KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:
- Build shared knowledge about the fields and communities in which we work among staff and our stakeholders
- Develop new systems for collecting and gaining insight from stakeholder feedback
- Develop new systems for collecting information from United Way staff and gaining insights about our stakeholders and the fields in which they work
- Develop and manage an organizational research agenda that will advance our advocacy and field building goals
- Advise program staff in identifying appropriate research partners and contract evaluators to engage in conducting evaluations and research
- Develop and manage relationships with key institutional partners (e.g. Boston College School of Social Work) in pursuit of shared learning and systems change agendas
- Facilitate the development and review of data sharing agreements with third parties that increase United Way's access to relevant information about key populations in our region, as well as to analytical support in gaining insight from data that we collect and produce
- Support staff who convene external stakeholders and lead networked learning efforts (e.g. communities of practice) in setting participant learning goals and designing evidence-based content to attain them
- Analyze data that is available from public sources, that is shared with United Way by third parties such as nonprofit partners and state agencies, and that is collected and managed by United Way to provide insight as to the scale of certain problems and efforts, the makeup of networks, opportunities to act, and other information that is relevant to organizational and programmatic planning
- Promote alignment throughout United Way activities, expected outcomes, and impact
- Collaborate with United Way staff, community partners, and independent researchers to develop strategic tools such as logic models, evaluation plans, and other frameworks
- Take the lead in implementing a new monitoring and evaluation plan for United Way's work
- Take the lead in measuring and reporting on the fidelity of implementation of United Way's new theory of action
- Support colleagues in building opportunities for collecting data that is essential to assessing performance into their administrative processes
- Contribute to grant proposals, reports, and other fundraising efforts related to research and evaluation through writing content, preparing analysis of program performance, and providing context in terms of relevant population-level statistics
- Support colleagues in building in periods of reflection and evidence-based action planning into their workflows and management practices
- Other duties as assigned
REQUIREMENTS:
- At least 8 years of experience working in the nonprofit sector and/or the social sciences, preferably with a focus on human services or economic justice
- Experience designing and/or conducting evaluations of programs and interventions at different stages of development in the field of childcare, economic development, asset building, housing, or education and career pathways
- Experience obtaining and using public data to conduct landscape analysis and support impact evaluations related to financial wellbeing and economic justice
- Experience facilitating data-informed continuous improvement
- Experience developing research-practice partnerships informed by community or practitioner needs
- Knowledge of best and emerging practices in equitable and culturally responsive research, evaluation, and measurement
- Knowledge of best practices in privacy protection and responsible data sharing
- Strong written, oral, and visual communication skills
- Strong qualitative and quantitative analytical skills
- Ability to provide top notch customer service to colleagues internally as well as to external partners in our research and learning efforts
- Ability to quickly learn to use new technology and software
- Ability to manage and support time-sensitive and complex projects and to problem solve
- Ability to prioritize, manage and hold oneself accountable for completing multiple tasks both independently as well as part of a diverse team
- Advanced level of proficiency in using Microsoft Office tools, particularly Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Proficiency in PowerBI is a plus.
- Experience teaching, coaching or training is a plus
- Experience leading change management efforts is a plus
- Commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion