Associate & Senior Associate

About the Associate & Senior Associate role

IDinsight Associates and Senior Associates are high-performing early-career professionals passionate to experience the front-line realities of evidence-informed decision-making. These roles provide a rich, varied experience with responsibilities ranging from in-depth research and analysis, data collection management, client interactions, and internal team building. We seek intellectually curious, resilient, and team-oriented individuals who – in addition to developing professional and technical skills – are highly motivated to grapple with the difficulties and unpredictability of trying to improve lives at scale.

Associates and Senior Associates are responsible for the following areas of work:

Managing project team workflow, systems, deliverables

• Driving the day-to-day execution of the project work according to project plans and leading internal coordination efforts for their team
• Conducting and supporting fit-for-decision and right-fit research design, data collection or acquisition, technical analysis, and results visualization/packaging, etc. for project tasks
• Creating client deliverables, including reports, slide decks, and oral presentations to inform decisions and actions of clients
• Developing strategic communications to build awareness of IDinsight projects and learnings, contribute to sectoral knowledge, and shift the sector towards more evidence-informed policy and practices

Supporting their team in developing strong client relationships

• Engaging with client and stakeholder relationships
• Contributing to client development, including developing proposals and concept notes

Leading data collection activities

• Overseeing all data collection activities to ensure quality, including managing data collection teams
• Traveling to project sites, IDinsight offices, embedded client locations, and other areas as per project needs

Contributing to internal team building

• Developing, piloting, and implementing internal systems or other organizational contributions (e.g., event management) for IDinsight, in coordination with functional teams such as Operations, Communications, Finance, etc.
• Contributing to office life and culture building, such as facilitating All Hands Meetings; leading team building efforts at team retreats; participating in Social Cultural Committee events; and engaging with the DEI Working Group.

Examples of recent Associate and Senior Associate work streams include:

• Embedding in several African and Indian governments to support evidence-based decision-making capabilities
• Supporting household registration and post-distribution monitoring for the government's COVID-19 Urban Cash Intervention response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Malawi
• Conducting remote, qualitative data collection to understand drivers and barriers to vaccine demand, and uncover possible approaches to better reach poor, rural adults with the Philippine Department of Health's Bureau of Health Promotion
• Utilizing visual storytelling to lead Theory of Change workshops for an NGO-led digital menstrual health program for Senegalese young women and girls
• Building a monitoring, evaluation, and learning system for Rockefeller Foundation's Power and Climate Initiative that will influence the direction of their global strategy
• Leading a multi-part process evaluation consisting of multiple rounds of phone surveys; qualitative interviews; analysis of administrative data; and an assessment of the quality of infrastructure for a government social protection program.
• Helping the Delhi Government collect high quality data on employment and unemployment in the city to estimate the impact of COVID-19 lockdowns on livelihoods of Delhi's residents through primary data collected from 9,900 households
• Leading a process evaluation to understand the implementation of digital cash transfers and inform scale-up plans with the United Nations Development Program and Pasig City Government (Philippines) as part of the city's COVID-19 economic relief package
• Supporting the creation of remote data collection infrastructure for IDinsight's Africa regional project teams when in-person data collection was not possible
• Participating in IDinsight's internal Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion working group on the Recruiting Committee, Careers & Promotions Committee, and/or the Work Culture Committee
• Analyzing data from IDinsight's recruitment processes for our Global Operations team

Qualifications

IDinsight Associates and Senior Associates come from a wide range of disciplinary backgrounds, including economics, data science, policy research, development projects, and more. Given that no Associate or Senior Associate comes in with the same exact background as another, we're typically looking for candidates with a broad range of qualifications and former experiences. Here are some examples of the key qualifications most successful candidates should possess:

Knowledge, skills, and abilities

• Strong analytical skills, with exposure to (either via professional work experience or academic coursework) the basics of econometrics, data and research analysis tools, and quantitative and qualitative research processes or an ability to quickly understand these topics
• Strong writing skills with the ability to translate technical jargon into well-structured, writing-based deliverables (e.g., policy briefs, project memos, analytical reports, external blog posts, and more)
• Ability to understand complex concepts and topics quickly even with limited prior knowledge or exposure and a willingness to invest in learning new concepts, skills, and methods without being prompted

Behaviors and mindsets

• Highly organized, attentive to deadlines, and able to manage a high volume of work with efficiency
• Excellent interpersonal skills, can effectively engage with stakeholders ranging from school children to senior government officials to internal colleagues, and places a high value on being a teamplayer
• Demonstrated ability to be a self-starter and fast learner; resourceful and resilient in the face of challenges
• Intellectually curious and a willingness to share your opinions with the team, question the status quo, and encourage others to expand their perspectives

Additional preferred qualifications

• Proficient in statistical analysis and data collection softwares, such as Stata, SPSS, R, SurveyCTO, and/or Open Data Kit
• Deeply passionate about combating poverty worldwide and improving lives in disadvantaged populations
• Willingness to travel for extended periods of time, where safety precautions and restrictions allow, including to remote and rural areas
• Fluency in the local language(s) of country placement

Candidates will be evaluated for an Associate vs. Senior Associate role based on their qualifications, previous experiences, and performance in the hiring processes. Additionally, candidates may be considered for other available roles based on experience and qualifications.

Nuts & bolts

Location

Associate positions will be based in IDinsight's Manila office with possible significant regional travel depending on project needs and organizational expansion.

Work authorization

IDinsight sponsors employment visas for all nationalities in these locations; however, we will prioritize candidates who do not require IDinsight to sponsor work authorization in the aforementioned countries. All candidates who are not currently located in our country offices listed above will be expected to relocate to their office locations at the onset of their employment.

Start dates

Start dates will be mutually agreed upon, taking into account both candidate preferences and project timelines.
This recruitment round is part of IDinsight's efforts to build a pipeline of strong candidates, in anticipation of upcoming projects. While we do not have fixed start dates at this time, we expect opportunities to arise throughout the year. Candidates may be invited to join IDinsight as early as immediately or later in the year, depending on project timing and organizational needs. We welcome applications from individuals excited to contribute to our work and who have some flexibility around when they can start.

Contract term

Candidates hired through this process will initially be offered a 6-month contract
. There is potential for extension or conversion to a permanent, full-time role, depending on performance and the availability of suitable project opportunities. We aim to retain high-performing team members where possible and encourage candidates open to both short-term and longer-term opportunities.

Compensation & benefits

Compensation and benefits are commensurate with the qualifications and experiences IDinsight is hiring for and are competitive within the global development sector. We are especially proud of the people-focused benefits we offer including comprehensive international health insurance, including mental health coverage; paid vacation, sick, and parental leave; relocation benefits; a travel stipend; technology and work-from-home stipends; a professional development budget; and more.

Please note, as a non-profit, we are unable to provide compensation similar to leading private sector organizations.