Head of Democracy Assessment - Stockholm

Responding to increasing challenges to democracy and a shrinking democratic space around the world, including in more established democracies, International IDEA’s Global State of Democracy (GSoD) Programme - established in 2016 as part of International IDEA’s Global Programmes - seeks to contribute to the global debate on democracy and inform the development and implementation of strategies and policies that build, advance and safeguard democracy worldwide. Since its launch, the GSoD programme has completed 2 two-year programme cycles, which have been organized around a variety of different knowledge products, including International IDEA’s biennial flagship Global State of Democracy Report, which analyzes global and regional democratic trends; an annually updated statistical dataset on democratic quality, now covering 162 countries in the world (GSoD Indices) and shorter thematic policy briefs on current issues in the democracy debate (GSoD In Focus).

The flagship GSoD Report, published in 2017 and 2019, provides evidence, data, balanced and impartial democratic quality and trend analysis at global and regional levels, as well as thematic and country case studies geared specifically to international, regional and national policy makers and civil society organizations working on democracy and governance-related issues. The analysis and data contained in the report is increasingly used by a range of national, bilateral and multilateral organizations and civil society organizations as a key global and regional knowledge resource and reference point in the democracy field, for both strategy development, democracy assistance programming, democratic governance analysis at global, regional and country level, identification of funding priorities, presentations and advocacy. In addition, it has led to ample media coverage and inclusion in academic curricula and uptake in research by academics and students throughout the world.

 The Global State of Democracy programme now produces five main knowledge products, which it disseminates through active outreach and training to multilateral, regional and bilateral donors, government agencies and civil society organizations:

-          The Global State of Democracy Report, a biennial publication which has become the flagship report of International IDEA and which: i) provides a “health check” of democracy, mapping patterns and trends of democracy globally and for all regions of the world; ii) analyzes key opportunities and challenges to democracy, and iii) provides a set of policy recommendations to address them. Since 2017, two GSoD Reports have been published and the third is scheduled for November 2021 and will focus on the impact of COVID-19 on democracy. The GSoD reports are written by International IDEA staff with inputs and peer review from external thematic and regional experts.

-          The Global State of Democracy Indices, that provide statistical data for 115 indicators on democratic quality for 163 countries from 1975 until today, updated annually. The data is available on an interactive website that generates graphs and country profiles. Since 2017, four annual updates of the dataset have been produced with the support of academic democracy measurement experts.

-          The COVID-19 Global Monitor of Democracy and Human Rights. Launched in July 2020 and funded by the European Union, a digital platform linked to the Global State of Democracy Indices, that monitors the impact of COVID-19 on democracy and human rights every two weeks since the start of the pandemic, with 162 COVID-19 democracy and human rights country profiles and global and regional situation summaries.

-          Global State of Democracy In Focus: regular briefing notes zooming in on relevant issues in the global democracy debate based on the GSoD Indices, and released throughout the GSoD programme cycle. Since 2018, 10 GSoD In Focus have been published. The GSoD In Focus are written by International IDEA staff.

-          GSoD videos. Short videos with key findings of GSoD reports and stories of democratic transitions and intevierws with democracy activists from around the world. Since 2017, eight  videos have been produced. IDEA’s Communications team oversees the production of the videos, which is outsourced to an external firm.

The Head of DA will strategically lead and manage the DA programme and team, providing intellectual leadership, and leading the conceptualization, content development and quality control of the team’s knowledge products.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Leads, manages, provides strategic direction and intellectual leadership on democracy measurement and analysis to International IDEA and the DA unit and all its knowledge products (including the Global State of Democracy Report, the GSoD Indices, the GSoD In Focus and the COVID-19 Global Monitor on Democracy and Human Rights) demonstrating its strategic value to the attainment of International IDEA´s programmatic and institutional goals; 
• Builds and maintains a highly motivated team with relevant capacity to engage in measurement and analysis of democracy-related topics and capable of positioning International IDEA as a key actor in global democracy debates;
• Manages and directs the work of the unit and team to deliver efficiently, within agreed timeframes, budget and in line with approved procedures and processes; ensuring the delivery of agreed programmatic outputs and outcomes;
• Oversees and ensures quality control of the annual updates of the Global State of Democracy Indices;
• Plays a leadership role in conceptualizing, overseeing the drafting and guaranteeing the analytical quality of the flagship report of International IDEA (the Global State of Democracy Report) and accompanying regional reports, as the Global Lead Editor, ensuring coherence across chapters and reports and ensuring quality control of data and analysis;
• Actively builds strategic partnerships and networks for the attainment of the Unit´s mandate and institutional objectives and outcomes;
• Actively engages in mobilizing resources needed for the realization of the unit´s mandate;
• Ensures that the unit´s work is designed and implemented in close collaboration with other programmes (global and regional) and liaison office in New York;
• Ensures that all cross-cutting themes of gender and inclusion, conflict sensitivity and sustainable development are effectively integrated into the Unit´s work;
• Actively represents International IDEA in networks and fora relevant to the mandate of the unit;
• Participates in media interviews to represent International IDEA and shares key findings of the knowledge products produced by the unit;
• Distills key messages from democracy research into communications products geared to policymakers.

• Serves as a lead on editing and quality control of the GSOD Report and other written knowledge products, reviewing, restructuring and copy-editing publications;
• Leads a team of internal and external researchers and contributors to the GSoD Report;
• Coordinates with regional and country offices on their contributions to the GSoD, providing support and technical assistance as needed;

General Profile

• Combines in-depth knowledge, acquired through academic achievements, excellent skills including managerial skills and expertise in democracy assessment for a policy-oriented audience;
• Has demonstrated experience in the development and implementation of complex knowledge generation projects focused on democracy building, democracy research/assessments or quantitative democracy measurement, supervising the publication cycle, ensuring quality control and reviewing substantive inputs from internal and external providers;
• Is regarded as an expert and authority in his/her broad professional community;
• Extensive experience in producing English-language publications on democracy, including superior conceptualization, analytical, writing and editing skills;
• Extensive experience in public speaking, including with media and presenting for policy audiences;
• Is experienced in leading meetings and discussions with senior-level stakeholders in both the academic and policy field,
• Has expertise in crafting policy recommendations on democracy building, strengthening and protection and has an in-depth understanding of political processes;
• Has the intellectual leadership to integrate innovation into his/her field of expertise;
• Leads a team of contributors to the project, including staff members and consultants;
• Fosters team-based activities in his/her unit; collaborates with other entities of the Institute;
• Acts as a model and mentor for colleagues;
• Is expected to travel globally to any geographical area involved in his/her projects;
• Follows internal procedures to ensure high standards of performance and compliance with Institutional guidelines;
• Anticipates internal challenges and issues and recommends process improvements;
• Integrates a gender and diversity perspective in all activities.

Reporting Line

• Director of Global Programmes.

Programmatic Knowledge

• Has excellent knowledge, extensive work experience and is regarded as an expert and authority in own discipline, combined with excellent understanding of related disciplines in order to approach programmatic activities in a holistic manner.

Operational Knowledge, skills and experience

• Integrates a results-based approach into the design, management and evaluation of all his/her programmatic activities;
• Has thorough understanding of relevant programmatic issues in the democracy building field;
• Is active in the search for information on donors and partners, preparation of reports and project briefs, identification of opportunities for initiation of new projects, and all other activities related to resource mobilization and partnership building;
• Illustrates integrity, a collaborative spirit, a sense of achievement, and an understanding of risk management;
• Understands and manages the budget and planning of his/her project(s).

Leadership

• Leads a multi-talented team, sets team priorities and manages resources;
• Acts as a model and resource for colleagues.

Problem Solving

• Will solve complex challenges, approach issues with new perspectives, and analyze situations from a multitude of intervening factors.

 Impact

• Has a clear impact on the programme development and delivery;
• Will also impact other teams and projects in related fields.

Communication and Interpersonal Skills

• Liaises permanently to all internal and external stakeholders involved in his/her project; acts and is perceived as an initiator of relevant communication to solve issues;
• Drives projects and assignments through communicative personal energy and engagement;
• Is aware of political sensitivities and can explain sensitive information with diplomacy, and build consensus;
• Is able to present his/her activities and represent International IDEA effectively in all professional circles;
• Is experienced at providing coaching and feedback on the team’s written products;
• English: Excellent knowledge of spoken and written English required; Any other widely spoken language in an International IDEA priority region is highly desirable.

Education and Experience

• Advanced university degree in Social Science, Political Science, International Law, International Development, Peace and Development Studies or a related discipline; PhD is advantageous;
• Academic training and extensive applied experience in mixed methods research, with a robust track record of both quantitative and qualitative research techniques, applied to policy research on democracy;
• Minimum ten (10) years’ experience in democracy research and analysis, programme design, management and implementation, the provision of expert advice and advocacy in the field of democracy and governance and in leading English-language policy relevant publications on democracy;
• Is regarded as an expert and authority in the democracy measurement and analysis field, with a publication track record, ideally for a policy audience;
• Has superior English-language writing and editing skills, with expertise in publication production from inception to release;
• Understands the policy-making process and demonstrates nuanced political acumen;
• At least five (5) years of experience in managerial positions, including senior level positions;
• Good computer/ICT skills and knowledge of relevant statistical software packages required (either R, SPSS or STATA);

Terms of Contract: 

• International post 
• Two (2) year fixed term appointment. 
• Salary EUR 6 900 NET plus benefits. 

Applying for this position:  

• Applications should be submitted online no later than 24:00 (CET) 30 October 2020.
• All applications must be made in English. 

International IDEA is an equal opportunity employer which seeks to further diversify its staff in terms of gender, culture and nationality.