Programme Manager: Health and Demographic

**Main purpose of the job**:

- An urban Health and Demographic Surveillance System (HDSS) site is was established in 2018 in Soweto, led by Wits VIDA Research Unit as part of the Child Health and Mortality Prevention Surveillance (CHAMPS) project
- The incumbent will lead the HDSS programme for VIDA, providing effective and strategic direction of this programme stream, coordinating all aspects of the HDSS including ensuring quality of data, supervision of an extensive research and field team deployed across complex geographic areas, and alignment with various VIDA research initiatives that link to the HDSS

**Location**:

- **Wits Vaccines & Infectious Diseases Analytics (VIDA) Research Unit, Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital, Soweto - Johannesburg**

**Key performance areas**:

- Programme management - HDSS and related_
- Review, develop and implement the full scope of the HDSS programme plan and strategy (current and long-term objectives)
- Effective and efficient administration and project planning including timelines, budgets, deliverables, and dependencies
- Develop, design, implement and track research through project management tools, milestones and process flows
- Monitor projects’ progress through ongoing liaison with study coordinators and teams and review internal reporting
- Structuring and developing of data collection modules and ensuring data collection rounds run smoothly; providing informed leadership on database design, specifications, testing and longitudinal data management challenges
- Coordinate and conduct training on the requirements for specific studies/programme components and ensure robust regular review and ongoing development of team capabilities
- Oversee quality assurance processes to ensure timely accurate data collection, processing and archiving
- Liaison within CHAMPS and other streams (Social Behavioural Sciences, Minimally Invasive Tissue Sampling,
- Data to Action, Pregnancy Surveillance, data, etc.) to ensure synergy in delivering CHAMPS and unit HDSS objectives
- Provide expert insights and direction on catchment areas, enumeration and sampling, and related planning and research data implications
- Liaison with internal and external stakeholders (e.g. StatsSA, consultants, relevant city management departments)
- Effective cross-functional collaboration and resources management including human capital and all applicable departments and shared services teams (especially financial management and reporting on relevant grants/projects)
- Meetings, reports, presentations and publications according to all applicable standards of the respective stakeholders
- Manage risk and compliance and ensure alignment with all applicable and potentially relevant policies, development and implementation of relevant Standard Operating Procedures
- Ensure Good Clinical Practice and research ethics principles are upheld at all times
- Oversight of relevant ethics and regulatory approvals with all applicable parties or bodies
- Facilitate community engagement strategies required for specific studies and engage relevant community advisory groups as required in conjunction with relevant teams
- Collaborate closely with research leadership and other investigators and project managers and provide relevant guidance advice on study design, protocols, research tools, analysis and other research-related inputs
- Produce regular and relevant data analyses relating to population-based research and HDSS activities and support investigators of population-based research through fostering a collaborative, interactive working approach and team
- Oversee related programmes and projects as required
- Research outputs, programme and business development, strategic leadership_
- Oversee and drive study-related communications, data collation and results dissemination
- Advise on the implementation of large multi-site demographic research and/or implementation projects and input related to unit epidemiological surveillance strategies
- Produce and increase academic outputs inclusive of policy briefs, peer-reviewed publications and conference presentations
- Provide leadership for own programmatic analysis plan/s, developing documenting methodologies and results
- Pursue own research interests consistent with the overall research agenda of VIDA and in conjunction with the research leadership team
- Lead the long-term strategic development of the HDSS including strategic planning and driving action plan with indicators
- Provide input as required by research and unit leadership and collaborate at all levels to drive study and unit research objectives
- Ensure cost-effectiveness in the operations of respective projects within VIDA
- Write, design and submit or contribute to new proposals
- Stakeholder relations_
- Manage internal and external stakeholder expectations and communicate appropriately with initiative and solutions
- Maintain high standards and successful internal and external stakeholder relati