Strength in Numbers Consulting Group seeks a Quantitative Analyst to conduct data cleaning and data analysis, advise clients on database development and oversee implementation of databases (including staff training and documentation). Strong preference for programmer who has intermediate fluency or above in R and/or Stata.
Opportunity Statement
People of color, researchers with nontraditional backgrounds, immigrants, people with disabilities, people with diverse gender identities and expressions, people of all ages and others from marginalized groups are strongly encouraged to apply. We are very serious about hiring people who come from the communities we serve.
We are a diverse, collegial community. We are based in New York City and are open to remote work, with a slight preference for those who live or would be willing to relocate to within a short travel distance from New York (e.g. Washington DC, Philadelphia, Vermont). However, we can be flexible for the right candidate. There is a 90 day probationary period; however, benefits (including health insurance) begin on the first day of employment.
Salary depends upon experience.
Primary Duties
Quantitative Data Cleaning, Analysis and Checking (50%)
- Create and maintain durable programs (reproduceable code) in Stata and/or R to analyze datasets used in long-term projects. Update programs to reflect changes in data structure.
- Analyze quantitative data from datasets used in long term projects, public sources, administrative sources and cross-sectional surveys collected in-house.
- Create user-friendly data representations in graphical and written form (e.g. graphs, maps, with explanatory text).
- Oversee and conduct rigorous data checking of the work of other quantitative analysts.
- Accurately and clearly document quantitative methodology for reports and for internal use
Database Advising and Implementation (30%)
- Work with a senior member of the quantitative team to interview staff of nonprofits and grantmakers about their data needs (for tasks that could include but are not limited to case management, donor engagement, grant reporting and services for clients) and summarize those needs
- Advise decisions about which platform or database to purchase
- Assist in implementing the database to assure long-term, independent success of clients
Administration and Internal Consultation (20%)
- Work productively with members of the team that have other training or background and are not programmers, for example those skilled in philanthropic strategy, community participatory methods and qualitative research
- Attend and participate enthusiastically in staff meetings
- Take on occasional projects related to scheduling or coordination
- Be available and responsive to questions from staff and engaged in teaching other interested staff how to conduct programming or analysis tasks
- Take excellent, action-oriented notes at meetings when required (this duty rotates)
Secondary Duties
- Interpret quantitative findings and create high-impact, relevant recommendations for audiences such as program staff, policymakers, philanthropists and activists.
- Write reports, including creating user-friendly graphs and data visualization alone and in consultation with graphic designers.
- Consult with a wide variety of stakeholders, including those with little formal education, about the direction of research
- Ability to prepare and present evaluation results in a manner that increases the likelihood that they will be used and accepted by a diverse group of stakeholders.
- Ability to work with stakeholders to present analyses, find common themes, and identify relevant and actionable findings from evaluations.
Primary Duties
Quantitative Data Cleaning, Analysis and Checking (50%)
- Create and maintain durable programs (reproduceable code) in Stata and/or R to analyze datasets used in long-term projects. Update programs to reflect changes in data structure.
- Analyze quantitative data from datasets used in long term projects, public sources, administrative sources and cross-sectional surveys collected in-house.
- Create user-friendly data representations in graphical and written form (e.g. graphs, maps, with explanatory text).
- Oversee and conduct rigorous data checking of the work of other quantitative analysts.
- Accurately and clearly document quantitative methodology for reports and for internal use
Database Advising and Implementation (30%)
- Work with a senior member of the quantitative team to interview staff of nonprofits and grantmakers about their data needs (for tasks that could include but are not limited to case management, donor engagement, grant reporting and services for clients) and summarize those needs
- Advise decisions about which platform or database to purchase
- Assist in implementing the database to assure long-term, independent success of clients
Administration and Internal Consultation (20%)
- Work productively with members of the team that have other training or background and are not programmers, for example those skilled in philanthropic strategy, community participatory methods and qualitative research
- Attend and participate enthusiastically in staff meetings
- Take on occasional projects related to scheduling or coordination
- Be available and responsive to questions from staff and engaged in teaching other interested staff how to conduct programming or analysis tasks
- Take excellent, action-oriented notes at meetings when required (this duty rotates)
Secondary Duties
- Interpret quantitative findings and create high-impact, relevant recommendations for audiences such as program staff, policymakers, philanthropists and activists.
- Write reports, including creating user-friendly graphs and data visualization alone and in consultation with graphic designers.
- Consult with a wide variety of stakeholders, including those with little formal education, about the direction of research
- Ability to prepare and present evaluation results in a manner that increases the likelihood that they will be used and accepted by a diverse group of stakeholders.
- Ability to work with stakeholders to present analyses, find common themes, and identify relevant and actionable findings from evaluations.
Essential Work Experience
- 3 or more years of full time (or equivalent) work experience of work experience involving applied statistics, data visualization and translation of findings into recommendations. If experience is in a university setting, please provide additional explanation of how the information was applied to help service providers, activists, constituents or community members.
- Demonstrated ability to extract, clean, manage and analyze data using Stata or R programming languages, including data that are very poorly structured and include significant errors
- Can document at least one experience of selecting or overhauling an existing data system for a research project, nonprofit organization, grantmaker or similar applied setting.
- At least one year (volunteer or paid, part time or fulltime) working in a social service, social justice or political organization in a non-research position, preferably with one of the topics or populations of largest focus for the work of SiNCG (for example, an LGBTQ+ social service organization, a needle exchange, a program for low income youth of color)
Other Essential Skills
- Demonstrated ability to create realistic, workable project plans and meet deadlines in the context of multiple projects
- Demonstrated ability to find mistakes in one’s own and others’ work, including to ascertain and correct flaws in the logic of data cleaning or analysis
- Excellent listening skills, including interviewing or coaching people who are not comfortable with quantitative information to ascertain what they need as stakeholders in quantitative work
- Optimistic and even-tempered, including during periods of intense work
- Passion and energy for solving social justice-related problems, while being respectful of all types of knowledge, including knowledge acquired through difficult life experiences
- Ability to work with people who have experienced oppression and trauma in respectful and effective ways and high level of comfort, competence and knowledge of LGBTQ+ communities and communities of color (e.g ease in using nontraditional pronouns, understanding of what questions are appropriate to ask of community members with backgrounds different from yours in order to build rapport)
- Ability to project expertise and gravitas to a wide variety of audiences
- Collegial and constructive in approach, especially when working with marginalized people and those trying to serve them
Preferred Skills and Experience
- Master’s degree or higher, in a social science with coursework and/or demonstrated ability and experience in survey design and conducting multivariate statistical analysis (master’s degree in public health, sociology, economics, implementation science, statistics or a related social science degree with demonstrated relevant quantitative research design and statistical coursework). We will consider candidates without a master’s or even without a 4 year bachelor’s degree but may ask them to demonstrate additional skills during the interview
- Knowledge of Qualtrics or similar survey data collection software
- Additional quantitative research skills not listed here
- Knowledge of qualitative and multi-method research design
- Experience with SalesForce and similar online databases
- Knowledge of Python or interest and demonstrated aptitude in learning additional programming languages
Benefits
- Employer-subsidized health, dental, and vision benefits effective immediately
- 10 paid holidays per calendar year
- 20 vacation days per year
- 10 sick days per year
- 3% match for retirement plan effective immediately
How to Apply
Please submit the following to sfrazer [at] sincg.com.
(1) An annotated code snippet explaining what the code accomplishes and demonstrating your highest-level abilities to program in Stata or R.
(2) A data visualization and writing sample of no more than 5 pages
(3) An original, sole-authored methodological writing sample describing a statistical or programming method for a lay audience (if written specifically for this application, this need not be more than 250-500 words; if using an existing sample, please send the original sample)
(4) A CV or resume
(5) A cover letter of no more than 3 pages addressing the following:
A. Your background, work experience and how you meet the essential requirements of the job
B. A description of how you demonstrate the attributes listed under other essential skills and, space permitting, other useful skills, experiences or approaches you would bring to Strength in Numbers
C. Why you want to work at Strength in Numbers Consulting Group
D. Names of 2 recommenders (please indicate if we should not call them without clearance, for example, if they are current employers)
E. Salary requirements and explanation of preferences for remote or in-person (when safe) work
All candidates will ultimately be notified of the outcome of the search. There will be two subsequent stages of the search, including a preliminary interview and live skills test via Zoom with the supervisor of the position and a set of interviews with the current staff and/or stakeholders of SiNCG projects. The position will be open until filled; preference will be given to applicants who send in materials within the first 2 weeks of the search. We hope to work with a candidate who will begin in early January 2021.
Emails with questions prior to application are welcome; please attach a CV to these emails and we will answer them as soon as possible.