About the job

Job summary

We have an opportunity for a Senior Researcher, Customer Insight to join Ofwat.

Ofwat (the Water Services Regulation Authority) is a non-ministerial government department responsible for regulating the water sector in England and Wales. 

We are at the source of everyday life. We help the sector build trust and confidence with customers, the environment and wider society: keeping water flowing, bills affordable and helping ensure the health of our rivers and waterways. We push hard to improve day-to-day water company performance for customers, including on leakage, sewer flooding and customer service. We drive the sector to take a longer-term view and to take steps now to protect and enhance the environment, using digital and data innovations and making sure our water supplies are secure for future generations. Through our five-yearly price reviews, we oversee billions of pounds of investment into the water sector across England and Wales.

We’ve always pushed boundaries internally, too. From becoming the first Civil Service organisation to achieve ‘Smarter Working’ status, to gaining our prestigious ‘Smarter Working Maturity’ award, we’ve consistently demonstrated our commitment to embracing innovative ways of working. We know our people do their best work when given freedom over where, when, and how they work. Which is why we trust our teams to balance meaningful collaboration in the office with the flexibility of working from home.

With us, your work matters, your voice is heard, and your impact is felt. Ours is a culture of trust, flexibility, autonomy, collaboration, and innovation. We all want positive change for water customers, the environment, and the future of water.

You can find out more about Ofwat, our Values and our Framework for Success in the attached Information for Candidates Pack. 

Job description

*** Internal Job Title - Senior Associate, Customer Insight***

You will deliver important and meaningful customer research. You will work alongside Ofwat’s Head of Customer Insight, sitting in our customer policy team. Customer insight and policy colleagues work together to understand the views and experiences of household customers and consider research requirements and policy. We have a supportive team that brings together a range of skills, experience, and specialisms.

This is an exciting time to join the customer policy team at Ofwat! A new customer focused licence condition has just been introduced. This will strengthen Ofwat's powers to take action against poor customer service.

You will play a key part in delivering research that enables Ofwat to maintain a strong understanding of company performance and customer service. The research will form an essential part of Ofwat's monitoring approach for the new licence condition.

Key deliverables:

In this role you will be expected to:

• Work with the Head of Insight on a research strategy and work programme.
• Provide day to day management of qualitative and quantitative research projects.
• Lead on, or support, report writing and presentation of research findings.
• Promote research findings, making connections to the work of others.
• Lead on, or support, the procurement of research.
• Work well with a range of internal and external stakeholders.
• Be a key point of contact for research requirements across Ofwat.
• Keep up to date with customers experiences in relation to the water sector and identify potential areas of research.
• Support the customer policy team and other teams as required and as appropriate for the role.

Person specification

To be successful in this role you will need the below essential attributes, experience, skills and knowledge:

Experience, skills and knowledge 

• Lead Criterion: Proven experience in developing and delivering research and insight, using a range of methods.
• Strong understanding of research methodologies and their application,
• Experience of working with/for research agencies
• Strong analytical skills and ability to the draw out key insights from research findings and make them relevant for others.
• Strong written and oral communication skills, including the ability to confidently explain findings to technical and non-technical audiences.
• Experience of working with a range of stakeholders and the ability to build relationships and collaborate effectively.
• Excellent planning, time management and project management skills

Attributes 

Attributes as per Ofwat’s Framework for Success for Senior Associate Grade. You can read more about attributes here.

• You build trust
• You promote collaboration
• You are an adaptable thinker
• You create clarity

Benefits

Why You Should Join Us: 

We are forward-thinking, creative, innovative and ambitious. We actively encourage autonomy, collaboration and innovation and we have a unique culture fostered by trust, flexibility and respect.

You will also benefit from:

• Excellent employer pension contributions of 27.1% .You can find further details about pension schemes under Terms and Conditions in the Candidate Pack.
• 27.5 days leave, increasing to max 32.5 days with each year of service, plus bank holidays
• Access to exclusive discounts on a variety of goods and services, including retail 
  outlets, theatre tickets, holidays, insurance, and a gym membership.
• Flexible working arrangements that suit your lifestyle.
• Fees paid for membership of relevant professional bodies.
• Up to 3 volunteering days per year.
• Generous shared parental leave and pay.
• Enhanced sick pay.
• Regular development opportunities.
• Health and wellbeing initiatives.
• Season ticket loan for home-to-office travel.
• Cycle-to-work scheme.

Things you need to know

Selection process details

How to apply

Apply through the Civil Service Jobs website where you’ll be asked to create an account and complete an application form (CV and personal statement). If you’re unable to make an online application, please contact recruitment@ofwat.gov.uk and we will be happy to support.

Please ensure you have submitted your application in full ahead of the deadline listed below. Unfortunately, we won't be able to consider late applications.

Selection timetable

Closing date	23.55 on Monday 18th March 2024
Sifting	w/c 18th March 2024
Interview date(s)	w/c 1 April 2024

Assessment process

Sift Stage - Blind Sifting

We operate a blind sifting model to eliminate bias. All candidate identifying information will be removed from applications.

At sift stage we assess your application against key essential skills, experience, and knowledge, listed above. In your application, please state clearly how your skills, experience, and knowledge meet the essential criteria. Please ensure that anything submitted as part of your application is factually accurate, and you are not presenting the ideas and experience of others, or generated by AI, as your own.

In the event of receiving a large number of applications, a pre-sift may take place on just the lead criterion(address it in your personal statement).

In your personal statement, please tell us about your 'experience of developing and delivering research projects, using a range of methods'.

You may find the STAR method useful in structuring your personal statement. 

Interview Stage

We will assess your Experience, Skills and Knowledge as well as Attributes (set out above) at Interview Stage. You can read more about Attributes in Ofwat’s Framework for Success.

As part of the interview process, we may require a short presentation or written task. Further details will be provided to shortlisted candidates upon invitation to interview.

We operate a transparent interview process which involves candidates receiving a list of attribute-based questions in advance. This has been proven to help neurodiverse candidates and others to perform better at interview and is part of our inclusive culture.

Please note that the interviews will be conducted via video conferencing software (Microsoft Teams).

If you have any queries about any aspect of this role, selection process, or you require any reasonable adjustments please email recruitment@ofwat.gov.uk.

Please read the attached 'Candidate Pack' for details on terms and conditions.

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

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. 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.