IMPACT INITIATIVES
IMPACT Initiatives is a humanitarian NGO based in Geneva, Switzerland. The organization manages several initiatives, REACH, AGORA and PANDA. The IMPACT team is composed of specialists in data collection, management and analysis and GIS. IMPACT is a sister organization of ACTED, an international NGO headquartered in Paris and present in about thirty countries. The two organizations have a strong complementarity formalized in a global partnership, allowing IMPACT to benefit from ACTED’s operational support in its areas of intervention.
We are currently looking for a research manager to supervise our Public Health Unit in the DRC.
Department : Public Health Unit
Title: Research Manager, Public Health Unit
Contract duration : 12 months
Work location : Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo
Contract start date : December 2024
COUNTRY PROFILE
Since 2016, IMPACT, – currently present in Kinshasa, Goma, Bukavu and Kalemie – provides through its three initiatives REACH, AGORA and PANDA rapid and in-depth assessments, information management and mapping services to inform humanitarian planning and action in the DRC. All publicly available information products produced by the mission in the DRC are accessible on the REACH resource center .
The DRC continues to face an acute and complex humanitarian crisis. Recurrent conflicts in the eastern provinces of the country, health shocks and natural disasters, and chronic poverty affecting a large part of the population are all reasons for the high level of humanitarian needs. According to the 2023 Humanitarian Needs Overview, 26.4 million people (including 5.7 million internally displaced persons) in the DRC are in need of humanitarian assistance.
PROJECTS
Founded in 2023, the Public Health Unit brings together several types of research and evaluation projects. As part of one of the three strategic axes of the IMPACT mission in the DRC, the work of the Public Health Unit aims to promote a detailed understanding of public health challenges and contribute to providing a response to both emergency situations and structural problems through lasting institutional partnerships. The Public Health Unit teams conduct technical assessments in the areas of food security, nutrition, WASH, health and sexual and reproductive health.
In 2024/2025, the unit plans activities of two main types: 1) short evaluations on the themes of nutrition, WASH, and integrated public health analyses, and 2) Third Party Monitoring evaluations on behalf of FCDO to monitor projects related to sexual and reproductive health, nutrition, and health. The first component mainly aims to inform response actors on the needs of the population, while the second component aims to improve the quality of the response.
JOB PROFILE
Under the supervision of the Deputy Country Coordinator, the Research Manager of the Public Health Unit will be responsible for the implementation of the unit’s programs, as well as the HR management of the unit members under his/her responsibility. In addition, the Research Manager will participate in the development of the research unit’s strategy, and will therefore take full part in the Senior Management Team (SMT) of the IMPACT DRC mission. The ideal candidate will be eager to work in a dynamic organization, with the opportunity to develop skills in data analysis and external coordination. Strategic and technical support will be provided by the IMPACT Country Representative, the Deputy Country Coordinator and the IMPACT team at headquarters in Geneva.
FUNCTIONS
The research manager will be assigned the following tasks:
Management of research cycles of the Public Health unit
Planning and preparing for assessments:
· Ensure that all planned evaluations are done in line with programmatic objectives and following IMPACT guidelines for research cycle development;
· Ensure that secondary data analysis is carried out in preparation for evaluations;
· For each evaluation, review the research terms of reference (ToRs) before sending them to Geneva for validation, and ensure that these ToRs are validated by headquarters before the start of data collection;
· Ensure that the ToRs are understood and used by the evaluation teams and relevant partners, and updated as necessary; ensure that qualitative or quantitative data collection tools are developed in close collaboration with the GIS and database teams; and ensure that these GIS and database teams are involved in the evaluations;
· Monitor progress and timelines of assessments as assessments progress. Ensure that identified timelines and challenges are duly addressed.
· Ensure that all relevant partners are involved in the development of research cycles.
Data collection and management
· Ensure the implementation of training for data collection;
· Supervise data collection exercises, ensuring proper implementation of ToRs, any necessary SOPs and humanitarian and do no harm principles;
· Ensure that the Country Representative and Deputy Country Coordinator are alerted of any issues preventing the proper conduct of data collection and methodologies in line with the ToRs; ensure that methodological adjustments are duly documented;
· Ensure the proper implementation of logistics, finance, administrative, security and HR processes directly linked to IMPACT and in collaboration with ACTED support departments;
· Ensure that regular updates on data collections are circulated to relevant internal focal points and external stakeholders. Provide support and follow-up on challenges identified during collections;
· Ensure that all collected data is stored in line with the IMPACT Data Management Guidelines, and in line with the ToRs. Ensure the proper data review and cleaning process. Supervise the data analysis process in line with the ToRs, following relevant and methodologically accurate techniques.
Writing outputs
· Maintain regular communication with IMPACT Headquarters on progress and deadlines for activity outputs;
· Ensure the production of evaluation outputs that are fair and within the time limits initially allocated within the ToRs, and that comply with IMPACT guidelines and quality standards;
· Review and revise outputs before sending to IMPACT headquarters for final validation;
· Ensure that all outputs produced are validated by IMPACT Headquarters before external dissemination; or in specific cases, ensure that a temporary green light has been received for restricted internal dissemination.
Dissemination of outputs and internal evaluation
· Under the supervision of the Deputy Country Coordinator, be involved in the dissemination of research outputs, through articles, IMPACT social media content, email campaigns, presentations, meetings, etc. in line with the ToRs and IMPACT dissemination and external communication guidelines;
· Under the supervision of IMPACT Headquarters, ensure that research outputs are published on all relevant online platforms, as specified in the ToRs;
· Ensure that lessons learned for each research cycle are collected and duly documented;
· Support the Deputy Country Coordinator and the Country Representative for the implementation of internal monitoring & evaluation exercises as specified in the ToRs and in line with the IMPACT guidelines.
HR management of the Public Health unit team
· Hold regular meetings with the Public Health Unit teams to check the progress made for each research cycle and to review schedules;
· Bilateral HR management of the two assessment officers within the unit and indirect management of the teams of field officers managed by the assessment officers,
· Conducting capacity development initiatives and performance evaluations to participate in the career management of these staff;
· In coordination with senior management, conduct inductions for new team members; including training to ensure technical skills in research cycle development, and their implementation and analysis;
· Support senior management in the development and implementation of training plans for members of the multi-sector unit, and members of the IMPACT team in general, in the capital and in the field;
· Where relevant, take part with senior management in the recruitment process of international staff.
External relations
· In coordination with senior management, ensure that all relevant partners are consulted and included in all stages of the research cycles: cycle development, data collection, joint data analyses, output review if planned, output dissemination, and discussions on lessons learned; ensure that this involvement of partners is documented;
· In coordination with senior management, present the results of the research cycles to partners and external stakeholders, to ensure the use and impact of these activities;
· Ensure positive, coherent and strategic communication with key partners and stakeholders, including national and international NGOs, civil society organizations, UN agencies, national agencies, local and national authorities, etc.; and that this communication is duly documented;
· In coordination with senior management, represent IMPACT in strategic and/or technical external engagements related to public health unit projects;
· Support senior management in external engagements related to project development efforts, and in the management of ongoing grants.
Others
· In support of senior management, actively contribute to the development and implementation of the REACH strategy in the DRC;
· Support senior management in the production of interim and/or final narrative and/or financial reports on projects;
· Maintain an overview of budgetary availability for the activities of the Public Health Unit; and participate in the monthly financial monitoring of the above-mentioned projects;
· Other duties as requested and jointly discussed with superiors.
CONFIDENTIALITE
The research manager will be expected to maintain the highest level of confidentiality of data collected in the field and ensure adherence to global personal data protection processes. He or she will ensure that mechanisms are implemented to prevent unauthorized sharing of information collected during his or her mission in collaboration with the data management team at headquarters.
ACCOUNTABILITY TO COMMUNITIES AND BENEFICIARIES
The Research Manager, like any other IMPACT staff member, is responsible for ensuring that relationships with the communities in which IMPACT and its partners work are conducted in a respectful and consultative manner. Particular attention must be paid to ensuring that communities are properly consulted and informed about the objectives, activities, and methodologies of IMPACT projects.
Profile
· Excellent academic qualifications, Master’s level in Public Health, Nutrition, International Relations, Statistics or other relevant subjects;
· At least 3 to 4 years of relevant professional experience in the humanitarian or development sector in research, information management or monitoring and evaluation;
· Experience with SECAL research, nutrition, WASH, and/or SSR, SMART certification a strong asset;
· Previous experience in team management, with required coordination, organisation and planning skills, including ability to manage a large workload, supervise teams in other regions;
· Experience working on multi-stakeholder projects, with a high external engagement component;
· Experience in managing evaluations in crisis contexts and field experience in countries affected by crises;
· Perfect command of French, English a strong asset, knowledge of a local language in the DRC, particularly Swahili, will also be an asset;
· Mastery of statistical analysis tools such as R, SPSS, STATA, ENA or GIS and graphics software such as InDesign will be a strong asset;
· Ability to work on multiple tasks with tight deadlines and meet deadlines effectively, with excellent multi-tasking and prioritization skills;
· Ability to take ownership of assigned tasks and demonstrate a dynamic team spirit;
· Flexibility in terms of role and nature of work which can evolve depending on the context;
· Ability to operate in a multicultural environment;
· Positive attitude and ability to contribute to a positive image and overall credibility of the organization.
COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS
- For this position, the salary is between CHF 3,000 and CHF 3,240 per month (before income tax), etc. plus a monthly living allowance of USD 300.
o NB – IMPACT salaries are strictly determined by our salary scale based on the grade of the position and the education level of the staff. A location-dependent security and/or isolation adjustment is then applied to account for the fact that some staff members must work in difficult locations where living and working conditions are much more difficult than elsewhere.
- Accommodation and food in a guesthouse. NB – IMPACT is hosted by ACTED in this country.
- Membership in a Swiss private pension fund (Swisslife – approximately 9.975% of staff gross salary), health insurance, life insurance and repatriation assistance
- This base is not a family duty station
- Airfare every 6 months and visa fees covered (in-country travel and business expenses are fully covered)
- R&R after 2-3 months (airfare up to $500 + $200 living allowance) if duty station allows
- Contribution to baggage transport: between 20 and 100 kg, depending on the duration of the contract (+ baggage and personal property insurance)
- Annual leave of 36 days per year. Public holidays of the country of assignment. Leave for family or compassionate reasons, if applicable.
- Pre-departure initiation – 3 days at IMPACT Initiatives headquarters in Geneva + one week of pre-departure training at ACTED headquarters in Paris, including a 4-day on-site security training;
- Enrollment in the IMPACT Initiatives Research Foundational Learning Programme within the first 3 months of contract start.
- IMPACT prioritizes the psychological safety of its staff and the health insurance provided covers, among other things, up to €1,000 per year in psychosocial counseling costs.
