About the job

Job summary

About us  

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) is the department for economic growth. The Digital, Data and Technology (DDaT) directorate develops and operates tools and services to support businesses to invest, grow and export, creating jobs and opportunities across the country.  

Job description

About the role   

Our User Researchers are key to helping our teams develop a deep understanding of the people – citizens, business, or government – who use our services.  

Our findings enable multi-disciplinary teams to design and deliver better services quickly, with less risk, at a lower cost.    

We’re looking for an ambitious person working within the Research Operations team to support User Researchers across DBT to deliver high quality and efficient research.    

This is an important and exciting time to join Research Operations. You’ll help to create, build, and develop the user research profession in DBT. You’ll support a variety of areas including participant recruitment, knowledge management, research ethics, data assurance, and the implementation of processes and templates that enable researchers to do their best work.    

We expect the priority for the Research Operations Specialist will be to lead a participant recruitment strategy, to help review and create effective user recruitment processes that work faster, build stronger relationships with our partners, and find a larger pool of people to perform research.   

Main responsibilities   

 As a Research Operations Specialist, you will:     

• Build a good rapport with the User Research community, developing understanding of their research needs to enable effective support 
• Lead participant recruitment activities across the user research profession, which includes:  

• finding a range of individuals and businesses for User Researchers to conduct research with  
• building and managing a database (a ‘panel’) of participants interested in taking part in research  
• managing relationships with recruitment agencies  
• tracking the effectiveness of participant recruitment and identifying potential improvements 

• Understand requirement needs for accessibility and assisted digital users and support the user research community in maximising opportunities for inclusive research 
• Review and assess digital tools and database options for participant recruitment databases, and other user research tooling requirements    

• Support user researchers in data and knowledge management, providing support and assurance around GDPR compliance and data protection 
• Review, create and implement processes, templates and guidance to support researchers across DBT to do research, which is high quality, efficient and consistent   
• Manage budgets and working closely with DBT’s commercial team, and supplier contracts and working collaboratively with internal and external stakeholders  
• Provide other duties and operational support for the community and wider department, such as supporting community meetings, events, staff onboarding, training and development 

Person specification

Skills and experience  

 It is essential that you have:  

• An understanding of a range of user centred service design and delivery practices 
• Understanding or experience of basic techniques for analysis of research data and the ability to summarise information, evaluate it, interpret it, and draw conclusions 
• Experience and knowledge of user recruitment activities for research sessions   
• A good understanding of the diverse range of people who use government services and the ability to include different types of users in appropriate research activities 
• Organisation skills, being process-driven, caring about details and doing things right ensuring working processes are reviewed and efficient, creating new processes where required 
• Experience building strong working relationships with internal and external colleagues  

It is desirable that you have:  

• An understanding of the GDS Service Manual & Government Digital Standard.   
• Knowledge of data management and GDPR - e.g. managing personal data, consent processes and other ethical considerations when working with research participants.   

• Experience of working in an agile delivery team as a user researcher   

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £32,858, Department for Business and Trade contributes £8,871 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Things you need to know

Selection process details

How to apply 

As part of the application process you will be asked to upload a two-page CV and complete a 750 personal statement outlining how you meet the essential skills and experience listed above. You can use bullet points and subheadings if you prefer.  

Sift will be from week commencing Monday 20th May  

Interviews will be from week commencing Monday 3rd June   

Please note these dates are indicative and may be subject to change.  

If there is a high volume of applications, we will sift looking at your personal statement only. You may then be progressed to full sift or straight to interview.   

How we interview  

At the interview stage for this role, you will be asked to demonstrate relevant Strengths and Behaviours from the Success Profiles framework.   

  

Behaviours   

• Communicating and Influencing  
• Changing and Improving
• Seeing the Big Picture 

Strengths are designed to test your innate talents so are not listed on the advert to ensure you provide a natural answer.  

  

How we offer  

Offers may be made in merit order based on location preferences. If you pass the bar at interview but are not the highest scoring you will be held on a 12-month reserve list in case a role becomes available. If you are judged a near miss at interview, you may be offered a post at the grade below the one you applied for.  

This role requires SC clearance. DBT’s requirement for SC clearance is to have been present in the UK for at least 3 of the last 5 years. Failure to meet this requirement will result in your application being rejected and your offer will be withdrawn.  

Checks will also be made against:  

• Departmental or company records (personnel files, staff reports, sick leave reports and security records)  
• UK criminal records covering both spent and unspent criminal records  
• Your credit and financial history with a credit reference agency  
• Security services record  
• Location details  

More about us  

 

This role can only be worked from within the UK, not overseas. If you are based in London, you will receive London weighting. DBT employees work in a hybrid pattern, spending 2-3 days a week (pro rata) in the office on average.  Travel to your primary office location will not be paid for by DBT, but costs for travel to an office which is not your main location will be covered.  

You can find out more about our office locations, how we calculate salaries, our diversity statement and reasonable adjustments, the Recruitment Principles, the Civil Service code and our complaints procedure on our website.  

Find out more about life at DBT, our benefits and meet the team by watching our video or reading our blog!  

  

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check (opens in a new window).

See our vetting charter (opens in a new window). People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window). The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria. The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.