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Consultant (CLOSED)
A PDF version of this job posting is available here.
We are a progressive and delivery-focused consultancy working to transition places to deliver better outcomes for people and the planet. We find innovative ways to solve the challenges our towns and communities face.
Good data and evidence is core to our work. It helps us understand the challenges and opportunities in the places we work and underpins the strategies and advice we provide for clients.
We are looking for a Consultant with strong data analysis skills. The successful candidate will deliver high-quality analysis for our clients, manage our team’s array of data tools and resources, and help identify and develop new data sources.
We are open to hearing from candidates from a breadth of professional backgrounds and with a range of specialisms and interests.
You’ll like this job if…
- You are excited by working with data to illuminate and solve real-world challenges
- You are interested in learning about different places and communities across the UK
- You want to work on projects that can have a positive impact on people and places
- You want exposure to a range of projects, from economic strategies to night-time economy studies to masterplan delivery programmes to commercial property market reviews
- You appreciate working in small teams with big ideas
- You like sharing what you learn with others
- You are driven to experiment with and explore data
Salary & benefits
- We operate hybrid working arrangements. Regular in-person attendance in London is essential (currently 3 days for 5 day/week staff, 2 days for 4 day/week staff) but our employees need not be London-based.
- Starting salary from £31,500 to £36,500 depending on experience
- Employer pension contribution of 5% gross salary as part of our workplace pension scheme
- Discretionary bonus based on personal and company performance
- 25 days holiday (in addition to public holidays)
- Enhanced maternity and paternity leave
- Paid sabbatical after long service
- Cycle to work scheme
- Tate membership
- Structured career progression plan and budget for training/professional development
- Ringfenced volunteering time
About the role
You will play an integral role managing and supporting the delivery of PRD’s work across the public, private and civil society sectors. Regular tasks include:
- Designing research processes and collecting and analysing data from sources such as ONS, Department for Work & Pensions, Consumer Data Research Centre, MHCLG, Realyse, CoStar, etc
- Creating effective maps and charts with clear explanations of the data and its implications
- Presenting information to colleagues and clients in person and online
- Structuring and writing reports
- Working with colleagues to turn evidence into practical recommendations, strategies, and actions for our clients
- Assisting with engagement activities (e.g. speaking with council officers, developers, local businesses, residents)
- Supporting our company-wide Data & Evidence Strategy by helping us identify, test, and access new sources to use in our work
- Taking responsibility for the upkeep of and team training on our various data resources
- Building project management skills by taking responsibility for specific tasks or outputs within large-scale projects and for managing smaller-scale projects
- Managing your workload within specified timescales and budgets
- Contributing to bids, proposals, and business development
You will work closely and effectively with PRD colleagues, with opportunities to share your knowledge and ideas with the team. You will also often work with external collaborators, who we partner with to bring a wide set of skills to projects.
For example projects, please see (all open in new tab):
Essential & desirable attributes
Essential
- At least one year of professional experience in quantitative data analysis, including finding, cleaning, critically analysing, and presenting insights from data
- At least one year of experience using data sources and repositories relating to UK geographies, economics, demographics, property, etc (e.g. ONS, CoStar, Realyse, London Datastore)
- Experience with spatial analysis/GIS (i.e. able to source layers, create and edit layers and attributes, set symbologies and labels, perform spatial joins, run spatial analyses)
- Experience or demonstrably strong interest in regeneration, cities and the built environment and generally exploring new ways of working in these areas
- Ability to find connections and insights within data – and to communicate these clearly to non-technical audiences
- Excellent writing skills
- Inquisitive, methodical and attentive to detail
Desirable
- Excellent data visualisation skills
- Knowledge of R or Python (please note that while these skills are helpful, this is NOT a ‘data scientist’ role)
- Experience building dashboards in PowerBI
- Experience using APIs
- Experience with project management (for this role, managing small projects or managing specific tasks/outputs of larger projects)
Behaviours & competencies
Management: You manage your workload effectively and efficiently – and you identify and communicate potential pinch-points and problems
Organisation: You can alternate between different projects and activities while retaining diligence and quality
Collaborative approach: You like being part of small teams where you can work with teammates with a broad range of skills and perspectives
Interpersonal skills: You can hold engaging discussions with colleagues, partners, and clients, and you can explain complex topics in a clear, engaging way
Analytical thinking: You take a logical approach to challenges and can identify key insights from data
Problem solving: You take initiative to overcome challenges and develop new ideas to move projects and ideas forward
About PRD
Based just off Union Street in Southwark, London we are a focused team (about 20 of us) of subject area specialists who combine our skills around our shared passion for designing strategies to deliver more inclusive economies, impactful investment, and considered development.
Our core areas of work include social, economic, investment, activation and delivery strategies for places.
We empower our clients to shape and realise their ambitions as well as to measure and demonstrate positive impact.
The team has experience supporting some of the most interesting and challenging areas of the UK to develop holistic, progressive and transformative place and asset strategies.
What we do
We do not define our work in terms of specific service areas or thematic topics. As a principle, we are agile and responsive to the needs of each individual client.
Reflecting this, our work covers a broad spectrum of areas. Over the past year this has included:
- Undertaking social and economic research into places, economies and communities
- Developing placed based strategies from individual buildings to town centres to cities and regions
- Making the case for place-based investment, including developing strategic and technical business cases
- Defining and measuring project outcomes and success
- Advising on the development and delivery process, including building new delivery approaches, partnerships and governance mechanisms
Our team members cover a range of specialisms and interests, including:
- Inclusive approaches to addressing inequality and social injustice
- The importance of creative and culture sectors to places and economies
- The transition to net zero, and the role of the circular economy within this
- The role of data and evidence in improving strategic decision making
- Better approaches to engagement and participation
- More progressive approaches to development and property
Hallmarks of our approach
We…
- are creative and entrepreneurial in the way we approach our work and relationships
- partner with our clients to help the mobilise the strategies we develop together
- are values driven in the work we chose to do, how we do it and how we treat each other
- are committed to creating a positive and supportive work environment where everyone is supported to reach their full potential (including opportunities for training and personal development)
- are proud of our record of delivering community engagement projects that have enabled local people to shape the places they live, work and study and have created more inclusive and prosperous places
- listen to communities and respond to their ideas, aspirations, and concerns
- are committed to considering people and planet in everything we do
- are growing fast, with plenty of exciting projects and opportunities underway and on the horizon
- come from broad range of technical backgrounds, bringing different perspectives to our work and opportunities for team knowledge sharing
Application process
Part 1
Send the following items to careers@prdemail.co.uk with DATA CONSULTANT in the subject line by 9 am on Tuesday 13 August 2024.
1. Your CV. You do not need to supply a cover letter.
2. Responses to the following questions:
- Tell us about a project in which you used quantitative evidence. What questions were you trying to answer or what problems were you trying to solve? What data did you use and how did you analyse it? How did you communicate the results? (max 300 words)
- Tell us about a time when you took initiative to solve a problem or develop a new idea. What problem did you hope to solve and how did your idea help? (max 300 words)
Part 2
Complete the Equalities Monitoring Form. This form will be separated from the rest of your job application upon receipt and will not be considered as part of the shortlisting or appointment process – the Equalities Monitoring Form is handled securely by a different team member to those who review your CV and question replies.
Your application will not be considered complete unless this form has been submitted. If you do not wish to provide some/any of this information, there is an option within the form to select ‘Prefer not to say’.
Notes
We are committed to being an inclusive employer and we welcome applications from everyone regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, class, faith or disability. If you have accessibility needs, please get in touch and let us know any requirements you may have. We are more than happy to make reasonable adjustments.
You must have the right to work in the UK.
If you have any questions about the role or recruitment process, please contact Amanda Robinson, amanda.robinson@prdemail.co.uk.
Direct applications only please, no recruiters.