The Gauteng City-Region Observatory (GCRO) - a partnership between the University of Johannesburg, the University of the Witwatersrand, the Gauteng Provincial Government and organised local government - is seeking to appoint a high calibre leader for the position of Executive Director.
Since its formation in 2008, the GCRO has established itself as an important voice within the field of urban studies both in South Africa and internationally, and has championed the value of thinking regionally about Gauteng’s urban settlements. GCRO is now in its second five year planning cycle and has funding and Board approval for over 30 projects. GCRO now includes 13 research staff and 2 administrative staff, and later this year will be joined by international postdoctoral fellows. The GCRO is seeking to appoint a high calibre leader for the position of Executive Director.
Reporting to the GCRO Board, the Executive Director will be expected to, inter alia:
- Oversee the execution and delivery of GCRO’s mandate and projects. This includes responsibility for the quality of GCRO’s research processes and outputs on a wide variety of topics using both qualitative and quantitative methods;
- Manage an active, productive relationship with partner universities, provincial and local government;
- Provide strategic leadership in the further growth and development of the organisation;
- Manage the day-to-day operations of the GCRO including finances, staff and human resources, in accordance with the policies adopted by the board, and in line with the Public Finance Management Act and rules of the host institutions (Wits and UJ);
- Harness and support the existing capacities of research staff members in further developing their research and academic profiles;
- Act as the public face of the GCRO and foster local and international partnerships.
The Executive Director is appointed at the level of a senior professor or equivalent. Applications will be considered from candidates who:
- Have a Doctorate in a relevant field;
- Have a substantial track record in research and publishing in fields overlapping GCRO’s thematic interests;
- Are comfortable with academic, applied and policy-relevant research;
- Have an understanding of the public policy and development environment;
- Have the ability to lead and manage a skilled group of researchers working on multiple projects;
- Have substantial experience of organisational, administration and financial management.
Letters of application should be accompanied by detailed curriculum vitae, as well as the names and full contact particulars of at least three referees. Short listed applicants may be required to do a presentation in addition to an interview. Applications and enquiries should be emailed to: Adele Underhay (adele.underhay@gcro.ac.za; phone +27 11 717 7286) by 17h00 on 30 July 2015.
For more information visit the GCRO website here, or download the call for applications by clicking here.
