Senior Research Manager

GiveDirectly•New York, NY

3d•Remote

About The Position

This Senior Research Manager will own GiveDirectly’s impact learning agenda for our core Large Lump Sum (LLS) programming, in close collaboration with relevant Product Leads and M&E staff. They will own the development and advancement of our organizational learning for Large Lump Sum transfer programs, including: Responsibility for GiveDirectly’s impact learning agenda for LLS programs, helping counterparts around the organization to use a common theory of change, identify critical open questions about the impact of LLS programs, and develop M&E practices or research proposals to address those open questions Defining measurement and analysis best-practices for LLS programs, providing technical leadership for org-wide M&E standards and developing new indicators/analyses to address emergent questions Supporting LLS “default” product design through primary analysis and evidence reviews on key features such as transfer size, tranching, cadence, targeting criteria, and “plus” components Responsibility for strategic impact evaluations and impact-focused research on LLS programs across multiple countries, both directly through in-house M&E capacity and through external research partnerships They will be a key contributor to every proposal involving in-depth research on LLS programs, and serve as a resource for priority LLS programs during implementation. They will have broad oversight of LLS-specific M&E practices, and ensure the continuity between GD’s research agenda and M&E practice for LLS programs.

Responsibilities

Technical ownership of GD’s impact learning agenda for LLS programs, with particular focus on national/regional poverty graduation objectives
Maintain the “canonical” Theory of Change for GD’s LLS product, with deep understanding of the current evidence and emergent hypotheses about different pathways in this TOC; serve as the internal reference point on the evidence underlying the theory of change.
Develop a clear, shared prioritization for impact-focused learning questions based on this TOC, with input from stakeholders across the Product, Partnerships, Programs, and Comms teams; develop organizational awareness and buy-in for these priority questions. Work particularly closely with leadership in “national scale” countries to incorporate their learning priorities, and scope projects to advance these priorities.
Support Product Leads and the Partnerships team as they develop variations of the LLS Theory of Change, including reviews of research from economics, sociology, psychology, etc. that bound GD’s expectations about newly hypothesized mechanisms of impact.
Proactively identify opportunities to address key questions through M&E or new research projects, and de-prioritize research or M&E work that does not sufficiently or credibly address key impact questions.
Own the development and application of standard outcome-focused indicators for LLS programs, building on the LLS theory of change and measurement best practice across the sector. Stay abreast of advances in measuring expenditures, consumption, asset accumulation, labor supply, and psychosocial wellbeing, from the wider research community.
Support M&E colleagues in the RME team to ensure indicators are appropriately embedded around the organization, e.g. in Program Quality framework, in standard forms, etc.
Develop standardized training materials for data collection, data quality checks, etc., based on use cases and feedback from M&E colleagues. Continually adapt and improve materials in response to requests and feedback from country-based M&E staff.
Ensure that LLS indicators and mechanisms are appropriately captured in GD data, but serving as key reference for M&E colleagues in the RME team who are working on standard data cleaning, analysis, and presentation tools (e.g. Gold Tables, dashboards).
Develop models to predict GiveDirectly’s longer-term impact from LLS programs, based on standardized M&E data and the global literature on cash transfer programs. Own the creation of cost-effectiveness and ROI models, for internal decision-making and external influence.
Building on the existing default large transfer design, provide analytical capacity and on-call research synthesis for Product Leads and Program teams that informs variations in LLS product design.
Support periodic updates to the “canonical” LLS theory of change, based on lessons from research and M&E across the organization; build org-wide understanding of how M&E and research conclusions have fed into default product design.
Serve as key reference point for the use of evidence about LLS programs in all LLS proposals; develop re-usable materials that summarize the evidence underlying LLS product design, based on use cases and feedback from Partnerships and Programs teams.
Lead RME team engagement in all proposals with a substantive research element around the LLS product; ensure alignment of new proposals with LLS theory of change and priority research questions.
Strategically identify and cultivate research partnerships with individuals and institutions that can help GD advance our understanding of key learning questions for LLS programs.
Directly own strategic research projects on LLS programs, maintaining end-to-end management of these research partnerships; in other cases (i.e. Malawi) coordinate closely with in-country Research SM to provide quality assurance and support.
Represent GD research on LLS programs externally, including reviewing written materials by GD Comms or partners, and participating in external events as needed particularly in “national scale” countries.