Senior Research Manager – J-PAL Africa (South Africa) – Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL)

Closing date 06 March 2023

J-PAL Africa, based at the University of Cape Town, leads J-PAL’s work in sub-Saharan Africa. J-PAL Africa conducts randomized evaluations, builds partnerships for evidence-informed policymaking, and helps partners scale up effective programs.

Our research team evaluates the impact of social programs and policies in South Africa, covering a wide range of sectors including labor markets, urban services, and political participation. Our policy team works with organizations and governments across Africa to build, pilot, and scale cost-effective interventions, including the Teaching at the Right Level approach to primary education. Our training team builds researcher capacity to conduct randomized evaluations and policymaker capacity to use evidence from randomized evaluations effectively.

Location:  South Africa
Start Date (Earliest): 1 April 2023
Start Date (Latest): 1 May 2023
Length of Commitment:  More than two years

*Additional information about this vacancy can be found on the University of Cape Town’s site (https://uct.ac.za/staff/general-vacancies) under the title “Senior Research Manager: J-PAL Africa”, the ad reads as follows:

J-PAL Africa seeks a Senior Research Manager to manage multiple research projects that test the impacts of a variety of social programmes in South Africa through randomised evaluations (also known as “randomized control trials”). This is an exciting opportunity to contribute to the generation of scientific evidence about what works in the fight against poverty. The Senior Research Manager will build the capacity of young, talented research staff, and will get hands-on experience with real-world policymakers and their programmes – all while working at the frontier of academic research.

The position holder should be a capable manager of field research projects, with excellent quantitative research and people management skills. The role involves managing the research staff who work on these studies, closely liaising with the academic researchers who design and lead the projects and ensuring that the projects are implemented with fidelity to the study design. A key component of the role involves ensuring rigorous data quality measures are in place, including high-frequency checks, back-checking, effective training and debriefs with field staff, and other measures as required. The role also involves building and maintaining strong relationships with project partners – often governments and large NGOs – and working with them to ensure study results inform their programmes and policies. The position will be based in the Johannesburg or Cape Town office of J-PAL Africa, the Africa regional office of J-PAL Global, which forms part of the Southern Africa Labour and Development Research Unit (SALDRU) in the University of Cape Town’s School of Economics. Travel to other locations in South Africa will be required for fieldwork supervision, partner management, and work with J-PAL staff or other colleagues.  The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) aims to reduce poverty by ensuring that policy is informed by scientific evidence. J-PAL consists of a global network of academics who specialise in conducting randomised evaluations of social policies/programmes to generate this evidence.

Requirements for the position:

• NQF9 qualification (i.e., Master’s equivalent) in Public Policy or Economics or another similar social science including graduate level (Honours and up) courses in econometrics/ statistics, microeconomics, or development economics.
• 3 years relevant work experience.
• Experience managing and conducting field research in developing countries.
• Demonstrated ability to conduct rigorous quantitative research.
• Experience in data cleaning and data analysis using Stata or R.
• Demonstrated project management experience, including people management, stakeholder management, and budget writing and management.
• Advanced writing and oral presentation skills in English, particularly the ability to communicate technical research considerations to policymakers in a non-technical manner.
• Familiarity with Microsoft and Google Suite, and data collection software like SurveyCTO and/or Qualtrics.
• Ability and willingness to learn new software/ programming technologies.
• Valid driver’s license.
• Ability to travel regularly within South Africa, and occasionally overseas.

Responsibilities include:

• Help set the vision and strategic direction for the research team.
• Project Management: Managing J-PAL Africa’s evaluations, including supervising several impact evaluations/research projects concurrently; planning with and responding to feedback from Principal
• Investigators in a timely manner; preparing budgets and financial reports for donors and project financial management; managing all the steps of the implementation of each impact evaluation, i.e. project management, sampling, intervention monitoring, data collection, data cleaning and analysis; and hiring, training and supervising the team working on each research project, including (Senior) Research
• Associates, and less directly, Interns, Project Associates and field enumerators, as appropriate.
• Project Development: Working with prospective partners and academics to craft and fundraise for project ideas.
• Relationship Management: Oversee communication and engagement with (potential) partner organizations and other stakeholders and funders
• Support as a trainer of capacity-building activities of J-PAL Africa: Workshops, seminars, Evaluating Social
• Programmes Executive Education courses, and staff training.
• The annual remuneration package, including benefits, is between ZAR711 889 and ZAR837 514 dependent on qualifications and experience.

How to Apply
To apply, please e-mail the below documents in a single pdf to Ms Abigail Dixon at recruitment03@uct.ac.za> and Ms Nidhi Parekh at <nparekh@povertyactionlab.org>.

UCT Application Form (download at http://forms.uct.ac.za/hr201.doc)

• A letter of motivation clearly addressing your qualifications for the various responsibilities listed above
• Curriculum Vitae (CV); and Transcripts of your grade 12 certificate and university degrees. Note this is required even though it is not called for in the HR201.
• Please ensure the title and reference number (E230121) are indicated in the subject line.

An application which does not comply with the above requirements will be regarded as incomplete and might not be considered. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and will be required to undergo competency assessments.

You should receive confirmation of receipt within 2 working days and if not, please email the above email addresses for confirmation.

Telephone: +27 21 650 1673

Website: https://www.povertyactionlab.org/africa

Reference number: E230121

Closing date: 06 March 2023

UCT is a designated employer and is committed to the pursuit of excellence, diversity, and redress in achieving its equity targets in accordance with the Employment Equity Plan of the University and its Employment Equity goals and targets.

Preference will be given to candidates from the under-represented designated groups. Our Employment Equity Policy is available at www.hr.uct.ac.za/hr/policies/employ_equity.

The University of Cape Town reserves the right not to appoint.