Associate Director, Policy and Communications
Title: Associate Director, Policy and Communications
Location: New Delhi, India
Minimum Education: Master’s
Experience: 10+ years
Commitment: Three years or more
About J-PAL:
J-PAL is a global research center working to reduce poverty and fight climate change by ensuring that policy is informed by scientific evidence. Anchored by a network of over 1,100 researchers at universities across the world, J-PAL works with governments, NGOs, and donors to generate evidence and scale effective solutions. J-PAL also works to strengthen the capacity of researchers, policymakers, practitioners, and donors who generate, use, and advocate for evidence in decision-making.
About J-PAL South Asia:
J-PAL South Asia, based at the Institute for Financial Management and Research (IFMR) in Chennai, India, leads J-PAL’s efforts to advance evidence-informed policymaking in the region. By conducting rigorous randomized evaluations, forging impactful strategic partnerships, and scaling effective programs, we strive to deliver better evidence to help governments design better policies so people can live better lives. J-PAL South Asia works with over 20 state governments and multiple central ministries in India to embed evidence-based solutions into public systems. The office plays a strong convening, knowledge, and scaling role, supporting partners to adopt, adapt, and implement programs that reach millions. 400 million lives have been reached in India by policies informed by our evidence. The office works across sectors including health, education, labour markets, energy, environment, and climate action, gender, among others.
About the Position:
J-PAL South Asia seeks an Associate Director, Policy and Communications (AD, P&C) to lead its integrated policy and communications strategy, ensuring that rigorous evidence translates into sustained policy influence and large-scale impact.
This is a high-visibility leadership role with regular engagement with senior government officials, NGO partners, donors, and researchers to realize J-PAL’s mission of reducing poverty by ensuring policies and programs are based on rigorous evidence.
The role involves managing Leads and Senior Policy Managers and managers working across sectors, who in turn manage policy sector and communications teams, ensuring high-quality delivery and strong stakeholder relationships.
The Associate Director will be part of the J-PAL South Asia Senior Management Team and the global J-PAL leadership community, contributing to organisational strategy and cross-country learning.
The role includes close collaboration with government partners and J-PAL’s scientific advisors, including our co-founder, nobel laureate Professor Esther Duflo.
This position reports to the Director of Policy and Communications.
Key Responsibilities:
1. Strategy and Leadership
• Lead the design and execution of J-PAL South Asia’s annual policy and communications strategy aligned with organisational priorities
• Develop clear frameworks for translating evidence into policy engagement, dissemination, and scale pathways
• Ensure alignment across sector teams, communications, research, and training functions
2. Policy Engagement and Sector Integration
• Provide strategic oversight across sectors to identify opportunities for evidence uptake within government systems
• Guide teams on matchmaking between evidence and policy priorities, ensuring relevance and feasibility
• Support senior government engagement and long-term partnership development
• Identify and lead partnerships with strategic non governmental stakeholders
3. Team Leadership and Management
• Manage and mentor Leads, Senior Policy Managers and Managers across sectors
• Build team capacity in policy engagement, communications, and stakeholder management
• Drive performance management, goal setting, and professional development
4. Communications and Thought Leadership
• Lead strategic communications to position J-PAL South Asia as a thought leader in evidence-informed policymaking
• Oversee development of high-quality written, digital, and multimedia content tailored to diverse audiences
• Strengthen institutional branding and external visibility
5. Systems and Organisational Effectiveness
• Strengthen internal systems for knowledge sharing, pipeline tracking, and decision-making
• Support portfolio prioritisation and resource allocation across teams
• Contribute to organisational planning as part of the Senior Management Team
6. External Engagement and Fundraising
• Build and maintain relationships with donors, partners, and ecosystem stakeholders
• Support fundraising through strong narrative development and strategic positioning
• Represent J-PAL South Asia in high-level forums and convenings
7. Contribution to organization as senior management member:
• Drives organisational strategy and coherence across J-PAL SA and the global network by shaping policies, contributing to key decisions, and enabling cross-vertical and cross-region learning and collaboration.
Qualifications:
Your leadership, interpersonal skills, aptitude for organizational development, and passion for social policy make you an ideal candidate for Associate Director.
● Advanced degree in Economics, Political Science, Public Policy, or related field
● At least ten years of work experience in government, development, academic, or research organizations. Candidates with prior experience of working with governments in India would be strongly preferred
● Strategic thinker and committed leader who can design effective processes to communicate in a manner that increases its prominence among the public, practitioners, and policymakers
● Ability to develop high-level relationships with partners, including governments, donors, and academic researchers
● Project management skills, including attention to operational and creative details and ability to manage multiple projects efficiently
● Track record of building the capacity of colleagues through mentorship and workshops and one-to-one support
● Proficiency in a language other than English is a plus, mainly Hindi or a regional Indian language
● Passionate about the need for rigorous research to inform development policy
● Personal attributes of curiosity, self-awareness, humility, and a love for learning
***Candidates must be authorized to work in India.
HOW TO APPLY:
1. Complete the J-PAL/IPA common application . On the ‘Submit Application’ page, select the “Associate Director - Policy” position.2. On the documents page, please upload a PDF files for cover letter and CV with the filename “Associate Director - Policy_Last Name_First Name”, and click submit.