Role Overview:

Project DEEP is looking for a Lead - Policy Engagement to anchor and scale our policy research and strategic engagement efforts with state governments and apex institutions. This role sits at the intersection of rigorous public policy research, evidence synthesis, and high-level government advocacy. It is designed for a seasoned policy researcher and strategist who combines analytical rigor with the ability to build meaningful partnerships with senior public leaders and decision-makers.

In this position, you will lead the formulation of Project DEEP's key policy offerings, translate empirical findings from research into actionable policy frameworks, and drive strategic dialogue with state departments on welfare streamlining, with a focus on cash based policies. You will leverage insights from our active state engagements, our own Unconditional Cash Transfer (UCT) pilots, and our flagship framework on integrated welfare to guide state-level strategic advisory. The ideal candidate possesses deep public policy research expertise, an understanding of political economy and public finance, and strong stakeholder management capabilities to drive systems-level social impact.

Key Responsibilities:

A. Policy Research and Analysis:

- Evidence Synthesis & Policy Design: Conduct rigorous primary and secondary research on social protection policies, budgetary allocations, and state program guidelines to design actionable policy offerings aligned with state government priorities.

- Cash Transfer Research & Innovation: Conceptualize and execute empirical research studies to evaluate, optimize, and innovate cash-based welfare policies, social safety nets, and targeted transfer mechanisms.

- Data & Policy Analysis: Analyze macroeconomic, state budget, and administrative dataset trends to derive policy insights for advisory engagements and narrative building.

B. Strategic Stakeholder Engagement & Project Leadership:

- Government & Bureaucratic Engagement: Serve as the primary lead in building and sustaining strategic relationships with senior bureaucrats, department leads, policy advisors, and political stakeholders in partner state governments.

- Ecosystem Partnerships: Build and maintain collaborative networks with leading academics, multilateral organizations, research institutions, and global experts in development economics and cash-based policies.

- Project Execution: Lead the end-to-end strategy and execution of policy engagement projects, ensuring research outputs meet the strategic timelines and technical requirements of partner state governments, and internal quality benchmarks.

- Team Leadership & Mentorship: Guide and build capacity within internal research and policy teams on policy writing, data analysis, research methodology, and evidence-based storytelling.

Qualifications and Experience:

- Experience: 10 - 12 years of experience in public policy research, economic analysis, governance consulting, or social sector strategy, with a proven track record of working closely with Indian state or central governments.

- Core Research & Analytical Mastery: Demonstrated mastery in policy research methodologies, evaluation frameworks, administrative data analysis, and budgetary analysis. Ability to turn complex data into policy recommendations.

- Strategic Stakeholder Management: Excellent record of managing multi-stakeholder relationships, navigating government administration, and communicating complex research findings to senior political leadership, bureaucrats, and policy experts.

- Domain Knowledge: Strong understanding of India's social protection landscape, public finance, welfare design and administration, cash transfer mechanisms, and poverty alleviation dynamics. Field research experience is highly desirable.

- Technical Skills: Advanced proficiency in policy drafting, data synthesis, and presentation tools (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Python, STATA, R). Exposure to quantitative/qualitative data collection tools is a plus.

- Adaptability & Drive: Strong alignment with Project DEEP's core values of dignity, equity, and evidence-based action. Comfortable navigating fast-paced, evolving research environments and willingness to travel to the field for program management and stakeholder meetings.

About Project DEEP:

Project DEEP is a Mumbai-based non-profit that provides evidence and research-backed architecture necessary to transform vast welfare flows into engines of socio-economic mobility. We co-create investment-focused cash transfer models, maximise fiscal prudence and secure last-mile delivery to achieve measurable outcomes.

Project DEEP bridges the gap between grassroots realities and state-level policy design.

1. State Policy Engagement & Field Evidence:

Driving structural welfare reform through strategic state partnerships and empirical research. Provide state advisory to Maharashtra in scheme rationalization and fiscal prudence, while partnering with Punjab on the rollout and delivery design of MMMDSY (Mukh Mantri Mawan Dheeyan Satkar Yojana).

2. National Unconditional Cash Transfer (UCT) Tracker:

A consolidated, nationwide tracker and analysis of cash transfer programs across India, laying down a unified common agenda to improve the efficiency, dignity, and sustainability of over INR 2,80,000 crore allocated annually to cash transfers.

3. Welfare Stack Development:

Conceptualizing Welfare as a unified portfolio of policy instruments (cash, subsidies, and insurance etc) designed to achieve specific objectives. Aligning scheme selection, target mechanisms, and transfer designs to optimize state budgets - ensuring complementary interventions that drive income smoothing, asset creation, and local liquidity growth without market distortion.

4. Thought Leadership & Strategy:

Driving public discourse on cash-based welfare by bridging empirical research, field insights, and policy advocacy. Positioned as a key advisory voice helping state governments reimagine public digital infrastructure (DPI) and design scalable, high-impact cash transfer architectures.

Compensation:

Compensation will be based on experience and skill sets. It will be commensurate with market standards.

Join us in making a difference!

If you're driven by a desire to create positive change through rigorous research and evidence-based approaches, we invite you to apply for this impactful role as the Policy Research Associate at Project DEEP. Link to Application Form.

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis until the position is filled. If we find your profile relevant to the position, we will reach out to you for an introduction call, followed by an assignment request, and then the final discussion round to set our expectations right and find mutually agreeable terms.

Due to the high volume of applications, we will not be able to give individual feedback, but we shall definitely respond with an email in case your application cannot go forward.