Summary
Research For Impact (RFI) is seeking an experienced qualitative research analyst to work in our Singapore office. The ideal candidate will have strong qualitative research skills coupled with practical experience with mixed-methods analysis and evaluation, with an interest in Southeast Asia, and have experience in working in a research team.
Expectations
The chosen candidate will:
- Be excited about working close to the ground in a small cohesive team.
- Contribute to a portfolio of research and advisory projects in a multidisciplinary team covering the health, social and financial sector.
- Collaboratively draft proposals and plans for research projects (including study design, data collection plans, budgeting) with guidance from a senior colleague.
- Independently conduct literature reviews and evidence synthesis.
- Undertake tasks using basic to intermediate-level qualitative skills, such as data collection, cleaning and analysis using statistical software like NVIVO, Atlas.ti or Dedoose.
- Conduct interviews and focus group discussions as part of primary data collection.
- Provide support for the development of participatory approaches with partner organizations, including providing facilitation support and conducting immersive data collection.
- Synthesize research findings into clear insights and actionable recommendations.
- Draft and edit reports and briefs.
- Translate complex findings into accessible narratives for diverse audiences.
- Support and progressively co-facilitate workshops and stakeholder discussions.
- Take ownership of assigned workstreams and proactively contribute to project quality.
- Manage projects, including interacting with stakeholders and helping to ensure timely and high-quality deliverables, with guidance from a senior colleague.
- Work flexibly and adapt to evolving project needs in dynamic environments.
Required Qualifications
1. Academic Foundation and Intellectual Orientation
- Degree in economics, politics, public policy, social sciences, or a related field (Master’s or higher).
- Course transcript demonstrating strong academic performance, critical thinking, and multidisciplinary exposure.
- Strong sense of intellectual curiosity, with openness to learning across domains.
2. Research and Analytical Capabilities
- Strong commitment to rigorous and objective research methods and practices.
- Familiarity with both academic and policy/practice research contexts, including ethics and data protection.
- Ability and experience in qualitative data collection (e.g., interviews, focus group discussions).
- Ability to conduct data analysis and synthesis to generate insights for publication, impact reporting, and/or policy-making.
- Experience with independent research, as evidenced by sample research reports or thesis work.
- Ability to apply structured analytical frameworks to complex social issues.
3. Applied Research and Impact Practice
- Experience working with partners, whether in a lead or supporting role, in research and monitoring and evaluation, either in the design stage, systems building, implementation, reporting, or across
- Experience facilitating multi-stakeholder discussions, workshops, and sensemaking processes, such as training, alignment workshops, and stakeholder briefings
- Strong commitment to advancing impact in Southeast Asia/Asia
4. Stakeholder Engagement and Communication
- Experience in relationship building and partner communications, including engagement with social sector stakeholders
- Experience in proposal and grant writing
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including technical and policy-writing
- Strong ability to develop clear, structured, and visually effective slide decks
5. Project Delivery and Collaboration
- Ability to manage research workstreams, timelines, and deliverables independently or with minimal supervision
- Experience coordinating across multiple stakeholders and project components
Preferred (but not required)
6. Regional and Contextual Experience
- Experience working in the social and development sector in Southeast Asia/Asia
- Experience in research projects in Southeast Asia/Asia
- Relevant regional language skills, particularly an ability to conduct fieldwork in Chinese
7. Research Approaches and Methods
- Experience in participatory approaches (e.g., human-centred design, community-led approaches, participatory action research)
- Experience in immersive research and fieldwork
8. Facilitation and Capacity Building
- Experience designing and delivering workshops, training, and organisational capacity-building sessions
9. Leadership and Advanced Practice
- Experience as a research leader across sectors (e.g. academic, think tank, public, private, or non-profit)
Required Actions
Once we contact you, do note that you will need to submit further documents as follows:
- Your full CV.
- A previous sample report, peer-reviewed journal publication, or published or unpublished thesis that is primarily your work as a writing sample.
- Answers to three mandatory screening questions. Each answer will be 100 to 150 words. The questions will be provided to you, when we contact you.
