Head of Monitoring and Evaluation

Head of Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E)

Location: Remote (within India preferred)

Report to: CEO

Team: M&E Team (to be built and led)

Start Date: As soon as possible

Remuneration: We don't list a salary because we don't want it to be the primary motivator for applying to this position, nor do we want it to be a deterrent.

Application Deadline: Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. The position will remain open until filled

About Suvita

Suvita is an impact-driven, evidence-based nonprofit focused on increasing the uptake of routine childhood vaccinations in India. Over 4 million children born every year still miss their basic vaccinations in India, leading to far too many vaccine-preventable deaths. We run two rigorously tested, complementary programmes:

SMS reminders: We send personalised SMS messages to caregivers to prompt timely attendance for vaccinations at government clinics.
Immunisation ambassadors: We identify and train local influencers to volunteer as advocates for vaccination with families in their communities.

Since our founding in 2019:

We reach one in ten children born in India through our SMS vaccination reminders. In partnership with the governments of Bihar and Maharashtra, we’ve reached more than 6 million families with routine immunisation SMS reminders and more than 4 million pregnant women with antenatal care-related SMS reminders.
We’ve enrolled almost 15,000 community influencers as local ambassadors in districts in Bihar and Maharashtra.
GiveWell estimates that our SMS reminders increase vaccination rates by approximately 2 percentage points at a current cost of $0.40 per child reached in Maharashtra and $1.71 per child reached in Bihar. The immunization ambassadors program increases vaccination rates by around 7 percentage points and costs $1 to $2 per child reached.
We have been incubated and funded by sector leaders like The/Nudge Foundation, Ambitious Impact (formerly Charity Entrepreneurship), Mulago Foundation, GiveWell, D-Prize, Founders Pledge, and Schmidt Futures.
We have appeared in Vox, Giving What We Can, and the 80,000 Hours Podcast.

Role Overview

As we scale across states and refine our programme models, we are seeking a Head of Monitoring & Evaluation to lead the next phase of our performance measurement and evaluation architecture. Suvita’s programming decisions and impact depend on strong evidence and disciplined monitoring. The Head of M&E will play a pivotal role in ensuring that our scaling and strategic decision-making are informed by rigour and reliable data. This is an especially exciting time to join Suvita as our Head of M&E because…

You will be our first ever Head of M&E and have scope to build and form your own domain
We are entering the next phase of scale, looking to improve and expand the impact of digital reminders in India and test our ambassador model
You will have the opportunity to work closely with other Heads and directly influence Suvita's long-term strategy

This is a senior leadership role reporting to the CEO and responsible for:

Designing and institutionalising Suvita’s monitoring systems
Leading the design and execution of rigorous programme evaluations
Developing and managing an M&E team
With support from the tech team, upholding the credibility of Suvita’s data internally and with partners and academic collaborators

Examples of questions in our mind you will be leading on answering:

Given observed delays and data issues, can we still use reproductive child health (RCH) data at the state level to reliably flag children who are late and prioritise SMS messages to improve timeliness?
Can we combine Reproductive and Child Health (RCH) data, Global Positioning System (GPS) coordinates and other datasets (e.g. census, NFHS) to build a simple targeting tool that flags high-priority clusters and facility catchments (e.g. high migrant load, many facilities, or low coverage at 1–2–5–20 km from health centres) where Suvita should focus field interventions?
Can we estimate the causal effect of Suvita’s SMS reminders on timely and complete vaccination using the time of digital entry into RCH as an instrumental variable for exposure to SMS?

Core Responsibilities

Monitoring Architecture & Performance Governance
- Design and unify Suvita’s monitoring frameworks
- Define clear operational definitions and measurement protocols including survey design, and analyses
- Establish benchmarks and escalation systems for programme performance
- Institutionalise data quality assurance processes
- Oversee automated data flows and reporting cadence in partnership with the Tech team
- Lead structured programme performance reviews with the Programme Delivery team
- Ensure monitoring systems produce timely, decision-relevant information
Evaluation Design & Oversight
- Lead the design of evaluations to assess programme effectiveness
- Assess the feasibility and trade-offs of different outcome indicators
- Develop sampling strategies and measurement plans
- Oversee in-house evaluations and collaborate with external evaluation partners
- Ensure clean, reproducible, and well-documented data processes
- Contribute to cost-effectiveness analyses and strategic evidence synthesis
Team Leadership & Cross-Functional Collaboration
- Recruit, manage and mentor a small M&E team
- Set clear goals and expectations for team members
- Work closely with Programme Delivery, Tech, and Innovation & Insights teams
- Provide constructive challenge where measurement or evaluation standards are at risk

What this role does NOT primarily own

The Head of M&E collaborates closely on these, but does not own them.

Innovation idea generation or product experimentation
Human-centred design or behavioural insights
Organising internal learning sessions or knowledge events
Broad strategic research scoping unrelated to programme evaluation.

Who We're Looking For

Essential Experience

At least 5 years of professional experience in monitoring, evaluation, impact assessment, or performance analytics in development or public health
Significant experience leading end-to-end evaluation projects, preferably in global health and development
Ability to generate and manage collaborations with academics and research institutions to design evaluations
Demonstrated experience managing teams and cross-functional projects
Experience building or substantially upgrading monitoring systems
Skills and experience in setting up quantitative and qualitative data collection systems, including thoughtful field visits, and how to turn them into actionable inputs.
Strong quantitative skills, including sampling, measurement design, and statistical analysis
Ability to translate data into clear operational decisions

Strongly Preferred

Master’s or PhD in Economics, Development Economics, Public Policy, Statistics, Biostatistics, or a related quantitative discipline
Formal training in causal inference and impact evaluation
Experience working with or within high-rigour evaluation organisations (e.g. J-PAL, Innovations for Poverty Action, IDinsight, 3ie, university research centres) or with evidence-based orgs like Suvita
Experience working with large administrative datasets
Familiarity with cost-effectiveness modelling
Familiarity and curiosity in public health and social determinants of health

Personal Qualities

High standards for rigour without perfectionism paralysis
Structured and decisive thinker
Comfortable operating in ambiguity
Clear communicator who sets expectations early
Able to balance analytical depth with delivery pragmatism
Mission-aligned and impact-focused
High humility and a Bayesian mode of thinking

What Success Looks Like (First 12–18 Months)

A unified, well-documented KPI framework in use across programmes
Reliable, high-quality monitoring dashboards with clear benchmarks
Institutionalised programme performance review cadence
Decision-relevant insights from monitoring that we can immediately apply to programming
An M&E team that is well-supported, accountable and growing in capability

How to Apply

Application process involves two steps -

Step 1: Click here to Submit the application form
Step 2: Once submitted, you will receive an email with a link to a timed Aptitude Assessment (20 Minutes)

The assessment is an essential part of the process, and only candidates who complete both steps will be evaluated.

Application Process

Our hiring process typically includes a combination of test tasks and interviews to assess relevant skills and ways of working.

The exact steps and number of rounds may vary depending on the role and stage of hiring. We aim to move as quickly as possible and hope to share an offer within ~6 weeks of a candidate entering the final stages, though timelines may vary.

We will keep candidates informed at each stage.

For any issues, please email careers@suvita.org.

All the best! 🚀