Bellwether Interview Consultant (HP+)

Job Description:

Health Policy Plus (HP+) is a USAID-funded five-year project awarded to Palladium (formerly Futures Group) on August 28, 2015. HP+ has a mandate across global, country, and subnational levels to strengthen and advance health policy priorities in HIV, family planning and reproductive health (FP/RH), and maternal health. It aims to improve the enabling environment for equitable and sustainable health services, supplies, and delivery systems through policy development and implementation, with an emphasis on voluntary, rights-based health programs, and by strengthening in-country partners’ capacity to navigate complex environments for effective policy design, implementation, and financing aligned to their priorities. We carry forward proven approaches to preserve achievements. These approaches inform how we manage programs and engage with stakeholders, and tools and techniques improve decision making and the achievement of predetermined goals.

Position Summary:

HP+ Pakistan is seeking a consultant to contribute to an evaluation of its Women Leadership Initiative. This initiative aims to strengthen women’s leadership, advocacy and accountability skills to effectively promote the achievement of Sindh’s Family Planning 2020 (FP2020) commitments. The women leaders prioritized expanded outreach and FP services to youth as their priority issue for achieving the commitments of the Costed Implementation Plan (CIP). Through the course of the initiative, the women leaders have contributed to several operational policy changes related to how the youth-specific FP outreach and services are prioritized, implemented, and measured as part of Sindh’s CIP. The women are currently focused on increasing the ownership and readiness of multiple levels of functionaries to implement high-quality outreach and FP services among the youth. In the next several months, they will turn to monitoring the planned rollout of expanded outreach and FP services for youth.

HP+ has been monitoring the effectiveness of its capacity development and technical assistance inputs, and the women themselves have been monitoring their individual leadership development and their collective advocacy activities. This consultancy will augment these internal monitoring efforts to help tell a more comprehensive story about the outcomes and the kind of influence the women have had in how youth-specific FP services are prioritized and delivered.    

The consultant will use the Bellwether Interview methodology for advocacy evaluation. This is a particularly useful methodology for capturing the nature and extent of influence that a group of advocates have on an issue. This methodology comprises of two unique features:

1)      The individuals being interviewed are ‘thought leaders,’ or individuals whose opinions carry substantial weight and value in the specific policy arena. They may not have had any direct engagement in the advocacy efforts, but are good ‘bellwethers’ of what is happening in the context.

2)      Interviewees are not informed about the specific focus of the interview (e.g., “I’d like to get your perspectives on how effective this group of women leaders have been with their advocacy on youth and FP in Sindh.  Furthermore, I’d like to hear what level of attribution for policy change that you think should be ascribed to their efforts.”). Instead, interviewers provide only the general topic of the interview (e.g., “I’d like to talk with you about the current policy environment and implementation of youth-specific outreach and services for FP in Sindh.”). The initial interview questions are general, and if and as the interviewee mentions the group of interest (i.e., the women’s leadership group) as an actor, the interviewer asks more detailed questions about the effects of their advocacy efforts. This increases the authenticity and reduces the bias of their responses compared to how they might respond if they knew the interviewer was interested in a specific group’s contribution to perceived shifts or policy change around an issue.

Key Responsibilities:

Specifically, the consultant will prepare, conduct, and summarize findings from 10 Bellwether interviews. The consultant will be required to work closely with HP+ to identify the interviewees among influential stakeholders in the family planning/reproductive health sector and to develop the questionnaire.. The consultant will schedule and carry out interviews and summarize the findings in a brief written report (no more than 5 pages) and in a PowerPoint format (no more than 15 slides) for presentation to stakeholders.

This position is based in Karachi; travel to nearby districts may be involved. HP+ will cover travel and accommodation costs for any travel outside of Karachi related to this consultancy.  

Process:

1.      Phase 1 (20th – 30th October):
   1. Review documents provided by HP+ about the Women Leaders Initiative.
   2. Meet with the activity team to review and confirm understanding of the scope and nature of the initiative and the interviews.
   3. Develop list of interviewees in consultation with HP+.
   4. Develop a questionnaire for the interviews in consultation with HP+.
2.       Phase 2 (1^st to 20^th November):
   1. Conduct the interviews.
   2. Submit notes/transcriptions of the interviews.
   3. Submit outline of the report and PPT for HP+ approval.
3.       Phase 3 (20^th to 30^th November):
   1. Prepare a draft report and PPT on the findings for HP+ review and feedback.
   2. Participate in one or more meetings (including Skype calls with the HP+ US team) with HP+ staff to discuss feedback.
   3. Finalize the report and PPT based on the feedback.

Estimated total number of days: 15

Deliverables:

• A report summarizing the findings from the interviews. The report should be no more than 5 pages, written according to the HP+ style guide, and follow a report format that HP+ will provide.
• A PowerPoint summarizing the findings from the interviews.  The PPT should be no more than 15 slides and be prepared in a template that HP+ will provide.

Qualifications:

• Experience with qualitative evaluation methodologies.
• Understanding of the family planning policy environment and stakeholders in Sindh.
• Experience with planning, implementing and evaluating advocacy initiatives.
• Experience conducting interviews with high-level stakeholders in Sindh.
• Excellent writing and PowerPoint slide development skills.
• Demonstrated ability to deliver high-quality deliverables within agreed upon timelines.

To apply, please send samples of your work and a quotation to [email protected] with ‘Bellwether Interview Consultant’ in the subject line.