Research Manager – Resilience And Recovery Research Unit, based in Afghanistan, Kabul

BACKGROUND ON IMPACT AND REACH

REACH was born in 2010 as a joint initiative of two International NGOs (IMPACT Initiatives and ACTED) and the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) Operational Satellite Applications Programme (UNOSAT). REACH’s purpose is to promote and facilitate the development of information products that enhance the humanitarian community’s decision making and planning capacity for emergency, reconstruction and development contexts, supporting and working within the framework of the humanitarian reform process. REACH facilitates information management for aid actors through three complementary services: (a) need and situation assessments facilitated by REACH teams; (b) situation analysis using satellite imagery; (c) provision of related database and (web)-mapping facilities and expertise.

IMPACT Initiatives is a humanitarian NGO, based in Geneva, Switzerland. The organisation manages several initiatives, including the REACH Initiative. The IMPACT team comprises specialists in data collection, management and analysis, GIS and remote sensing. IMPACT was launched at the initiative of ACTED, an international NGO with headquarters based in Paris and presence in thirty countries. The two organizations have a strong complementarity formalized in a global partnership, which allows IMPACT to benefit from ACTED’s operational support in its fields of intervention.

COUNTRY PROFILE

IMPACT has been active in Afghanistan since 2016, launching its flagship REACH and AGORA initiatives in 2018. Working across all 34 provinces, including hard-to-reach areas, the Afghanistan team’s research supports and facilitates emergency response efforts immediately following conflict or natural disaster as well as more long-term oriented resilience and recovery activities. IMPACT Afghanistan has three research portfolios that focus on programming in each of these areas: one portfolio focuses on inter-sectoral research that feeds directly into emergency humanitarian response, the second works closely with partners and coordinating bodies to improve and increase the sustainability of programs, and the third uses area-based assessments to support longer-term durable solutions in Afghanistan. This third portfolio sits under the Resilience and Recovery Research Unit (RRRU).

While the more emergency priorities of saving lives and relieving acute suffering remains a top priority at the time of any major crisis, many of the emergency needs in Afghanistan are the result of longer-term vulnerabilities and lack of resilience. As a result, development, early recovery, and resiliency programming remain a critical focus of the Resilience and Recovery Unit, which uses Area-based programming to improve emergency, development and early recovery programming aimed at strengthening local community governance and accountability, socio-economic outcomes, provision and satisfaction of public services, and overall community cohesion and peacebuilding. The RRRU maintains three separate research cycles: 1) Informing an Area-Based Response (ABR) for Informal Settlements in four major Urban Centres in West, North, and East Afghanistan; 2) AGORA profiling of Rural Communities to inform a multi-year community-led development programme to improve livelihoods in four Northern Provinces of Afghanistan; 3) Profiling of Priority Areas of Return and Reintegration (PARR) to inform a multi-year support the integration of communities with refugee-returns.

We are currently looking for a Research Manager to lead our Resilience and Recovery Research Unit in Afghanistan.

POSITION PROFILE

The Research Manager will be responsible for overseeing the development and strategy of the Resilience and Recovery Research Unit, under the supervision of the IMPACT Deputy Country Coordinator, the IMPACT Country Coordinator, and IMPACT HQ in Geneva. The candidate should be comfortable representing IMPACT with donors and be able to coordinate and liaise with a range of senior external partners.

The role of the Research Manager is to drive the strategy and workstreams of the RRRU at a moment in Afghanistan where it is critical that conversations around recovery continue to move forward. This position requires a profile that can be both analytical and strategic, as the Research Manager’s job on a daily basis can range from coordinating with external partners (whether data actor, humanitarian cluster, or donor) to analytical oversight of research products to logistics.

The Research Manager responsibilities include:

Staff Management

• Direct management of international and senior national team members, including recruitment, conduct of appraisals, as well as staff career management;
• Development and implementation of capacity training plans for team members;
• Day-to-day management of team members, including the development of work plans and performance indicators.

Project/Research Cycle Management

• Ensure all RRRU assessments and analysis are planned and implemented in a structured and coherent manner, in line with relevant project and strategic objectives, and with global REACH guidelines;
• Oversee all RRRU Research Cycles, including reviewing ToRs, methodology notes, tools, products and dissemination strategies.
• Ensure the writing and production of timely, accurate and analytically rigorous reports, assessments, and factsheets;
• Ensure relevant stakeholders and partners are engaged in assessment design and planning;
• Monitor output achievement, project expenditure and ensure timely completion of the project.
• Actively advocate for the improving of analysis within REACH products, and using common methodologies, tools and analysis frameworks across units where relevant

Grants Management

• Under the guidance of the (Deputy) Country Coordinator, manage grants in the RRRU, including initial discussions with donors, conceptualisation of new projects, drafting proposals, regular reporting, and M&E;
• Under the guidance of the (Deputy) Country Coordinator, oversee the financial management of all grants covering RRRU projects, including oversight of budget and expenditure;
• Ensure that contractual obligations are met in terms of programs deliverables.

External Engagement

• In coordination with the Country Coordinator and SMT, represent REACH with donors, partners, and the wider humanitarian aid community in Afghanistan.
• As a member of the CCCM Working Group, provide support to the Working Group in developing CCCM policy towards ISETs, particularly around the inclusion of Area-Based Approaches.

Strategy Development and Implementation

• Under the guidance of the (Deputy) Country Coordinator, develop the RRRU’s strategy, engagement and involvement with various technical and coordination forums;
• Work with key clusters and partner organizations and working groups to understand the various relevant information gaps within Afghanistan and identify how the RRRU and ABAs more generally can fill these gaps;
• As a member of the Senior Management Team (SMT), contribute to the development and implementation of the REACH Afghanistan country strategy;
• Develop and implement dissemination strategies to strengthen the impact of the RRRU programmes;
• Engagement with HQ on RRRU research and/or coordination.
• Provide contextual and technical support and guidance for assessment teams across all units in the mission relating to area-based assessments, particularly on their application for local coordination mechanisms, area-based responses, and CCCM policy towards informal settlements.

The Research Manager will maintain the strictest confidentiality on all data collected and related processes. He/she will actively take measures to prevent the unauthorized sharing of any information and data belonging to IMPACT and its partners, or collected during his/her assignment with IMPACT.

REQUIREMENTS

• Excellent academic qualifications, including a master’s degree in a relevant discipline;
• At least 4 years of relevant working experience in a humanitarian setting, such as program management, evaluation and assessments;
• Excellent quantitative and qualitative research design, data collection, and data analysis experience required;
• Demonstrated team management skills, including remote management;
• Excellent communication and drafting skills for effective reporting and reviewing;
• Prior experience with humanitarian coordination forums with relevance towards Area-Based Responses, such as the CCCM and Shelter Clusters preferred;
• Prior experience with Area-based Responses, Local coordination mechanisms, or Area-based Assessments is preferred;
• Prior knowledge of the region an asset;
• Ability to operate in a cross-cultural environment requiring flexibility and work independently;
• Ability to operate Microsoft Word, Excel required;
• Ability to operate Adobe Suite preferred;
• Skills in SPSS, R or related statistical software are considered an asset;
• Fluency in English required.

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS

• Salary between 3’000 EUR and 3’200 EUR monthly (before income tax), depending on the level of education, security level, etc as well as a monthly living allowance of $300
• Accommodation and food provided in ACTED guesthouse
• Pension, health insurance, life insurance and repatriation assistance (& unemployment insurance for EU citizens)
• Flight tickets every 6 months & visa fees covered
• R&R after 2 months in country (flight ticket up to 500$ + 200$ of living allowance)
• Contribution to the luggage transportation: between 23kg and 100kg, depending on the length of the contract
• Annual leave of 36 days per year
• Predeparture induction – 3 days at IMPACT Initiatives’s HQ in Geneva + one week pre-departure training in ACTED HQ in Paris, including a 4-days in situ security training Tax advice (free 30-minute call with a tax consultant)
• IMPACT and ACTED prioritize the psychological safety of its staff and the health insurance provided covers, among others, up to 1000 € per year of psychosocial counselling fees