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Research Manager – The Social Protection Initiative
Organization: Dvara Holdings
Apply By: 24 Aug 2022
Location: Chennai(Tamil Nadu)
About the Organization
Founded in 2008, Dvara Holdings was formerly known as Dvara Trust. Since 2008, Dvara has served millions of households in India through various group companies.
‘Dvara’ Coined From The Sanskrit Word ‘Dvarata’, Meaning Access, Speaks To Our Vision Of Enabling Opportunities And New Beginnings For Millions Of Low-Income Households.
We are a group of professionals with a strong belief in the transformative power of financial services. We are interested in systemic change and therefore undertake two kinds of activities: policy research and investing in/supporting commercial efforts where we believe there is a market gap.
Job Description/Responsibilities
This position requires the individual to provide stewardship to the Social Protection Initiative team and leads its research activities. You will report to the Executive Director of Dvara Research and manage a team of 4-5 researchers working on a diverse portfolio of engagements related to social protection design and delivery.
- Day-to-day management and strategic stewardship of the Social Protection Initiative, a 4–5-memberteam of researchers from diverse academic backgrounds working on issues related to social safety nets, specifically related to cash transfers, insurance markets, and system-level policy design.
- Project management of a diverse portfolio of research projects, including their budgeting, resource management, and reporting. Resource management requires you to closely work with your team and support them in their research trajectory, helping them deliver high-quality work outputs consistently.
- The role requires you to manage a diverse range of internal and external stakeholders, including funders, policymakers, civil society organisations, fellow members from the research community, and the wider industry allied to financial inclusion efforts.
- Writing detailed research papers and project reports, within the larger context of SPI’s research, outreach advocacy efforts.
- Expanding the margins of SPI’s research portfolio by identifying and leveraging new opportunities for research on social protection and allied topics.
- Delivering presentations and memos for internal and external audiences and stakeholders.
- Building and maintaining institutional knowledge on key issues and theme within the Initiative.
- Sharing responsibility for organising stakeholder meetings, workshops, and events with the help of the communications team.
- Co-ordinating and collaborating with the leadership team of Dvara Research on projects that further its mission and outreach.
Education Qualification/Required Skills & Experience
- Prior experience with managing research projects and leading teams of individuals from diverse disciplinary backgrounds.
- Master’s degree in Economics, Finance, Public Policy, or allied disciplines.
- 5+ years of experience in conducting research on social protection, financial inclusion, social inclusion, and allied sub-themes. Experience in social sector policy research preferred.
Knowledge/Skills required:
- Leadership, collaboration, and mentorship: Develops thought leadership on important themes in social protection and can convincingly articulate the Initiative’s views on various topics; Seeks out opportunities for research collaboration and is a valued collaborator; willing to invest in feedback and professional development of young researchers.
- Domain Knowledge: Thrives in both abstract and concrete questioning environments, able to identify sources of meaning in one’s own and other people’s work, strives for ideological neutrality, able to draw lateral connections in a rigorous manner, is recognized internally and externally as an expert on the SPI’s subject matter(s).
- Project Management: Diligently engages in end-to-end project management, including, conceptualising the project, search and management of funding support, forging partnerships, monitoring, and timely producing specific deliverables.
- Constructive problem-solving: Sound analytical and critical thinking skills, with the ability to analyse challenging issues from first principles and develop solutions. Thrives on multidimensionality (or normative ambiguity) but can hone-in on context-relevant trade-offs for solutions whenever necessary, strives to contest accepted and conventional ideas, brings these capabilities to bear on new questions and perspectives that expand the content, methods, and meaning of the SPI’s body of work.
- External Engagement: Possesses an almost native, instinctive understanding of the necessary and sufficient conditions for lowincome households’ financial wellbeing, therefore able to persuasively advocate for it in forums to which the person has been invited and command the audience’s attention.
- Inter-personal skills: Communicates clearly and thoughtfully and deals effectively and sensitively with different opinions and conflict; is able to accommodate multiple views and is able to know when to collaborate and compromise.
- Reflexive attitude and mindset: An open mind and eagerness to learn new things; being comfortable with uncertainty and changing situations; making sense of large amounts of new information quickly; being self-critical, self-aware and open to learning from others.
- Motivation and persistence: Thinks independently about issues; is selfmotivated and self-sufficient in planning and executing tasks; is a consistent worker and knows when to ask for help.
- Integrity and honesty: Exhibits a high degree of integrity and honesty in one’s dealings. Contributes to the team’s performance and considers it as important as one’s own performance.
- Communication: Has a proven track-record of good written and spoken language skills.
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