External Evaluator - (Remote)

Introduction to Zinc Network

Zinc Network is a business dedicated to meaningful, measurable change. Zinc conceptualises and creates programs, interventions, and strategic communications campaigns around some of the world’s most complex problems – from disinformation to extremism, media capture to authoritarianism.

We are headquartered in London with offices in Washington, D.C., and Warsaw with 80+ team members from diverse professional and cultural backgrounds. Zinc works with a broad range of governmental, NGO, and private sector clients, including the UK Home Office (HO); the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO); the United States Agency for International Development (USAID); the U.S. Department of State (DOS); UN agencies and missions; and foundations.

Outline of the job

This scope of work is for an outcome assessment a counter gender and identity disinformation (GID) programme focused on Poland, Armenia and Georgia.

Foreign malign actors deliberately spread false information targeting individuals based on gender, gender identity, or sexual orientation for political gain. It undermines targets' civic participation, threatens individual rights, and weakens democratic processes and social cohesion.

This project works through an international network of women's and LGBT+ CSOs that aims to counter Gender and Identity Disinformation (GID) to build social cohesion and resilience against malign actors' interference.

Working across Georgia, Armenia, and Poland, we:

· increase the understanding of GID and how to counter it;

· build local partners' ability to challenge, adapt and respond to GID safely and effectively;

· and deliver insight-led local interventions that increase awareness and resilience amongst target audiences.

Our vision is cohesive, democratic societies where all members participate fully, free from polarising divisions and foreign malign actors' interference.

What you’ll be doing:

1. Assess progress towards the three outcomes set out in the theory of change, including the impact and effectiveness of individual approaches which have been trialled by project partners in the delivery of their grant funded work. We expect this to include analysis of the programmes impact on civil society stakeholders and audiences the programme has sought to support or influence and the sustainability of the changes identified.

2. Describe and analyse the factors which have helped and hindered progress towards the delivery of outcomes. We expect this to include:

a. Programme design related issues such as the validity of the theory of change and the relevance of the outputs for delivering the chosen outcomes.

b. Factors related to execution, including strategic approaches taken and programme management

c. External or contextual factors, such differences in partners appetites for engagement across geographies, or political upheavals.

3. Make recommendations for future counter GID programming.

4. Develop a clear, compelling report to summarise your findings.

This work will be overseen by Sarah Barr, Head of MEL and conducted in collaboration with and advisory from an inter-disciplinary advisory group comprising key programme staff.

Tasks

Prepare the evaluation process:

• Read relevant materials related to the project
• Facilitate a kick-off meeting with the evaluation team to identify priorities, data sources, timelines and approach

Deliverables 

Evaluation execution plan comprising:

a.    A kick-off deck suitable for the wider team, including reflective questions the team can all engage in, to be reviewed in advance of the workshop

b.    Core evaluative questions for each programme component and stakeholder group

c.     A list of intended evaluation participants, co-developed with Zinc

d.    A participant survey for review (to be disseminated among project stakeholders and grant recipients)

e.    A set of draft interview guides for review

f.      A full set of data sources to be analysed

Execute the evaluation:

• Review primary data including project proposals and reports
• Conduct stakeholder interviews, with an emphasis on partners

Raw data:

We expect all raw data, including anonymised verbatim interview scripts and survey data. to be returned to us.

Analysis and report development:

• Conduct one preliminary findings workshop with the review team for an early check in on likely findings

• Analyse and write up the evaluation

1)    A preliminary findings deck, to be reviewed in advance of the workshop

2)    An evaluation structure outlining the sections, and sub-sections where relevant, to be signed off before the full write-up happens

Finalise and disseminate the evaluation

• Collate and write up the findings per the agreed upon structure

1)    The full evaluation report (report minus annexes should be no longer than 25 pages)

2)    A two page-client facing executive summary, highlighting key project success, additional findings and their implications for counter-GID programming

3)    A 2-5 page project partner facing document with an evidence-based account of ‘What works’ when fighting GID and any watch-outs identified

Timeline

Kick-off early December, aim to have evaluation plan (including interviews scheduled for January) done by December 20th. Final report and associated deliverable due by the end of February.

Budget

The budget for this piece of work is £20,000 GBP.

What we need from you

· We expect you to have ten years or more of demonstrable programme evaluation experience, with a proven track record of delivering high quality independent evaluations in the international development sector

· Critical thinking and evaluation framework development skills, to rigorously yet fairly assess programmes with diverse work strands

· Experience of working with, and gathering data from, civil society organisations with diverse stakeholders, cultural backgrounds and skills sets

· Experience with qualitative and quantitative data analysis, and the ability to facilitate the interpretation of data with a diverse team

· Familiarity with counter disinformation programming is preferred

· Familiarity with the evaluation of communications and campaigning related programming is preferred

· Familiarity with gender related programming, or issues related to gendered disinformation

· We expect clear, concise and accessible reporting writing

Please include a proposal of no more than three pages stating your approach and how you meet each of the requirements.  

In your proposal submission please outline the number of days you anticipate committing to delivering this piece of work, and an estimation of the amount of data you may collect in terms of informant interviews and a stakeholder surveys. 

Please note we may ask for work samples during the recruitment process.  

Area of Selection

We’re committed to hiring a diverse workforce from different professional and cultural backgrounds, and to that end we encourage a variety of people to apply to join our company to represent the diverse range of subjects associated with our projects.

Conditions of Employment

Candidates who receive a job offer will be required to:

- Disclose any previous disciplinary action against them resulting from a substantiated safeguarding (including any breaches involving trafficking- related activities) or workplace investigation.

- Undergo background checks including employment verification, sexual offender registry (as available), identity confirmation, and anti-terrorism vetting.

How to apply

Please include a cover letter stating how you meet each of the requirements.

If you require an accommodation to be made at any point throughout the recruitment process, please advise us when contacted.