Program Manager, Weiss Fund

Job Summary

The Weiss Fund for Research in Development Economics is seeking a full-time Program Manager (PM) to manage the calls for proposals and grant awards, while leading research and communications projects to advance the aims of the Fund. The PM will work as part of a team to coordinate requests for proposals (RFPs) to fund development economics and implementation projects and disseminate results of Weiss Fund supported projects that have the potential to impact the lives of the poor at scale.  

The PM will lead recruitment of new scholars, including by being the lead coordinator of the Kabir Banerjee predoctoral program. This will include significant outreach and creativity to recruit talented young scholars and to coordinate with the mentors at eligible institutions. The PM will also coordinate recruitment of researchers to apply for the Weiss Fund. For example, the Fund recently added a self nomination process for Junior Faculty that the PM will help advertise and administer. 

Finally, the PM will lead policy and communications for the Weiss Fund, including highlighting successes on the website, conducting outreach on social media, advertising the Funds’ opportunities, and leading the coordination of a high-level policy event in Washington DC. 

The ideal candidate will have a strong interest in rigorous development economics research, be a self-starter who thrives working both independently, with minimal supervision, and as part of small teams, juggling multiple responsibilities concurrently. 

Responsibilities

Fund Administration:

  • Develop and refine processes and procedures for running the funding process, communication with grantees, tracking projects, and annual reporting to the donor(s).
  • Help manage the proposal application, review, selection and award process.
  • Support development of programmatic strategies and execute the vision of the Weiss Committee and funders. 
  • Support the process of expanding the Weiss Fund to support researchers based at a variety of institutions and in other countries, including in developing countries.
  • Help manage other programs, including a pre-doctoral fellowship program, through which the Weiss Fund aims to identify promising students from low- and lower-middle income countries, and support them to complete a pre-doctoral fellowship with top researchers in development economics. 

Policy and Communications:

  • Work closely with the Weiss Team to manage key relationships, including with the major funder(s), Weiss Committee members and other academics.
  • Manage communications with and reporting to Fund donors, including developing and collecting appropriate outcome and impact metrics. 
  • Support organization of communication and dissemination of promising Weiss Fund research. Lead the organization of a high-level Weiss conference in DC, in fall 2024 or spring 2025.
  • Build and maintain distribution lists to announce calls for proposals and other solicitations. 
  • Lead a communications strategy to highlight the successes of the Weiss Fund and to actively recruit more participation. This includes updating the Weiss Fund website and collating and amplifying success stories of Weiss-Funded research.
  • Support matchmaking opportunities between researchers and policy implementers, and organization of academic and non-academic events.

Help build a pipeline of researchers from low- and lower-middle income countries:

  • Oversee the Kabir Banerjee Predoctoral Fellowship. This includes launching an aggressive recruitment campaign to recruit strong talent into the profession, especially from countries that are underrepresented in the profession. 
  • Manage the self-nomination process for Junior Faculty. This is a new portal that allows any junior faculty with a PhD in Economics to apply for Weiss Fund eligibility. The PM will help advertise this key opportunity.
  • Brainstorm how to further build the pipeline of researchers from low- and lower-middle income countries.

Minimum Qualifications

  • Bachelor’s degree in economics, public policy, or a related field required.
  • A minimum of 2-5 years of related experience
  • Experience working in a research environment.
  • Ability to work independently with a high degree of initiative as well as to work well in a cross-cultural team.
  • Work experience in development economics or a closely related field.
  • Excellent writing skills.  Ability to communicate technical information for stakeholders of varying technical backgrounds. 
  • Excellent attention to detail. 

Preferred Qualifications

  • Advanced degree (Master’s or PhD) in economics, public policy, or a related field. 
  • 7 or more years of related work experience
  • Experience with randomized control trials, and working in low- or lower-middle income countries  is strongly preferred
  • Experience working with a range of internal and external stakeholders, including academics, government officials, bilateral and multilateral funders, non-profit organizations, and/or businesses will be particularly valuable. 
  • Ability to understand and convey development economics is important to the success of this position. 

Preferred competencies

  • Ability to understand complex development economics research and communicate academic research effectively to a variety of audiences.
  • Creative problem solving, including thinking outside the box.
  • Ability to interact with high-level stakeholders in research (e.g., academics) as well as in public policy (e.g., developing country governments, NGOs, foundations, multilateral aid agencies).
  • Ability to work with researchers to maximize real-world impact of research.

Working Conditions

  • Candidates must be willing to travel extensively and flexibly as needed for their respective responsibilities. This role will entail occasional domestic and possibly international travel.

   Application Documents

  • Resume/CV
  • Cover letter
  • List of three professional references

Apply Online

Open to candidates based in Chicago or abroad in Weiss Fund eligible countries.