Senior Director (Executive Director Level) - Global Poverty Research Lab (GPRL)

Summary of the Organization

The Global Poverty Research Lab (GPRL) is a research center based at Northwestern University (NU) that generates empirical evidence on the effectiveness of policies and programs to help people throughout the world improve their standard of living. Our projects examine the interaction between poverty and topics such as finance, entrepreneurship, education, gender, psychological well-being, agriculture, and the environment. GPRL’s research primarily involves designing, monitoring, and analyzing data from multi-faceted randomized controlled trials (RCTs). We test whether interventions and programs such as crop insurance, job training, and cognitive behavioral therapy can improve the well-being of people in the developing world and the most cost-effective ways of implementing them. We conduct or support RCTs in more than 10 countries in the Americas, sub-Saharan Africa, China, and Southeast Asia. We believe we can produce more and better research by creating a common infrastructure whether geographic or sectoral, upon which to then engage in research and policy work. Geographic research clusters in Ghana and the Philippines collect long-term panel data on economic and social outcomes. The China research cluster aims to promote rigorous empirical research on the Chinese economy. Our researchers also work to improve research methodologies for using survey data, machine learning, and meta-analysis in the context of international development through the Research Methods Initiative, in collaboration with Innovations for Poverty Action.

GPRL is co-directed by Dean Karlan, Nancy Qian, and Christopher Udry, professors at the Kellogg School of Management and the Weinberg School of Arts and Sciences’ economics department at Northwestern University. Affiliates of GPRL include 15 other Northwestern faculty members from Economics, Kellogg and the School of Education and Social Policy.. GPRL’s research managers, research analysts, and administrative staff support our investigators’ projects and work closely with their coauthors at universities, NGOs, and research institutions around the world. 

Founded in 2017, GPRL has grown from three research staff to a group of 30+ including research managers, research assistants, post docs, and administrators. The GPRL community at NU encompasses faculty and graduate students from a variety of disciplines.

About the Role:

We are seeking a dynamic Senior Director for this new position to provide strategic direction and organizational leadership for GPRL. This role is an Executive Director-level role responsible for building fundraising strategies, establishing, and maintaining key partnerships - within and outside of the University, raising the profile of GPRL, finding avenues for effective communication and outreach, and identifying opportunities for multi-disciplinary collaborations.

The ideal candidate will have expertise in international development, quantitative social science research methods and a passionate commitment to evidence-based solutions for global poverty alleviation. The Senior Director will focus on building growth strategies, establishing and maintaining key partnerships - within and outside of Northwestern University, raising the profile of GPRL, finding avenues for effective communication and outreach, and identifying opportunities for multi-disciplinary collaborations. We care deeply about our staff and organizational culture. The Senior Director will also play a key role as an organizational leader, providing guidance and support to research initiatives and staff.

Required Qualifications:

• Master’s degree (or the equivalent combination of education & experience) required, PhD optional
• Eight or more years of relevant experience in research in the field of Development Economics and strong familiarity with rigorous research approaches used in this field
• Experience building consensus for and then launching and leading new programs in an academic setting required as is ability to effectively prioritize and execute tasks conforming to shifting priorities, demands and timelines.
• Experience with devising and implementing strategies and systems to achieve organizational goals and objectives.
• Proven experience leading a team with the ability to lead organizational growth and build operational capacity
• Ability to translate statistical/economic concepts for non-academic and government partners.
• Strong relationship builder with excellent communications and interpersonal skills required. Ability to partner thoughtfully and deeply with faculty members
• Ability to gather resources from disparate parts of the organization to move an idea initiative forward
• Cultivate and foster a culture of respect, trust, and transparency
• Creative and forward thinking
• Ability to develop and execute a comprehensive cross-functional marketing communication plan

Preferred Qualifications:

• A strategic thinker with the ability to execute through clear processes and timelines
• A strong relationship builder and ability to elevate trust and integrity for the GPRL mission
• Demonstrated experience in nonprofit fundraising
• Ability to identify and remove barriers to individual and organizational success
• Inquisitive, curious, and willing to learn
• Experience in persuasive writing, resulting in gifts in excess of $500k preferred
• Inspired by GPRL’s mission

What GPRL is looking for in leadership now:

Strategic Planning and Fundraising

• A strategic thinker with the ability to execute through clear processes and timelines
• A strong relationship builder and ability to elevate trust and integrity for the GPRL mission
• Proven experience leading a team
• Excellent communicator
• Demonstrated experience in nonprofit fundraising
• Ability to identify and remove barriers to individual and organizational success
• Cultivate and foster a culture of respect, trust, and transparency
• Inquisitive, curious, and willing to learn
• Experience in persuasive writing, resulting in gifts in excess of $500k preferred
• Inspired by GPRL’s mission

Programmatic Leadership

• Manage a team of researchers and administrators for research project/s of high priority. Lead improved communication strategies
• Provide guidance and research ideology to research staff, advancing the research mission of the lab
• Provide guidance to faculty and researchers to define and unify research designs
• Define initiative/project goals, roles, and responsibilities; build and formalize team; monitor and report on progress to goals
• Develop/refine operational structure, processes, and procedures to ensure deep collaboration, coordination, and cross-functional work across analysis, and program teams
• Develop and implement mechanisms/procedures to ensure cross-team collaboration and feedback loops of research findings to inform program and content development and delivery
• Collaborate with other universities, NGOs, policymakers, and others to collaborate and influence policy
• Collaborate across the lab, Kellogg, and Northwestern to ensure active partnership between the lab and the NU research community

Organizational Effectiveness:

• Working closely with the Business Administrator (“BA”), the Senior Director oversees the Center’s operations and ensures organizational efficiency and effectiveness
• Stewards GPRL’s financial and human resources, overseeing all centralized operations functions related to personnel, budgeting and financial management, event planning, communications, and knowledge management
• Reviews and approves all Center-wide tools, policies, and processes (developed by or in collaboration with the BA) to ensure they are aligned with GPRL’s values and effectively meet staff needs
• With the BA, co-leads staff meetings and regular management and mentor meetings to facilitate knowledge-sharing and collaboration, promote efficiency, and maintain clear channels for feedback and communication
• Monitors progress toward Center-wide and program-specific goals and objectives

Communication and Outreach:

• Identify opportunities to convene conversations and “ownable” programmatic platforms that showcase GPRL’s thought leadership, engage thought leaders and key influencers to position the Lab
• Author blogs and newsletters that raise visibility for GPRL and change the way policymakers and researchers think about development
• Represents GPRL at major relevant conferences and events

Faculty Support:

• Partner with professors, post-docs, and PhD students to report and publish our proprietary data science research
• Represent the Lab in its participation and research with internal and external conferences and groups
• Oversees calendar of all programs and events. Onboards guest speakers

Partnership Development:

• Create and lead initiatives with Alumni Relations and Development to identify and establish research partnerships with funders, business, and the community resulting in new or expanded relationships in priority areas
• Identify, engage, prioritize, and steward research partnerships across NU
• Negotiate with industry, government, and private sources for access to unique datasets for research and/or funding that contribute to the discovery and dissemination of new knowledge in prioritized areas
• Facilitate new connections among researchers externally and across broader Northwestern community and incubate new concepts that advance Kellogg and Northwestern’s reputation 
• Collaborate with Northwestern partners for corporate/foundation prospects by making solicitations and directing cultivation by faculty and senior administration. Successfully writes grant/gift proposals and award nominations