Research Analyst (Home-Based)

Remote | Home Based - May require travel

Organization: UNDP - United Nations Development Programme
Location: Remote | Home Based - May require travel
Grade: Level not specified - Level not specified
Occupational Groups:
- Scientist and Researcher
Closing Date: Closed

Background

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion are core principles at UNDP: we value diversity as an expression of the multiplicity of nations and cultures where we operate, we foster inclusion as a way of ensuring all personnel are empowered to contribute to our mission, and we ensure equity and fairness in all our actions. Taking a ‘leave no one behind’ approach to our diversity efforts means increasing representation of underserved populations. People who identify as belonging to marginalized or excluded populations are strongly encouraged to apply. Learn more about working at UNDP including our values and inspiring stories.

UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

Independent Evaluation Office of UNDP supports the oversight and accountability functions of the Executive Board and the management of UNDP, UNCDF and UNV. The structural independence of the Office underpins and guarantees its freedom to conduct evaluations and report evaluation results to the Executive Board. The IEO conducts independent evaluations and other activities according to its programme of work approved by the Executive Board. The work of the IEO includes:

Conducting thematic programmatic and other independent evaluations, ensuring strategic and representative coverage of UNDP programmes and results against national, regional and global scales;
Developing evaluation standards, procedures, criteria and methodological guidance for UNDP evaluations, and contributing to innovation in evaluation methodology and dissemination of good practices;
Providing UNDP and its development partners with timely knowledge and lessons drawn from evaluations that can feed into development programming at global, regional and country levels;
Assessing the quality of decentralized evaluations of UNDP, UNCDF and UNV, and monitoring compliance with best international evaluation and data collection standards, including the UNEG norms and standards, code of conduct and ethical guidelines;
Communicating its evaluation findings, conclusions and recommendations through multiple channels and maintaining a searchable, publicly accessible repository of all UNDP, UNCDF and UNV evaluations, and respective management responses and resulting actions;
Supporting the development of communities of practice, and partnering with professional evaluation networks to improve evaluation utility and credibility;
Supporting the harmonization of the evaluation function in the United Nations system, including
contributing to the annual work programme of UNEG, participating in systemwide evaluations,
and prioritizing joint evaluations with United Nations organizations;
Promoting national ownership and leadership in evaluation through country-led and joint
evaluations.

Duties and Responsibilities

The Research Analyst will provide direct support to the implementation of IEO’s evaluations and
syntheses products being planned for 2023-2024. He/she will be responsible for supporting the
preliminary research, data collection and analysis, working closely with IEO evaluation managers. The
work of Research Analyst will be guided by IEO’s knowledge and data management strategy, as well
as country programme, thematic evaluation and evaluation syntheses research and process manuals.
The specific tasks include, but not limited to, the following:

Survey and gathering of UNDP corporate programme documents, results reports, country and
financial data, and any other information relevant to the countries and programmes under
review, as well as any externally available background material relevant to the themes,
countries and programmes under review;
Compilation of data and uploading of background material to IEO’s common document portal
and systems such as ERC and AIDA.
Initial desk reviews of material, preparation of analytical material, including infographics for
use in the evaluation reports as well as for other IEO knowledge products;
Translation of documents, as required;
Provision of other general research support, as required by the IEO.

The research analyst will work as a member of the knowledge and data management section,
contributing to a strong and reliable research base at the IEO, in support of efficient and effective
execution of evaluation activities and high quality evaluations.

Institutional Arrangement

The Research Analyst will be supervised by the Chief of Section, Knowledge and Data Management
section, and will work in close collaboration with other units of IEO

Competencies

Achieve Results: LEVEL 1: Plans and monitors own work, pays attention to details, delivers quality work by deadline
Think Innovatively: LEVEL 1: Open to creative ideas/known risks, is pragmatic problem solver, makes improvements
Learn Continuously: LEVEL 2: Go outside comfort zone, learn from others and support their learning
Adapt with Agility: LEVEL 1: Adapts to change, constructively handles ambiguity/uncertainty, is flexible
Act with Determination: LEVEL 1: Shows drive and motivation, able to deliver calmly in face of adversity, confident
Engage and Partner: LEVEL 1: Demonstrates compassion/understanding towards others, forms positive relationships
Enable Diversity and Inclusion: LEVEL 1: Appreciate/respect differences, aware of unconscious bias, confront discrimination

Cross-Functional & Technical competencies

Business Direction & Strategy - Strategic Thinking:
- `Ability to develop effective strategies and prioritized plans in line with UNDP’s objectives, based on the systemic analysis of challenges, potential risks and opportunities, linking the vision to reality on the ground, and creating tangible solutions.
- Ability to leverage learning from a variety of sources to anticipate and respond to future trends; to demonstrate foresight in order to model what future developments and possible ways forward look like for UNDP.
Business Management - Project Management:
- Ability to plan, organize, prioritize and control resources, procedures and protocols to achieve specific goals.
Business Management - Communication:
- Ability to communicate in a clear, concise and unambiguous manner both through written and verbal communication; to tailor messages and choose communication methods depending on the audience.
- Ability to manage communications internally and externally, through media, social media and other appropriate channels.
Business Management - Working with Evidence and Data:
- Ability to inspect, cleanse, transform and model data with the goal of discovering useful information, informing conclusions and supporting decision-making.

Desired additional skills and competencies:

Time management and ability to handle a large volume of work.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Master’s or Bachelor’s Degree or equivalent in Social Sciences, Economics, Public Administration, Political Science, International Relations, or other relevant areas.

Experience:

Master's degree or minimum of 2 years of relevant work experience in conducting research in the international development context with expertise in the use of machine learning applied to development.

Required Skills:

Experience in using various research qualitative and quantitative methodologies; monitoring and evaluation tools
Experience in the designing models for machine learning in development context;
Knowledge of latest international development issues in UNDP’s areas of work (e.g., poverty reduction, democratic governance, human rights, environment and natural resources management, climate change, disaster risk reduction and resilience, gender equality and women’s empowerment)
Experience in using computer and office software packages, web-based data management systems;
Microsoft Office Word, Excel, PowerPoint, TEAMS, SharePoint, MS Project, NVivo;
Proven statistical abilities and knowledge of software available for quantitative analysis, including databases, spreadsheets and statistical packages;
Strong oral and written communication skills in English and French;
Prior work experience at or familiarity with the work of UNDP and/or other UN agencies.

Language:

English and French
Additional working knowledge of Spanish is preferred.
Competence in other UN languages is an asset.

The following documents shall be required from the applicants:
a) Personal CV or P11, indicating all past positions held and their main underlying functions,
their durations (month/year), the qualifications, as well as the contact details (email and
telephone number) of the Candidate, and at least three (3) the most recent professional
references of previous supervisors. References may also include peers.
b) A cover letter (maximum length: 1 page) indicating why the candidate considers him-/herself
to be suitable for the position.
c) Managers may ask (ad hoc) for any other materials relevant to pre-assessing the relevance of
their experience, such as reports, presentations, publications, campaigns or other materials.

Disclaimer

Important information for US Permanent Residents ('Green Card' holders)

Under US immigration law, acceptance of a staff position with UNDP, an international organization, may have significant implications for US Permanent Residents. UNDP advises applicants for all professional level posts that they must relinquish their US Permanent Resident status and accept a G-4 visa, or have submitted a valid application for US citizenship prior to commencement of employment.

UNDP is not in a position to provide advice or assistance on applying for US citizenship and therefore applicants are advised to seek the advice of competent immigration lawyers regarding any applications.

Applicant information about UNDP rosters

Note: UNDP reserves the right to select one or more candidates from this vacancy announcement. We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this post for other similar positions with UNDP at the same grade level and with similar job description, experience and educational requirements.

Non-discrimination

UNDP has a zero-tolerance policy towards sexual exploitation and misconduct, sexual harassment, and abuse of authority. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles.

UNDP is an equal opportunity and inclusive employer that does not discriminate based on race, sex, gender identity, religion, nationality, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, disability, pregnancy, age, language, social origin or other status.

Scam warning

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This vacancy is now closed.