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Senior Research and Evaluation Advisor

Organization Name: Landesa
Location: Seattle, United States
Apply email: Not Specified
Start Date: 05-October-2019
Closing Date: 28-October-2019

Position Title:             Senior Research and Evaluation Advisor

Status:                        Regular, Full Time

Location:                     Seattle

Classification:             Exempt (Not Eligible for Overtime Pay)

Job Summary: The Senior Research and Evaluation Advisor (Senior Advisor) is an experienced professional who will support the generation and use of evidence in advocacy, policy and programmatic efforts to strengthen women’s and men’s land rights.     

Reporting and relationships: The Senior Advisor reports to the Senior Director of Research and Evaluation.

Availability: The Senior Advisor will be expected to work a standard workweek of 40 hours plus additional hours as necessary to get the job done. This position requires substantial international travel, between 40 and 100 days per year. Evenings and weekends will be required at times.

Essential Job Functions: The Senior Advisor will advance Landesa’s mission and strategic objectives by:

Enhancing sector-wide capacity to generate and use gender-responsive evidence on land rights. This includes partnering with global, regional, national or local initiatives, in efforts that include NGOs, government offices, development agencies, research institutions, and grassroots groups to promote and support the creation and use of land-related evidence for advocacy, policy or program design and implementation. This work covers both evidence on what interventions can be effective to strengthen land rights as well as the data required to diagnose and track progress on land rights.

Guiding and informing gender-responsive programmatic efforts to strengthen land rights. This includes supporting project design by facilitating the creation of project-specific theory of change and logic frameworks and by identifying or generating evidence to back this design; supporting project implementation by designing and overseeing M&E systems; and assessing the relevance, effectiveness, impact, efficiency and sustainability of projects to recommend adjustments and advise on their replicability or scalability. 

Supporting business development. This includes identifying and creating opportunities, developing and nurturing relationships, and helping craft successful proposals to enable state-of-the-art research, evaluations, assessments and data-related engagements that can broaden the evidence base and its accessibility.

Promoting a culture of learning. This includes mentoring colleagues as well as deliberately promoting the identification and sharing of lessons to better strengthen land rights for all.

Education and Professional Experience:
PhD or equivalent degree in the social sciences: Economics, Political Science, Sociology, Geography, Development Studies, or closely related field;
Rigorous quantitative training;
Experience with mixed-methods research;
At least 10 years of senior-level experience working on research activities with relevance to the essential job functions described above;
A deep and nuanced understanding of land rights, gender issues, and the SDGs as they relate to land-related targets and indicators;
Excellent written and verbal communication skills and established record of published research in peer reviewed journals and gray literature;
Ability to convey complex technical issues to non-expert audiences;
Ability to advocate and liaise with a diverse set of high-level stakeholders in the land sector including government statistical agencies, land agencies, bi-lateral organizations, civil society organizations, private companies, and funders; and,
Experience with helping to shape strategies.
An effective Senior Advisor:
Is self-motivated and goal-oriented;
Is passionate about systemic and rigorous work to alleviate poverty and foster social justice;
Is an experienced researcher and a land rights expert who is recognized in the field;
Has the ability and is committed to applying a gender-responsive approach in his/her work;
Has strong conceptual and analytical skills;
Is a skilled communicator both orally and in writing, who is clear, nuanced, rigorous and compelling, who can discern the appropriate type, frequency, tenor, and level of communication required for any given objective, circumstances, and audience;
Is a good listener;
Has the ability to collaborate with and support a range of stakeholders from different cultures and positions, including Landesa staff from all its offices, donors, government officials, civil society organizations, researchers, contractors, vendors and services suppliers;
Has the ability to work effectively as both a team member and a team leader and move easily between the two roles; and,
Is comfortable with ambiguity, uncertainty and change.
Work Environment and Working Conditions for Travelers to Developing Countries: While performing the duties of this job, the employee may be exposed to working conditions and hazards which are prevalent for the location and/or country of assignment. The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate. Work is primarily performed indoors with some potential for exposure to safety and health hazards related to electronics work. The employee may be required to travel overseas and domestically. When traveling in a developing country, the employee may be exposed to: Physical Hazards (illnesses, noise, extreme temperatures, wet or humid climates, etc.), Road Hazards (unfinished/dirt roads, potholes, traffic-related accidents, etc.), and Atmospheric Conditions (odors, dust, fumes, smog, etc.).

Additional Comments: The above job description is not intended as, nor should it be construed as, exhaustive of all responsibilities, skills, efforts, or working conditions associated with this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made in appropriate circumstances to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of this job.

To Apply:
https://www.landesa.org/who-we-are/careers/