Research Manager, Kampala

Job Title and Organisation

We are currently looking for a Research Manager to support our Ethiopia team.

Department: REACH

Position: (Associate) Research Manager

Contract duration: 11 months

Location: Kampala Uganda, with possible travel to Addis Abeba

Starting Date: May 2026

Country Profile

Since 2018, Ethiopia has witnessed an escalation in unrest including large-scale displacement, killings, and destruction of property following domestical political changes. Such unrest has exacerbated the impact of climate-related crises, including the most devastating desert locust infestation in 25 years, which has damaged crops and fostered food insecurity. Then in November 2020, conflict erupted in the northern Tigray region, displacing many Ethiopians, and contributing to an millions of people needing assistance in Amhara, Afar and Tigray regions. All of these events have severely disrupted livelihoods, affected the availability of staple market commodities, and threatened to sharply escalate humanitarian need for vulnerable populations across the country.

Functions

Under the line management of the IMPACT Deputy Country Representative, the Research Manager is responsible for overseeing the implementation of research cycles within their unit, including the preparation, data collection, analysis, drafting, dissemination and evaluation stages. Throughout research cycles, the Research Manager engages with partners to promote their participation and maximize their impact. He/she also ensures an efficient and transparent use of resources required for project implementation. The Research Manager will lead the PANDA Unit, leading an assortment of projects including light touch verifications (LTV) exercises with identified partners in Ethiopia.

In his/her mission, Research Manager will be hosted by IMPACT's global partner ACTED and will fall under the direct responsibility and management of ACTED's Country Director and his/her delegates for all Administrative, Security, and relevant Logistics and Finance issues. S/he will therefore fully abide to ACTED's Security, Administration, and relevant HR, Logistics and Finance rules and regulations.

Responsibilities

• STAFF MANAGEMENT
• Direct management of international and national assessment team members, including recruitment, appraisals, and capacity building;
• Day-to-day management of the team, including the development of work plans and performance indicators, and development and implementation of capacity training plans to improve efficiency and performance;
• Conduct regular check-ins with staff within the unit, and promote team building, productivity and staff welfare; Be available to provide regular support and technical backstopping;
• Take on additional work streams and management responsibilities as well as advise in strategic mission decision-making as a member of the Senior Management Team (SMT) as required, in coordination with the other research managers
• MANAGEMENT OF RESEARCH CYCLES
• Assessment Preparation and Planning
• Ensure that all Assessment staff are comprehensively briefed on objectives and expected outputs of research cycles, and that the overall implementation strategy of any given activity is clearly understood;
• Ensure that required secondary data analysis has been conducted in preparation for an assessment;
• For each research cycle, review ToRs before they are sent to Geneva for validation and ensure that TORs are validated by HQ before data collection begins;
• Ensure relevant stakeholders and partners are engaged in assessment design and planning, data collection, and management.
• Data Collection
• Monitor data collection, ensuring correct implementation in line with agreed ToRs;
• Keep track of progress and delays of all assigned assessments throughout the research cycle;
• Ensure regular situation updates on data collection have been produced and circulated to relevant REACH, ACTED and external counterparts. Provide support and follow up on identified challenges during the data collection process;
• Work closely with the Operations officer and field manager to ensure logistics, financial, administration, security and HR processes directly related to REACH are appropriately implemented, alongside the relevant ACTED departments;
• Product drafting, dissemination and evaluation
• Maintain regular communication with IMPACT HQ on progress and deadlines for written products;
• Ensure the drafting of timely and accurate assessment outputs (i.e. reports, factsheets, etc.) which comply with IMPACT's guidelines and quality standards;
• Review all unit products before they are sent to IMPACT HQ for validation and ensure that all written products are validated by IMPACT HQ before external release.
• Under supervision of IMPACT HQ, ensure that research products are uploaded in relevant data portals, as specified in Research ToRs;
• In consultation with the Country Representative, engage in the dissemination of research products, including through articles, IMPACT social media contents, targeted e-mails, coordination body presentations, and bilateral meetings, in line with IMPACT Dissemination and External Communication Guidelines and Research ToRs;
• Support the mission coordination to conduct monitoring and evaluation as specified in the research ToRs and in line with IMPACT Guidelines.
• STRATEGY DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION
• Lead on identifying information gaps in line with humanitarian priorities, and identify advocacy and dissemination strategies to strengthen the impact of our work;
• Lead on formalising synergies with other assessment and knowledge management actors, as well as strategic partnerships with key humanitarian stakeholders and decision makers;
• As a member of the Senior Management Team (SMT), contribute to the development and implementation of the REACH Ethiopia country strategy;
• EXTERNAL ENGAGEMENT
• Represent PANDA/IMPACT in cluster and multi-sector meetings/technical working groups in country, and follow up on technical issues identified in cluster meetings;
• In coordination with the Country Coordinator and relevant assessment staff, present research findings to relevant partners, to enhance their use and impact;
• In coordination with the Country Coordinator, ensure that relevant partners are consulted and involved at all stages of research cycle: the preparation of the assessment; data collection; data analysis; review of research products; product dissemination; and lessons learnt;
• Ensure that external communications with partners and key stakeholders, including UN agencies, local and national government, and NGOs has been conducted and documented as appropriate;
• Support the IMPACT Country Coordinator in external engagement on PANDA/IMPACT strategy or (when requested and with focal point) for fundraising and grants management.
• ACCOUNTABILITY TO COMMUNITIES AND BENEFICIARIES
• The RM is responsible for ensuring that all interactions with Ethiopian communities are conducted in a respectful and consultative manner.
• Due attention must be paid to ensuring that communities are adequately consulted and informed about IMPACT programme objectives, activities, beneficiary selection criteria, and methodologies. This is the responsibility of every IMPACT staff member.
• CONFIDENTIALITY AND DATA PROTECTION
• The Research Manager will maintain the strictest confidentiality on all data collected and related processes. He/she will actively take measures to prevent the unauthorized sharing of any information and data belonging to IMPACT and its partners or collected during his/her assignment with IMPACT.

Requirements

• Excellent academic qualifications, including a Master's degree;
• 3-5 years of relevant work experience, such as program management, evaluation and assessments, ideally from the fields of MEL, TPM, PDM, etc.
• Previous experience managing teams in a humanitarian setting required, ideally with experience in a senior management role in an INGO team;
• Experience in conducting impactful applied research (both qualitative and quantitative) in humanitarian or development contexts;
• Excellent management, coordination, organisational and planning skills required, including an ability to manage large workloads, oversee multiple teams and effectively meet deadlines, through multi-tasking and prioritisation;
• Experience with external engagement (donors, partners and other key stakeholders) required;
• Familiarity with the humanitarian coordination system required;
• Excellent internal and external communication and drafting skills required for effective report writing;
• Excellent analytical skills required, and an ability to situate findings within a wider context;
• Fluency in English required;
• Strong knowledge of Microsoft Word and Excel required;
• Experience in research cycle (design, data collection, analysis and reporting) implementation required.
• Experience with quantitative data collection tools (ODK, ONA, KOBO) desirable;
• Experience with qualitative research, including focus group discussions and key informant interviews required,
• Knowledge of the Adobe Suite software, particularly Illustrator and InDesign an asset;
• Prior knowledge of the Ethiopian context an asset;
• Experience working and living in challenging environments, for extended periods of time an asset;
• Willingness to relocate to Ethiopia and living in the organisation's guesthouse, with up to 50% travel to Kampala.

Compensation & Benefits

For this position, salary between 3'180 CHF and 3'240 CHF monthly (before income tax), etc as well as a monthly living allowance of 300 USDNB - IMPACT salaries are strictly determined by our salary grid depending on the grade of the position and the level of education of staff. A location-dependent security and/or isolation adjustment is then applied as a recognition that some staff are required to work in difficult places where living and working conditions are much more difficult than elsewhere.

• Accommodation and food provided in a guesthouse.
• Enrolment in Swiss private pension fund (Swisslife - approx. 9.975% of staff gross salary), health insurance, life insurance and repatriation assistance
• Flight tickets every 6 months & visa fees covered (in-country travel costs and professional expenses are fully covered)
• Contribution to the luggage transportation: between 20 and 100 kgs, depending on the length of the contract (+ luggage and personal property insurance)
• Annual leave of 36 days per year. Public holidays of the country of assignment. Family/compassionate leave when applicable.
• Predeparture induction - 3 days at IMPACT Initiatives's HQ in Geneva + one week pre-departure training in ACTED HQ in Paris, including a 4-days in situ security training;
• Enrolment in IMPACT Initiatives Research Foundational Learning Programme within the first 3 months from the start of contract.
• IMPACT prioritizes the psychological safety of its staff and the health insurance provided covers, among others, up to 1000 € per year of psychosocial counselling fees