Research & Impact Evaluation Manager

Overview

Reports To: Director, Impact Evaluation
Job Type: Full-time, exempt
Region: Central America & Mexico – United States
Location: Remote – open to Colombia, Costa Rica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Peru, or the United States
Start Date: Immediate
Contact: Please apply on our company site.

Position Overview
The Research and Impact Evaluation Manager contributes to Root Capital’s portfolio of mixed-methods impact evaluations, as well as organizational analytic and specific learning initiatives. This role actively supports the Director of Impact Evaluation in setting the impact evaluation agenda, and in managing Root Capital’s mixed-methods impact evaluations in Africa, Asia, and Latin America to identify Root Capital’s impact on our clients—agricultural businesses—and the impact of these businesses on smallholder households and rural communities. In this capacity, the Research and Impact Evaluation Manager co-designs impact evaluations, identifies research opportunities, conducts and guides literature and desk reviews, implements impact evaluation methodologies, develops survey tools, oversees data collection, performs and oversees complex data analyses, authors impact evaluation reports, and presents evaluation findings at internal and external events. The  Research and Impact Evaluation Manager manages study budgets and timelines, and supports the effective management of relationships with impact study partners, including external technical advisors, data collection firms, and funders.

This role is also a key contributor to organizational learning. The Research and Impact Evaluation Manager       advises on and contributes to Root Capital’s Impact learning agenda, and efforts related to programmatic design needs. This role collaborates with colleagues within and beyond the Impact MEL team to support optimization of the way that Root Capital utilizes data collected via impact studies, M&E tools, and other organizational learning initiatives. They serve as a contributor to Root Capital’s broader monitoring and evaluation (M&E) efforts, including collaborating with MEL Managers on monitoring tool reviewing, learning priorities, managing impact data, and conducting discrete analyses of program and impact data. This role includes providing feedback and contribute to the improvement of Theories of Change, logical frameworks, and advisory and lending monitoring tools.

The Research and Impact Evaluation Manager reports to the Director of Impact Evaluation. As the team evolves, this role, may be expected to supervise up to two direct reports.

Mission & History of Root Capital
Root Capital is a nonprofit whose mission is to grow rural prosperity and build the resilience of farming families around the world. We support the growth of agricultural enterprises so they can transform rural communities. These businesses purchase crops such as coffee, cocoa, or grains from smallholder farmers. With growth, they become engines of impact that can raise incomes, create jobs for the next generation of leaders, level the playing field for women, and take urgent action against climate change.

We supply these businesses with vital credit and capacity building to foster their growth and resilience. We work in hard-to-serve communities where others don’t. To date, we’ve distributed $1.5 billion to improve the lives of over 10 million people in farming families.

Headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Root Capital currently has associated offices in Costa Rica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Colombia, Peru, Ghana, and Kenya.

Responsibilities
Design and manage impact evaluations and impact studies relevant to the Impact learning agenda (75%)

Implement mixed-methods impact evaluations or impact studies from design to reporting of results;
Collaborate across teams to develop research questions that inform Impact learning agenda or studies;
Conduct and design desk research or literature reviews ;
Conduct reviews and meta-analyses of impact evaluation findings;
Identify, adjust, and propose study methodologies that respond to organizational needs and local contexts, and guide relevant staff or manage external technical assistance to refine methodologies as needed;
Design and/or oversee development of data collection instruments, both quantitative and qualitative, continuously identifying and implementing innovations to data collection strategies and tools;
Conduct, manage, and/or oversee sampling, survey piloting, data collection (using SurveyCTO, KoboToolbox, or other data collection applications), and quality control of study implementation;
Analyze and/or oversee complex analyses of study results using statistical packages (STATA, R, etc.), qualitative data analysis software (MAXQDA, NVIVO, etc.), GIS software (ArcGIS, QGIS, etc.) or other analytical tools;
Recruit, train, and oversee locally based consultants, data collection firms, and/or field-based staff for study implementation as needed; train team members and consultants on analytical tools and methodologies;
Provide budget oversight for studies or evaluations and manage contracting or administrative responsibilities related to these;
Write and edit study reports; create summaries, briefs, and presentations on study results for internal and external audiences, including Root Capital staff,      borrowers, donors, investors, and other applied M&E practitioners; collaborate with the Communications team by providing content for external dissemination;
Represent Root Capital and formally present on impact work, internally and externally, with donors and partners individually, or at impact evaluation/agricultural finance/impact investing events;
Manage relationships with external technical advisors or consultants and support stewardship of funders;
Provide impact study-related inputs for grant proposals and grant updates; support relevant team in interpreting and leveraging impact study findings for external partnerships;
Strategic Learning Support on Impact Evaluation (25%)

Advises and contributes to the development of Root Capital’s Impact learning agenda and development of learning topics, objectives, and frameworks that inform the learning agenda;
Advise on and participate in key organizational data collection initiatives related to programmatic design needs; craft research frameworks, create and implement data collection tools, analyze data, and develop reporting frameworks;
Leverage findings from impact studies or other data collection efforts to develop programmatic and strategic recommendations and learnings;
Assist in the development and management of monitoring tools that are crosscutting to advisory and lending services;
Support the development of experimental studies or pilots that lead towards proofs of concept for innovations in data generation/collection, program or prototype development, or in general to improved impact evaluations aligned with the Impact learning agenda.
Perform other relevant duties as assigned.

Required Skills and Experience
Master’s degree in economics, statistics, public policy, international development, or related field, or Bachelor’s degree with strong academic training in those fields plus related professional experience.
At least five years of professional experience in impact evaluation, agricultural development, impact investing, social finance, international development, or a related field.
At least four years of experience (professional and/or academic) working on field-based evaluations of the above fields; experience designing and/or implementing M&E frameworks, and experience with econometric impact evaluations methods (RCTs, Diff-Diff, RDD, IV, etc.), qualitative methods, and mixed methods. Experience with quantitative research is required, experience with qualitative research or methods strongly preferred.
Expertise in designing and implementing rigorous impact evaluations in developing countries.
Advanced proficiency in Stata, R, Microsoft Excel, Word, and PowerPoint. Experience with data collection platforms (like SurveyCTO or KoboToolbox), qualitative data analysis software (NVIVO or MAXQDA) or GIS software (ArcGIS or QGIS) and Salesforce preferred.
Superior oral and written communication skills, including experience writing technical evaluation reports and synthesizing research findings for broad audiences. Experience translating quantitative and qualitative findings to programmatic recommendations and strategic thinking.
Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to work with a wide variety of colleagues and stakeholders, including funders, academics, clients, and smallholder farmers. Experience and interest in mentoring others and fostering professional development opportunities for colleagues and direct reports.
Strong project and people management skills, attention to detail, and ability to lead activities of an international team of staff and external consultants.
Self-started and ability to flexibly manage and prioritize multiple competing tasks; ability to thrive in a dynamic, fast-paced, and entrepreneurial team environment
Fluency in English and fluency or advanced proficiency in Spanish required. French language skills helpful but not required.
Willingness to travel (2-3 times per year) in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, often in remote areas, with stays as long as 2-3 weeks.
Commitment to Root Capital’s mission.
Authorized to work in the following countries: Colombia, Costa Rica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Peru, or the United States
Applications
More information about Root Capital is available at www.rootcapital.org. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis. Candidates are encouraged to apply using the form below as soon as possible, making sure to include a resume and cover letter that describes your interest, qualifications, language abilities, salary requirements, and how you learned of the position. Finalist candidates will be required to provide at least three work-related references.