Experts, Social Analysis and Business Policy and Regulatory Environment

Overview:

Position summary

Banyan Global, an international development consulting firm based in Washington, DC, is recruiting senior experts (Level II and III) for the upcoming Business Policy and Regulatory Environment technical directive under an anticipated Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) social analysis task order. We are recruiting seven roles across social science, sector, and technical expertise, and candidates may be considered for more than one. We anticipate that work will initially cover Fiji, Ecuador, and Bolivia but may expand to cover other countries. These positions are contingent on award of the contract.  

About the opportunity

MCC is an independent U.S. Government agency that promotes economic growth in poor countries with a demonstrated commitment to good governance. Its Social Analysis practice uses social science to improve program design, broaden impact, and reduce social risk.

This technical directive supports MCC's work to strengthen partner countries' policy and regulatory environments for business, including registration, licensing, taxation, permitting, MSME and informal sector policy, foreign investment, and trade. The team will analyze the social and political economy dynamics that shape these reforms and identify barriers facing foreign investors, domestic firms, and emerging business owners. Work begins with programs in development in Fiji, Ecuador, and Bolivia, and MCC may add countries over the life of the contract.

Areas of expertise

We are recruiting in seven areas. Apply for every area you qualify for. The levels shown follow MCC's illustrative staffing for the directive; your level will depend on your years of experience.

Area of expertise	Labor category and level	What you will do
Political economy and business environment (lead)	Social Scientist III	Lead the analytical framing of how political, institutional, and social dynamics shape the business environment and the potential for reform. Oversee stakeholder analysis, incentive mapping, and distributional impact assessment across types of firms and business owners, and translate findings into policy guidance.
Business environment and regulatory reform (lead)	Sector Expert III	Lead analysis of business enabling environment systems, including registration, licensing, taxation, permitting, trade policy, and foreign investment frameworks. Advise on reform priorities to improve competitiveness, reduce regulatory burdens, and strengthen institutional effectiveness.
Regulatory reform implementation and institutional strengthening	Technical Expert III	Lead due diligence and advise on implementation strategies for regulatory reforms: coordination across agencies, consistent enforcement, and reduced discretionary practices. Advise on institutional capacity building, monitoring systems, and sustaining reform outcomes.
Enterprise impacts and institutional dynamics	Social Scientist II	Analyze how policies and regulations affect firms of different sizes, ownership structures, and levels of formality. Connect enterprise-level analysis to stakeholder incentives, coordination failures, and implementation constraints, using qualitative and quantitative data, including firm-level datasets.
Institutional and organizational change	Social Scientist II	Analyze the social, cultural, and economic drivers that shape beliefs, practices, and decision-making at individual, enterprise, and institutional levels. Diagnose the norms and incentives that influence stakeholder responses and turn them into recommendations for program design.
Trade, investment, and business regulation systems	Sector Expert II	Apply expertise in business regulation, trade policy, customs systems, and foreign investment frameworks. Analyze regulatory bottlenecks, administrative inefficiencies, and barriers to market entry and expansion, and recommend ways to streamline processes and improve policy coherence.
Private sector development: MSMEs, finance, and investment facilitation	Technical Expert II	Analyze constraints to business growth and formalization, including financing barriers, regulatory burdens, and weak support systems. Recommend ways to strengthen SME participation, improve access to capital, and attract and retain investment.
Research Analyst	Research Analyst II	Conducts cross-cutting research and analysis on all aspects of this technical directive. Supports both technical and social workstreams through data collection, synthesis, and preparation of analytical outputs. Contributes to country diagnostics, comparative analysis, and reporting.

 

Qualifications:

Required qualifications

Candidates must meet the experience threshold for Level II or Level III:

• Level II: 10 to 14 years of experience in economic and social analysis, design, and/or implementation, and a bachelor's degree in a related field. Experience should include conducting social analysis and/or applying social analysis in project design or implementation in a relevant technical field.
• Level III: 15 or more years of experience conducting social analysis and/or applying social analysis to the design and/or implementation of programs in developing countries, in relevant sectors.

All candidates must have experience in the areas they apply for, gained in low-income and lower-middle-income countries. Each labor category also has its own requirement:

• Social Scientist: expertise in a social science (sociology, anthropology, demography, geography, economics, or community development) or a related discipline, and experience conducting social analysis, including stakeholder engagement.
• Sector Expert: expertise in business policy and the regulatory environment, applied to the social analysis aspects of problem analysis, program design, and program implementation.
• Technical Expert: experience applying a social analysis lens to a relevant technical area, such as political economy; legal, regulatory, policy, and institutional reform; entrepreneurship and employment; finance and access to markets; institutional and organizational change; or governance analysis and institutional capacity assessment.

Preferred qualifications

• Country or regional experience relevant to the current programs in Fiji, Ecuador, and Bolivia.
• Proficiency in more than one of English, Spanish, French, and Portuguese.
• Prior experience working with MCC.
• Qualifications in more than one of the areas of expertise listed above.

How to apply

Please upload your CV and a brief cover letter indicating, which position(s) you are applying for.

These positions are contingent on [Company Name] being awarded the contract.