Program Associate, SIEL at Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA)

Position Summary

The Strategic Impact Evaluation and Learning (SIEL) program of the UK's Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) is a six-year learning partnership between FCDO’s Evaluation Unit, IPA, and the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL). SIEL aims to:

• Establish a robust evidence base to understand 'what works', including long-term impacts
• Enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of FCDO’s interventions and policies in strategic priority areas
• Equip FCDO staff with the necessary skills to deploy and leverage impact evaluations to optimize value for money.

Responsibilities
40%

• Support the coordination of SIEL’s research fund focusing on humanitarian assistance, conflict and fragility, growth, and climate and nature
• Coordinate the regular competitive funding process, including drafting the calls for proposals, communicating with FCDO and research teams, managing the proposal review process, and supervising the development of grant agreements
• Track the status of grants and projects in SIEL’s portfolio, through the detailed review of grant deliverables and regular communication with research teams
• Liaise internally with relevant IPA teams such as research support, programs, grants, legal, finance, and global operations
• Support grant reporting to donor
• Participate in the first review and filtering of research studies that will go onto the competitive fund review board

30%

Project development

• Support the Program Lead in project development activities, including but not limited to, conducting outreach and providing support to FCDO teams to develop proposals and coordinating matchmaking with researchers
• Liaise with FCDO teams, IPA and J-PAL Country Offices, external and internal researchers, and implementing organizations in order to support them in project development efforts

20%
Communications and policy outreach

• Support SIEL’s Research Uptake Lead and Program Lead in organizing and preparing materials for dissemination activities
• Support other dissemination activities as needed, such as keeping IPA’s website up to date with project summaries and planning and presenting at events
• Supporti SIEL’s Capacity Strengthening Lead in organizing and preparing materials for training sessions and other capacity strengthening activities

10%
General program administration

• Support financial monitoring and administration
• Contribute to the implementation of IPA’s diversity, equality, and inclusion strategy, including tracking SIEL’s progress against organizational metrics

Qualifications
Required

• Bachelor’s degree in economics, political science, public policy, or related fields
• At least 2 years of work experience in project and/or research management, research fund management, and/or research dissemination
• Demonstrated project management skills, including attention to operational and research detail, and ability to prioritize and manage multiple projects efficiently
• Excellent communication skills and the ability to communicate effectively and clearly with internal and external stakeholders using cogent, precise, non-technical language
• Ability to present information in a structured and insightful way, both in writing and orally
• Flexibility, self-motivation, willingness to learn, and a team-oriented attitude

Preferred

• Master’s degree in economics, political science, public policy, or related fields
• Knowledge of impact evaluation methodologies
• Knowledge of topics related to humanitarian assistance, climate and nature, growth, or conflict and fragility
• Experience writing evidence synthesis, research summaries, and policy briefs
• Proficiency in Excel and CRM software, like Salesforce