Quantitative Research Project Specialist at Danish Refugee Council

Overall purpose of the role

• The overall purpose of the role is to serve as the regional lead for the Mixed Migration Centre MMC Eastern and Southern Africa | Yemen and Egypt (MMC ESA) team on the management and analysis of quantitative data collected by 4Mi enumerators in countries of operations.
• Under the supervision of the 4Mi Project Manager and in close collaboration with the Information Management Team in the region and globally, and the rest of the MMC ESA team, the successful candidate will be responsible for data management and analysis according to the SOPs. He/She will lead quantitative data management and visualization, develop survey tools and methodologies, and draft research products based on quantitative data along with the Information Management Officer. He/She will be responsible to review and validate all quantitative research outputs.
• Contributing to better use of data, the post holder will also provide support on data collection and management trainings, support with enumerator network supervision, and support the team with administrative tasks, among other responsibilities.
• He/she will support the team in developing research designs and field planning for all new and existing projects and lead/support scoping missions across the regions.  He/she will have technical line supervision responsibilities for Information Management Officer and eventually assistant positions.
• The post holder plays a key role within the team in ensuring high quality standards for the data collected on a daily basis by the 4Mi. He/she will be a go-to person across the region and within the MMC global network for survey, data collection and data management questions.

Responsibilities:

Data analysis and creation of knowledge products/project management

• Lead the quantitative analysis data of 4Mi data using relevant software applications such as Excel, STATA, R and/or Python in support to the Research agenda;
• In liaison with the regional 4Mi team, conduct quantitative analysis to create both visual and written material (including maps) for use in presentations, on the MMC website, in 4Mi snapshots, and other products;
• Develop dashboards presenting data for internal and external use at regional level
• Support in project management tasks with enumerators, budgeting, reporting to donors etc
• Propose analytical themes based on data trends;
• Lead on the drafting of snapshots and other quantitative analytical products;
• Lead on the review and finalization of all quantitative research products;
• Support with and train others on the visualization of data, including GIS data, using relevant software such as QGIS, Adobe Illustrator, Excel, Affinity

Information management and data processing

• Lead on the management of 4Mi data: working with the other IMS, ensure maintenance of the data collection platform, and that data is safely stored and shared, well organized and retrievable, that data protection guidelines are met, and that quality is assured;
• Ensure collected data is migrated into datasets in appropriate formats (such as .dta or .csv or .nvp);
• Ensure the regular availability of clean datasets for the region and for global use: export data in appropriate formats, and ensure that data is regularly validated and cleaned with the IMO;
• Identify and implement changes to surveys at regional level and make suggestions to update surveys at global level as needed according to trends identified in data cleaning and validation;
• Lead IM and data processing in compliance with internal procedures;
• As regional focal point for 4Mi information management, work with the regional 4Mi Project Manager as well as colleagues across the 4Mi network to develop information management tools, and to improve information management and data processing standards for 4Mi (such as data management SOPs);

Survey design and project management

• Revise the coding of the survey as required, and in line with MMC standards, coordinating with the 4Mi Global Coordinator as relevant;
• Develop new surveys and/or modules according to the MMC ESA research agenda, with the 4Mi team and the Research team;
• Design new data collection methodologies with the 4Mi team and the research team, according to the MMC ESA research agenda.
• Oversee the implementation of 4Mi projects in coordination with the 4Mi team

Data collection

• Ensure the maintenance of the electronic data collection solution;
• Support the training of 4Mi enumerators on the questionnaire and the data collection software; including frequent travel to field locations;
• Support the 4Mi team when relevant to conduct field missions to deploy new 4Mi surveys and/or modules, observe 4Mi enumerators and provide technical feedback and support as needed, including identifying the need for retraining/additional training;
• Develop new research design modalities and methods as needed per project;
• Provide backstopping to the 4Mi team when needed to provide feedback and support to 4Mi enumerators to ensure the quality of the data.

Team support

• Develop and adapt tools for tracking data quality, survey targets, enumerator feedback, and other data points to support effective information management;
• As needed and as possible, provide trainings to team on information management skills and tools, such as the PowerBi application used for dashboards;
• Support in budgeting and other project related activities;
• Assist the team with administrative or any other tasks related to the 4Mi.

As this is a Specialist-level position, the successful candidate is expected to work with a high level of autonomy and outputs are expected to be of an extremely high caliber for external partners, donors, researchers and other migration stakeholders.

About you

In this position, you are expected to demonstrate DRC’s five core competencies:

• Striving for excellence: You focus on reaching results while ensuring an efficient process.
• Collaborating: You involve relevant parties and encourage feedback.
• Taking the lead: You take ownership and initiative while aiming for innovation.
• Communicating: You listen and speak effectively and honestly.
• Demonstrating integrity: You act in line with our vision and values.

Experience and technical competencies:

• At least five years of experience working in quantitative research in high security field settings;
• Demonstrated experience in data management, cleaning, validation, storage;
• Demonstrated experience with electronic data collection procedures and solutions (ODK, Kobo, Qualtrics, ONA, SurveyCTO);
• Demonstrated experience in the training and supervision of data collection teams;
• Demonstrated experience contributing to the development of survey tools and methodologies;
• Demonstrated experience in conducting quantitative analysis (using a relevant software application such as Excel, STATA, SPSS, R, Python) and drafting analysis based on quantitative data;
• Experience in GIS theory and GIS software (including QGIS, ArcGIS, CARTODB…) is an asset;
• Experience in data visualization applications such as PowerBi is desirable;
• Demonstrated understanding of current mixed migration debates and dynamics in the region is an asset;
• Previous experience working with international NGOs is an asset;
• Enthusiastic about learning, pushing limits, and finding new solutions;
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, particularly writing for external publications;
• Strong attention to details and rigor in dealing with quantitative data and analysis..

Education:

• Advanced Degree in statistics, economics, data analysis, or any relevant research/data science degree

Languages:

• Full professional proficiency in English and either French OR Arabic;
• Additional regional language an asset