Development Research and Evaluation Analyst

Position description

Job Purpose and Organizational Context

The Independent Evaluation Office of UNDP supports accountability and learning by providing independent, credible, and useful evaluative evidence to the Executive Board and the management of UNDP, UNCDF and UNV. The structural independence of the Office underpins and guarantees its freedom to conduct evaluations and report evaluation results to the Executive Board. The IEO conducts independent evaluations and other activities according to its programme of work approved by the Executive Board. 

The work of the IEO includes:

• Conducting independent country programme, corporate, and thematic evaluations ensuring strategic and representative coverage of UNDP programmes and results against national, regional and global scales
• Developing evaluation standards, procedures, criteria and methodological guidance for UNDP evaluations, and contributing to innovation in evaluation methodologies and tools, including AI-enabled analytics, and dissemination of good practices
• Synthesizing evidence and lessons from evaluations to inform UNDP and its development partners global, regional and country programming and strategies
• Assessing the quality of decentralized evaluations of UNDP, UNCDF and UNV, and monitoring compliance with best international evaluation and data collection standards, including the UNEG norms and standards, code of conduct and ethical guidelines
• Communicating its evaluation findings, conclusions and recommendations through multiple channels and maintaining a searchable, publicly accessible repository of all UNDP, UNCDF and UNV evaluations, and respective management responses and resulting actions
• Supporting the development of communities of practice, and partnering with professional evaluation networks to improve evaluation utility and credibility
• Engaging in system-wide and joint UN evaluations
• Supporting evaluation capacity development and national ownership and leadership in evaluation through country-led and joint evaluations

Duties and Responsibilities

The Development Research and Evaluation Analyst (DREA) will provide critical analytical support to the IEO’s evaluation agenda, contributing to independent country programme evaluations (ICPEs). The ideal candidate is not only a strong researcher, but also an analytical thinker able to synthesize complex data, apply mixed methods, and leverage emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence to generate useful insights to evaluation. This role combines research rigour with data fluency and AI-savvy thinking, making it ideal for candidates eager to contribute to independent evaluations that inform global development strategies.

The DREA will be a vital member of the Country Programme Evaluation section, contributing to a evidence based robust and dependable research foundation at the IEO. This role is key to supporting the successful and high-quality completion of evaluation activities, with a strong emphasis on project management and data analytics skills to enhance overall productivity and outcomes.

Key Responsibilities:

• Conduct high-quality research and generate analytical inputs to support evaluations, using both primary and secondary data sources
• Utilize quantative and qualitative research methodologies including application of AI and data analytics tools (e.g., AIDA platform, Power BI, Python, R) to analyze data, discern trends, patterns, and key insights to enhance evidence generation
• Perform programme and financial analysis related to the evaluations and prepare analytical reports, including infographics for evaluation reports and other IEO knowledge products
• Design and analyse surveys and manage datasets for qualitative and quantitative analysis
• Code evaluative evidence for synthesis products and provide research support for reflection papers
• Prepare the necessary ToRs, outcome papers, charts, graphs, presentations and audit trials related to the evaluation
• Support evaluation teams in data collection, analysis and drafting evidence-based findings, conclusions, and recommendations
• Support identification, contracting and management of evaluation teams and contracts
• Manage research timelines, resources, and collaboration tools for tracking and seamless execution
• Liaise and coordinate with IEO section teams, external evaluation consultants, regional hubs and other teams as needed for the conduct of evaluations
• Mentor and coach junior research analysts at IEO and contribute in the provision of training on evaluations and results based management to country offices and other organizational units  
• Support Chief of Section in the preparation of background notes and talking points for presentations to staff and Senior Management
• Contribute to knowledge sharing and methodological innovation across the IEO
• Promote UN coordination on evaluations and facilitate knowledge sharing by participating in meetings of United Nations Evaluation Group (UNEG), professional evaluation bodies and evaluation networks
• Keep abreast of developments in the area of evaluation and provide additional general research support as required by the IEO 

The incumbent will perform any other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of the Office and the Organization.

Institutional arrangement 

The DREA will be supervised by the Chief of Section, Country Programme Evaluation section, and will work in close collaboration with IEO evaluation team leaders and managers as well as other units of IEO, as needed.

Qualifications

Core
Achieve Results:    LEVEL 1: Plans and monitors own work, pays attention to details, delivers quality work by deadline 
Think Innovatively:    LEVEL 1: Open to creative ideas/known risks, is pragmatic problem solver, makes improvements  
Learn Continuously:    LEVEL 1: Open minded and curious, shares knowledge, learns from mistakes, asks for feedback 
Adapt with Agility:    LEVEL 1: Adapts to change, constructively handles ambiguity/uncertainty, is flexible  
Act with Determination:     LEVEL 1: Shows drive and motivation, able to deliver calmly in face of adversity, confident 
Engage and Partner:    LEVEL 1: Demonstrates compassion/understanding towards others, forms positive relationships 
Enable Diversity and Inclusion:    LEVEL 1: Appreciate/respect differences, aware of unconscious bias, confront discrimination  
 

Cross-Functional & Technical competencies

• Business Direction & Strategy - System Thinking:    
  • Ability to use objective problem analysis and judgement to understand how interrelated elements coexist within an overall process or system, and to consider how altering one element can impact on other parts of the system.
• Business Management - Project Management:    
  • Ability to plan, organize, prioritize and control resources, procedures and protocols to achieve specific goals.
• Business Management - Communication:    
  • Ability to communicate in a clear, concise and unambiguous manner both through written and verbal communication; to tailor messages and choose communication methods depending on the audience. Ability to manage communications internally and externally, through media, social media and other appropriate channels.
• Business Management - Working with Evidence and Data:    
  • Ability to inspect, cleanse, transform and model data with the goal of discovering useful information, informing conclusions and supporting decision-making. Data analytics for evaluation.
     
• Digital - Tech literacy:    
  • Ability to apply new digital tools or adapting their original use to create new insights, fresh perspectives or develop solutions.
  • Understand the potential as well as the limitations of certain technological developments; being able to identify how technology can add value when it's used as a ""means to an end"".
     
• Evaluation - Technical Evaluation Skills:    
  • Experience in developing and communicating methodological guidance across complex evaluative approaches. 
  • Proven understanding of theories of change and logic models and able to use a systems approach in order to identify, recreate and facilitate the development of theories of change and logic models for complex programmes, policies and initiatives; in order to facilitate evaluative thinking among stakeholders. 
  • Ability to develop high-quality terms of references for complex evaluations, demonstrating a strong ability to prioritize and focus evaluation questions.
  • Demonstrated ability to design and conduct complex evaluations, drawing on existing best practices as well as developing innovative approaches.
  • Excellent evaluation methods knowledge, including the ability to apply and interpret a range of evaluation methods and approaches, both quantitative and qualitative, ensuring that appropriate evaluation data collection and analysis methods are used. Understands and ensures the appropriate use of multiple and mixed methods.
  • Capable of analyzing data from diverse sources, identifying trends and gaps in information, being able to ensure that data and information used in evaluations are appropriate, accurate, of high quality and collected and analyzed from an ethical perspective.
  • Possess strong analytical skills, with an ability to elaborate credible findings, with evidence traced through the analysis into findings, which are then placed within their context. Uses analytical skills to synthesize data where relevant and identifies unintended results.
  • Experience in drafting evaluation documents.
  • Has excellent reporting skills, with highly credible conclusions substantiated by evidence; and generating clear, realistic and feasible recommendations.
• Evaluation   - Technical Capacity Development skills:    
  • Experience in developing and communicating methodological guidance across complex evaluative approaches. 
    Understanding of UNDP’s governance approaches and programmatic work.
    Knowledge and experience in supporting Governments in Governance, monitoring and evaluation.
    Experience in developing and working within diverse partnerships.
     

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in Social Sciences, Economics, Public Administration, Political Science, International Relations, or other relevant areas is required, OR

A first-level university degree (bachelor’s degree) in the areas stated listed above, in combination with an additional two years of qualifying experience will be given due consideration in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Experience:

Minimum of 2 years (with Master’s degree) or 4 years (with bachelor’s degree) of relevant work experience in conducting research in the context of country programme evaluations and international development with expertise in the use of machine learning and artificial intelligence in development analytics.

Required skills 

• Experience with qualitative and quantitative research methodologies; 
• Proficiency in using computer and office software packages, web-based data management systems; 
• Prior experience and strong knowledge of data management, including ability to structure datasets, develop dashboards and create data visualization; 
• Familiarity with machine leaning, natural language processing or generation, and the application of artificial intelligence to support predictive analytics. 

Desired skills 

• Experience with monitoring and evaluation tools is desired.
• Proficiency in python and/or R, PowerQuery, PowerBi, AIDA for data analysis is an asset. 
• Prior knowledge and experience with country programme evaluations is desirable.   
• Prior experience working with UNDP and/or other UN agencies is an asset. 

Required Language(s) 

Fluency in English, French and Spanish required.

 

Application instructions

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