Senior Research Manager

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Closing Date:
18/11/2024

Group:
Strategy and Research Group

Management Level:
Senior Associate

Job Type:
Permanent

Job Description:
Please note that this role will close at 00:01 on Monday 18 November, and therefore we advise getting your application in no later than midnight on Sunday 17 November.

How to Apply:
Please submit your CV, along with a covering letter of no more than 2 pages in length, outlining your motivation for the role and how you meet the skills, knowledge and experience required. It is normally easier to put your CV and covering letter in one document, and upload this at the point where you are asked for your CV.

About Ofcom:
As the UK's communications regulator, we're delivering vital work that helps keep the UK connected and shapes the future of how we'll stay connected with each other. Our work covers everything from phones and broadband, through to TV, radio, the postal service, and wireless devices. We're also taking on the challenge of making the online world a safer place. And we need people of all backgrounds, skill sets, and experiences to help us achieve our goal of making communications work for everyone.

About the team you'll be part of:
The Research and Intelligence (R&I) team is part of the Strategy and Research group and is essential to Ofcom's role as an evidence-based regulator. The Market Research team's role in the Research & Intelligence team is to help ensure the decisions that Ofcom makes are based on evidence about consumer, citizen, and audience behaviour. We do this by working with external, independent market research agencies, who conduct research on our behalf to provide the evidence we need to monitor outcomes in the communications market and to address policy questions. Colleagues in our team work closely with other teams across Ofcom, often as part of multi-disciplinary project teams that draw expertise from across Ofcom's departments.

The purpose and scope of the role:
We are seeking a Senior Research Manager to join our team to work primarily on research within the telecoms and post sectors, although there may be opportunities to work across broadcasting and online sectors. Senior Research Managers are responsible for market research projects from start to finish. The successful candidate will work closely with other teams in Ofcom to define research objectives, select the best supplier to deliver the work, and then collaborate with the chosen supplier to design, execute and report on the research findings. The role includes interpreting and communicating market research findings to generate insights that enable Ofcom to develop policy and strategy from a sound evidence base. The role holder will report to the Head of Consumer Research in the R&I team.

Your key responsibilities:
The successful candidate will take ownership of their work, demonstrate leadership, and contribute to various projects within the Telecoms and Post Research and Intelligence team:

1. Lead and manage quantitative, qualitative and mixed-method market research projects for Ofcom;
2. Help to assess the research requirements of internal clients, demonstrating awareness and understanding of the policy context and of Ofcom's overall mission, to develop appropriate research briefs which fulfil the requirements in a timely and cost-effective fashion;
3. Commission and manage market research agencies and consultants, assuming responsibility for their performance, timeliness and quality of output;
4. Evaluate and interpret market research findings to generate insight that enables Ofcom to develop regulatory policy from a sound evidence base;
5. Communicate research results/insights to colleagues, and help to ensure research evidence is effectively integrated into policy decision making;
6. Produce high quality charts, interactive data and written research reports suitable for external publication;
7. Oversee the work of and help to develop/coach junior research colleagues;
8. Adhere to Ofcom's market research quality procedures.

The skills, knowledge and experience you will need for success:
Essential skills:

• Data analysis: Excellent attention to detail and analytical skills. Ability to quality assure and interpret data to identify key points and provide evidence-based insights.
• Building solutions: A deep understanding and experience of working on a broad range of quantitative and qualitative market research projects, using a wide range of methodologies.
• Programme management: Experience of commissioning and managing market research agencies, delivering tracking and ad-hoc market research programmes to high standards that can withstand scrutiny. You will also have experience overseeing project work of others within your team.
• Executing plans: Strong organisational, planning and project management skills. Ability to prioritise and deliver on competing deadlines. You will be able to successfully manage your own and others' time to deliver results in line with Ofcom's research and policy priorities.
• Empowering development: Experience of overseeing the work of and coaching/mentoring junior colleagues. A desire to support and empower junior members of the R&I team to help develop their skills and research knowledge.
• Articulating ideas: Ability to present data in a concise, clear and easily accessible way to internal and external audiences of differing levels of seniority using a variety of techniques including charts, well-written text and oral presentations.
• Forming relationships: Ability to build trust and maintain business relationships with teams across Ofcom as well as managing relationships with market research suppliers, holding them to account and working collaboratively to deliver high quality research projects.

• Market Research agency or client-side experience, with strong experience of leading qualitative and quantitative research projects of both a tracking and ad-hoc nature.
• Experience of supervising the work of and/or mentoring junior research colleagues.

• Ability to use market research data analysis tools (eg SPSS, Askia, PowerBI).

Ofcom has a clear mission: to make communications work for everyone. To be able to deliver on this, we want our organisation to reflect the diversity of background, experience, upbringing and thought that exists across the UK. We aim to recruit from the widest pool of candidates possible - no matter your social background, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender or disability.

Where positions are listed as full-time, we remain open to reduced hours, part-time arrangements, job shares, and other flexible working options. From day one, we champion flexible work arrangements to accommodate individual needs.

We also warmly welcome applicants who are returning to the workforce after a break - for whatever reason. If you have taken time away and are ready to rejoin, we look forward to reviewing your application.

Our recruitment processes prioritise accessibility and inclusivity. If you need information in an alternative format or have specific preferences, please contact our recruitment team at resourcing@ofcom.org.uk or call 0330 912 1378.

As a Disability Confident employer, we offer interviews to disabled applicants who meet essential criteria for advertised roles.