Bangladesh: Policy Manager, Bangladesh

Innovations for Poverty Action seeks a Policy Manager who will work closely with global and local teams to drive IPA Bangladesh’s evidence to impact agenda. The role will primarily be responsible for leading IPA Bangladesh in policy engagement related to the response to the influx of Rohingya refugees in the Cox’s Bazar region. This includes supporting policy relationships and influence around the Cox’s Bazar Panel Survey (CBPS), a comprehensive panel dataset tracking social, economic, and health outcomes from a representative sample of recently arrived Rohingya and Bangladeshi households residing in close proximity to the refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar and Bandarban, as well as other research projects that evaluate specific interventions.

Based in IPA’s office in Bangladesh (either in Dhaka or in Cox’s Bazar, with frequent travel), the Policy Manager will develop partnerships with humanitarian and development organizations to find out what works to deliver interventions in humanitarian settings and develop a long-term research and impact strategy. Major responsibilities include: leading on-the-ground scoping in humanitarian settings in Bangladesh, development of pilots and impact evaluations, policy and stakeholder engagement, event planning, and coordination among development partners.

The Policy Manager will also lead IPA Bangladesh’s policy impact strategy, focusing on creating and managing high impact opportunities for policymakers to use evidence in decision-making. The Policy Manager will report to IPA Bangladesh’s Country Director with dotted line oversight from the Global Policy and Communications Team and the Peace and Recovery Program and substantial collaboration with research teams working with IPA’s Bangladesh office. This position will pioneer IPA’s policy outreach and impact work in Bangladesh, building and deepening relationships and identifying and creating evidence-to-impact opportunities.

Responsibilities

Lead Bangladesh in Policy Outreach Strategy (25%)

• Build expertise on the global and local evidence base on Humanitarian and Forced Displacement and 1 other sector and cultivate relationships with key local stakeholders in those sectors.
• Map influential NGO and government stakeholders who influence programs impacting refugees and host communities in Bangladesh.
• Work together with the Global Policy and Communications Team and the Peace and Recovery Program team to lead and/or participate in strategic events for policy purposes, including but not limited to summits, conferences, workshops, technical working groups, and round tables. Support researchers and country management to participate.
• Participate in policy and stakeholder engagements with humanitarian and development partners as necessary (such as building the relationships required to engage decision-makers around large-scale evaluations of promising programs and executing successful convenings of relevant stakeholders).
• In collaboration with researchers and in support of the Country Director, represent IPA in policy conversations and at events.
• Support research management staff in executing the “Policy Impact Minimum Must Dos” and in identifying and stewarding high potential partner relationships, particularly with senior levels within government or large organizations.

Cultivate and Manage High Impact Policy Opportunities (50%)

• Lead Bangladesh in continuously identifying and prioritizing high impact policy opportunities for evidence to be used.
• Cultivate relationships with key local decision-makers in 2 sectors (as described above), particularly those with decision-making authority over particular evidence-to-impact opportunities.
• Launch high impact policy opportunities, including scale-up technical assistance, and either manage small-scale engagements personally with global support, or collaborate with global teams to raise funds for additional staff to realize these opportunities.
• Identify and help launch opportunities for policy relevant right-fit monitoring and evaluation opportunities in Bangladesh, and either manage small engagements personally with global support, or collaborate with global teams to raise funds for additional staff.

Project Development (25%)

• Identify opportunities and cultivate relationships that lead to developing large-scale policy evaluations with key decision-makers. Support research teams and researchers in development and execution.
• Identify opportunities and cultivate relationships that lead to developing field replications to consolidate research on key policy-relevant research questions. Support research teams and researchers in development and execution.
• Together with the Country Director, act as lead steward to key partner relationships and support key research partner conversations.
• Proactively identify fundraising and business development opportunities for research on promising programs, develop concept notes, and pursue opportunities in collaboration with global and country office-based staff.

Other

• Perform other duties as assigned by supervisor.
• Maintain compliance with all company policies and procedures.

Qualifications

• Master’s degree in economics, development, international relations, public administration, public policy, or a closely related field strongly preferred. Will accept additional experience in place of master’s.
• Five or more years of relevant experience, including at least 1 year of experience working closely with local government officials.
• Knowledge of and demonstrated interest in international development or humanitarian policy required.
• Attention to detail and advanced presentation skills for communicating policy lessons from academic papers in ways that policymakers understand. This requires clear, precise, non-technical writing and confident, effective spoken communication and presentation style.
• Experience in leading business development and/or policy influence opportunities and proposal writing.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills: the ability to effectively convene and liaise with a variety of people in multiple organizations in a multi-cultural environment and across many time zones.
• Proven ability to multitask and successfully complete projects on tight deadlines with little supervision.
• Willingness to work hard, be self-motivated, and learn will be essential for doing well in this position.
• Ability to supervise staff and manage projects independently.
• Prior experience working in South Asia a plus; prior experience working with humanitarian organizations a plus.

Physical Requirements:

• Ability and willingness to travel to various project sites.
• Ability to safely and successfully perform the essential job functions consistent with government standards, including meeting qualitative and/or quantitative productivity standards.
• Ability to maintain regular, punctual attendance consistent with IPA standards.
• Must be able to talk, listen and speak clearly on telephone.

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