IMPACT INITIATIVES
IMPACT Initiatives is a humanitarian NGO based in Geneva, Switzerland, founded in 2010. It stands out as the largest independent provider of data in crisis contexts. The organization manages several initiatives, including REACH, PANDA and REACH, and is composed of specialists in data collection, management and analysis and GIS. IMPACT was launched at the initiative of Acted, an international NGO based in Paris, with which it maintains a global partnership. This partnership allows IMPACT to benefit from the operational support of Acted in its areas of intervention.
IMPACT’s mission is to support humanitarian, stabilization and development actors by providing evidence-based information to improve decision-making. The organization is present in 37 countries and has implemented 183 projects in 2023, publishing more than 2,000 information products. Its methodological approach is based on direct engagement with local communities, rigorous data collection, partnership building and the use of innovative tools for a better understanding of humanitarian needs.
IMPACT Initiatives has a regional office based in Dakar, Senegal, which provides technical support to its missions in West and Central Africa. This office also plays a crucial role in advocacy and resource mobilization, while conducting research and analysis to guide strategies.
We are currently looking for a Senior Assessment Officer to support our regional team.
Department: REACH (Research, Evaluation, and Analysis of Conflict and Humanitarian)
Title : Senior Evaluation Officer, HSM and MSNA Programs
Contract duration : 12 months
Work location : Dakar, Senegal with permanent reassignment to a country covered by the regional office
Start date : 01.03.2025
Deadline for applications : 30.01.2025
REGIONAL CONTEXT
The humanitarian situation in West and Central Africa remains extremely worrying due to persistent insecurity and armed conflict. In the Sahel, violence by jihadist groups, inter-communal conflicts and political instability have led to massive displacement, with more than 3 million internally displaced people. In Central Africa, protracted conflicts, particularly in the Central African Republic and the Democratic Republic of Congo, have caused similar suffering, with millions of people displaced and limited access to basic services.
Food insecurity and malnutrition are major crises in these regions. Prolonged droughts, floods and land degradation, exacerbated by climate change, have severely affected agriculture, increasing dependence on food aid.
Despite humanitarian efforts by international NGOs, humanitarian access remains limited in several areas due to insecurity. Although interventions are being carried out to benefit vulnerable populations, resources are insufficient to meet the scale of growing needs. The outlook remains worrying, and the international community must step up its commitment to respond to these increasingly complex and multidimensional humanitarian crises.
In response to this situation, IMPACT Initiatives is currently carrying out several projects to provide international and national humanitarian actors with reliable data on the humanitarian and development needs occurring in the region:
- Multi-Sectoral Needs Assessment (MSNA). IMPACT conducts an annual MSNA whose main objective is to provide information for annual humanitarian planning and priority setting, thus contributing to the overview of humanitarian needs.
- The Humanitarian Situation Monitoring (HSM) in the tri-border area whose main objective is to promote understanding of the humanitarian situation and its evolution in the border area between Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger. This understanding is made possible by collecting multi-sectoral information on the needs of affected populations in hard-to-reach areas.
- RRM – Rapid Response Mechanism. As part of this response, IMPACT supports partners in analyzing, managing and sharing information on the RRM consortium’s interventions and on the context of population movements.
FUNCTIONS
Under the direction of the IMPACT Country Coordinator/Representative or the Research Manager, the Senior Evaluation Officer oversees the implementation of IMPACT research cycles in the country, including the stages of preparation, data collection, analysis, writing, dissemination and evaluation. Throughout the research cycles, the Senior Evaluation Officer engages with partners to promote their participation and maximize their impact. He/she also ensures efficient and transparent use of resources required for project implementation. This may include direct supervision of evaluation teams.
As part of his/her mission, the Senior Assessment Officer will be hosted by Acted, IMPACT’s global partner, and will liaise with the Acted Country Director and his/her delegates for all administrative, security, logistics and finance matters. He/she will therefore fully comply with Acted’s rules and regulations regarding security, administration and human resources, logistics and finance.
responsibilities
More specifically, the Senior Assessment Officer will carry out the following tasks:
RESEARCH PLANNING
- Anticipate knowledge gaps before executing a research cycle;
- Ensure that the necessary secondary data review and/or analysis has been carried out in order to prepare an evaluation;
- Ensure that all research cycles are planned in accordance with the country strategy, relevant research and project objectives and the IMPACT research cycle and other relevant guidelines;
- Design research approaches and methodologies in accordance with IMPACT requirements and principles as well as the information needs of partners;
- Compose and build, in close coordination with the GIS and data teams, qualitative and quantitative data collection tools;
- Prepare the terms of reference for each research cycle, and ensure their validation by headquarters before the start of data collection;
- Ensure that relevant stakeholders and partners are involved in research design and planning
IMPLEMENTATION OF RESEARCH
- In close liaison with the field manager(s), ensure that the required enumerators are identified and trained for primary data collection;
- In close liaison with the field manager(s), monitor data collection, ensuring its proper implementation in accordance with the agreed terms of reference;
- In close liaison with the Field Manager(s), manage the logistics of the evaluation, including with partner organizations, by identifying evaluation areas, facilitating design workshops, managing joint data collection processes and facilitating joint analysis workshops;
- In close liaison with the Field Manager(s), ensure that regular updates on the data collection situation are produced and disseminated to the line manager, relevant colleagues and external counterparts. Provide support and follow up on challenges identified during the data collection process;
- Ensure that the line manager and the IMPACT HQ Research Department are notified of any issues that prevent the full implementation of the methodology agreed in the approved Terms of Reference. Ensure that all changes to the methodology are documented throughout the implementation and that any changes are formally validated by IMPACT HQ;
- Monitor progress and delays of all assigned evaluations throughout the research cycle. Ensure that delays or issues identified for specific evaluations are reported in writing and orally in a timely manner;
- In close liaison with the field manager(s), ensure that logistical, financial, administrative, security and human resources processes directly related to ongoing and upcoming assessments are appropriately planned, implemented and coordinated with the relevant Acted departments;
- Ensure that all data collected is stored in accordance with IMPACT data management guidelines and ToRs;
- In close liaison with the field manager(s), ensure that data is reviewed and cleaned, and that all revisions are recorded;
- In close liaison with data colleagues, provide analysis of primary and/or secondary data in accordance with the ToR, ensuring that meaningful techniques are used to analyse the data collected;
- Ensure that data and its analysis are validated by IMPACT headquarters before the product writing phase;
- Ensure that data and its analysis do not contain personal information and are validated by IMPACT headquarters before being communicated to external parties.
WRITING RESEARCH PRODUCTS
- Ensure the production of accurate and timely outputs that consolidate the analyses of each research cycle into relevant products such as fact sheets, reports, briefs, presentations, etc. that meet IMPACT guidelines and quality standards;
- Ensure that products accurately reflect the information collected and that information is transmitted in a manner that maximizes its impact based on its intended use;
- Liaise with relevant GIS colleagues to ensure effective spatial representation of research results on maps or interactive web portals as appropriate;
- Follow the planned schedule for reports to be submitted to project partners and donors. Ensure that delays or difficulties identified for specific evaluations are reported in writing and orally in a timely manner;
- Maintain regular communication with country management and IMPACT headquarters on progress and deadlines of written products;
- Ensure that all written products are validated by IMPACT headquarters before external distribution.
EXTERNAL COMMITMENT
- Ensure that relevant partners are consulted and involved at all stages of the research cycle: preparation of the evaluation, data collection, data analysis, review of research products, dissemination of products and lessons learned;
- After validation by the hierarchical superior, represent IMPACT in relevant meetings and working groups;
- Follow up on issues identified by partners or during meetings/working groups;
- Promote active use of datasets and research findings by partners and the broader humanitarian community for their decision-making;
- After validation by the hierarchical manager, present the research results to the third parties concerned in order to improve their use and impact;
- Ensure that all partner engagement and external relationships are clearly documented and communicated to the line manager and relevant colleagues;
- More generally, contribute to the creation of a positive image and overall credibility of the organization, in particular through the application of IMPACT’s mandate, ethics, values ​​and position in relation to other stakeholders.
KNOWLEDGE SHARING AND LEARNING PROCESS
- In coordination with country management, support the conduct of monitoring and evaluation for each research cycle, as specified in the research terms of reference and in line with IMPACT guidelines;
- Generate and document robust lessons learned at the end of each research cycle;
- Ensure that knowledge and learning processes are shared with other units and teams within the mission, as well as with headquarters;
- If necessary, provide feedback to appropriate global organizational knowledge learning tools.
PROJECT CYCLE MANAGEMENT
For affected projects, ensure compliance with project cycle management requirements and guidelines at all phases
- Prior to project start-up, ensure that a kick-off meeting is held and key project management documents are available to plan the efficient use of assets and financial and human resources;
- In close coordination with colleagues from line management, finance and the grants department, monitor and regularly update the use of assets, financial and human resources, in full compliance with IMPACT guidelines; this includes maintaining oversight of budget availability and expenditure for evaluation activities;
- Ensure that project deliverables and requirements are tracked, adhered to and implemented;
- Ensure that any issues relating to project implementation are reported to the line manager, finance and grants colleagues, and to headquarters;
- Ensure that an end-of-project meeting is held and documented for all affected projects;
- Support the line manager, finance colleagues and grants in writing narrative and financial reports for the projects concerned;
- Other tasks as requested by supervisors.
TEAM MANAGEMENT AND CAPACITY BUILDING
- Where applicable, hierarchical management of members of the national and international evaluation team;
- For staff under his responsibility, and in close consultation with the line manager, conducting appraisals, providing regular feedback and participating in career management;
- Prepare and monitor work plans with each staff member who reports directly to him;
- Organize regular meetings with relevant national and international evaluation staff to assess progress in relevant research cycles and review the work plan;
- For all activities, ensure that all assessment and field teams are fully informed of the objectives, expected results and that the overall implementation strategy is clearly understood;
- Ensure that project and field staff receive the necessary training and resources to perform their duties in accordance with IMPACT and project requirements;
- Be available to provide regular support and technical assistance; regularly inform team members to receive feedback on the progress of an activity;
- In coordination with the line manager, contribute to the induction of new staff members, including training in basic technical skills for research design, implementation and analysis.
- Support to line managers and specialists in the development and implementation of capacity training plans for team members.
INTERNAL COORDINATION
- Actively participate in regular team meetings;
- Ensure coordination and regular exchanges with relevant colleagues;
- Engage in the development and implementation of the IMPACT strategy (on the ground).
CONFIDENTIALITY AND DATA PROTECTION
The Senior Assessment Officer will ensure the strictest confidentiality of all data collected and related processes, ensuring full compliance with IMPACT’s Data Protection Policy and Standard Operating Procedures. He/she will actively take steps to prevent unauthorized sharing of any information and data belonging to IMPACT and its partners, or collected during his/her assignment at IMPACT.
REQUIRED CONDITIONS
- Academic Excellent academic qualifications, preferably including a Master’s degree in the relevant discipline;
- Research skills Proven proficiency and experience in research methods. Excellent analytical skills
- Software Skills Proven knowledge of Microsoft Office suite, including Word, Excel and PowerPoint. Advanced skills in R, SPSS and/or STATA or other statistical analysis software are an advantage; experience with InDesign is an asset.
- Years of professional experience At least 3 years of relevant professional experience in the humanitarian field;
- Management skills Proven experience and skills in team management; team capacity building through training and mentoring
- Communication/Reporting Skills Excellent communication and writing skills for effective reporting;
- Ability to multi-task under tight deadlines, across multiple research cycles;
- Level of independence Proven ability to work independently;
- Intercultural work environment Ability to work in an intercultural environment requiring flexibility;
- Experience in the geographic region Previous experience in the Sahel region is desirable;
- Language skills Fluency in French required, fluency in English is an asset;
- Security Context Ability to operate in a complex and challenging security environment
COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS
- For this position, the salary is between CHF 2,400 and CHF 2,520 per month (before income tax, etc.) plus a monthly living allowance of USD 300. 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 have to work in difficult locations where living and working conditions are much more difficult than elsewhere.
- Accommodation and food in a guesthouse. Depending on the country situation, a contribution to a housing allowance of up to 75% of the country-specific reference index may be considered instead.
- Membership in a Swiss private pension fund (Swisslife – approximately 9.975% of staff gross salary), health insurance, life insurance and repatriation assistance
- Accompanied status does not apply to this position.
- Airfare every 6 months and visa fees covered (in-country travel and business expenses are fully covered)
- 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.
How to apply
Please apply by following the link below. Only successful candidates will be contacted.