Research Analyst – Impact and true pricing

Do you want to make a real impact with your analytical skills? Are you enthusiastic about social themes such as the climate change and the energy transition, making the food or the financial sector more sustainable, impacts on the living environment, preservation of biodiversity and an inclusive economy? Do you want to be part of an ambitious and driven team that collaborates with trend-setting corporations, financial institutions, social enterprises and NGOs on these themes?

Do you love research and methodology development, but want to be involved in a dynamic and hands-on work environment? We are looking for a full time impact and true price research analyst to join our team.

The organisation

Impact Institute is an international organisation with an international team and clients and a strong position as thought leader in methodology development for applied impact measurement and valuation. We help our clients and partners to manage impact by measuring and valuing it. In addition, we aspire to help leaders become impact leaders. We do so by giving training to professionals, and regularly publishing our findings in open-source publications

The Impact Institute also powers True Price, a social enterprise that promotes the inclusion of social and environmental costs in the prices of everyday products. True Price develops and publishes one of the most advanced methods in the world for true cost accounting of products, at the intersection of life cycle assessment, social LCA and monetary valuation of non-economic goods.

In our method team, we work on a daily basis with questions like: What exactly is impact? Can the impact of Covid-19 on people and organisations be expressed in numbers? What are the external costs of a product? If we scan an agricultural value chain, how can natural capital and social capital effects best be quantified and monetized?

The role

You will work in the research team on developing and improving methods to answer such questions in a way that is at once rigorous, holistic and applicable in practice. You will work independently and coordinate projects both on internal research trajectories and in multi-year, multilateral partnerships with universities and business coalitions, delivering high quality methods and helping to meet agreed timelines and deliveries. You will guide our junior researchers and help them to develop as hands-on researchers.

The methods you together with the team will develop are directly used by our clients to monitor, report and improve their impact on society. You will contribute to develop methods for measuring and valuing the impact of organisations, products and projects. You will apply these methods in analysis projects for our clients together with our consultants, and improve the methods based on learnings from the practice. You will work on making the knowledge that we developed known as widely as possible by contributing to training material and open-source publications.

Lastly, you will be part of our highly motivated and fun team with your pleasant personality and interpersonal skills.

Your profile

  • Strong drive to contribute to a better world and a proven ambition to make the world sustainable
  • Passionate about carrying out research but able to think pragmatically. Comfortable and experienced with coordinating research teams to deliver projects on time to satisfaction of commissioners.
  • At least 3 years of professional working experience in a quantitative academic, research institute, think tank,  or consultancy or academic setting.
  • Semi-professional extracurricular experience is a plus for candidates with academic background.
  • Strong analytical and quantitative skills, evidenced by a relevant degree or academic achievements. Master’s degree working and thinking level is required – A PhD degree is a plus
  • Pro-active, autonomous, results driven and “can do” personality
  • Background related to the sustainability field (e.g. degree in environmental economics, industrial ecology, econometrics, sustainable development, global business and sustainability, engineering) or related work experience is highly appreciated.
  • Able to write at academic level and think multidisciplinary. Familiarity with concepts and techniques in true cost accounting, food sector sustainability, sustainable finance, life cycle analysis, natural and social capital assessment, living wages and Human Rights in value chains is a plus.
  • Experience in developing educational or training material and experience in teaching is a plus
  • Able to cope with multi-tasking and uncertainty
  • Nice and fun personality with interpersonal and social skills
  • Fluency in English. Knowledge of Dutch or other global languages (e.g., French, Spanish, Chinese) is a plus

Opportunities

You will engage in challenging and fascinating research topics at the forefront of multidisciplinary sustainability research. You will engage with organisations, small and large, that want to influence the economy to evolve to be more sustainable and inclusive. You will become well-versed in monetising external costs and impact measurement, which meets a fast-growing demand of organisations worldwide. Internationally, Impact Institute and True Price are recognised among the front runners in the field of true pricing and Integrated Profit & Loss. You will develop your professional skills in general as well as your quantitative, reasoning, project management, personal and interpersonal skills. You will have the opportunity to shape the organisation and its methods, as the Impact Institute is growing fast and continues to evolve quickly.

Are you excited?

If you recognize yourself in the above profile and feel excited to join our team, we encourage you to apply for this position by sending your resume and cover letter to recruitment@impactinstitute.com ultimately February 28. We review applications on a rolling basis,which means that we may close the vacancy before the deadline if we meet the right person. Questions? Don’t hesitate to get in touch with us at ! We prefer direct contact with our applicants, therefore we do not work with intermediaries.

About Impact Institute

The Impact Institute is a social enterprise. Our mission at the Impact Institute is to empower organisations and individuals to realise the impact economy. We do this by creating a common language for impact through the publication of open source standards and by providing the tools, training, and services to implement those standards. We give organisations – multinationals, SMEs, NGOs, governments – the information needed for sustainable risk management, innovation and stakeholder management. Read our vision and Mission to learn more about us. The Impact Institute team also powers True Price.