Assistant Manager (Research), Brain and Mind Institute at Aga Khan University Hospital

Assistant Manager (Research), Brain and Mind Institute

Entity:
Office of the Provost

Location:
Karachi, Pakistan

Introduction:
Aga Khan University, chartered in 1983 as Pakistan's first private international university, is committed to the provision of education, research, and health care of international standards relevant to Pakistan and the region. The affiliated Aga Khan University Hospital provides state-of-the-art clinical facilities and well-equipped diagnostic services. The University currently has teaching sites in Pakistan, East Africa, the United Kingdom, and Afghanistan, and is a major component of the Aga Khan Development Network.

As an equal opportunity employer, AKU believes in promoting a diverse and inclusive culture and is committed to adopt appropriate standards for safeguarding and promoting a respectful relationship with and between diverse workforce of its faculty, staff, trainees, volunteers, beneficiaries, wider communities, and other stakeholders with whom it works, including children and vulnerable adults and expects all employees/trainees and partners to share this commitment.

The Brain and Mind Institute (BMI) is a newly minted entity at the Aga Khan University (AKU), with key hubs in Nairobi (for East Africa) and Karachi (for South and Central Asia). The BMI seeks to build capacity in the domains of mental health and neuroscience. In collaboration with partners, the Institute is advancing research leadership capacity and support service delivery across East Africa and South Asia, and other regions served by the AKU. The Institute supports a hub for scholarship exchange and action on mental health issues, as well as educational, clinical, and community-based programs. BMI’s research focuses on the context of today’s youth in Africa and South Asia, while our programmatic offerings address mental health related and brain health issues, including stigma and resiliency. A significant area of interest is the implementation of science-based programming in hospital and community settings that translate new discoveries into prevention and treatment programs.

This is a grant-funded contractual position.

Responsibilities:
You will be responsible to:

• develop research objectives and design research projects, studies, and proposals
• develop and refine data collection instruments ensuring scientific validity and cultural appropriateness
• develop Standard Operating Procedures for research and data management processes
• respond to research questions, troubleshoot problems, and propose and implement changes to methods and procedures
• formulate and conduct scientific experiments and data collection activities
• supervise and monitor data collection activities to ensure adherence to protocols, consistency, and completeness
• perform statistical data analysis and evaluate and interpret research results
• replicate, evaluate, and refine research strategies; recommend and implement improvements
• contribute to and write research findings for publications, papers, presentations, grant applications, and other documents
• assist with grant and manuscript submissions
• plan and maintain records of publications
• maintain and track all research ethics and IRB submissions, approvals, amendments, renewals, and adverse event reporting
• ensure research activities are conducted in compliance with approved protocols, institutional policies
• maintain a comprehensive research register covering all active studies, protocols, and approval statuses
• serve as the day-to-day point of contact for ethics-related queries from the team, escalating issues to the Supervisor as appropriate
• design, maintain, and oversee research databases, ensuring data security, integrity, and appropriate access controls
• implement and monitor data quality
• conduct regular data quality field monitoring and enforce protocols and produce QA reports summarizing findings for the Supervisor
• coordinate day-to-day tasks and schedules of research staff, enumerators, and data collectors
• guide, train, and advise junior researchers and field staff on research methods, protocols, and data collection tools
• conduct field visit of active sites to monitor progress of research staff against assigned tasks and timelines, flagging performance issues to the Supervisor
• support research team training and tool orientation
• compile research data summaries, indicator updates, and analytical inputs for inclusion in program progress reports
• prepare first-draft research narrative sections for donor reports, annual reviews, and internal institutional submissions
• liaise with the AM - Programs for integration into overall program reporting
• support the establishment and development of the regional research teams
• provide administrative and organizational support to the program lead on research-related matters
• contribute to and arrange dissemination activities at the regional & international level.

Requirements:
You should have:

• a master's degree with major coursework in Computer Science, Statistical Analysis, Epidemiology, Research Methodology, or a related field
• postgraduate training in data management, biostatistics, or research governance is an advantage
• at least two years of relevant experience in programme coordination, research administration, or a related role
• prior experience coordinating research staff or field data collection teams
• experience managing or contributing to research ethics and IRB compliance processes
• experience implementing or maintaining data quality assurance systems across a multi-site research programme
• demonstrated experience in quantitative data collection, database management, and statistical analysis
• knowledge of research principles, concepts, practices, and methods
• knowledge of statistical concepts and methods and their application to research analysis, measurement, testing, and evaluation
• knowledge of research paper writing and familiarity with grant and manuscript submission processes
• demonstrated contribution to donor or institutional research progress reports.

Comprehensive employment reference checks will be conducted.