PANDA Associate Research Manager for Sudan, based in Kampala, Uganda

IMPACT Initiatives is a humanitarian NGO, based in Geneva, Switzerland. The organisation manages several initiatives, including the PANDA Initiative. The IMPACT team comprises specialists in data collection, management and analysis and GIS. IMPACT operates through three Initiatives: REACH, PANDA, and AGORA. This recruitment opportunity pertains to the PANDA Initiative.

PANDA is IMPACT’s lever on humanitarian aid responses which focuses on improving outcomes for beneficiaries through direct engagement with partners and their activities. Where REACH works through soft power and partnerships to affect systemic change, PANDA is direct action that allows us to ensure that the system and its participants are trustworthy and delivering the most effective, efficient and equitable response possible. PANDA is praxis – it is how IMPACT manifests our vision of acting as a catalyst of change within the aid community to work through focused or multidimensional analysis of projects, programmes and policies to identify their results, strengths and weaknesses, and how they can be improved, then proposes or implements a concrete plan for improvement.

We are currently looking for An Associate Research Manager to support our team in Sudan.

Department : PANDA

Position: Associate Research Manager

Contract duration: 12 months

Location: Kampala, Uganda

Starting Date: ASAP

COUNTRY PROFILE

Clashes between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) erupted in Khartoum on 15 April 2023 and spread quickly across the country. Civilians have fled areas affected by fighting in large numbers, including to Chad, Egypt and South Sudan. Prices of food, fuel and other basic goods have skyrocketed skyrocketing, making critical goods unaffordable for many people. Half of Sudan’s population are in need of humanitarian assistance, and the country is on the verge of a catastrophic hunger crisis. Humanitarian organizations are racing to respond to the most pressing needs wherever and whenever feasible, with access issues complicating the ability of actors to respond. In this fast-evolving context, IMPACT is working to inform the emergency response to enable effective prioritization with scarce resources.

The Sudan team consists of three Units: the Humanitarian Planning and Prioritization Unit, the Markets and Services Unit, and the PANDA Unit. Through these units, IMPACT Sudan implements a range of critical research cycles to inform humanitarian partners working in Sudan and on the regional refugee crisis in South Sudan and Chad; rapid needs assessments in hard-to-reach areas, cross-border assessments, support to the Cash Consortium of Sudan (CCS), support to the country-wide Multi-Sectoral Needs Assessment (MSNA), assessments of cash and markets functionality and item availability, humanitarian needs in camps, and flood susceptibility and climatic impacts. Via this suite of assessments, IMPACT support OCHA to ensure robust analysis for the centralized Humanitarian Programme Cycle, provides assessment and analysis support to the whole system, contributes to ensuring strong analysis via the IPC, and provides evidence to build a common narrative around needs in the country for a range of partners and donors.

PROJECT PROFILE

The position is recruited to lead the missions PANDA Unit, which currently consists of two projects: a regional third-party monitoring of partners of Global Affairs Canada (GAC), and research support to the Cash Consortium of Sudan (CCS). The first project explores GAC’s regional funding to the Sudan crisis emergency response, trialing innovative methods for monitoring and evaluation in emergency responses by working with partners to provide technical guidance and expertise on addressing gaps in existing systems. This covers programmes in Sudan, South Sudan and Chad and requires coordination and engagement with a wide range of actors. The second project provides research and learning support to a 6 million USD cash project covering the worst conflict-affected areas, as well as displacement hot spots, with a focus on hotspot areas with IPC Phase 4, namely Khartoum, Central, West and South Darfur, and North and South Kordofan.

FUNCTIONS

Under the management of the Country Representative, the PANDA Associate Research Manager oversees the research activities and staff of the PANDA Unit. The Associate Research Manager oversees and executes all research activities within the above-mentioned Project, meeting quarterly deliverables in a timely fashion while ensuring that the quality of research remains high. They will also liaise extensively with donors, counterparts from GAC’s Implementing Partners, and members of the CCS.

RESPONSIBILITIES

The PANDA Associate Research Manager’s responsibilities include the following:

STRATEGY DEVELOPMENT & IMPLEMENTATION

· Ensure the PANDA Unit has an up to date understanding of the country’s socio-economic situation, the impact of a crisis and the aid/humanitarian situation, as well as humanitarian planning, coordination, response mechanism developments, and key humanitarian stakeholders.

· For all PANDA projects, develop and oversee the implementation of project strategy. Specifically, set out the project’s overall strategy, develop concomitant workplans for each staff member, and put in place structures to ensure each staff has clarity as to how to work towards the common goal of completing deliverables in a timely manner and at a high standard.

· In conjunction with the Country Representative and in close coordination with the Global PANDA Lead at HQ, develop and oversee the implementation of a PANDA strategy for the Sudan mission. Support the Country Representative and the Projects and Funding Officer to make decisions about additional projects to bid on, and lead on drafting the technical part of any submissions.

RESEARCH PLANNING:

· Ensure that all PANDA research is planned in line with the relevant project and programme objectives, as well as the Unit and Country Strategy. This includes ensuring that:

o All research complies with IMPACT’s HQ Research Department guidelines and standards.

o All necessary Secondary Data Reviews are conducted and integrated into the research.

o Research ToRs are validated by HQ prior to the commencement of data collection.

o Research ToRs are understood by the team and updated accordingly.

· Keep track of progress and delays of all assigned assessments throughout the research cycle.

· Where necessary, proactively support the team by conducting research (research design. ToRs, tool building, data management, data analysis, product drafting).

· Conduct dissemination and stakeholder meetings with donors, GAC, Implementing Partners and CCS partners.

RESEARCH IMPLEMENTATION

· Supervise, and where necessary directly support, analyses of the collected data, as stipulated in the Research ToRs.

· Supervise, and where necessary directly support, staff with drafting of information products.

· Ensure that all collected data is stored in line with IMPACT’s Data Management Guidelines, as well as with the data management plan Annex in the Research ToR.

· Ensure that data is revised and cleaned, with all revisions recorded as per IMPACT data management guidelines.

· Ensure that data and its analysis do not contain personal information and are validated by IMPACT HQ, before sharing to external parties.

· Review all products before they are sent to the CC or IMPACT HQ for validation.

· Ensure that all written products are validated by IMPACT HQ before release.

TEAM MANAGEMENT AND LEADERSHIP

· Ensure that all staff members within the PANDA Unit understand their responsibilities and are able to perform their role effectively.

· Ensure that all staff members have clear and regularly updated ToRs, Workplans, and Key performance Indicators (KPIs) against which their performance will be appraised.

· Promote team building, productivity, and staff welfare.

· Mentor and support staff in the PANDA Unit to build capacities, improve efficiency and performance.

· Promote the growth and development of staff within the organisation, actively linking with HQ to provide feedback and support retention and internal mobility. Identify capacity building opportunities for growth, proactively provide high-performing staff with opportunities to surge (a short-term deployment to another mission) and develop pathways for junior staff to grow and move into management or specialist positions.

· Ensure communication and linkages with HQ are made immediately in case of the occurrence of an HR-related problem.

INFLUENCING – EXTERNAL ENGAGEMENT

· With the support from the Country Representative, on a quarterly basis, engage with GAC, Implementing Partners and CCS partners to share findings and hold analysis and lessons learned workshops.

· Under the supervision of the Country Representative, and where necessary, engage with the humanitarian response beyond the remit of the PANDA projects.

· In conjunction with GAC, Implementing Partners and CCS partners, support the CC in the dissemination of selected research with key stakeholders and coordination forums.

REQUIREMENTS

· Academic Excellent academic qualifications, including a master’s degree in a relevant discipline (International Relations, Political Sciences, Social Research, Economics, Development Studies, or similar)

· Management experience Previous experience in a management role in an INGO at field level. Proven track record in successful management of international and national teams in humanitarian contexts, with a particular focus on conducting TPM or other M&E style work

· Familiarity aid system Familiarity with the aid system, and the research community.

· Communication/reporting skills Excellent communication and drafting skills for effective reporting, including proven experience in contributing to high level presentations/briefings.

· Years of work experience At least 3 years of relevant working experience

· Research skills: Excellent research and analytical skills an asset. Experience in assessments. M&E, field research, evaluations is an asset.

· Software skills: Proven knowledge of the Microsoft Office Suite, to include Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Familiarity with R, SPSS and/or STATA or other statistical analysis software an asset.

· Multi-tasking skills Ability to multitask with tight deadlines, on numerous research cycles in complex environment.

· Level of independence A self-starter with a proven ability to work independently.

· Cross-cultural work environment Ability to operate in a cross-cultural environment requiring flexibility.

· Experience in geographical region Past experience in the [relevant] region is desirable.

· Language skills Fluency in English required. Fluency in French is an asset.

· Security environment Ability to operate in a complex and challenging security environment.

CONDITIONS

· For this position, salary between 2’800 CHF and 3’000 CHF monthly (before income tax), etc as well as a monthly living allowance of 300 USD NB – IMPACT salaries are strictly determined by our salary grid depending on the grade of the position and the level of education of staff. A location-dependent security and/or isolation adjustment is then applied as a recognition that some staff are required to work in difficult places where living and working conditions are much more difficult than elsewhere.

· Accommodation provided in organization guesthouses.

· Enrolment in Swiss private pension fund (Swisslife – approx. 9.975% of staff gross salary), health insurance, life insurance and repatriation assistance.

· Flight tickets every 6 months & visa fees covered (in-country travel costs and professional expenses are fully covered).

· Contribution to the luggage transportation: between 20 and 100 kgs, depending on the length of the contract (+ luggage and personal property insurance)

· Annual leave of 36 days per year. Public holidays of the country of assignment. Family/compassionate leave when applicable.

· Predeparture induction – 3 days at IMPACT Initiatives’ HQ in Geneva + one week pre-departure training in ACTED HQ in Paris, including a 4-days in situ security training;

· IMPACT prioritizes the psychological safety of its staff and the health insurance provided covers, among other things, up to 1000 € per year of psychosocial counselling

Please apply at the following link: PANDA Associate Research Manager for Sudan, based in Kampala, Uganda Impact (impact-initiatives.org)