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Employment Type: Permanent Staff (EHRA NF)

Vacancy ID: NF0009395

Salary Range: dependent on qualifications

Position Summary/Description:

THIS POSTING IS FOR TWO IDENTICAL POSITIONS ( POSITION NUMBERS 20073725 AND 20073726). BY APPLYING YOU WILL BE CONSIDERED FOR BOTH AVAILABLE POSITIONS .

As a member of the Global Food Research Program ( GFRP ) team, the Research Specialist (Project Manager) will have primary responsibility for leading GFRP’s data procedure & protocol design evaluating global regulations and policy impacts. This Project Manager will independently plan, organize, coordinate, and direct nutrition/food policy research activities for multiple concurrent, complex multi-faceted long-term research projects within GFRP : studies funded to evaluate the impact of policies including health warning labels, taxes, and marketing restrictions for ultraprocessed foods, policies affecting food waste and sustainability, and policies to reduce global diet- and incomerelated disparities and improve population health. This position works closely with our interdisciplinary research team from the Gillings School of Global Public Health under projects led by Dr. Lindsey Smith Taillie (faculty in Nutrition).

The Project Manager will plan, assign, and review work of others, including UNC team members and global collaborators, and will independently monitor, assess, and modify activities, timelines, protocols, processes, workflow, and/or assignments to meet the needs of the projects. This position will define work plans, objectives, and deadlines, collaborating closely with colleagues at global collaborators’ research institutions to develop and coordinate instruction and training of staff, students, faculty, and collaborators in specialized methods of data collection, entry, cleaning, and utilization. This position will ensure compliance with all regulatory and IRB documentation requirements and review processes.

The Project Manager will be responsible for independently managing multiple stages of research projects: research development and proposal writing, data collection, analysis, publication, and dissemination. The Project Manager will define standards for collection and analysis of various types of data (including primary experimental data and secondary data) and instruct others in implementing standards for accuracy, validity, and integrity This position will continually trouble-shoot and resolve quality control issues and will work towards improving efficiency and accuracy in protocols and procedures for various datasets.

This position will lead others in implementing standards and serve as an expert on experimental data collection for other GFRP work groups. Specifically, this position will collaborate across disciplines to organize and lead work of others to manage the development of experiments utilizing experimental stores and sales outlets (online supermarkets & physical convenience stores) designed to test the impact of food policies on food and beverage purchasing behavior, as well as other experiments on food-related psychological outcomes. This position will manage, plan, and implement research activities (including online surveys, in-person trials, and secondary data analysis), protocols, and timelines and be the primary point of communication and coordination among our study team and external stakeholders to ensure timely completion of all research activities. This includes onboarding, supervision, and associated human resources tasks with project-related staff, post-doctoral scholars, and students. plus budget management and communication with external collaborators and vendors.

This position requires comprehensive knowledge and understanding about research principles, study design, methods, and complex research concepts from multiple disciplines, including food science and technology, dietary intake and quality, qualitative surveys, consumer choice experiments, health records data, obesity, health disparities, food systems and environments, consumer psychology, marketing, and advertising. As project-specific tasks change and new projects and policy evaluations arise, this position will continue to perform similar essential project coordination and leadership tasks.

Education and Experience:

* Master’s Degree and at least 2 years of experience in research preferred.

* Registered Dietitian (RD/ RDN ) credential preferred, but not required.

* Experience planning and implementing complex global public health research projects, particularly experimental research.

* Experience drafting and submitting research proposals

* Experience instructing and supervising data collectors, research staff, students, or interns

* Experience with statistical software such as Stata and SPSS .

Essential Skills:

* Strong public health research skills (e.g., reviewing scientific literature, creating data collection instruments, creating recruitment materials, and managing recruitment activities, managing databases, creating IRB applications and protocols, training data collectors).

* Strong project coordination/management, interpersonal, and written and verbal communication skills. Demonstrated proficiency in academic writing.

* High level of organizational skills and attention to detail and demonstrated capacity to independently coordinate multiple aspects of large research studies.

* Resourceful approach to problem solving.

* Experience collaborating well in teams and ability to function well with culturally diverse colleagues and contacts.

AA/EEO Statement:

The University is an equal opportunity employer and welcomes all to apply without regard to age, color, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information, national origin, race, religion, sex, or sexual orientation. We encourage all qualified applicants to apply, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.