Senior Assessment Officer – Governance and Services

We are currently looking for a Senior Assessment Officer (SAO) to lead our Governance and Services team.

Position:Senior Assessment Officer

Contract duration:12 months

Location: Ukraine

Starting Date: ASAP

Under the management of the RERU Research Manager, the Governance and Services SAO will lead the implementation of assessments focused on the provisions of basic services in conflict affected regions of Ukraine.

The SAO is responsible for overseeing the planning, implementation, analysis of 2 – 3 research cycles, in close coordination with other team members and with relevant external partners. The research cycles under the team include: 1) an assessment of services available to veterans; 2) an assessment of child protection services; 3) assessments on the availability of, and barriers to accessing, essential public services (such as healthcare, education, and social protection). The SAO will lead the analysis, output production and dissemination of results, and will be responsible for driving the strategic direction of governance and services workstreams in Ukraine.

More specifically the SAO is responsible for the following:

Staff Management

• Manage three (3) Assessment Officers who will be responsible for the day-to-day management of assessment planning and implementation. This will involve guidance and direction to the staff members and overseeing work plans for each;
• Ensure that all field teams are comprehensively briefed on the objective, expected outputs and that the overall implementation strategy of any given activity is clearly understood;
• Ensure that project/field staff are given training and complete all the necessary documentation in line with program requirements set by IMPACT. Be responsible for capacity building and staff development of AOs.

Project Cycle Management

• Ensure compliance with project cycle management requirements and guidelines at all phases;
• Ensure that project deliverables and requirements are met and tracked;
• Ensure that any issue in relation to project implementation is reported to the RM and/or Project Development (PD);
• Support the RM, and finance/PD in drafting relevant project narrative and financial reports;
• Other tasks as requested by the RM.

Internal Coordination

• Actively participate in regular unit and team meetings;
• Ensure regular coordination and exchange between the Governance and Services team, the cross-cutting Data/GIS teams, and the field team.
• Raise any concerns about Data/GIS/field coordination to the RM.

Research Implementation

• In close liaison with field officer (s), Monitor data collection, ensuring its correct implementation in line with agreed Assessment ToRs;
• Ensure that the RM and IMPACT HQ research department are alerted to any issues that prevent full implementation of the methodology. Ensure that all changes to the methodology are documented throughout implementation and that any change is formally validated by IMPACT HQ;
• Ensure that all collected data is stored in line with IMPACT’s Data Management Guidelines, in adherence to GDPR and Ukraine data protection regulations, and with the ToRs;
• In close liaison with field officer and data officer, ensure that data is revised and cleaned and that all revisions are recorded;
• In close liaison with the data team, support primary data analysis;
• Ensure that data and analysis are validated by IMPACT HQ before the product drafting stage;
• Ensure that data and analysis do not contain personal information and are shared in line with IMPACT Data Protection guidelines.

Drafting of Products

• Draft timely and accurate outputs that highlight key findings linked to stakeholder information need, including factsheets, reports, briefs, and/or presentations, etc. in compliance with IMPACT’s guidelines and quality standards;
• Ensure that products accurately reflect the information collected and that information is conveyed in a way that maximizes their impact to Ukraine emergency response, durable solutions and governmental policies, including data visualisation methods;
• Liaise with relevant GIS colleagues to ensure effective spatial representation of research findings in maps and in interactive web-portals;
• Follow the designated timeline of reports to be submitted to project partners and donors. Ensure that delays or identified challenges for specific assessments are reported in writing and orally in a timely manner;
• Maintain regular communication with the RM and IMPACT HQ on progress and deadlines for written products;
• Ensure that all written products are validated by IMPACT HQ before external release.

External Engagement

• Ensure that relevant partners are consulted and involved at all stages of research cycle;
• After validation by the RM present IMPACT in relevant meetings/ working groups
• Follow up on issues identified by partners or during meetings/working groups; identify new data gaps around which to update the questionnaire;
• Promote an active use of datasets and research findings by partners and the broader humanitarian community for their decision-making;
• After validation by the line manager, present research findings to relevant third parties in order to enhance their use and impact.

Knowledge sharing and learning processes

• In coordination with country management, support the conduct of monitoring and evaluation for each Research Cycle, as specified in the research ToRs and in line with IMPACT Guidelines;
• Generate and document robust lessons learned at the end of each Research Cycle.
• Ensure knowledge and learning processes are shared with other Units and teams within mission, and with HQ;
• When required, provide feedback to appropriate global organizational knowledge learning tools.

Data Confidentiality and Protection

The Senior Assessment Officer will maintain the strictest confidentiality on all data collected and related processes, ensuring full compliance with IMPACT’s data protection policy and SOPs. He/she will actively take measures to prevent the unauthorized sharing of any information and data belonging to IMPACT and its partners, or collected during his/her assignment with IMPACT.

REQUIREMENTS

• Academic Excellent academic qualifications, preferably including a Master degree in relevant discipline;
• Research skills 2 – 3 years of progressively responsible experience in data collection and/or report writing and or drafting of analytical products. Excellent analytical skills – ability to situate findings within a wider context.
• Software skills Proven knowledge of the Microsoft Office Suite, to include Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Advanced skills in R, SPSS and/or STATA or other statistical analysis software are an advantage; Prior professional experience with Adobe products (InDesign in particular) preferred;
• Communication/reporting skills Excellent communication and drafting skills for effective reporting;
• Level of independence Ability and willingness to work autonomously;
• Cross-cultural work environment Ability to operate in a cross-cultural environment requiring flexibility;
• Experience in geographical region Past experience in or knowledge of the region is an advantage;
• Language skills Fluency in English required, competency in Ukrainian is an asset;
• Security environment Ability to operate in a complex and challenging security environment.

CONDITIONS

• For this position, salary between 2’820 CHF and 2’880 CHF monthly (before income tax), etc as well as a monthly living allowance of 300 USD NB – IMPACT salaries are strictly determined by our salary grid depending on the grade of the position and the level of education of staff. A location-dependent security and/or isolation adjustment is then applied as a recognition that some staff are required to work in difficult places where living and working conditions are much more difficult than elsewhere.
• Accommodation and food provided in a guesthouse.
• Enrolment in Swiss private pension fund (Swisslife – approx. 9.975% of staff gross salary), health insurance, life insurance and repatriation assistance.
• Flight tickets every 6 months & visa fees covered (in-country travel costs and professional expenses are fully covered).
• Contribution to the luggage transportation: between 20 and 100 kgs, depending on the length of the contract (+ luggage and personal property insurance)
• Annual leave of 36 days per year. Public holidays of the country of assignment. Family/compassionate leave when applicable.
• Predeparture induction – 3 days at IMPACT Initiatives’s HQ in Geneva + one week pre-departure training in ACTED HQ in Paris, including a 4-days in situ security training;
• IMPACT prioritizes the psychological safety of its staff and the health insurance provided covers, among others, up to 1000 € per year of psychosocial counselling fees.