Senior Manager, Research

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 support flexibility, take care of each other, have fun, and create professional growth opportunities.

Location: Lilongwe, Malawi

Priority Application Deadline: June 1, 2025 or until we receive a critical mass of applications

 

About this role

This role is evaluating GiveDirectly’s most ambitious program to date. The evaluation is a multi-year research initiative in Malawi that spans an entire district and evaluates the impacts of large, one-time cash transfers to individuals in extreme poverty. The evaluation is centered on the largest randomized controlled trial (RCT) ever conducted on unconditional cash transfers, and is complemented by ongoing monitoring and evaluation (M&E), qualitative research, and rapid pulse data collection.

Level: Senior Manager

Travel Requirement: local travel required

 

What you’ll do:

Research Strategy

Design and manage research plans and strategy for Malawi’s national scale efforts, alignment with GD’s impact and fundraising goals

• Design and steer the multi-year research plan for Malawi’s national scale work, mapping studies (pulse, M&E, pilots, quals) against GD’s fundraising and impact targets
• Regularly review progress and adapt the strategy based on emerging evidence or shifts in organizational priorities
• Maintain a living research roadmap and share updates with senior leadership

Special projects

Lead time-sensitive ad hoc initiatives that fall outside the regular study calendar (e.g. rapid assessments during program pivots)

• Internal coordination with programs team to 1) share findings, 2) escalate misalignments or delays to both research and program heads, 3) align schedules and priorities

RCT Management - Chiradzulu RCT

Serve as focal point for managing all internal and external aspects of one RCT

• Own relationships with external researchers for the Chiradzulu RCT (largest RCT ever on unconditional cash transfers): draft scopes, negotiate contracts, monitor deliverables
• Guide internal decision making on RCT strategy to ensure it reflects organizational priorities
• Facilitate constant alignment between the academic research team and GiveDirectly programs team including any data sharing needed and fieldwork alignment
• Review, evaluate, and share interim RCT findings

Stakeholder Management

Own research element of high level stakeholder management for Malawi project

• Regularly present research findings and plans to internal senior leadership
• Serve as research point of contact for academics, donors, and implementing partners
• Lead on presenting research findings to high net worth donors for the project
• Make field visits to accompany stakeholders when necessary 

Data Accuracy in Reports

Final responsibility for accuracy of all research data, plans, and external/internal information shared

• Hold final responsibility for the correctness of all research outputs: presentations,  summary decks, and reports
• Implement and sign off on data-quality checks at every stage (sample validation, field monitoring, pre-publication review)
• Source, vet, and integrate secondary data from partners (government agencies, NGOs, academic publications) & official data sources

Research Team Management

Serve as manager of a research team of 16

• Directly manage research manager and field manager
• Line management of remainder of field team - regular check ins with field managers to ensure that all work is going smoothly
• 2x annual field visits to oversee data collection
  
  

 

What you’ll bring:

• Exceptional alignment with GiveDirectly Values and active demonstration of our core competencies: emotional intelligence, problem solving, project management, follow-through, and fostering inclusivity. We welcome and strongly encourage applications from candidates who have personal or professional experience in the low-income and/or historically marginalized communities that we serve.
• Language Requirement: English
• Language Preferences: Chichewa preferred but not required
• 5-7+ years of experience in research, impact evaluation, or a related analytical role.
• Strong ability to translate complex research data into compelling narratives for external audiences, particularly donors.
• Familiarity with impact evaluation methods and the ability to interpret and summarize research findings.
• Familiarity with data collection tools (SurveyCTO, Commcare) data analysis tools (e.g., Excel, Stata, R, Python) and data visualization tools (e.g. Adobe, Canva, Flourish)
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills - particularly critical is strong writing free of jargon, but the strongest candidates will be able to communicate using a variety of media, including presentations, charts, etc. 
• Strong project management skills and the ability to juggle multiple workstreams.
• Ability to work cross-functionally and translate research insights into actionable fundraising content.

 

Compensation

At GiveDirectly, we strive to pay our employees generously and equitably. We use an accredited third party salary aggregator to ensure that staff’s total compensation package (base compensation + bonus)  falls within the 75th percentile of similar roles, at similar organizations. We also have a no negotiation policy to ensure we are paying staff equitably across roles. Read more about our compensation philosophy here.

The Malawi base salary for this role is $79,500.00

 #LI-REMOTE

 

Working at GiveDirectly

GiveDirectly is an Equal Opportunity Employer. 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.

Flagging for US applicants: 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.

 

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