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Research Specialist - Needs Framework Humanitarian Planning and Prioritisation Unit

    Description

    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 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. 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 and GIS.  IMPACT was launched at the initiative of ACTED, an international NGO whose headquarter is based in Paris and is present in thirty countries. The two organizations have a strong complementarity formalized in a global partnership, enabling IMPACT to benefit from ACTED’s operational support on its fields of intervention.

     

    We are currently looking for a Research Specialist to join the Global Humanitarian Planning and Prioritization Unit in HQ.

    Title:                                   Research Specialist (RS)

    Location:                             Geneva with potential for travel (up to 20% field deployment)

    Contract duration:       6 months, with a possibility of extension dependent on funding

    Start date:                    February 2025

     

    POSITION PROFILE

    With the financial support from global donors – including SIDA, GAC and USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA) – and co-funding from other country-based donors, IMPACT has in the past years developed important workstreams supporting the objective of strengthening needs-based assistance, including but not limited to multisector needs assessments (MSNA), humanitarian situation monitoring (HSM), public health and other sectoral assessments. Gradually, through internal strategic development and through supporting existing global prioritization systems, the necessity to work on clarifying conceptual definitions and standardizing measurements with the view of sharing clear key messages to decision-makers progressed within IMPACT and specifically the global programmes department into an actual willingness to define a clear normative framework of needs for the organisation. This workstream was initiated as part of a global grant supporting the humanitarian prioritization and planning unit to ensure this was piloted primarily through MSNAs, which is why this proposed position is attached to it for more programmatic and structural coherence.

    Under the admin supervision of the Global Humanitarian Planning and Prioritization Unit (HPPU) manager and the programmatic supervision of the Global Programmes Coordinator for Needs-Based Assistance, the RS will be responsible for supporting the conceptual development of the needs framework; supporting the overall consultation and R&D processes, and for overseeing specific piloting and testing to be determined through the first conceptual outputs. The candidate should be comfortable representing IMPACT with key decision-makers and be able to coordinate and liaise with a range of senior external partners.

    Mission

    FUNCTIONS AND RESPONSIBILITIES

    The Needs Framework RS will support the below core areas of work:

    This position will support on a dynamic yet conceptual workstream working with processes and outputs that are often under development, meaning that the specific workstreams will likely evolve. The RS will play an active role in shifting the future direction of the work.

    Supporting on Needs Framework SDR (framing) and process for consultation (35%)

    • Support SDR around different concepts and dimensions of humanitarian needs and needs vs analytical frameworks

    • Support the development of the overall process for consultation within HQ global programmes, HQ more largely, country teams, external stakeholders and communities & participate in early consultations; Support early consultations with external stakeholders under the form of a workshop or high level roundtable

    • Support summarizing findings from the SDR and from early external consultations into a brief/initial position paper

    Conducting R&D and global/field testing and piloting (50%)     

    • Identify within GP the necessary R&D workstreams to be conducted around the development of the needs framework around the different dimensions of needs to be explored, likely but not decidedly around 1) acute needs / excess mortality; 2) poverty & capabilities; 3) dignity and rights

    • Develop a clear roadmap with milestones for R&D work and deliverables from mid-2025 to end 2026

    • Directly take part in specific analytical R&D that will be identified as priority and most relevant through HQ work as well as country visit where and when relevant to support contextualization and direct local consultations, with an assumption that the R&D workstream directly involved in may be in particular around the poverty/capabilities and/or dignity/rights pieces where less exploration from other HQ teams have happened so far

    Linking Needs Framework reflections in HPPU R&D and MSNI adaptation (15%)

    • Support the early integration of conceptual “interim thinking” into existing HPPU processes such as MSNI/cross-crisis workstreams

    • Input on the development of technical terms of reference for the MSNI testing/quality assurance

    Other tasks will consist in supporting ongoing work on:

    Strategy development and implementation

    • Ensure that the work done around the Needs Framework development is designed around the organisational strategy workplan and implementation; and will guide the development of the NBA portfolio vision

    Grants management and fundraising

    • Support in defining the use of available resources to develop the Needs Framework on existing grants (global BHA, global Sida)

    • Support in identifying new fundraising opportunities and feeding into concept notes and proposals

    External engagement

    • Support the logistical and content organisation of external events for consultations, high level discussions, etc.

    Profil

    REQUIREMENTS

    • Excellent academic qualifications, including Master’s degree in a relevant discipline (e.g. development, humanitarian studies, international relations, research methods, social sciences)

    • At least 4 years of experience in the humanitarian sector and/or social sciences, including at least one year in field-based roles in fragile or development contexts

    • Experience with engaging in in-depth conceptual secondary literature review and deriving key priorities for further R&D and positioning based on it

    • Experience in designing and implementing primary research, in particular large-scale quantitative surveys and/or humanitarian needs assessments preferable

    • Experience engaging with data specialists and overseeing projects with a large research component

    • Excellent communication and drafting skills for effective reporting

    • Strong interpersonal skills, including good external engagement and coordination skills

    • Familiarity with the humanitarian system and global humanitarian policy frameworks

    • Willingness to engage in short term field deployments, including to complex and challenging security environments

    • Ability to operate in a cross-cultural environment requiring flexibility

    • A self-starter with proven ability to work independently

    • Fluency in English required; proficiency in French or a second relevant language an asset

    • Prior experience leading the design or implementation of MSNAs an asset

    • Ability to operate R, or a related statistical programming a strong asset

    COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS

    • For this position, gross salary between 6’100 CHF and 6’330 CHF monthly (before income tax). NB - IMPACT salaries are strictly determined by our salary grid depending on the grade of the position and the level of education and experience of staff. A contribution to medical insurance of 520 CHF per month is already included in the salary figure.

    • Insurance covering professional and non-professional accidents throughout the period of employment with IMPACT

    • Health insurance, life insurance and repatriation assistance in case of field visits/temporary deployments

    • Enrolment in IMPACT Initiatives Research Foundational Learning Programme within the first 3 months from the start of contract.

    • Applicants must hold a valid work permit for Switzerland or be EU/EFTA citizens

    • Up to 40% of remote work on a weekly basis