Monitoring and Results Measurement (MRM) Manager

Position Description

Position: Monitoring and Results Measurement (MRM) Manager
Program: Strongim Bisnis
Location: Honiara, Solomon Islands
Duration: Full-time, initial contract until 30 June 2027 with possible extension to 2029
Reports to: Team Leader
Direct reports: MRM Senior Coordinators and Field Researchers

Background

Strongim Bisnis is an innovative pro-business program funded by the Australian Government.

Strongim Bisnis supports Solomon Islands businesses to increase productivity, access greater income earning opportunities and higher value markets; with the intention of enabling greater resilience and creating jobs. Poverty reduction will be the desired result. Strongim Bisnis also supports the private sector and the Solomon Islands Government to work together effectively to increase opportunities for trade and investment and accelerate business growth. A key focus of the program ensures that Solomon Islands women, youth and people with disability have increased economic opportunities.

The program takes a market systems development (MSD) approach to unlocking opportunities for growth in selected sectors (cocoa, coconut, tourism, timber, horticulture, financial services, and waste management). MSD requires Strongim Bisnis to carefully select partnerships, and design interconnected activities that deliver tangible and measurable results. For each activity it must be possible to track progress from improving the performance of Solomon Islands enterprises, to achieving resilient systemic change in markets, and ultimately increasing income and employment. In this way, Strongim Bisnis avoids ad hoc activities and seeks deep engagement with market actors.

Strongim Bisnis activities may include developing and testing new business models, sharing the risk of new ventures in partnership with private sector actors, facilitating market access, supporting structural changes to the ‘business enabling environment’, product marketing to bring about greater scale, and improving women, youth, and people with disability’s participation in markets and their access and control over productive resources.

Position Summary

The MRM Manager leads the design and continual improvement of a rigorous MRM system. The system will draw on international best practice and be consistent with both the Australian Government’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) M&E standards, and the Donor Committee on Enterprise Development (DCED) Standard for Results Measurement.

The MRM Manager leads a team, consisting of a Field Researcher and Senior Coordinator(s), to implement the MRM system, and ensure that related activities for field monitoring, data collection, analysis and reporting of results are well planned, adequately resourced, and effectively delivered. This will ensure that relevant and useful information and learnings are generated on a timely basis for internal Strongim Bisnis team members (consisting of Partnership Managers, sector teams, hub leads and the Senior Management Team), as well as external stakeholders, including DFAT and Solomon Islands Government (SIG) officials and representatives.

The MRM Manager is also responsible for leading the analysis of program impact and value for money and supporting senior management decision-making towards needed program adaptations to these ends. These activities directly contribute to the quality and effectiveness of program delivery of expected outcomes and impacts, as well as improved external stakeholder appreciation of the value of Strongim Bisnis within DFAT’s Solomon Island economic growth portfolio.

Strongim Bisnis strives for continual improvement to produce work that aligns clearly to analysis, is rooted in the MSD approach, can demonstrate attributable results, and swiftly adapts to market system changes. The MRM Manager will apply their extensive experience in support of these Strongim Bisnis intentions.

Duties and responsibilities

• The MRM Manager is an active member of the Strongim Bisnis Senior Management and High-Level Management teams.

• Will lead on the design and continuous improvement of the established MRM system, and ensure they align with industry best practices, and particularly those defined by the Australian Government’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) M&E standards, and the Donor Committee on Enterprise Development (DCED) Standard for Results Measurement.

• Will lead the MRM team, consisting of the Field Researcher and Senior Coordinator(s), to implement the MRM system. The MRM Manager is responsible for developing yearly MRM workplans (that are part of the program Annual Plan submission to DFAT) and updating budget forecasts and will ensure that MRM team members have access to organization resources (including trainings for personal development) to effectively carry out their tasks and responsibilities related to the workplan, and their respective TORs.

• Will oversee, and provide quality back-stopping to, the Senior MRM Coordinator(s) who will lead the program-run data collection and research activities, including rapid assessments, industry studies and impact assessments. If research activities are outsourced to external providers, the MRM Manager will lead the design for such studies and monitor the quality of their data collection, analysis and reporting. When applicable, the MRM Manager will, in coordination with the Communications team, support the preparation of publishable quality case studies and research reports, to share with external stakeholders and, potentially, the wider public and development sector.

• Ensure the MRM system is GEDSI sensitive, as well as able to capture quantitative and qualitative data on other cross-cutting areas of interest such as resiliency to climate change impacts, provincial and constituency level reach of program activities, and strengthening of Solomon Islands- Australia linkages (particularly those involving First Nations groups and businesses).

• Support the use of MRM information to underpin management decision-making, such as the facilitation of strategic meetings and the development of key reports and learning documents. Provide advice to the sector and cross-cutting area teams, and their respective Hub Leads, the Business Partnerships Director, the Communications and Engagement Director, and the Team Leader on program performance and results.

• Work closely with Partnership Managers, and their respective Hub leads, to develop coherent intervention designs, attribution strategies and measurement plans for each intervention, and will contribute to the senior management review of their respective Business Cases and Partnership Agreements.

• With regards to GEDSI, the MRM Manager will ensure women’s changing roles in market systems are measured and will provide advice to both the GEDSI and wider program team on how to incorporate access and agency empowerment outcomes in intervention design, and assessment activities.

• The MRM Manager is a lead contributor to the design and production of regular and ad hoc plans and reports, including the Annual Plan, Six Month Progress Report and Annual Report. The MRM Manager will facilitate periodic sector reviews and annual program-wide reflection exercises that will inform these program reporting and planning activities.

• Support MRM capacity development among colleagues and, when necessary, external stakeholders, to play an effective role in the research and MRM components of Strongim Bisnis. The MRM Manager will also contribute to wider program team MSD capacity building efforts.

• Act as a trusted representative of Strongim Bisnis, displaying professionalism and discretion in all interactions with other members of the Strongim Bisnis team, partners and related target beneficiary households and small businesses, representatives of DFAT, and the wider public.

Required qualifications and experience

A degree in a relevant field (such as statistics, business, development, economics, or research). A postgraduate degree is preferred.

• Extensive experience in designing and managing MRM/M&E systems. Experience implementing these systems on an MSD program is preferred. DFAT and Pacific Islands regional experience will be well regarded but is not essential.

• Strong experience designing research using different types of methodologies and conducting quantitative and qualitative data collection and analysis.

• Experience or willingness to learn the DCED (Donor Committee for Enterprise Development) Standards for Results Measurement.

• Experience developing and managing knowledge and learning systems to disseminate lessons learned, successes, and failures.

• Demonstrated commitment to gender equality, youth empowerment, disability inclusion and safeguards principles.

• Ability to produce high quality written work of publishable quality to a deadline.

• Excellent computer skills (minimum of MS Word, Excel and PowerPoint). Knowledge of statistical suites is preferred (e.g. SPSS or Stata).

• Experience in training, coaching and building capacity of team members in MRM.

• Willingness to travel for field missions throughout the country, including to remote areas.

How to Apply

Applications should be submitted via the Recruitee link by 8 February 2026, 11:59pm Australian Eastern Standard Time (AEST). Applications will be accepted and reviewed on a rolling basis.

Any questions should be sent to dina.karic@strongimbisnis.com.sb
Please use the following subject line in your email: MRM Manager role enquiry

Applications should include:

• A one-page cover letter addressing the required qualifications, experience, and attributes

• A CV of no more than four pages

• The contact details of three professional referees

This position will be recruited through Adam Smith International (ASI). ASI is committed to continually improving the diversity of our workforce through the attraction, retention, and development of a diverse range of talented people. Women, people with disabilities, Indigenous and ethnic minority groups, and nationals of Pacific countries are encouraged to apply. We want people to be comfortable bringing their whole self to work and recognise that inclusion brings further opportunities for innovation and creativity.