United States of America: CEPPS Indicators Database Manager

Project Description:

The Consortium for Elections and Political Processes (CEPPS) maintains a consortium-wide database of indicators used for projects funded under the USAID Global Elections and Political Transitions (GEPT) mechanism, but is transitioning to a new vendor for the database. The GEPT database is designed to house all indicators being used in GEPT products and is a key resource in GEPT Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) and Knowledge Management (KM) initiatives. CEPPS is seeking an experienced Database Manager who will support the GEPT M&E Specialist in management of the transition of GEPT indicators data from the existing database to the new database, in customizing the new vendor’s database platform for CEPPS use, and in managing the database for both data storage and reporting purposes. Job Responsibilities:

Working under the direction of the M&E Specialist, specific responsibilities for the Database Manager will include the following:

• Liaise with the database vendor (DV) as needed to customize the database platform for inclusion of data from GEPT programs, including:
  • Developing and monitoring a Schedule of Database design and implementation in coordination with the database developer
  • Working with the database vendor and CEPPS personnel assigned by each CEPPS organization (Database Team) to develop a framework for housing GEPT project and indicator data
  • Defining roles and responsibilities for different levels of CEPPS staff with specific view and access privileges
  • Development of reporting templates that can be used to provide project, regional, and/or mechanism level reporting to CEPPS staff and donor personnel
• Liaise with the DV as needed to support effective implementation of the database, including troubleshooting and addressing emerging issues oftechnical nature,
• Maintain regular engagement with DV to understand updates to database structure and functionalities, and advise M&E Specialist and Database Team in how these changes impact GEPT database,
• Work with Database Team to develop and test new functionalities for the database as data is entered,
• Provide regular reporting on use of database by program staff for monitoring and oversight purposes,
• Develop guidelines and procedures for input of data and overall use of the database by CEPPS partner staff,
• Work with Database Team in delivering trainings on the database to CEPPS staff as well as the development of an internal CEPPS user manual detailing protocols and procedures,
• Support CEPPS partner staff in the input and management of data into the database, as well as in generating reporting from the database and addressing difficulties in these tasks,
• Provide guidance to CEPPS field teams, as needed, to support input and management of data into the database,
• Use database functionalities as well as other tools such as offline excel-based solutions to streamline entry of indicators data into database for CEPPS program staff,
• Conduct regular data verification to ensure consistency, relevance and completeness of data populated in the database by CEPPS partners and CEPPS projects. Provide technical support to CEPPS M&E Team in improving quality of data in the database,
• Maintain backup copies of database data files in a safe and secure location on the server,
• To the extent necessary and feasible, support aligning and sharing of data from database with external databases used by USAID missions to manage M&E data,
• Support M&E Specialist and other members of CEPPS executive team in liaising with and addressing issues raised by donor on the database; this may include providing trainings or other support to donor personnel on use of database for reporting purposes,
• Work closely with M&E Specialist and other CEPPS personnel to understand and address implications of data privacy and security regulations on CEPPS use of the database, and
• Other duties as necessary for management of the CEPPS Indicators Database.

The Database Manager position is a full-time position based in Washington DC. Travel to CEPPS field offices may be required to carry out the responsibilities listed above. Qualifications:

The applicant should be comfortable working in a fast-moving environment with short-term deadlines, and engagement with a large number of people to carry out the responsibilities listed above. The applicant should meet the following requirements for the position:

• Minimum of five years of experience working on relational database applications, including online databases,
• Experience in collecting, verifying, managing and analyzing quantitative and qualitative data,
• At least five years of experience working on widely used database software including Access, Tableau, SQL Server, and DevResults
• A Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or related fields is preferred, but not required,
• A background in working on Monitoring & Evaluation issues is preferred, but not required,
• Experience working on international development issues is preferred, but not required.

careers@ifes.org