Senior Learning and Experiments Manager (CPT/JHB)

DataFin; Cape Town, Johannesburg; On-site; ZAR 600,000 - 800,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading organization in community development is seeking a Senior Learning and Experiments Manager to design and implement evaluations for a Community Upliftment Programme. The role involves synthesizing insights for decision-making, fostering a culture of continuous learning, and leading performance measurement initiatives. Candidates should have a Master’s degree and at least 5 years of relevant experience.

Qualifications

• Minimum 5 years of experience in MERL, developmental evaluation.
• Strong analytical and synthesis skills.
• Excellent English writing skills for data synthesis.

Responsibilities

• Design and lead rapid experiments and evaluations.
• Develop and manage monitoring frameworks and tools.
• Synthesize data to support strategic decision-making.

Skills

Monitoring & Evaluation

Data analysis

Stakeholder engagement

Systems thinking

Capacity building

Education

Master’s Degree in Monitoring & Evaluation

Tools

Power BI

Microsoft Dynamics 365

Job description

Overview

Lead the design and implementation of developmental evaluations and rapid experiments to enhance programme effectiveness and responsiveness as the Senior Learning and Experiments Manager for a Community Upliftment Programme. Synthesize insights to support leadership and staff in sense-making and decision-making and foster a culture of continuous learning and innovation across the programme and its network. Design and facilitate reflective practices, learning loops, and adaptive management processes to drive programme improvements and strategic coherence. Applicants must possess a Master’s Degree or equivalent in Monitoring & Evaluation, Social Sciences, Public Policy, or a related field with 5 years’ experience in Monitoring, Evaluation, Research and Learning (MERL), developmental evaluation, and/or adaptive management in complex organisational contexts.

Responsibilities

• Design and lead rapid experiments & nimble evaluations –
• • Together with the SDI Team Head, drive the design and execution of developmental evaluations and nimble experiments to improve effectiveness and responsiveness.
  • Develop and implement fit-for-purpose monitoring and evaluation frameworks that align with strategic goals and learning priorities.
  • Establish and refine key performance indicators (KPIs) and feedback mechanisms to track programme progress and impact.
  • Support teams to design and implement rapid cycle learning and experimentation processes to test and adapt programme models.
  • Ensure that evaluation findings and experimental insights are synthesised into actionable recommendations.
• Strengthen monitoring and performance measurement –
• • Together with the SDI Team Head, drive the development and management of monitoring frameworks and tools to track programme performance and network-wide impact.
  • Enhance the use of data dashboards and performance reports to support real-time decision-making.
  • Enable data collection, analysis, and interpretation across the network.
  • Build capacity across teams to engage with performance data, identify gaps, and take corrective action.
  • Facilitate alignment between MERL frameworks and funder expectations, reporting needs, and organisational strategy.
• Support systems thinking and strategic coherence –
• • Synthesise data and insights to support leadership in sense-making, decision-making, and action-taking.
  • Enable teams to apply systems thinking approaches to understand complex programme dynamics and improve strategic alignment.
  • Promote coherence and alignment between monitoring, evaluation, learning, and strategy, seeking to ensure that theory of change is embedded into how decisions are made.
• Enhance data-driven decision-making –
• • Collaborate with the Data, Sense-Making, and Insights Team to strengthen data governance, integrity, and accessibility.
  • Support the development of data feedback loops that enable real-time learning and adaptation.
  • Build team and partner capacity to engage with and interpret data for programme improvement and strategic decision-making.
  • Ensure that MERL data is integrated into organisational decision-making and strategy development.
• Support network-wide adaptive learning and innovation –
• • Co-create the conditions for network-wide rapid learning, iterative experimentation, and collective intelligence.
  • Drive the use of insights from MERL activities to inform programme design, scaling decisions, and innovation.
  • Develop feedback mechanisms to ensure that insights from experiments and evaluations are used to improve programme models.
  • Foster a culture of disciplined innovation and structured experimentation across the network.
  • Develop and implement mechanisms for capturing and sharing lessons learned across the organisation and network.
  • Facilitate learning exchanges and peer-to-peer knowledge-sharing to build collective intelligence.
• Collaboration –
• • Work closely with the Innovation & Learning Portfolio, Programme Teams, and Development & Partnerships to align MERL activities with strategic priorities.
  • Capacity Building: Develop and deliver training on MERL methodologies, adaptive management, and data interpretation.
  • Ethics and Integrity: Ensure that MERL activities adhere to data governance, ethical standards, and regulatory requirements.
  • Change Management: Support teams and partners in adopting MERL tools, frameworks, and practices.

Qualifications

• Minimum Master’s Degree or equivalent in Monitoring & Evaluation, Social Sciences, Public Policy, or a related field.
• At least 5 years of experience in MERL, developmental evaluation, and/or adaptive management in complex organisational contexts.
• Experience conducting experiments/studies/evaluations (e.g. developmental evaluations, rapid-cycle experiments, etc.)
• Excellent English writing skills, with a proven ability to synthesise complex data into actionable insights for strategic decision-making.
• Experience working with social impact organisations, programmes, or networks.
• Expertise in developmental evaluation, adaptive management, and rapid-cycle learning.
• Strong analytical and synthesis skills, with the ability to generate insights from complex data.
• Knowledge of Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) frameworks and tools.
• Capacity to design and facilitate reflective practices, learning loops, and adaptive strategies.
• Familiarity with systems thinking and strategic coherence approaches.
• Strong stakeholder engagement and capacity-building skills.
• Advantageous: Proficiency with data analysis and visualisation tools (e.g., Power BI) and Microsoft Dynamics 365 and/or similar CRM software.