RECO Immunization Study Manager

ABOUT VILLAGEREACH

VillageReach transforms health care delivery to reach everyone. We are driven by a vision of a world where each person has the health care needed to thrive. VillageReach’s goal is to reduce inequities in access to quality primary health care for 350 million people by 2030. We work with governments, the private sector, partners and communities to build responsive primary health care systems that deliver health products, information and services to the most under-reached. As a locally driven and globally connected organization, VillageReach has offices in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Mozambique and the United States.

Summary

The Manager- Research and Evaluation of Community-led Outcomes (RECO) Immunization Study will be a key senior level position to lead the management and oversight of a small-scale pilot implementation of CHW-led vaccine administration in Lomami province, DRC. The position will hold responsibility and accountability for the implementation of all pilot activities, according to the agreed upon budget and workplan, and report progress regularly to both colleagues at VillageReach and the donor. They will work closely with the VillageReach DRC team, along with Global Technical Team, the Research, Evidence & Learning teams, and relevant country stakeholders relating to community health, research, and immunization.

Context

VillageReach is implementing a small-scale study in Lomami province in DRC to pilot and gain evidence on the role of CHWs as Vaccinators. We will work closely with the MoH and other immunization stakeholders to engage community health workers (known in DRC as relais communautaires or RECOs) to administer vaccines, whereby community health workers receive specific training and remuneration to administer vaccines. The pilot will generate evidence on whether CHW-led vaccination is an effective, locally acceptable approach for reaching under-vaccinated populations, and inform scale up across the country. We will also look at this approach from a cost effectiveness angle, to inform resources required for scale-up.

There are four phases that we envision for the pilot study to be carried out: (1) Stakeholder engagement and high level approvals phase at national level (2) Study design and final ethical approval of the study protocol (3) Implement the study; training participants, collecting data, supervision (4) Final analysis, write up, and dissemination. To execute this study, we will collaborate with community members, health workers and government stakeholders, as participants and partners.

qualitative research methods, and have strong project management experience to ensure that activities across various sites are executed according to the protocol, on time, and within the available budget allocation.

Role Description:

Essential duties and responsibilities include the following. Other duties, responsibilities and activities may change or be assigned at any time.

• Manage and assume ultimate accountability for all pilot study operations: Lead and manage all stages of the pilot research, starting from study design and approval and all the way until results analysis and dissemination. Ensure the smooth and efficient day-to-day operation of research and data collection activities. Act as the primary point of contact The Pilot Manager will be responsible for ensuring execution of phases two, three, and four listed above. They will provide leadership, oversight and ensuring activities are carried out with high quality and in a timely manner. The Pilot Manager will supervise two other Lomami-based project staff who will directly carry out research activities in Lomami. The Pilot Manager will contribute significantly in developing the study protocol in collaboration with the project team, pushing forward necessary study approvals, and subsequently oversee study activities from start to finish; including training, data collection, quality assurance measures, analysis and dissemination activities. S/he should have strong skills in quantitative and for the pilot, and as the principle operational liaison for administrative needs required by the Ministry of Health and other national and provincial level stakeholders.
• Coordinate with global project team: Proactively communicate and collaborate with other members of the VillageReach Global Technical Team as needed to debrief on project status and jointly develop project tools and data collection instruments. with the Project Lead regarding study activities, roadblocks and successes. Participate in regular project team meetings.
• Support efforts to advocate for pilot approval and stakeholder engagement at national level: Given that the current CHW scope does not include vaccination and we anticipate a high degree of project socialization. The Pilot Manager will support Kinshasa-based colleagues with information and content to engage with stakeholders successfully. An illustrative list of stakeholders includes but is not limited to: PEV (Programme Elargi de Vaccination), INSP (Institut National de Santé Publique), DGOGSS (Direction Générale d’Organisation et Gestion des Services et Soins et Santé)
• Support protocol development and IRB approvals: The Pilot Manager will also contribute to the protocol development and preparation of all necessary tools documentation needed for the IRB approval process.
• Manage project implementation team in Lomami: Provide direct management and oversight to two additional support staff who will conduct pilot activities on the ground; 1) RECO Pilot Implementation Lead, and 2) RECO Pilot Implementation Support. Oversight will include routine in-person check-ins; and occasional physical supervision visits to pilot sites in Lomami to directly observe the performance of the RECO Pilot Implementation Lead and the RECO Pilot Implementation Support. The Pilot Manager will mentor/guide them as needed to ensure quality pilot implementation.
• Maintain updated project workplan and budget: Close tracking of timelines and spending; routine reporting back to project leadership on status of pilot activities. When challenges arise, work with direct manager and dotted line manager to problem-solve.
• Quality assurance an oversight: Through effective tool design, supervision, and regular check ins with the project team, ensure that implementation research ethics and best practices are followed, and ensure all activities are in adherence to the study protocol.
• Gender integration: Integrate gender considerations as part of the protocol development, tool development, and ongoing supervision of the pilot. Apply gender lens to the context to limit gender biases, and ensure the study design and results highlight the implications of gender in the feasibility, acceptability, and effectiveness of CHW-led vaccine administration.
• Support dissemination efforts: Present study progress and results to key government, partner and community stakeholders. Contribute to grant reporting, publications and conference abstracts/presentations.

Competencies:

VillageReach has ten (10) Organizational Competencies that describe how we work together and get things done that are grouped into three strategic areas of Achieving Great Results, Setting Direction and, Bringing Others With you. For a full description, please download our Organizational Competency document.

Achieving Great Results:

1. Risk Taking and Innovation

Key Behaviors: Comfort with ambiguity, curiosity, adaptability, unconstrained and undeterred creativity, resourcefulness.

2. Business Judgement

Key Behaviors: Getting to root causes, understanding environment, navigating complexity and ambiguity, entrepreneurial energy.

3. Building Strong Teams

Key Behaviors: Trust in Subject Matter Experts (SME’s); radical candor to resolve conflict, hold each other accountable as colleagues, focused on results, commitment to mission.

Setting Direction:

4. Compelling Communication

Key Behaviors: Clear and evidence-based communication, audience adaptability, curious listener.

5. Resilient Self Leadership

Key Behaviors: Self-aware, plan how one shows up, emotionally intelligent, use one’s own agency and takes accountability.

6. Stewardship and Personal Alignment

Key Behaviors: Take ownership, display ethical conduct, effective at resource management, alignment of personal objectives with organizational goals and mission, focus on continuous improvement and sustainability.

Bringing Others with You:

7. Influencing Leadership

Key Behaviors: Cultivate trust, influences to make change, navigate the matrix structure.

8. Radical Partnership

Key Behaviors: Share information and credit, address conflict, increase impact through collaboration, political and contextual awareness.

9. Cultivates a Growth Mindset

Key Behaviors: Seek out diverse input, demonstrate flexibility in thinking and curiosity, embrace challenges, demonstrate persistence, seek learning opportunities.

10. Cultural Intelligence and Inclusion

Key Behaviors: Continuous learning and ally-ship across cultural lines, challenge prejudice and bias, modeled in one’s own behavior.

Requirements

• To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Supervisory Responsibilities:

• The Pilot Manager will be responsible for recruiting and supervising the two members of the pilot implementation team; 1) RECO Pilot Implementation Lead, and 2) RECO Pilot Implementation Support. These two colleagues will be responsible for carrying out all pilot study activities including but not limited to site selection/sensitization, CHW recruitment and training, data collection, and community engagement activities. The Pilot Manager will be required to carry out supervisory responsibilities to oversee all of these activities, and ensure they are being conducted according to the study protocol and according to best practices is implementation research. Other responsibilities include training employees; planning, assigning and directing work; monitoring performance; rewarding and disciplining employees; and addressing complaints and resolving problems. All supervision will be conducted in accordance with the organization’s policies and applicable laws.

Education & Experience:

• Degree in public health, public policy, international development or related area. Any equivalent combination of education and experience which provides the applicant with the desired skills, knowledge and ability required to perform the duties described will be considered.
• At least 5 years’ experience coordinating multi-site research projects and/or complex project implementations, preferably within the field of health and immunization
• Experience in working with the DRC Ministry of Health and thorough understanding of the DRC health challenges
• Superb writing skills and the ability to assemble, distill, and analyze information for decision-making and presentations.
• Strong project management experience, preferably within the field of health and immunization
• Senior level research experience with both study design and implementation; strong knowledge of research methods and design, and best practices in implementation science
• Demonstrated experience with qualitative research methods and analysis (gathering community insights, conducting key informant interviews, focus groups, analysis of qual data into synthesized learnings) and quantitative data research methods (conducting surveys, collecting routine data with paper-based and/or digital tools, data extraction from existing cli