Consultant: Cost-Effectiveness Assessment and Internal Modeling

Resolve to Save Lives (RTSL) is a global health organization that partners locally and globally to create and scale solutions to the world’s deadliest health threats. Millions of people die from preventable health threats. We collaborate to close the gap between proven, life-saving solutions and the people who need them. Since 2017, we’ve worked with governments and other partners in more than 60 countries to save millions of lives. We work toward a future where people live longer, healthier lives, communities flourish, and economies thrive. This is an ambitious vision, and it inspires us and our partners to make progress every day. 

Scope of Work

Position Title: Consultant: Cost-Effectiveness Assessment and Internal Modeling 

Location: Remote (Global) 

Estimated Duration: Approximately 4-6 months

Purpose and Objectives 

Resolve to Save Lives (RTSL) is seeking a short-term consultant to help design and operationalize an internal cost-effectiveness assessment model aligned with the methodologies used by effective altruism-oriented funders and philanthropic evaluators. 

The objective is to build a practical, transparent, and repeatable model that RTSL teams can use internally to: 

• Assess the relative cost-effectiveness of different RTSL interventions 

• Pressure-test program design and strategic choices 

• Strengthen proposal development and funder conversations, particularly with Effective Altruism (EA)-aligned funders 

Overall Approach 

The consultant will work hands-on to design, build, and apply an internal cost-effectiveness assessment model for RTSL. The role is execution-focused, with the consultant directly responsible for developing the analytical framework, running analyses, and producing outputs. 

In doing so, the consultant will consult closely with relevant RTSL colleagues (Development and Program Technical leads) to inform assumptions, data inputs, and interpretation, but will retain ownership for driving the work forward and producing concrete deliverables. 

Key Responsibilities and Deliverables 

1.  Design of an Internal Cost-Effectiveness Framework

• Develop a practical cost-effectiveness model aligned with EA-style approaches (expected value, counterfactual impact, comparison to cash transfer benchmarks, uncertainty ranges).
• Ensure the model is transparent and simple enough to be used internally (e.g., spreadsheet-based with clear parameterization).
• Explicitly address issues critical to RTSL’s work, including policy leverage, attribution, durability, and time horizons.

2. Application to Priority RTSL Initiatives

• Apply the model to a small set of agreed priority initiatives, expected to include:
  
  • Low-sodium salt interventions
  • Health taxes and fiscal policy work
  • Selected pandemic preparedness / epidemic prevention initiatives
• Document key assumptions, sensitivities, and ranges for each case.
• Identify where results are robust versus highly assumption-dependent.

3. Internal Consultation and Iteration

• The consultant will engage directly with a small number of relevant RTSL staff on an as-needed basis to:
  • Validate assumptions and data inputs
  • Sense-check attribution, time horizons, and durability
  • Ensure analyses reflect operational and policy realities
• The consultant will be responsible for incorporating this input into the models and analyses.

4. Training and Institutionalization

• Develop and deliver training sessions for relevant RTSL staff on how to use and interpret the model.
• Produce short guidance materials (e.g., “how to run a basic CEA,” “how to frame results for proposals”).
• Support embedding cost-effectiveness thinking into program design and proposal development workflows.

5. Funder-Facing Readiness

• Develop cost-effectiveness models and accompanying narrative materials that can be credibly shared with EA-aligned funders. This includes:
  • Clear docu