Field Officers (State or District HQ, Odisha) – School of Human Development (SHD)

About the School of Human Development (SHD)

The School of Human Development (SHD) at IIHS focuses on social transformation. The School understands social transformation as a set of processes that are rooted in, and seek to directly address:

1. Inequality in social status and substantive rights based on identity;
2. The absence of material and economic dignity for the urban majority; and
3. Inequities in political presence, recognition and participation.

The School’s core focus areas are:

• Decent work;
• Affordable housing;
• Social inequality;
• Social protection;
• Urban health;
• Community mobilization;
• Care Infrastructure.

About the Care vertical nested under SHD

The IIHS Care vertical has several programmes cutting across research and practice which conceptualises and explores feasible care models to address deficits in care, especially in childcare and care for the elderly. Some of the current projects include research to understand experiences across a series of interventions aimed at strengthening the ecosystem of actors involved in building care infrastructure.

About ‘Piloting Extended Childcare Models for Informally Working Women in India’

IIHS is providing technical assistance to the Governments of Meghalaya (GoM) and Odisha (GoO) to support the extension of Anganwadi Centres (AWCs) into crèches (AWCCs), in alignment with the PALNA scheme. This support spans diverse geographies—including urban, peri-urban, and rural areas—with a strong focus on enabling these centres to serve as mechanisms for supporting women engaged in informal livelihoods and other vulnerable contexts in building their economic agency.

Job Description

In line with the objectives of the Palna Mission, IIHS has set up a technical support unit (TSU) to support the development of Anganwadi cum creches (AWCCs) in the state of Odisha. For the TSU, the project is hiring Field Officers based in Odisha, with a preference for candidates familiar with the geography and language of the state. The candidates will work closely with the people and functions of the Department of Women and Child Development (DoWCD), other members of the TSU, especially the Team Lead, and the School of Human Development (SHD), IIHS.

These positions will be under the above-mentioned project as Field Officers at State HQ or District HQ. The positions involve various responsibilities aimed at supporting and advancing the implementation of the pilot centres. The project activities present an excellent opportunity to contribute to, and gain insight into, the implementation of government-led social development programs across rural and urban communities in India.

The role will include conducting field research, coordinating with various stakeholders involved in pilot implementation, critically monitoring progress on implementation, and supporting any other documentation, analysis, and implementation activities as required.

Additionally, the Field Officer assigned to Bhubaneswar (State HQ) will assume extended responsibilities. These include supporting the Team Manager in overseeing program implementation, providing monitoring and supervision, and managing communication and documentation efforts to regularly update the DoWCD on the program’s progress.

The incumbents will receive basic orientation on the themes of this project and will be part of the project team based in Odisha and Bengaluru.

These will be contractual positions for an initial term of 11 months, renewable on mutual consent.

Activities and Tasks

Responsibilities would include, but not be limited to, the following:

• Monitoring and tracking progress and quality of Pilot Centres as per SOP and Monitoring Framework:
• Regular monitoring (field monitoring and remote monitoring) of all pilot sites and regular visits to experimental sites;
• Coordinating with government stakeholders and providing relevant technical support to achieve timely and quality implementation of Experimental Pilot centres. This will include:
• Providing technical and capacity-building support to relevant government stakeholders as required;
• Implementation of the SOP guidelines on the ground and providing necessary support for it, as well as documenting and reporting on the experience of the implementation;
• Reflective practice, that is, dynamically engaging with the stakeholders, field realities, government capacity, and the SOP to identify opportunities and ideas for refining the SOP;
• Supporting the project team in research and documentation on the project as required;
• Supporting the Odisha TSU in communications and reporting as required;
• Supporting the Palna program team in the State as required;
• Providing support to other IIHS activities including academics, research, training, practice, operations and others;
• Participating in all activities of Institution-building at IIHS; carrying out tasks as assigned by IIHS; and travelling on IIHS work within or outside the country as and when needed.

Structure and Reporting

The field officers will be External Consultants coordinating with the Team Lead, Odisha TSU and the Head – SHD at IIHS, and will be required to collaborate effectively with a diverse group of internal teams and external individuals/ organisations, and government stakeholders.

Person Specification

The ideal candidate should have:

• A graduate or postgraduate degree in Social science, Architecture, Planning, or Management studies;
• 2-6 years of work experience in a development or public policy related institution, preferably with a prior history of work managing community projects or government stakeholders;
• Prior experience in managing field operations independently;
• Strong understanding of project management and operations, with some exposure to research and field work;
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills;
• Mandatory proficiency in Odiya and English (both spoken and written);
• Basic proficiency in data management and analysis, or aptitude to learn it.

These are contractual engagements for an initial term of 11 months, renewable on mutual consent. The offers will be on an exclusive basis, which implies that other professional assignments (whether compensated or not) that bear a potential conflict of interest with IIHS cannot be undertaken.

The search will remain open until the position is filled.

Location

These positions are based in Odisha. The Field Officer (State HQ) position will be based in Bhubhaneshwar, and other positions will be based in either of these locations: Sambalpur, Nabarangpur, and Balasore/Bhadrak. All the positions will be required to travel across various locations in Odisha.

Review and Assessment

The role and performance of the incumbent shall be subject to normal review and assessment systems at IIHS.

Diversity Policy

IIHS is an equal opportunity employer that encourages women, people with disabilities and those from economically and socially excluded communities with the requisite skills and qualifications to apply for positions.

Contact

Please write to us at hr@iihs.co.in if you need any clarifications while filling the online application form.