Senior Research Manager

BACKGROUND ON IMPACT AND REACH

IMPACT Initiatives is a humanitarian NGO, based in Geneva, Switzerland. The organisation manages several initiatives, including the REACH Initiative. The IMPACT team comprises specialists in data collection, management and analysis, GIS and remote sensing. IMPACT was launched at the initiative of ACTED, an international NGO with headquarters based in Paris and presence in thirty countries. The two organizations have a strong complementarity formalized in a global partnership, which allows IMPACT to benefit from ACTED’s operational support in its fields of intervention.

We are currently looking for a Senior Research Manager to lead our Humanitarian and Nexus teams in Syria.

Department: REACH

Position: Senior Research Manager

Contract duration: 12 months

Starting Date: April 2026

Location: Damascus, Syria

COUNTRY PROFILE

After more than a decade of conflict, economic collapse, and large-scale displacement, a regime change in December 2024 marked a new phase in Syria’s history. Conditions remain volatile, marked by regular outbursts of conflict and violence, prolonged socioeconomic and infrastructure challenges, and limited access to basic services such as healthcare, education, water, and electricity, while hope in the new government’s ability to govern fairly varies widely according to demographic characteristics such as region, ethnicity, and age. While it is widely acknowledged that Syria needs large investments in development in order to recover from years of destruction and economic degradation, the humanitarian response also continues at scale due to high levels of need exacerbated by the economic situation and poor basic services infrastructure.

Active in Syria in 2013, the IMPACT Syria mission has been producing key information products over the last decade to provide an evidence base for an informed humanitarian response. Activities have ranged from monthly humanitarian situation overviews and market monitoring, to displacement tracking, to supporting joint planning processes through the provision of multi-sectoral needs data, to providing evidence for durable solutions via area based assessments.

POSITION PROFILE

IMPACT Syria is currently looking for a Senior Research Manager to oversee its humanitarian and nexus work. The SRM will be responsible for overseeing the development and strategy of the Humanitarian/Nexus Research Unit, as well as day-to-day management of the workplan and staff within the unit. This position will report to the IMPACT Country Representative with support from IMPACT HQ in Geneva. The candidate should be comfortable representing IMPACT with donors and liaise with a range of senior external partners. This position requires a profile that can be both analytical and managerial, as the Senior Research Manager’s job can range from coordinating with external partners (whether data actor, humanitarian cluster, or donor) to analytical oversight of research products to logistics.

RESPONSIBILITIES

The Senior Research Manager’s responsibilities will include:

STAFF MANAGEMENT

• Direct management of international and national team members, including recruitment and staff career management. Contingent on pending funding, this position may be responsible for directly managing 2-5 staff with up to an additional 15 indirect reports in the research unit;
• Development and implementation of capacity training plans for team members;
• Day-to-day management of team members, including the development of work plans and performance indicators.

PROJECT/RESEARCH CYCLE MANAGEMENT

• Ensure all assessments and analysis are planned and implemented in a structured and coherent manner, in line with relevant project and strategic objectives, and with global REACH guidelines;
• Oversee all research cycles, including reviewing ToRs, methodology notes, tools, products and dissemination strategies.
• Ensure the writing and production of timely, accurate and analytically rigorous reports, assessments, and factsheets;
• Ensure relevant stakeholders and partners are engaged in assessment design and planning;
• Monitor output achievement, project expenditure and ensure timely completion of the project.
• Actively advocate for the improving of analysis within REACH products, and using common methodologies, tools and analysis frameworks across units where relevant.

GRANTS MANAGEMENT

• Under the guidance of the Country Representative, contribute to managing grants in the unit, including initial discussions with donors, conceptualisation of new projects, drafting proposals, regular reporting, and M&E;
• Under the guidance of the Country Representative, contribute to the financial management of all grants covering the unit projects, including working with finance teams to ensure that project deliverables are in line with financial obligations;
• Ensure that contractual obligations are met in terms of programs deliverables.

EXTERNAL ENGAGEMENT

• In coordination with the Country Representative, represent IMPACT and REACH with donors, partners, and the wider humanitarian / development community in Syria.
• Proactively build relationships with relevant stakeholders and identify new opportunities for information gap filling and fund-raising in accordance with what is needed by the response.

STRATEGY DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION

• Under the guidance of the Country Representative, develop the research unit’s strategy, engagement and involvement with various technical and coordination forums;
• Work with key clusters and partner organizations and working groups to understand the various relevant information gaps within Syria and identify how the unit can fill these gaps;
• Contribute to the development and implementation of the IMPACT Syria country strategy;
• Develop and implement dissemination strategies to strengthen the impact of programmes;
• Engagement with HQ on relevant research and/or coordination and provide support to relevant IMPACT Global Community of Practices (CoPs).

The Senior Research Manager will maintain the strictest confidentiality on all data collected and related processes. They 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

• Years of work experience 4-5 years of relevant working experience in a humanitarian setting, such as program management, evaluation and assessments;
• Research skills Excellent quantitative and qualitative research design, data collection, and data analysis experience required;
• Familiarity with aid system Good understanding of the aid system and the research community. Prior experience with humanitarian coordination forums preferred;
• Management experience Demonstrated team management skills, including remote management;
• Thematic experience Prior experience with humanitarian and nexus research preferred;
• Experience in geographical region Past experience in Syria is desirable;
• Communication/reporting skills Excellent communication and drafting skills for effective reporting and reviewing;
• Cross-cultural work environment Ability to operate in a cross-cultural environment requiring flexibility and work independently;
• Academic qualifications Excellent academic qualifications, including a master’s degree in a relevant discipline preferred;
• Software skills Proven knowledge of the Microsoft Office Suite, to include Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Familiarity with R, SPSS and/or STATA or other statistical analysis software an asset
• Security environment Ability to operate in a complex and challenging security environment.
• Language skills Fluency in English required, competency in Arabic is an asset.

COMPENSATION & BENEFITS

• For this position, salary between 3’660 CHF and 3’720 CHF monthly (before income tax), etc as well as a monthly living allowance of 300 USD NB - 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 the 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).
• R&R every 3 months (flight ticket up to 500$ + 200$ of living allowance)
• 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;
• 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.

How to apply

Please apply directly on the website : Senior Research Manager for Syria, based in Damascus (Link For External Applicants) | Impact