Research Assistant

PRIMARY PURPOSE

CNA's Regional, Strategy and Policy Analysis (RSP) division is hiring a RESEARCH ASSISTANT to join their Strategy and Policy Analysis team.

In this role you will conduct and support research on US military strategy, geopolitics, and other national security issues at a basic level. You will support projects and other corporate needs through collecting, processing, vetting, and analyzing pertinent data for further use, and/or conducting technical assistance activities such as planning and organizing meetings and seminars. You will provide complex coordinating, administrative and/or advanced technical activities as well as mastery-level clerical, secretarial and/or administrative support to departments, managers, professionals and/or projects.

CNA fosters an inclusive culture that values diverse backgrounds and perspectives. Our flexible and engaging work environment encourages iterative and creative collaboration at every stage of the problem solving process. Our employees are committed to helping clients develop effective solutions to better manage their programs through scientific, data-driven approaches. We are looking for creative and innovative individuals to help carry out our mission.

JOB DESCRIPTION AND/OR DUTIES

1. Provide overall administrative support to assigned Division/Department, including managing calendars, charts, scheduling of on and off-site meetings, arranging complex travel and preparation of expense reports, answering of telephone calls and relaying messages, and providing other administrative support requirements approved by the supervisor.

2. Coordinate and correspond with external counterparts, clients, sponsors, and their staffs on behalf of the Division/Department.

3. Develop and maintain advanced proficiency in CNA processes and software tools and evaluate and recommend alternative processes and software as appropriate.

4. Draft and edit documents, briefings, and official correspondence as required, including making substantive suggestions.

5. Coordinate production, processing and distribution of formal and informal documents, project deliverables, correspondence, and Power Point briefings for major research projects.

6. Support the development of outreach materials. Review and contribute to outreach materials produced by others and support the Division/Departments public affairs and outreach activities, including liaising with the corporate communications and public affairs staff.

7. Support client/sponsor and other visits to CNA. This may include, but is not limited to; arranging scheduled visits, securing meeting locations, procuring mementos from foreign dignitaries, arranging for refreshments, and "meeting and greeting."

8. Act as back-up to other Division/Department administrative and research personnel on an ad hoc basis.

9. Develop basic knowledge about CNA, its organization, key personnel and personalities, and relevant CNA standard operating procedures (SOPs), to include basic knowledge of CNA business environment. Understand the concepts of line-item, task-order, and above ceiling/ domestic. Have basic awareness of the project development process.

10. Identify, make improvement recommendations and document Division/Department administrative processes to increase standardization and efficiencies.

11.Support conference and event planning, administration and execution depending on assigned Division/Department.

12. Conduct basic research in support of projects, initiatives, and other efforts. Apply standard research methodologies to gather, process, and analyze data. Begin to structure problems of moderate scope and design research, technical assistance or proposal development tasks.

13. Develop and manage basic databases, website content, and paper and electronic documents.

14. Participate in meetings, conferences, workshops, and roundtables by managing event logistics, assisting in identifying participants, preparing read ahead materials, taking notes during events, and assisting in the writing of conference reports and summaries with limited supervision. Maintain awareness of major communication between the project team and client/sponsor POC for any project for which they are involved. As needed, contribute in meetings with client/sponsor and project team.

15. Perform other duties as assigned.

JOB REQUIREMENTS

1. Education: Bachelor's degree in international relations, area studies, history, economics, or related discipline is required. Graduate degree highly desirable.

2. Experience: Minimum 1-year related experience is required, including experience executing research and analysis, demonstrated experience in managing multiple activities and tasks in a high tempo environment. Experience leveraging artificial intelligence research tools in analytic projects is highly desirable. Graduate end research design experience is highly desirable

3. Skills:

• Ability to learn quickly, work accurately under pressure with limited supervision, a willingness to be proactive and take initiative, ability to handle multiple tasks, and the use of excellent judgment in handling and prioritizing a wide range of support responsibilities.
• Strong organizational, editing, and writing skills.
• Advanced knowledge of Microsoft Office, Adobe Acrobat, various document processing and database applications, internet searches, and collaborative tools (e.g., SharePoint, MS Teams).
• Must possess follow-through skills, and oral and written communication skills.
• Superb interpersonal skills and the ability to deal with diverse cultures and high-level U.S. and foreign officials is essential. Foreign and domestic travel is a possibility

4. Other: Ability to obtain and maintain an Active Secret Security Clearance.

Required Documents

Please upload the following documents with your application.

1. Resume or CV - Please upload your resume or CV
2. Cover letter - Please upload a cover letter as part of your application that introduces yourself, summarizes your relevant skills and experiences, and describes how you would be a valuable asset to CNA's RSP Division.
3. Transcripts
4. Writing Sample - Please upload a research paper or journal article that demonstrates your writing and research skills (draft copies are acceptable).