Senior Technical Director, SEA

Management Systems International (MSI), a Tetra Tech Company, is a Washington, D.C. metro area management consultancy with a 40-year history of delivering results for our clients. Our expertise is in the fields of monitoring and evaluation; democracy and governance; peace and stability; rule of law and accountability; education; gender and inclusion; strategic communications; and leadership and organizational development. MSI has implemented projects in 90 countries around the world such as Colombia, Indonesia, Jordan, Kenya, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Syria and Ukraine, and works domestically. We support clients ranging from the U.S. Government (e.g., the U.S. Agency for International Development, U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Departments of State and Labor, and the Millennium Challenge Corporation) to large bilateral and multilateral donors (e.g., the World Bank and the United Nations Development Program). We also work with national and local governments, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), think tanks, foundations and universities. For more information, please visit our website at www.msiworldwide.com.

Practice Area Summary:

MSI’s Strategy, Evaluation and Analysis (SEA) practice area oversees all monitoring, evaluation, and learning (MEL) projects. It is a large and dynamic practice within the company that strives for excellence and innovation across all activities, encompassing a range of sectors, including education, health, economic growth, democracy and governance, gender, capacity building and policy reform. SEA has 20 MEL Specialists in the U.S. and more than three dozen in our field-based projects overseas.

**Please note: U.S. work authorization is required for this position**

Position Summary:

The Senior Technical Director (TD) will work collaboratively with the SEA Headquarters (HQ) and field team colleagues to deliver complex strategic planning, monitoring, evaluation and learning on behalf of MSI’s international development clients. This role will also liaise with MSI’s Operations Division, Business Development Unit (BDU), and other technical practice areas as required, to deliver SEA’s key business objectives. The Senior TD will be a senior member of the SEA practice area. The position will play a key role in technical assignments, business development, and thought stewardship. The Senior TD will be expected to travel to international locations from three to six trips per year, where most trips average between two and three weeks. This role could possibly have longer term assignments, including travel to security-challenged countries.

Resposibilities:

Technical Leadership

• Serve as MSI Headquarters Project Team Lead on one or more long-term MEL projects.
• Ensure the project is well managed, provide adequate support to the field project team, produce high-quality work, is coordinated within the project management team, and meets financial/spending targets.
• Meet regularly with clients and project teams to ensure assignments are implemented properly.
• Develop and implement quality assurance mechanisms to ensure the accuracy, reliability, and validity of project data and reports.
• Conduct regular reviews and audits of project deliverables to maintain high standards and compliance with good practice.
• Troubleshoot technical issues as required.
• Serve as a point of contact for key clients, establish strong relationships, and understand evolving requirements.
• Collaborate with clients to identify opportunities for expanding services and provide advice on leveraging research products to inform decision-making and program improvement.
• Provide strategic guidance and technical leadership to HQ and field project assignments to ensure the implementation of effective MEL frameworks.
• Stay abreast of emerging trends, methodologies, and tools in the field of monitoring and evaluation (M&E) and guide the team in adopting innovative approaches.
• Lead the design and planning of MEL activities.
• Work closely with clients to understand their needs.
• Develop responsive project scopes and apply appropriate planning, research and learning methodologies including performance and impact evaluations, contextual research and assessments, economic studies, population-based surveys, strategic planning exercises, pause and reflect sessions, organizational capacity assessments, third party monitoring, and training on topics related to these areas.
• Contribute to the development of knowledge products, research papers, and thought leadership initiatives.
• Share lessons learned and best practices internally and externally through publications, conferences, and professional networks.
• Assess the training needs of HQ and project teams and develop capacity-building initiatives to enhance their technical skills and knowledge as needed.
• Provide mentorship and guidance to junior staff members, foster their professional growth and development.

Business Development

• Lead (“Honcho”) proposals.
• Oversee proposal team planning and technical design, lead recruitment with an MSI recruiter, oversee writing efforts, and review proposal drafts.
• Liaise with BDU to produce technically sound and compliant proposals.
• Serve as a primary technical and management writer for select proposals.
• Conduct research and/or reconnaissance trips for upcoming proposals to meet with funding agencies, government officials, and potential partner organizations.