Program Financial Analyst, Safe Water

Evidence Action is a global nonprofit organization with an approach distinctive in international development - we exclusively scale interventions that are backed by strong evidence and can be delivered with exceptional cost-effectiveness. Our programs have grown since our founding in 2013 to reach over 280 million people annually. We deliver high impact for every dollar spent, as recognized by GiveWell, The Life You Can Save, and Charity Navigator.

We do development differently. We take a data-driven approach to identifying, scaling, and continuously improving programs which deliver immense impact, ensuring these solutions measurably improve the lives of millions. Our Deworm the World Initiative has helped governments in Africa and Asia deliver over 1.4 billion childhood deworming treatments, improving health, education, and incomes. Dispensers for Safe Water provides sustained safe water access to over 4 million people in rural Africa, preventing childhood illness and deaths.

We drive innovation: Our Accelerator builds the next generation of exceptional programs, taking an approach most similar to a venture capital model. We are ruthless in exiting programs which do not meet our criteria; those that advance deliver outsized impact for millions of people.

We are global. Across eight countries in Africa and Asia, our 400+ people are united by a tremendous passion for our mission and impact. We are strong because of our diversity of experience, geography, and background - with over 90% of our people in the countries where our impact is focused.

We have big ambitions. Our goal is to double our impact by 2024, to fulfill our vision of a world where hundreds of millions of people in the poorest places have better opportunities and their lives are measurably improved. We believe in bold and urgent action - because poverty doesn’t wait, and neither should we.

We need great people. Our success to date is due to the collective work of our amazing staff. To achieve our ambitious goals, we are looking for people who share our passion for evidence, cost-effectiveness, and scale. We seek individuals who take an entrepreneurial approach, enjoy tackling hard problems, and have a bias to action and results. If our vision and approach excite you as much as it does us, we invite you to join us.

About the Safe Water Program

Our flagship Dispensers for Safe Water (DSW) provides safe water to over 4 million people across rural Uganda, Malawi, and Kenya. Recent evidence highlights that water treatment may be among the most cost-effective interventions available to save young children's lives, reducing all-cause child mortality by about 25%. The dispensers program -- based on research from Nobel-winning economists -- utilizes an innovative and human-centric design to deliver water treatment at the source in rural settings, achieving usage rates which are 5x that of comparable interventions.

Given the tremendous benefits of safe water, Evidence Action is rapidly innovating to build the next generation of water treatment interventions. We have recently secured funding for a next generation technology, in-line chlorination (ILC) that targets peri-urban communities. Beyond these two interventions, we are actively seeking to build a broader portfolio of safe water interventions. The potential of these interventions is incredible, with more than 1.8 billion people using contaminated water sources, causing more than 1/3 of all diarrhea deaths globally.

What we are looking for:

We are seeking a highly motivated, well-organized, financially savvy, and detail-oriented individual who is passionate about international development and interested in being a part of scaling promising evidence-based interventions to support our Safe Water team.

This individual should be excited and passionate about engaging in an environment focused on the twin goals of “Evidence” and “Action”. This position will offer an opportunity to provide high-caliber operational support to senior staff and teams in dynamic, rapidly-growing units within the organization. This role works across program, finance, and operations teams to help ensure strong systems are in place to manage financial resources and to support efficient program operations at scale.

Successful candidates believe deeply in the role that strong operational management, well-designed processes, and efficient systems play in enabling high-impact, cost-effective programs, and are enthusiastic about championing effective, efficient operations on behalf of the program pillars.

Key Responsibilities:

• In partnership with the team’s Finance & Operations lead, serve as the primary point of contact for program teams during the budget process, leading the initial collection and review of all budget inputs, and project managing timelines for all Safe Water team budget reviews.
• Track budget versus actuals, incoming funds, and commitments, and grant balance transfers.
• Liaise with the Finance department on the development of monthly financial dashboards and reports, ensuring the needs of the Program Leads are reflected.
• Compile initial expense input for Cost-effectiveness Team’s costing analysis.
• Prepare initial expense mappings for donor financial reports.
• Support the Program Teams in new country expansion due diligence, country scoping pre-trip planning, and execution of operational and financial workstreams required to ensure efficient and right-sized operations in future Evidence Action geographies.
• Review invoices from contractors for compliance with contract provisions and budgets, ensuring that payments are made in a timely manner.

Requirements:

• Bachelor’s Degree in a relevant field with 3-5 years’ of relevant work experience OR Master’s Degree with 1-2 years’ of relevant work experience required.
• Oral and written English and French fluency required.
• Demonstrated excellence with financial analysis and budgeting and proven ability to translate financial and technical data into informative, decision-oriented reports.
• Advanced skills and professional experience using Excel for data management and analysis.
• Ability to multitask and track multiple projects, often with minimal supervision.
• Flexible approach and ability to dynamically reprioritize as program needs evolve and as resources required.
• Exceptional self-management and upward management skills, including proactive communication about deadlines and progress towards them.
• Excellent communication skills and demonstrated ability to communicate clearly with diverse audiences.
• Travel possible up to 10% of the time.

This position is located in Washington D.C.

Evidence Action is an Equal Opportunity Employer with a commitment to diversity. All individuals, regardless of personal characteristics, are encouraged to apply.