Organization: Innovations for Poverty Action
Country: United States of America
Closing date: 26 Jun 2015
Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA) discovers and promotes effective solutions to global poverty problems. IPA designs, rigorously evaluates, and refines these solutions and their applications together with decision-makers to ensure that the evidence created is used to improve opportunities for the world’s poor. Since our founding in 2002, IPA has worked with over 350 leading academics to conduct over 450 evaluations in 51 countries. This research has informed hundreds of successful programs that now impact millions of individuals worldwide.
Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA)seeks an outstanding applicant for the position of Senior Director, Policy. The Senior Director, Policy is a new leadership role at Innovations for Poverty Action and, reporting to the Executive Director, will sit on IPA’s Senior Management Team. S/he will be responsible for developing and leading IPA’s strategy to ensure that evidence gets used and applied by decision-makers in accordance with IPA’s five year strategic plan and beyond. The Director will oversee a team of thematic program directors, and work with IPA’s 18 Country Programs to engage decision-makers effectively in the generation of evidence and strengthen IPA’s capacity to translate evidence into practice and policy. As part of the Senior Management Team, the Director will also participate in setting overall directions for the organization, and work to continuously build understanding and support for IPA’s core mission to foster effective collaboration across the organization.
Essential Duties and Responsibilities:
Lead the development and implementation of IPA’s strategy to translate evidence into practice and policy
- Lead the development and communication of IPA’s policy strategy to ensure that evidence is sought, used and applied at scale by decision-makers (including practitioners, policy makers and funders), in line with IPA’s five year Strategic Plan
- Lead the development of IPA’s organizational capacity and processes to translate evidence into practice and policy, at the global and country level
- Lead the design and planning of global policy activities, including dissemination and training events for decision makers, the promotion of the use of evidence and evidence-based solutions, and technical assistance to practitioners and policy makers
- Advise the External Relations team on the content and design of policy publications
- Constantly monitor the field of international development to identify key strategic policy relevant areas for the development and translation of evidence into policy and practice by IPA
- Working with the Research team, identify and prioritize demonstrated solutions for IPA to promote at a global level, and develop and lead the implementation of strategies to get these ideas adopted and scaled
Oversee IPA’s Sector Programs
- Provide leadership for and manage four existing Sector Programs (in the areas of finance, small & medium enterprise, social protection and peace and recovery)
- Collaborate with the Senior Management Team, Regional and Country Directors to ensure that IPA’s Sector Programs effectively coordinate and work with IPA Country Programs
- Support existing and future Sector Programs with strategy development, fund raising, policy engagement activities, partner and researcher relationships.
- Coordinate other sector experts and support the development of sector expertise at IPA
Build the capacity of IPA’s Country Programs to develop and implement policy engagement strategies
- Provide strategic guidelines, support and best practices for conducting policy work in IPA’s Country Programs and to refine their approach to policy engagement – at the regional, country and project level
- Working with Regional and Country Directors, raise resources for, develop and support in-country Policy Managers, who will be dedicated to implement IPA’s policy engagement strategy and to ensuring that IPA’s evidence is relevant and used at the country level
- Provide advice to Country Programs on developing and maintaining relationships with key players, and at times participate in key meetings held by Country Programs
Represent IPA Externally to, and build strategic partnerships with donors and implementing partners
- Coordinate with IPA’s partners and researchers both in the development and implementation of IPA’s policy outreach and influencing activities
- Deliver presentations and represent IPA at conferences and meetings with partners and decision makers
- Work with External Relations team to fundraise for policy engagement activities and capacity building as well as policy relevant thematic programs
- Help develop strategic partnerships with global organizations that have the potential to lead to the scale-up of demonstrated ideas
Education and/or Work Experience Requirements:
- 10 to 15 years of work experience in the field(s) of public policy and/or international development
- Masters in economics, and/or public policy required
- Exceptional ability to present complex information in clear simple language to a range of audiences and to effectively translate academic research into clear policy lessons
- Experience in and comfort interacting with very high-level contacts in public policy, for example senior functionaries in developing country governments, NGOs, foundations, and multilateral aid agencies
- Flexible, self-motivated, able to manage multiple tasks efficiently, collaborative team player
- Experience, comfort and expertise in public speaking to a variety of stakeholders, at various conferences and other public commitments
- Strong organizational and interpersonal skills
- Demonstrated management experience and leadership skills
- Experience working in a Senior Leadership Team is a plus
- Knowledge of randomized trials and experience in multiple sectors is strongly preferred
- Experience working in one or more of the developing countries where IPA has country offices would be a plus
- Travel 25% of time
How to apply:
Interested candidates please visit Innovations for Poverty Action"s Career page, http://www.poverty-action.org/getinvolved/jobs
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