How the Journey Started
It was back in 2012 after doing my Diploma at the Catholic University of Eastern
African I joined USAID on an internship program. The program entailed WASH, Nutrition
and health project which was being run in Nairobi UASIA having set several centers
within the city. I was assigned the data support position. My work involved working
closely with the monitoring and evaluation team. At first it was a bit hard but
after a few weeks I started learning what research, monitoring and evaluation entails.
I would be assigned the work of data collection. I would visit the beneficiaries
at their homes in the slum areas of the city. I would carry out interviews with
them get back to main office do data entry in preparation for data analysis and
processing. My leader started teaching me the basics of report writing and data
analysis using SPSS and EPI INFO. By the end of the internship I had learnt a lot
and realized how the people in the slums were suffering I believed that I will one
day shed lights to the suffering of young children in the slums. I later got my
first job as a research assistant with Afriquest Research Center. That was my first
best work. We had to travel across the country and some parts of Uganda doing data
collection. That is when the Idea of research came to my mind. After the work I
approached a data analyst who was my friend and started teaching me the basics if
research like data analysis, report writing and survey development. After that I
got another job with Millward Browns as a research and data assistant. The company
was a market research company and they were impressed by my work and they put me
in the questionnaire coding section. I was happy with my development. Unfortunately
it was time to go back to school for my degree and I quite the job but I had learnt
a lot. I was doing the part time classes and I need to get a new job. Luckily I
was shortlisted for a research associate job at TNS RMS. I was later selected for
the position. That is when reality of research came to my mind. I had never held
such a big position. It was having a lot of pressure from the research managers.
I was in charge of a certain team of data collections. t
My duty was to train them, come up with a survey questionnaire and. I would go to
the field with my team across the country in harsh regions of Kenya like Samburu,
West Pokot among other places. After a few month the contract came to an end. It
was not time to focus on my education which was half midway. During one evening
when I was in the computer lab I saw an advert for the researcher position with
Busara center. I immediately applied and I was called after an interview. I was
a researcher reporting to the research coordinator. The duties of the position were
tough as some involved doing duties which I was not good in. These include data
analysis, monitoring and evaluation duties, report writing, survey development among
others. I quickly approached the research coordinator who used to train me in the
same. I decided to do part time classes for data analysis and monitoring and evaluation.
This was the hardest part of my life, my career and my job. I was to balance between
the two different classes I was doing and my job. I would leave job attend my degree
classes and in the weekends I would go for data analysis and monitoring and certification
classes which USAID had organized for me thought my employer at that time. Everything
went on well. I finished my data analysis classes and my monitoring and evaluation
certification.
How I landed on my first consulting work
It was back in 2016. Since I needed more time to concentrate on my degree studies
and do more data analysis courses I decided to quit my job as a researcher. The
main reason for quitting was due to lack of time to study. Since the organization
was expanding its operations in other countries sometimes we would be sent to Uganda
and Ethiopia. I would spend more time there making me to lack behind with my studies.
I decided to contrectrate on the studies. After a few months of quitting job I applied
for my first consulting job as a research consultant with a certain NGO as described
in my CV. I was called for the interview and I was amazed being called to take on
the job. The job involved carrying out a youth and employability skills survey in
Western part of Kenya. I took on the job hired two of my classmates as enumerators
which the organization approved. We did the work within 21 days and it was over.
The organization was impressed with my work during the presentation workshop. From
there I was motivated and since then I have been getting more and more research,
monitoring and evaluation consulting jobs. My objective is to widen my skills and
deliver the best to my clients.
Team members
Benard Imbeywa
Benard is a proud guy who hails from Kenya. All his life he has studies in Kenya
since he was a kid. Benard is an individual consultant but sometimes he hires supervisors,
enumerators, drivers, observers among others when consulting jobs arises. He has
worked with the best experienced team.
He is a seasoned Research, Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) expert. As the brainchild
behind the business, he has been involved in consultancies funded and implemented
by international organisations such as the United Nations and the European Commission.
Her sectorial interests are Gender Equality, Poverty Reduction, Migration, Social
Protection, Child Protection, Human Rights and Justice Reform.
However, he is particularly passionate about issues related to social inclusion
and inequality. She abhors injustice in every form and believes that all of us no
matter how strong we are in one area of our life, still experience vulnerability
in another area of life. As such, in our area of strength, it is our duty to protect
others.
Apart from her professional activities, he likes travelling and swimming.