
• Incorporate learning sections in internal reports, donor reports as well as presentations delivered by MEL.
• Translate technical information from the MEL team into clear, readable documents to be used by non-technical users.
• Document learning by researching existing information with the MEL team, and other technical experts, to develop a complete understanding of the topic reflected in documentation, ensuring accuracy, and supporting programmatic changes and adaptive management.
• Improve reporting and visual standards for documents and recommending new designs, layouts, procedures, and dissemination processes as needed.
• Assist with research in retrieving and collating data to support learning through evidence-based decision-making.
• Update and maintain shared Program Learning Microsoft SharePoint files. Align content organization and structuring with target MEL needs.

Technical Support / Assistance to Partner Organizations:

• Implement best practices that support partner organizational growth and capacity building. Including through workshops, one-on-one guidance, and troubleshooting.
• Apply strategies developed by the Program Learning Team to improve knowledge, skills, efficiency and information delivery to the Program and MEL teams and for effective change management.
• Produce easy-to-use guidance on working with knowledge and data and conduct training as needed.
• Integrate learning from community feedback loops into reporting.

Implement Learning & Knowledge Management Strategy:

• Roll-out and review Knowledge Management strategy and system to include the development, maintenance, implementation, and oversight of data used by Mercy Corps Ukraine response.
• Facilitate seamless exchange of information across MEL processes.
• Work with Response MEL Managers and Program Performance and Quality (PaQ) Lead to ensure that the program and MEL teams use the system effectively including follow up on dissemination of findings and incorporation into future cycles of the program.

Capacity Building and Coordination:

• Utilize input from Program, MEL and Senior Management to plan, develop, customize, and implement appropriate materials, instructional content, and delivery mechanisms to achieve maximum learning results for partners, Mercy Corps staff, and third parties involved in implementation.
• Identify processes that require documentation to support program implementation, training, or employee and partner capacity building needs.
• Communicate and provide support and training on implementation of key processes through different platforms, as required.
• Maintain knowledge channels around specific thematic areas to facilitate stakeholders’ easy access to relevant knowledge and/or expertise.
• Assist the Program Learning Manager in facilitating learning workshops with all relevant stakeholders, progressively building their independent learning capabilities. This responsibility can be gradually transferred to the Knowledge Management Officer after proven track of successful training activities.

Supervisory Responsibility

None

Accountability

Reports Directly To: Program Learning Manager

Works Directly With: MEL Team, Program Team

Accountability to Participants and Stakeholders

Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our program participants, community partners, other stakeholders, and to international standards guiding international relief and development work. We are committed to actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.

Minimum Qualification & Transferable Skills

Any skills you have gained through education, volunteer work, or life experience that are relevant for the position will be considered. Please explain transferable skills and how they apply to this position in your cover letter and interview.

Required

1. Academic degree in social sciences, mathematics, statistics, education, business, or related fields.
2. Experience in creative, journalistic, or technical writing or creating training/instructional documentation.
3. Strong analytical skills/capabilities and communication skills (verbal and written).
4. Languages: Working proficiency in English is required. Fluent Ukrainian or Russian is required.

Preferred

1. 2 years of experience in data compilation, reporting and analytics utilizing data and analytics tools.
2. Humanitarian experience within the current Ukraine context, preferably with international donors.
3. Some technical support or customer facing experience.

Success Factors

The position requires high organizational skills and some experience in report writing, which will be used to review consistent data, reporting, and technical briefs. Soft skills including communication, negotiation, independent work and teamwork are essential attributes of this role. The candidate should be able to employ the use of traditional and digital learning approaches to develop and implement innovative, creative, and effective ways to strategically capture and share technical knowledge, leverage good practices, and improve the effectiveness of Mercy Corps programming in Ukraine, Poland, Romania, and Moldova.

Ongoing Learning

In support of our belief that learning organizations are more effective, efficient, and relevant to the communities we serve, we empower all team members to dedicate 5% of their time to learning activities that further their personal and/or professional growth and development

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges. We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives.

We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening, and evolving to become more diverse, equitable and inclusive than we are today.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Mercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer that does not tolerate discrimination on any basis. We actively seek out diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be collectively stronger and have sustained global impact.

We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunities are available to all. We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination based on race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status or any other protected group in the locations where we work.

Safeguarding & Ethics

Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work, whether team members, community members, program participants or others, are treated with respect and dignity. We are committed to the core principles regarding prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary General and IASC and have signed on to the Interagency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members. As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and adhere to Mercy Corps Code of Conduct Policies and values at all times. Team members are required to complete mandatory Code of Conduct e-learning courses upon hire and on an annual basis.