ABOUT INKOMOKO
Inkomoko supports entrepreneurs to grow their businesses in order to improve livelihoods, create jobs, and help communities thrive.
In 2025, Inkomoko was listed by the Financial Times as the 8th fastest-growing company in Africa, supporting entrepreneurs across East and Central Africa to grow thriving businesses and build inclusive, resilient economies.
Founded in 2012, Inkomoko has worked with more than 100,000 entrepreneurs, including thousands of refugee entrepreneurs. Inkomoko provides a combination of training, consulting, access to finance, and market-level systems change. We are the largest investor to refugee entrepreneurs in Africa.
Inkomoko has 780+ staff in 45 offices across Chad, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, and South Sudan. Through Inkomoko’s 2030 strategic plan, we are adding 3 additional countries to serve more than 550,000 entrepreneurs and growing our $30M loan fund to impact 7M lives.
INKOMOKO VALUES
All staff at Inkomoko are connected to a shared set of organizational values:
- Purpose: be solutions-oriented, produce high-quality work, and be a global leader.
- Achievement: push yourself to reach beyond what you previously thought possible.
- Improvement: be humble, engage in continuous growth through open & accurate feedback
- Bravery: willing to take risks, create a safe space for others, be compassionate, and inclusive.
- We Eat Goat: we celebrate success and support each other in hard times. We do this work together in the spirit of turikumwe, tuko pamoja, abren nen, Kula na sawa, On est ensemble.
Inkomoko is an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer. Refugees, women, and persons who reflect the diverse communities we serve are strongly encouraged to apply.
ABOUT THE OPPORTUNITY & RESPONSIBILITIES
The Director of Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning is a strategic role reporting to the C-suite. This leader will be responsible for setting the MERL vision, generating actionable insight that strengthen Inkomoko’s impact, and stewarding a culture of evidence-driven decision making.
This Director will directly supervise a team of MERL leaders including the Head of Research and Head of MEL, and provide MEL Technical Leadership to the wider organisation ensuring the MEL function delivers rigorous analytics, strategic learning, and organizational accountability. This role will also provide thought leadership to funders, partners, and regional stakeholders. The position holder can be based in any of our countries of operations: Chad, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda or South Sudan.
Specific responsibilities include:
MERL Strategy and Systems (30% time)
- Own and continually refine the organization’s Theory of Change, ensuring all MERL strategies are aligned with how Inkomoko enables entrepreneurs to improve livelihoods and create jobs.
- Strengthen MEL systems, leveraging technology, automation and global best practice to build cohesive, integrated, and future-proof data ecosystems. Establish robust data governance and quality assurance protocols for timely, accurate, and ethical decision-grade data.
- Develop annual MEL strategies and measurement plans, aligning program pillars to deliver deeper insight and organizational value.
- Select, contract, and oversee external evaluators, ensuring methodological rigor and value for money.
- Lead strategic research partnerships with universities, think tanks, and global researchers.
- Collaborate with the IT Director to ensure interoperability and a unified data architecture that enables a single source of truth across all systems.
- Supervise staff managing Odoo, Kobo, and other MEL technologies.
- Ensure dashboards, visualizations, and data platforms are intuitive, accessible, and optimized for leadership and program teams.
Data Analyses, and Reporting (40% time)
- Develop, test, and refine hypotheses related to the Theory of Change, using insights to drive program innovation and strategic learning.
- Oversee the full evaluation lifecycle, design, tools development, survey implementation, qualitative inquiry, and analysis.
- Formulate and pursue high-value research questions that deepen understanding of product, program, and market performance.
- Synthesize insights for the Senior Leadership Team and Board, translating evidence into decisions that strengthen strategy, scale, and impact.
- Produce high-quality reports for funders, government, and external stakeholders, contributing to global knowledge on what works for entrepreneurs.
- Partner with Communications to ensure external messaging is accurate, evidence-based, and reflective of Inkomoko’s impact.
- Collaborate with Directors to co-create MEL plans for new initiatives, ensuring rigor and relevance.
Organizational Management (30% time)
- Ensure all MEL protocols meet global ethical standards, including local IRB, human subjects protections, and responsible data-use policies, especially in refugee and vulnerable populations.
- Contribute to organizational strategy as part of the Regional Leadership Team, offering evidence-backed insights to shape growth.
- Develop, coach, and mentor MEL staff, strengthening technical skills, strategic thinking, and leadership potential.
- Lead department performance management, including structure, roles, workflows, and continuous improvement.
- Manage the regional MEL budget, maximizing cost-effectiveness and strategic return on investment.
- Participate in cross-organizational initiatives, championing a culture of learning, accountability, and excellence.
WHO WE ARE LOOKING FOR
This Director will be a seasoned, visionary MEL leader who balances technical excellence with strategic, organizational, and people leadership. Successful candidates will demonstrate:
- A creative researcher’s mindset, strong analytical orientation, and tenacity in solving complex problems.
- Deep experience with systems-level MEL, including large datasets, digital data systems, and organizational data governance.
- 10+ years of professional experience in MEL, research, analytics, or related fields.
- Advanced degree in statistics, economics, public policy, data science, development studies, or a comparable discipline.
- Proven leadership capability, including leading multi-country teams, building talent, and strengthening MEL functions.
- Ability to translate research into strategic decisions and influence senior leadership.
- Experience managing external evaluators, complex studies, and mixed-methods research.
- Strong grounding in ethical research practices, data protection, and human subjects protocols.
- Experience working across East African geographies, adapting models to diverse regulatory and cultural contexts.
- Outstanding writing and communication skills, including donor reporting and stakeholder engagement.
COMPETENCIES
We are looking for someone who;
- Thinks and Plans Strategically - Identifies opportunities using future-focused thinking (5+ years ahead); creates a strategic path to operationalize work plans
- Coaches - Facilitates skill development by asking the right questions and providing motivational feedback; enables others and builds their confidence and self-esteem to solve problems independently.
- Manages Complexity - Making sense of information to effectively solve problems
- Leadership - Operates with commitment to values and culture, while supporting the growth and development of others.
WHAT YOU'LL GET
This role is inside a high-growth, mission-driven social enterprise. By joining, you’ll access:
- A leadership role with regional influence and the opportunity to shape Inkomoko’s financial future.
- Meaningful work that directly contributes to sustainable livelihoods and job creation across East and Central Africa.
- Competitive salary, and potential Performance-based bonus
- Incredible company culture, with opportunities for learning and growth
- Diverse colleagues across the region, and policies that demonstrate commitment to equity and inclusion
- A dynamic and entrepreneurial team environment committed to innovation and social impact
- Ability to make a significant social impact to your community
- Health insurance for self and family
- Staff savings and provident fund, negotiated bank rates for long-term employees
- Generous annual leave, parental leave, and sabbatical options.
HOW TO APPLY
If you’re excited about this role, please submit your application through the jobs portal.
Tell us about what you’ll bring to this growing company.
DEADLINE: Open until filled. Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis, please apply as soon as possible!
Inkomoko is committed to justice, diversity, equity and inclusion. As we seek to reflect the communities we serve, refugees and women are strongly encouraged to apply. As a company we have policies that ensure fair treatment in the application process.
NB: Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. Employment is conditional upon successful background checks and other verification as needed.
All offers of employment will be subject to satisfactory references and background screening checks. Inkomoko also participates in the Inter Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme, In line with this Scheme, we will request information from job applicants’ previous employers about any findings of sexual misconduct, fraud, or abuse. By applying, the job applicant confirms his/her understanding of these recruitment procedures.
