SOMO
Are you a strategic thinker with a passion for supervising activist research and investigations about some of the most urgent global issues of our day including climate chaos, consolidating corporate power, and assaults on civic space and human rights? Are you ready to work for a smart organisation, supporting a brave group of researchers and partners around the world who are speaking truth to power through their investigations, research, and activism, holding corporations accountable for environmental destruction and human rights abuses? Are you interested in developing and employing innovative qualitative and quantitative research methods in line with critical decolonial perspectives?
If so, and if you want to be part of the resistance, doing challenging, meaningful work, then please keep reading!
About SOMO
SOMO investigates multinational corporations. We conduct independent, factual, critical research, with a clear goal: a fair and sustainable world where the well-being of people and the planet take precedence over corporate profits.
Guided by anti-racism and decolonisation principles and aimed at systemic change, our action-oriented research and investigations expose the influence, impact, and unprecedented power of multinationals. Through cooperation with hundreds of partners around the globe, we ensure our research creates maximum impact, reaching communities, courtrooms, civil society organisations, media, and policymakers.
SOMO is a non-profit organisation with about 40 dedicated professionals, most of whom work from our Amsterdam office. Our organisational culture thrives on openness, inclusion, and collaboration. SOMO brings together passionate, engaged individuals united by ambition, critical thinking, and a shared commitment to a fair and just world.
Structure
SOMO works through specialised yet collaborative teams spanning our programmatic areas of climate justice, economic justice, and The Counter, as well as teams that increase our work’s impact through advocacy and strategic litigation, communications, operations, and a leadership team. We also coordinate several influential civil society networks such as OECD Watch and MVO Platform, extending our global impact.
As Director of Research Programmes, you will lead our dynamic research teams, serve as a member of SOMO’s leadership team, and report directly to the Executive Director. We are currently in the process of a strategic refresh and organizational evolution, and we want our new Director of Research Programmes to help shape SOMO’s future.
About the function
The Director of Research Programmes drives SOMO’s research agenda, and co-leads the development and execution of SOMO’s mission and goals outlined in our five-year plan. Success in this position means delivering high-impact, high-quality research that advances our commitment to socio-economic equality, radical intersectional justice, decolonisation, and anti-racism.
Key responsibilities
Strategic Leadership
- Develop and implement SOMO’s research agenda, including projects and initiatives.
- Monitor developments in SOMO’s priority areas to identify strategic opportunities and emerging challenges.
Research Excellence
- Ensure all research and investigative outputs meet SOMO’s quality standards.
- Provide guidance to researchers on methodologies and best practices
- Drive innovation in research methods and techniques.
Team Management
- Lead, coach, and mentor dynamic research and investigations teams.
- Oversee performance management and professional development.
- Foster a collaborative and supportive research environment.
Cross-Functional Collaboration
- Ensure coordination across programmes and work closely with SOMO’s advocacy and communications teams to maximise research impact.
Organisational Stewardship
- Participate actively in SOMO’s leadership team.
- Co-lead SOMO’s anti-racism commitment.
- Cultivate an inclusive workplace that values diversity, equality, and inclusion.
- Manage the research budget effectively.
Learning and Innovation
- Promote a culture of learning.
- Position SOMO at the cutting edge of activist research issues, research methods, and approaches to research and investigations.
We welcome your application if you are passionate about our mission and believe that you can contribute to this role, even if you do not have experience with every responsibility listed above.