Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to discovering and promoting effective solutions to global poverty problems. In close partnership with decision makers — the policymakers, practitioners, investors, and donors working with the poor around the world — IPA designs and evaluates potential solutions to poverty problems.
This Associate Program Manager role, within the Social Protection Program (SPP), is critical for coordinating and managing the New Wave Graduation Research Fund, driving business development and fundraising efforts, overseeing social protection research projects, and leading policy outreach and communications.
Responsibilities
1. Coordination and Management of the New Wave Graduation Research Fund
- Under the direction of the SPP Director, process awards to individual research projects, including communicating with research teams, managing the proposal review process, and supervising the development of grant agreements.
- Manage and track the status of grants and projects funded by the SPP through the detailed review of grant deliverables and regular communication with research teams.
- Liaise internally with relevant IPA teams such as Research Support, Programs, Grants, Legal, Finance, Global Operations, Policy and Communications to ensure work is carried out effectively and efficiently.
- Under the direction of the SPP Director, coordinate financial management of the research fund, including tracking funds committed to individual research projects and donor reporting.
- Lead the development of 3-5 policy briefs or research outputs for evaluations in the portfolio.
2. Business Development
- Identify and cultivate at least 5-8 opportunities annually to expand IPA’s work on social protection through new research projects, ideas, and partnership development.
- Coordinate with principal investigators and IPA country program teams to develop viable research project opportunities with governments and stakeholders in-country, develop budgets and project documentation, resulting in at least 2 funded projects annually.
- Contribute to fundraising efforts by identifying funding opportunities, prospecting donors, and supporting the development of 3-5 concept notes and proposals.
3. Project Management of Social Protection Projects
- Contribute to research design, research oversight, data analysis, and writing of policy briefs, research papers, slide decks, and other research outputs as needed.
- Ensure adherence to work plans, the achievement of goals and outputs as outlined in project documents and timelines, and conduct periodic reporting to the donor.
- Under supervision of the SPP Director, work with IPA country offices to develop and implement research projects, including but not limited to identifying clear areas of responsibility between IPA Global and the country offices, developing efficient channels of communication, monitoring budgets and timelines, and providing technical / social protection input where required.
- Contribute to building systems that improve the efficiency and internal management of the SPP.
4. Policy Outreach and Communications
- Conduct policy outreach activities, including support to planning 2-4 policy events annually, and creating and disseminating knowledge products that synthesize research results, working closely with communications and policy teams.
- Lead communication activities for the program internal to IPA, such as outreach to country offices and management of SPP’s Salesforce and internal resources.
- Create 4-6 original content pieces per year via blogs, policy briefs, or other materials.
5. Other Tasks
Qualifications
- Master’s degree in economics, political science, public policy, or related fields.
- At least four years of work experience in international development/development research, with a preference for previous work in social protection or a related sector.
- Demonstrated project management skills, including attention to operational and research detail, and ability to prioritize and manage multiple projects efficiently with minimal supervision.
- Excellent communication skills and the ability to communicate effectively and clearly with internal and external stakeholders using cogent, precise, non-technical language.
- Ability to present information in a structured and insightful way, both in writing and orally.
- Flexibility, self-motivation, ability to manage multiple tasks efficiently, willingness to learn, and a team-oriented attitude.
- Must be willing to accommodate meetings outside of regular, local business hours occasionally, with notice, to accommodate colleagues in other time zones.
