Senior Associate (IN)

Innovation Network - Washington, DC; Washington (District of Columbia); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

A national research and evaluation consulting firm is seeking a Senior Associate to lead client engagements and support team growth. Ideal candidates will have experience in nonprofit programs, a Master’s degree in a relevant field, and strong qualitative and quantitative evaluation skills. This role involves designing evaluations, managing projects, and contributing to the organization's thought leadership in the evaluation field. Collaboration and effective communication are key components of this position.

Qualifications

• Minimum of seven years of related research and evaluation experience.
• Significant experience in a consulting environment.
• Ability to manage multiple client projects simultaneously.
• Significant consulting experience and ability to manage multiple client projects.
• Excellent written and verbal communication; ability to synthesize complex findings.
• Experience with qualitative and quantitative methods.

Responsibilities

• Lead the design and management of client engagements.
• Support the professional growth of the Innovation Network team.
• Contribute to thought leadership to advance evaluation.
• Design theories of change, evaluation plans, and data collection methods.
• Develop and deliver reports and data visualizations.
• Build and maintain strong client relationships.

Skills

Subject matter expertise in nonprofit programs

Strong qualitative analysis skills

Deep knowledge of quantitative methods

Effective communication skills

Ability to multitask

Communication

Team collaboration

Education

Master’s degree in social science or related field

PhD preferred

Tools

Survey design

Data analysis

Interviews & focus groups

Stakeholder engagement

Job description

Innovation Network, a national research and evaluation consulting firm that works to advance the field of evaluation through research, practice, and sharing of learning with the broader evaluation and nonprofit community, seeks nominations and applications for the role of Senior Associate. With an interdisciplinary team of nine staff, Innovation Network is poised to grow and engage a new Senior Associate to partner closely with the leadership team to lead evaluation engagements and support Innovation Network’s strategy to contribute to thought leadership in the field.

The Senior Associate will lead the design and management of client engagements; support the professional growth of the Innovation Network team; and contribute to the organization’s thought leadership to advance evaluation. Ideal candidates will bring demonstrated subject matter expertise in the areas of philanthropic and nonprofit programs, services, and advocacy initiatives, including the issue areas of advocacy and social movements, health/health promotion/health equity, policy change, and democracy; a master’s degree in a social science or related field; deep knowledge of evaluation concepts, frameworks, theories, and designs; and significant experience in a consulting environment. Application instructions can be found at the end of this document.

ORGANIZATIONAL OVERVIEW

Innovation Network is a national research and evaluation consulting firm that works to advance the field of evaluation through research, practice, and sharing of learning with the broader evaluation and nonprofit community. As a mission-driven organization, Innovation Network is dedicated to strengthening the field of nonprofit evaluation, providing resources and expertise so that nonprofits have the knowledge and skills to learn from their work and create greater impact. With original roots that focused on evaluation of smaller scale programs, Innovation Network now also partners closely with funders seeking to create social change by evaluating harder-to-measure concepts such as advocacy and social movements, health and health equity, and social justice.

• Advocacy and Social Movements: As funders and nonprofits are increasingly adopting new strategies such as grassroots engagement, grassroots mobilization, community organizing, systems change, and policy advocacy, Innovation Network has cultivated expertise and strategies to evaluate these types of complex initiatives. Innovation Network has deep experience evaluating federal, state, and local policy change efforts, in addition to systems change and grassroots movements, recognizing the ever‑evolving nature of social movements and advocacy. Whether the team is mapping civic infrastructure to understand how civic engagement organizations can be strengthened or working to better understand the landscape of health advocacy, the work is designed to inform strategic decision making.
• Health and Health Equity: With a deep understanding of the role of policy change to address systemic inequities, Innovation Network recognizes the challenges and benefits of evaluating health initiatives and deploys customized tools and frameworks to help its partners more effectively evaluate the impact of their efforts on policy to support the health of communities. Innovation Network’s approach is grounded in the notion that work at the state and local level will change health outcomes and perceptions nationwide and frequently takes a community or field‑level approach to understand patterns and trends across the health landscape.
• Social Justice: Social justice principles are inherent to many advocacy efforts that attack the root causes of systemic inequities, aiming to break down the institutional barriers that keep groups disadvantaged. Innovation Network engages with its partners to address issues related to economic justice, poverty, and racial justice.

Innovation Network further strengthens the field through training that builds evaluation capacity building through its widely‑read publications, including its hallmark report, State of Evaluation.

With an interdisciplinary team of nine staff, Innovation Network is poised to grow and engage a new Senior Associate to partner closely with the leadership team to lead evaluation engagements and support Innovation Network’s strategy to contribute to thought leadership in the field.

OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES FACING THE SENIOR ASSOCIATE

The new Senior Associate will join a highly dedicated and talented team and a committed board to provide insight to the social sector in evaluation theory and cutting‑edge evaluation practice. As a senior member of the team, the new Senior Associate can expect to engage the following core challenges and opportunities:

Lead the design and management of client engagements. The Senior Associate will steward client relationships and manage multiple evaluations from early to end stages. S/he will design robust project plans including theories of change, evaluation plans, and data collection methods/tools to evaluate the impact of client initiatives; collect and analyze quantitative and qualitative data through surveys, interviews, and focus groups; draft and finalize deliverables, including writing reports and other products and designing data visualizations (charts, tables, maps, etc.).

Support the professional growth of the Innovation Network team. The Senior Associate will coach, train, and support Innovation Network staff in all facets of evaluation, including evaluation design, data collection, analysis, and reporting. Additionally, s/he will contribute to an internal culture of collaboration, innovation, and learning.

Contribute to Innovation Network’s growing thought leadership to advance evaluation. The Senior Associate will engage in research/writing projects, trainings, facilitation, and public speaking to support evaluation capacity building across the field. Additionally, s/he will lead in designing agendas, webinars, and facilitating meetings and/or learning sessions for Innovation Network’s partners and clients.

QUALIFICATIONS OF THE IDEAL CANDIDATE

The ideal candidate will possess many of the following qualifications and attributes:

• Demonstrated subject matter expertise in the areas of philanthropic and nonprofit programs, services, and advocacy initiatives, including the issue areas of advocacy and social movements, health/health promotion/health equity, policy change, and democracy.
• Master’s degree in a social science or related field required; PhD preferred.
• Minimum of seven years of related research and evaluation experience; Knowledge of/experience with evaluation concepts, frameworks, theories, and designs.
• Significant experience in a consulting environment (e.g., as an independent consultant, for a consultant firm, or as an internal consultant) and the ability to manage multiple client projects at once.
• Ability to multitask and thrive in an environment with competing priorities and deadlines.
• Strong qualitative analysis skills including experience conducting interviews, focus groups, and analyzing qualitative data.
• Deep knowledge of quantitative methods including survey instrument design, survey deployment, and analysis.
• Effective communication skills, including speaking, writing, and synthesis; Ability to deliver both concise summaries and in-depth reports.
• Demonstrated ability to work closely with team members, build relationships, and promote a sense of community.
• An energetic, collaborative, and flexible style; a natural communicator with highly developed emotional intelligence; a sense of humor and collegiality that makes the work fun.

TO APPLY

This search is being conducted with assistance from Allison Kupfer Poteet and Cara Pearsall of the national search firm NPAG. Due to the pace of this search, candidates are strongly encouraged to apply as soon as possible. Applications including a cover letter describing your interest and qualifications and your resume (in Word format) should be sent to: [email protected]. In order to expedite the internal sorting and reviewing process, please type your name (Last, First) as the only contents in the subject line of your e‑mail.

Innovation Network is an equal opportunity employer. We consider applicants for all positions without regard to race, color, religion, creed, gender, national origin, age, disability, marital or veteran status, sexual orientation, or any other legally protected status.

Nonprofit Professionals Advisory Group is an executive search and consulting firm dedicated to serving the mission driven community. We partner with global mission‑driven clients to deliver highly‑tailored, innovative, and strategic senior‑ and executive‑level search services. www.nonprofitprofessionals.com.