Bangladesh Field Officer

About GiveDirectly

GiveDirectly (GD) aims to reshape international giving – and millions of lives – by providing cash grants directly to the world’s poorest. The Brookings Institution estimates that $70B of cash transfers would be required to eliminate the poverty gap; the aid sector currently spends $135B each year, much of it on evidence-free interventions. GiveDirectly wants to change that, establishing cash transfers as a benchmark for foreign aid – as the index fund is a benchmark for the financial industry – and in the process accelerating the end of extreme poverty.

GD has raised over $1B since launching in 2011, delivered cash to more than 1.5 million people in 15 different countries. We’ve also supported large-scale, experimental research that indicates strong recipient impact of our programs. As a result, GD has been celebrated as one of the most innovative non-profit companies by Fast Company, while the growing cash transfer movement (and GD’s leading role within it) have been featured in the New York Times Magazine, This American Life, Foreign Affairs, and The Economist.

Our culture is candid, analytical, agile, and non-hierarchical. Our global team of ~150, and country operations teams of ~650, together come from 21 different countries speaking 69 different languages. Team members bring experiences from the private sector, NGOs and government. From software engineers to seasoned humanitarian workers, former management consultants to public servants, researchers to field operations -- it’s an incredible group of people.

Our values are central and deliberately opinionated. We genuinely center the people we serve in our decision making, and strive to build an ambitious, fast moving and high performing environment. We strongly encourage you to read through our values carefully, if they reflect how you like to work and energize you, this could be a great fit.

We work hard to create an environment in which all our team members can thrive, succeed and grow. We actively seek to recruit individuals from the communities we serve, and are constantly working to foster a workplace that supports diversity, and is truly inclusive in reality, not just intent. We support flexibility, take care of each other, have fun, and create professional growth opportunities.

We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer, and we do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other status protected by law.

Job Type: Contractual (Eight-month contract)

Number of Positions: 4

Duty Station: Kurigram, Gaibandha, Jamalpur, and Sirajganj

Gross Salary: 93,700 BDT

Duration: February 2025 to September 2025

Application Deadline: 11:59 PM Bangladesh Standard Time on 1 December, 2024

Project Background

GiveDirectly launched Bangladesh operations in 2022 in response to slowing poverty reduction progress in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and persistent last-mile extreme poverty. GiveDirectly is implementing an anticipatory cash response to households at risk of flooding in the Kurigram, Gaibandha, Jamalpur, and Sirajganj districts along the Jamuna River Basin. The project combines GiveDirectly’s innovative operational capabilities in digital cash transfer programming with a unique multisectoral public-private partnership model which brings together government, public and private sector innovation teams, and world-class researchers to address core challenges for scaling anticipatory action for flood response. 

• Treatment 1 (“early warning only”) group will receive an early warning in the form of risk information and preparation advice before the flood peak.
• Treatment 2 (“early cash”) group will receive early warnings plus a one-off payment before the flood peak.
• Treatment 3 (“late cash”) group will receive early warnings plus a one-off payment after the flood peak.
• Pure control group will not receive an early warning or any cash transfer, whether early or late.

Evidence is growing that cash transfers provided to households in advance of a disaster improve resilience and welfare more than post-disaster assistance. The study will analyze the best way to distribute assistance when flood impacts are uncertain, identify which households are best suited for anticipatory versus post-shock assistance, and determine which approach yields the greatest overall social welfare benefit.

Scope of Work

The Field Officer will report to the Project Manager and collaborate closely with the project team and various stakeholders to ensure the effective execution of project activities, monitoring, and reporting.

Activity and Implementation

• Support and monitor the implementation of planned and community-level activities, including assisting the Safeguarding team with capacity-building programs and the GD program team during field visits.
• Identify gaps in services that impact project recipients and gather insights on how floods affect communities in the study areas.

Community engagement and Sensitization

• Engage and mobilize community participation in project activities, with a focus on including vulnerable groups.
• Organize and facilitate training sessions, workshops, and awareness campaigns
• Identify local-level key stakeholders who can support in the implementation of planned activities

Communication and maintaining Liaison 

• Build and maintain strong relationships with local government authorities, partner organizations, community leaders, NGOs, and other relevant stakeholders
• Facilitate and mobilize the engagement of relevant stakeholders at union level 
• Participate in different stakeholder meetings at all levels (community, union, upazila, and district)

Field Monitoring, Documentation and Reporting

• Conduct regular site visits to assess the implementation and monitor progress.
• Provide detailed and timely field reports, documenting beneficiary feedback, challenges, and recommendations to the project team
• Support in verifying and documenting the occurrence of flood in the project sites
• Support the collection and documentation of flood impact 

Safeguarding Responsibilities

• Ensure the safety of programme recipients, people who come into contact with the organization and team members from any harm, abuse, neglect, harassment and exploitation including sexual exploitation,  abuse and harassment (SEAH) to achieve the programme's goals of safeguarding implementation. Act as a key source of support, guidance and expertise on safeguarding for establishing a safe working environment.
• Practice, promote and endorse the issues of safeguarding policy among team members
• Follow the safeguarding reporting procedure in case any reportable incident takes place, encourage others to do so.

Required Qualifications

• At least a Bachelor’s degree in any relevant discipline
• At least five years of experience working with local communities, government agencies, stakeholders, partner organizations and NGOs/INGOs.
• Strong understanding of disaster management, climate resilience and community engagement
• Experience and skills in field assessments, training, community sensitization practices
• Excellent communication, facilitation, and interpersonal skills
• Proficiency in MS Office/G-suite applications
• Fluency in Bengali and English, both written and spoken.

Application Instructions 

If you think you are competent enough for the position, please apply online by 11:59 PM Bangladesh Standard Time on 1 December, 2024

We’re committed to running an inclusive and accessible application process for all of our open roles. Only shortlisted candidates will be notified for the interview.

Read more about our ongoing diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts here and about our decision to move our central support teams to remote first here.

GiveDirectly is an Equal Opportunity Employer that values the strength diversity brings to the workplace. All qualified applicants are considered for employment without regard to the person’s race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, disability, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.

US applicants only:  We invite you to "Know Your Rights" as an applicant.

Commitment to Safeguarding

As a global organization serving some of the world’s most vulnerable communities, GiveDirectly takes the safeguarding of its recipients, staff, and partners seriously. To that end, GiveDirectly is a member of the Misconduct Disclosure Scheme, and will systematically check with previous employers about any sexual exploitation, abuse, and harassment issues relating to potential new hires. We may also employ other robust pre-hire screens, including in-depth reference checks, criminal background checks, and sanctions screens.

GD is committed to observing all local, national and international laws that protect children, vulnerable adults, and basic human rights of all. GD is committed to a policy of “zero tolerance for sexual exploitation, abuse, and harassment (SEAH)” and expects anyone who works for GD to uphold the protection and safeguarding of our recipients as a priority.

These efforts help us continue to build and maintain trust with the communities we serve, and prevent harm to our recipients.

Interview Venue and Accessibility

We conduct interviews over Google Meet with camera on (unless communicated otherwise).

Closed captioning is available during all Google Meet interviews, and interviewers will also post interview questions in the chat box throughout the call. If you need assistance accessing either of these features, please let your interviewer know at the start of your interview! 

We’re committed to running an inclusive and accessible application process for all of our open roles. If there are questions or concerns you have about the accessibility of our hiring process, we warmly invite you to reach out to careers@givedirectly.org. Please include the word "Accessibility" in the email title.

Want to put your best foot forward on your GiveDirectly application? Take a look at our Candidate Application Prep Guide!