Research Specialist – Food Environment and Consumer Behavior

The Organization

The Alliance of Bioversity International and the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) delivers research-based solutions that harness agricultural biodiversity and sustainably transform food systems to improve people’s lives. Alliance solutions address the global crises of malnutrition, climate change, biodiversity loss, and environmental degradation.

With novel partnerships, the Alliance generates evidence and mainstreams innovations to transform food systems and landscapes so that they sustain the planet, drive prosperity, and nourish people in a climate crisis.

The Alliance is part of CGIAR, a global research partnership for a food-secure future.

About the position

The Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT seeks a Research Specialist to join the Food Environment and Consumer Behavior (FECB) team in Vietnam. The successful candidate will be responsible for coordinating and conducting research on food systems, collaborating in fundraising activities, ensuring integration with public and private stakeholders and decision makers in compliance with research priorities and the FECB strategy in Vietnam and across the region. The position will report to the FECB Research Team Leader in Asia and the FECB research director.

This position will be based in Hanoi, Vietnam.

Key responsibilities

• Contribute actively to the delivery of research outputs in the FECB Asia team including research products (i.e., working papers, scientific articles, reports, etc.);
• Co-design research activities and support in their management in concert with the global FECB program strategy and priorities, ensure research coordination and quality and timely delivery of results;
• Support the FECB Research Team Leader in Asia in stakeholder engagement in Vietnam (public and private) ensuring high quality research is shared in a timely and understandable manner with key decision-makers on topics relevant to food environment and consumer behavior;
• Cooperates in managing local research partners engagement and contracts in Vietnam;
• Facilitate or organize cross team research collaboration in the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT and, where relevant, engage in collaboration with targeted OneCG initiatives active in Asia;
• Co-supervise and provide guidance to research staff, other team members, and partners on research strategies, projects and deliverables;
• Contribute to fund raising activities.

Required qualification and experience

• Master’s or PhD’s degree holder in Nutrition, Community Development, Economics, Urban and Regional Planning, Geography, Anthropology, Political Science or similar field with strong record in policy engagement and food systems analysis; PhD in the same degree is an asset;
• Proven capacity in research design, implementation, data collection and analysis, data visualization and scientific writing particularly in the use of mixed quantitative and qualitative methods;
• Documented ability to use advanced quantitative analytical tools including advanced statistics, R, Python and/or similar analytic tools for qualitative data sets a plus;
• At least five (5) years of experience in a similar position;
• Demonstrated ability to establish and maintain cooperative relationships with team members, governments, and other stakeholders to achieve common results and goals in a timely fashion;
• Ability and interest to support skill development of junior staff and colleagues;
• Excellent written, editing and spoken English and Vietnamese.

Personal Attributes

• Strong ability to lead, prioritize and organize workload; take initiative and work under pressure;
• Excellent communication and ability to communicate to a variety of audiences;
• Good interpersonal skills, and ability to work effectively in a highly dynamic, interdisciplinary, and multi-cultural team.

Terms of employment

This is a full-time position based in Hanoi, Vietnam and available for Vietnamese nationals. Contracts are issued and renewed annually based on performance and availability of resources. This position is subjected to an initial two-month probation period and is graded at a level BG8 in a scale of 14 levels, being BG14 the highest level. The Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT is an equal opportunity employer, strives for staff diversity and offers competitive packages.

Applications

To be considered for this position, please send an email to HR Unit: [email protected] (Ms. To Mai Trang), cc [email protected] (Ms. Monissa Raju) with the subject line “Application: Research Specialist – Your full name”. In your email, please include:

1. A cover letter illustrating your motivation to apply and suitability for the above position against the listed qualifications and work responsibilities;
2. A detailed curriculum vitae, including the names and email addresses of three professional referees who are knowledgeable about your skills and professional abilities.

This position is urgent and will be filled as soon as a suitable candidate is found. Only qualified applicants with relevant skills and experience will be contacted. We recommend applying as soon as possible and no later than March 31, 2023 (extension possible if no suitable candidate has been selected).

We invite you to learn more about us at: https://alliancebioversityciat.org/