Development Effectiveness Lead

Development Effectiveness Lead

We are searching for an experienced Development Effectiveness Lead to work on the Katalis Phase II program in Jakarta, Indonesia.  

Palladium is in the business of making the world a better place, and we believe that collaborative models and systemic approaches are the way to achieve progress and success. We work with governments, businesses, and investors to solve the world's most pressing challenges. With a team of more than 2,500 employees operating in 90-plus countries, we help improve economies, societies, and, most importantly, people's lives. Palladium is part of the GISI Consulting Group, a company that unites some of the world’s top project management and engineering consulting firms to innovate and accelerate solutions on a global scale.

Program Overview 
Katalis Phase 2 (2026–2031) is a partnership between the governments of Australia and Indonesia, funded by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), and implemented in collaboration with the Government of Indonesia. The program strengthens bilateral economic engagement under the Indonesia–Australia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IA‑CEPA) through two mutually reinforcing pillars: 
• Pillar 1: IA‑CEPA institutional architecture & policy reform (secretariat and implementation support).
• Pillar 2: Skills, Businesses & Inclusive Growth, including the Katalis Business Partnership Fund (KBPF) to test, scale, and commercialise inclusive, climate‑smart business models with Indonesian SMEs and Australian partners.

Purpose of the position

The Development Effectiveness Lead (DEL) is a key member of the Leadership Team of Katalis with overall responsibility for quality assurance of the delivery of the intervention portfolio and outward communication of the performance of the programme to DFAT, BAPPENAS and other program stakeholders. 

The Development Effectiveness Lead (DEL) will provide senior leadership across Katalis 2.0’s Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL), Gender, Equality, Disability, and Social Inclusion (GEDSI) and Management Information System (MIS) functions, ensuring they operate as an integrated platform for evidence-based decision-making, adaptive management, quality assurance and reporting. This role will lead these teams to generate, manage and use credible, timely and inclusive evidence across Katalis’ two pillars: IA-CEPA implementation and skills, business and inclusive growth.

The DEL will strengthen collaboration between MEL, GEDSI, MIS, technical, communications and operations teams, ensuring that data systems, inclusion analysis, learning processes and reporting workflows are coherent, practical and aligned with DFAT requirements, Palladium standards and the Katalis program logic. The role will ensure GEDSI is embedded in activity design, implementation, monitoring, reporting and learning, and that the MIS supports effective tracking of activities, indicators, partnerships, co-investments, risks, GEDSI outcomes and reporting commitments.

The DEL will also ensure Katalis can respond effectively to evidence and reporting needs from DFAT, GoI counterparts and IA-CEPA governance bodies, including the Joint Committee, Economic Cooperation Committee, Strategic Committee, Program Coordination Committee and Technical Working Groups. This is a senior leadership role requiring strong experience in development effectiveness, MEL, GEDSI, MIS/data systems, quality assurance and donor reporting in trade, investment, private sector development and economic cooperation programs.

Primary Responsibilities

 Strategic Leadership of Development Effectiveness
• Lead Katalis’ integrated development effectiveness function across MEL, GEDSI and MIS to support program quality, accountability, adaptive management, evidence use and reporting.
• Provide senior oversight to MEL, GEDSI and MIS teams, including planning, coordination, quality assurance, timely delivery and collaboration across program functions.
• Ensure Katalis generates credible, timely and policy-relevant evidence for decisions across IA-CEPA implementation and skills, business and inclusive growth.
• Strengthen use of evidence, inclusion analysis, performance data and learning in design, portfolio management, governance, reporting and adaptation.
• Coordinate timely responses to evidence, information and reporting requests from DFAT, Bappenas, Kemendag, IA-CEPA bodies and other stakeholders.

Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL)
• Lead design, implementation and refinement of the Katalis MEL system to support adaptive management, accountability, learning and progress against EOPOs.
• Maintain and quality assure the MEL framework, including program logic, baselines, indicators, data sources, learning questions, reporting processes and activity MEL plans.
• Embed MEL across the activity cycle, from concept and design through implementation, review, adaptation and closure.
• Track progress against End-of-Program and Intermediate Outcomes, including institutional strengthening, policy dialogue, inclusive skills and trade and investment partnerships.
• Lead portfolio data collection, analysis, synthesis and quality assurance on trade, investment, partnerships, skills, policy influence and systemic change.
• Support monitoring and learning for the KBPF, including impact, commercial viability, additionality, private sector contribution, GEDSI, scalability and policy relevance.
• Generate evidence for IA-CEPA deliberations, planning and prioritisation through briefs, diagnostics, evidence notes, performance summaries, learning products and case studies.
• Lead or oversee evaluations, targeted studies, outcome harvesting, contribution analysis, case studies, mid-term review and end-of-program evaluation processes.
• Facilitate reflection, learning and adaptation with Katalis teams, DFAT, GoI counterparts, partners and stakeholders.
• Build MEL capacity across teams, partners and subcontractors through practical guidance, tools, coaching and quality assurance.

GEDSI Integration and Inclusive Development
• In collaboration with the GEDSI Adviser, provide strategic oversight of GEDSI integration, embedding gender equality, disability inclusion and broader social inclusion in strategy, design, implementation, monitoring, reporting and learning.
• Guide the GEDSI team to ensure MEL and MIS capture disaggregated data, differentiated outcomes and inclusion-focused learning for underrepresented groups.
• Integrate GEDSI indicators, qualitative monitoring and inclusion analysis into tools, dashboards, reports, evaluations, learning products and IA-CEPA evidence.
• Apply GEDSI analysis in sector studies, policy briefs, diagnostics, investment selection, skills programming, business partnerships and the KBPF.
• Facilitate GEDSI reflection and inclusive MEL reviews, and support evidence products showing inclusive trade and investment outcomes.

Management Information System and Data Use
• Provide strategic oversight of the Katalis MIS, ensuring it is fit-for-purpose, user-friendly and supports management, reporting, monitoring, finance and decision-making.
• Ensure MIS data is accurate, timely, complete and accessible, covering activities, indicators, partnerships, finance, risks, safeguards, GEDSI and reporting commitments.
• Develop dashboards and visualizations to improve visibility of performance, portfolio progress, finance, results, risks and management priorities.
• Support MIS data use for portfolio review, resource allocation, risk management, reporting, adaptive planning and value-for-money analysis.

Reporting, Quality Assurance and Communications Support
• Lead preparation and quality assurance of MEL, GEDSI and MIS inputs for DFAT reporting, governance papers, briefs, updates and evidence products, ensuring alignment with DFAT, Palladium, program logic and IA-CEPA requirements.
• Work with communications colleagues to translate MEL, GEDSI, trade, investment and learning evidence into accurate, accessible and politically appropriate products.
• Identify, monitor and escalate delivery, safeguarding, reputational, data quality and inclusion risks, and reflect them in adaptive management decisions.
• Support learning and knowledge sharing across Katalis, DFAT investments and Australian economic agencies to inform IA-CEPA processes and future design.
• Contribute evidence, analysis, inclusion insights, MIS data and recommendations to planning, portfolio reviews and management discussions, and undertake other reasonable duties.

• Postgraduate qualification in monitoring and evaluation, international development, economics, trade, investment, private sector development, public policy, data systems, business, political economy or a related field.
• Minimum 10 years of senior experience in development effectiveness, MEL, adaptive management, performance management, reporting, research or quality assurance in complex donor-funded programs.
• Demonstrated experience leading integrated MEL, GEDSI, MIS/data, reporting and learning functions, preferably in DFAT-funded or other bilateral donor programs.
• Strong practical experience in the design, implementation and measurement of trade, investment, private sector development, market systems, business partnership, skills, economic cooperation or economic governance programs.
• Strong understanding of bilateral or regional trade and investment architecture, including free trade agreements, economic cooperation mechanisms, public-private dialogue, trade facilitation, investment climate reform and private sector engagement.

While this role does not involve direct work with children, as part of Palladium’s commitment to being a child-safe organization, the successful candidate will be required to complete a police check.

We strongly encourage people with disability to apply. Disclosing about your disability will not negatively affect your application. Please tell us as much as you feel comfortable for us to work with you about the appropriate adjustments that you might need. 

Salary and benefits: Competitive salary and benefits. 

Equity, Diversity & Inclusion - Palladium is committed to embedding equity, diversity, and inclusion into everything we do. We welcome applications from all sections of society and actively encourage diversity to drive innovation, creativity, success and good practice. We positively welcome and seek to ensure we achieve diversity in our workforce; and that all job applicants and employees receive equal and fair treatment regardless of their background or personal characteristics. These include: (but are not limited to) socio-economic background, age, race, gender identity and expression, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disability, nationality, veteran, marital or Indigenous status. 
 
Should you require any adjustments or accommodations to be made due to a disability, or you are a neurodivergent individual or for any other circumstance, please email our team at accessibility@thepalladiumgroup.com and we will be in touch to discuss. 
 
Safeguarding - We define Safeguarding as all the actions taken by Palladium to protect our people, communities where we work and our clients from harm, including Sexual Exploitation, Abuse or Sexual Harassment; Child Abuse in any form; Trafficking for sexual exploitation of adults or children and any form of Trafficking of children. We have zero tolerance for all forms of child abuse as well as sexual exploitation, abuse and harassment and zero-tolerance for inaction to prevent, protect against, respond to and report harm. We are committed to ensuring that all children and adults who come into contact with Palladium are treated with respect and are free from abuse. All successful candidates will be subject to an enhanced selection process including safeguarding-focused interviews and a rigorous due diligence process. Our Code of Conduct and Child Safeguarding and Protection against Sexual Exploitation, Abuse and Harassment Guidelines have additional details. 

Application closes on 31 July 2026 at 23:59 Jakarta Time 

Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis. We encourage you to apply early as the position may close once a suitable candidate is found. Please note that only shortlisted applicants will be contacted.