Summary of position

• Action Against Hunger-USA seeks a Research Coordinator-Preferably PHD Student who will serve as part of the core team for the GFFO-MERIAM project and focal point for nutrition. As Research Coordinator, he/she will support the Project Director and the country teams in the implementation of the GFFO-MERIAM. Additionally, the Research Coordinator will support the activities of the Research Team, contributing to the publication strategy and providing expertise in nutrition and data analysis.
• For this role, it is required an active research agenda (PhD level) in nutrition, public health, data science or related discipline. This individual must have the ability to fully understand the theory of the model, its implementation and correctly operationalize it into viable practices for the field, with trainings, and knowledge products like user handbooks.
• Since collaboration is the key to success in research at Action Against Hunger, this individual must have a strong desire to work on interdisciplinary teams; collaborate internally with M&E, operations, research, and technical colleagues across the Action Against Hunger Network; and liaise externally with academic partners and other scientific organizations. Finally, the individual must also have an interest in contributing to the global level impact through leadership in the publication of our research in peer review journals and presentation at various conference and working groups

ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS:

• Be accountable, under the leadership of the Project Director, for all-aspects of implementation of the project from inception through completion.
• Lead on data analysis, in adherence to the pre-planned protocol analysis plan, using appropriate quantitative and/or qualitative analyses to produce technically sound and robust results.
• Performs data pre-processing including data manipulation, transformation, normalization, standardization, visualization and derivation of new variables/features as needed to operationalize the MERIAM model.
• Ensure that academic partners, technical teams and country offices are collaborating in the most impactful way, coordinating uptake of the research and ensuring that the model is applied into viable practices for the field teams.
• Ensure that monitoring, collecting and reporting of information from field teams and country offices happens in accordance with donor requirements and research protocols.
• Ensure MERIAM model is understood and adopted relating to data collection, integration and retention requirements incorporating business requirements and knowledge of best practices.
• Ensure all data is managed in accordance with data protection regulations of the relevant jurisdiction; ensure that all applicable approvals have been obtained for trial registration and ethical review.
• Provide support for overall knowledge management of the project.
• Training and technical oversight of Field Coordinators and other relevant stakeholders, such as government officials and other humanitarian actors.
• In collaboration with the Project Director, the Associate Director of Research, and other members of the research and technical teams, this role will:
• Lead on peer-review publications and other forms of communication and dissemination of results, including oral presentations to maximize the uptake of evidence generated.
• Provide technical expertise in data analysis for other research project or case studies from country or regional offices.

Our Core values.

In this position, you are expected to demonstrate Action Against Hunger-USA’s five core values

• Respect- we work with compassion and dedication, treating everyone the same way we expect them to treat us.
• Integrity-: we believe that being honest and fair is integral to every aspect of our work. conducting our work with a spirit of sincerity, truthfulness and transparency is imperative.
• Creativity-we encourage new ideas, embrace innovative solutions, and create opportunities for meaningful and exciting ways to do our jobs and provide solutions to address the needs of the populations we serve.
• Excellence- we strive to provide services that meet and even exceed the expectations of our stakeholders (populations in need, staff, communities and donors).
• Empowerment- we are committed to fostering an environment in which our staff, partners and communities where we work have the space to grow, develop and feel confident about participating.

Gender Equality Commitments

• Ability to foster an environment that reinforces values of women and men, and equal access to information.
• Provide a work environment where women and men must be evaluated and promoted based on their skills and performance.
• Respect beneficiaries’ women, men, children (boys and girls) regardless of gender, sex orientation, disability, religion. race, color, ancestry, national origin, age, or marital status.
• Value and respect for all cultures.

Requirements

• MA in nutrition, epidemiology, public health, data science or related discipline;
• Proficient with “R” statistical analysis software – essential
• Prior experience in conducting studies requiring primary data collection and analysis of nutrition- related program interventions; enrollment in a PhD program preferred;
• Record of peer-reviewed publications – preferred
• Excellent oral and written communication skills
• Ability to work in a fast-paced environment and multi-task
• Ability to travel 20% internationally as needed for business development and project management