Johannesburg: Senior Data Researcher (JHB Hybrid) posted by Datafin

About the Role

Datafin is seeking a Senior Data Researcher to play a critical role in enabling data-driven decision-making, programme improvement, and organisational learning. The successful incumbent will possess expertise as a Senior Data Analyst and be sought after by a Joburg-based Community Upliftment Programme.

Key Responsibilities

• Analyse data to generate actionable insights that inform strategic decisions and programme improvements.
• Create, enhance and support the use of interactive dashboards and analytics tools to improve data-driven decision-making across the organisation and network.
• Provide statistical methodology to design and execute experiments, including evaluations and research projects.
• Ensure that data analysis and insights are aligned with broader strategic goals related to child outcomes and early learning.
• Support real-time monitoring and feedback loops to enable rapid adjustments and responsive decision-making.
• Identify patterns, trends, and correlations in data to inform programme adaptation and innovation.
• Write up findings in accessible and understandable formats for audiences of varying technical ability.
• Create insights briefs and reports to communicate key findings and recommendations.

Requirements

### Qualifications

A minimum of a Master’s Degree in Education, Psychology, Economics, Social Sciences, Statistics, or a related field.

Experience/Skills

• At least 5 years of experience in Data Analysis, Data Science, or related fields.
• Strong quantitative and analytical skills, including proficiency with statistical software (e.g., Stata, R, or SPSS)
• Excellent knowledge of and ability to work with SQL databases.
• A strong working and theoretical knowledge of statistical principles, especially relating to designing and running randomised control trials.
• Experience with data visualisation tools (e.g., Power BI, Tableau).
• Proven ability to drive continuous improvement in data systems and insights generation.
• Strong communication and report-writing skills, with the ability to explain complex data to non-technical audiences.
• Experience in managing and working with large datasets and relational databases.
• Familiarity with data governance, including privacy, compliance, and security requirements.

Desirable

### Experience working in a social impact or nonprofit context.

Experience familiar with survey software (e.g. SurveyCTO) and CRMs (Microsoft Dynamics) as well as Azure.

Experience in building capacity for data use and improving data literacy across teams.

Experience in, or familiarity with, Early Learning, ECD, Education, Public Health.

Attributes

• Ability to work collaboratively and effectively in a cross-functional team environment.
• Demonstrated ability to design and implement rapid experiments.
• Strong strategic thinking and problem-solving skills.
• Behaving trustworthily: being reliable, accepting, open, congruent (i.e. integrity).
• Clear curiosity (asking questions, questioning assumptions, doing differently, trying things).
• Track record of learning.
• Openness to & appetite for feedback.
• Familiarity with and curiosity about Societal scale.
• Systems doing-and-thinking.
• Design thinking & iterative designing.
• Driving to succeed.