Data Quality Specialist – Western & Northern Africa Open Mapping Hub -REMOTE

Overview

• Work Location: Remote within the region
• Application Close Date: until the position is filled
• Department: Open Mapping Hub – Western and Northern Africa
• Reports to: Regional Hub Director (line manager) & Data Coordinator (functional support)
• Terms: Full time, one year initial contract
• Travel: Frequent travel within the region
• Level: 7

About HOT

Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team (HOT) sits at the nexus of participatory mapping, community-led development, humanitarian response, open data and tech. With a talented and diverse team spread around the globe, HOT is an NGO which supports a dynamic global community of thousands of dedicated volunteers using maps and open data for humanitarian response and the Sustainable Development Goals. Working with humanitarian and development partners like the Red Cross, Médecins Sans Frontières, UN agencies, governments and others, the HOT community maps in solidarity with those affected by or at risk of disaster, contributing the maps and data aid workers need to do their lifesaving work.

In 2020 the work of the HOT community was recognized by TED’s Audacious Project, a collaborative philanthropic initiative that serves as a springboard for social impact on a grand scale, leading to an exciting new phase of growth. HOT is expanding its activities: opening four regional hubs and scaling up its support to local mapping communities with the audacious goal of mapping an area home to one billion people in 94 countries at high risk of disasters or experiencing poverty – mapping with communities before they are in crisis.

About the WNA Hub

Launched in March 2022, the Open Mapping Hub – West and Northern Africa (WNA Hub) engages open mapping organizations and communities in the region to facilitate the exchange of ideas and expertise across the region, and provide financial and technical support to massively scale local edits on OpenStreetMap. It stimulates and strengthens the leadership of communities to protect their livelihoods, improve their resilience, and preserve their way of life by promoting social justice in accessing open data and free software for their own purposes.

About You

HOT is looking for someone passionate about managing and supporting the OpenStreetMap and GIS data needs of the organizations and communities supported by the WNA Hub. You should be able to work within a fast-paced, international organization responding to humanitarian and development challenges as they relate to HOT’s five impact areas: Disasters & Climate Resilience, Public Health, Gender Equality, Sustainable Cities & Communities, and Displacement & Safe Migration. You should be excited about supporting multiple project teams in West and North African countries and ready to travel to work with different teams in various field locations. At the same time, you should be able to work independently with creative and agile problem solving skills. Responsibilities range from identifying and implementing technical best practices pertaining to open data management in OSM, to providing multiple levels of training on GIS and OpenStreetMap to community, government, and other regional partners of varying mapping ability.

About the Role

The Data Quality Specialist will report to the Regional Director, West and Northern Africa Hub, and is responsible for leading in the management of data and GIS activities across HOT projects and operations in the region. This will include implementing data processing procedures that improve data quality, coordinating validation efforts, and support of data analysis and visualizations pertaining to open mapping projects in the region.

This position is remote/flexible, with travel foreseen for training, workshops and project implementation, and regular travel to the Hub location and West and Northern Africa project locations.

This role will be prioritized for applicants from the Northern and Central Africa region. To learn more about which countries HOT plans to work in Western and Northern Africa, please see here.

Responsibilities

• Improve the level of OSM, GIS and data management skills and awareness with WNA Hub partners and supported communities. Identify needs, and develop appropriate solutions and support mechanisms.
• Serve as the GIS and technical contact point for partner organizations, government agencies, and OSM communities.
• Support the implementation of mapping and data collection activities supported, or executed, by the Hub.
• Produce beautiful maps, analysis, and visualizations that effectively communicate and tell stories about our work.
• Participate in Information Management working group meetings representing the organization, and provide the necessary support in presenting the relevant GIS data and data.
• Organize and manage data collection tooling and workflows in coordination with HOT’s Data and Tech team: develop data collection forms and technical guidance, manage and monitor data collection servers, and oversee data cleaning, QA/QC and data contributions to OSM.
• Support the development and implementation of QA/QC and validation processes, in coordination with the Data team, working groups, and stakeholders in the wider OSM community.
• Develop, localize, and publish training materials and skillshares on OSM data collection and data quality workflows and processes to improve skills and knowledge in the region. Supporting training activities to ensure new mappers are collecting and contributing high quality map data.

Qualifications

Essential

• University or college degree (or above) in Data Science, Humanitarian Data and Technology, GIS, Geography, International Development, or related fields or equivalent professional experience.
• Experience in open source or open data communities (please name these in your application)
• Significant and verifiable experience, knowledge and awareness with geospatial data collection, storage and analysis tools, methodologies and technology, including remote sensing technologies, ‘big’ data and OpenStreetMap.
• Capacity to analyze and transform massive datasets into intelligent data insights
• Experience in GIS software and applying quantitative and qualitative (statistical) analysis methods & technologies to geospatial data
• Experience working remotely and coordinating activities across multiple time zones
• Fluency in French and English
• Empathy and understanding, a good sense of humor and willingness to learn.
• Driven, goal-oriented and strives for continuous improvement
• Comfortable with using a wide range of digital platforms.

Desirable

• Experience participating in HOT and OSM Working Groups, particularly data related ones.
• Experience working with and alongside (large) volunteer groups and communities, such as open source, open data or the OpenStreetMap community.
• Experience in humanitarian and development settings, preferably in one of HOT’s 5 impact areas: Disasters & Climate Resilience, Public Health, Gender Equality, Sustainable Cities & Communities, and Displacement & Safe Migration

Are you missing a few of the technical skills listed? We would still like to see your application. While the skills above fit our vision of this role, we are open to those candidates with a strong knowledge foundation that are fast learners and highly motivated to close any skill gaps.

Top 2 – 3 priorities for the first 60 to 90 days

• Work towards collecting and contributing to a high quality of data delivery across all HOT supported OSM projects in the Hub countries.
• Promote and enable the use of OSM data in a way that aligns HOT’s priorities in 5 thematic “Impact areas”, with the needs of the communities and partners.

Compensation

HOT values transparency and equity. All HOT compensation globally is set according to a framework detailed on our website. HOT offers a work-from-anywhere culture, flexible working arrangements, and various other benefits that support staff wellbeing.

Equal Opportunity

We seek to recruit persons that reflect the diversity of the communities we work with and further, to support their retention and advancement within the organization. HOT does not discriminate on the basis of ability, age, gender identity and expression, national origin, race and ethnicity, religious beliefs, or sexual orientation. Our staff includes people who are parents and nonparents, the self-taught and university educated, and from a wide range of socio-economic backgrounds, lived experiences, and perspectives on the world. HOT is an equal opportunity employer. We seek to live our values and promote inclusivity in all locations. All of our staff work collectively and individually to promote a constructive and sensitive approach to others from a variety of backgrounds, where the work of all is valued and respected.

HOT is committed to diversity within our team, and recognizes our role in closing the digital divide, including identifying obstacles that certain groups face in developing skills needed for roles in the humanitarian & technology sectors. Women, nationals of developing countries, and members of other underrepresented groups are strongly encouraged to apply.