Head of Delivery and Operations

Help us deliver on our goals and commitments

We are no longer accepting applicants for this role

Salary

£60-70k pro rata
(£42-48k for 3-4 days/week)

Terms

Permanent

CONNECTED BY DATA was established in March 2022 as a campaigning organisation working to put community at the heart of data narratives, policy and practices, and to advocate for collective and open data governance. Since then, we’ve grown from a single founder and funder, to a team of six on two continents, attracted funding from seven more donors and clients, and are working on a growing range of research, practice and policy projects, almost all involving a range of UK or international partners.

As we look ahead to both future opportunities, and to meeting our existing commitments and goals, we’re seeking a Head of Delivery and Operations to keep us on track, and help build the process, systems and financing to enable our future work and organisational development.

Our mission both shapes who we are and how we need to operate. We want communities to have a powerful say in decisions about data so that it is used to create a just, equitable and sustainable world. And we want to grow the field of practitioners, advocates and other actors who will see this mission forward rather than growing too much more ourselves.

So while we deliver some work ourselves, we also have a strong focus on convening communities – whether those with lived experience of the affects of data and AI; practitioners developing participatory and deliberative approaches to data governance; politicians and policymakers; or civil society organisations creating advocacy coalitions – to develop shared goals, language, and resources.

Our team consists of our founder and Executive Director, Jeni Tennison, our Director of Research, Director of Advocacy and Campaigns, two research associates and a policy and campaigns associate. We all work part time and remotely, mostly in the UK but with associates and fellows as far afield as Brazil, South Africa, and Australia. We anticipate adding another 2-3 people to the team, and to expand our network of part-time / ad-hoc associates and fellows over the coming year. Our processes, particularly around delivery, have evolved as we’ve grown and we make extensive use of collaborative online tools such as Trello, Discord, Airtable, Github, and Google Workspace.

We are great at having new ideas, jumping on opportunities and kicking things off. We’re less good at being realistic about what we can deliver well, and seeing those ideas through to completion. We know we need someone who can focus on helping us improve how we work and develop more efficient ways to have impact, so that we don’t lose sight of what’s important.

That’s where you come in. Your role will focus on ensuring we deliver on our goals and commitments. This will include developing and delivering on our programmes and project portfolio: identifying new opportunities and ensuring we meet our milestones and deliver on our commitments. There’s an element of whipping us into shape, a portion of taking on operational tasks, and a large part of shaping how we work as an organisation so it aligns with our values and culture.

What’s important to us needs to be important to you too. We want to focus on impact; to work in the open; to collaborate with and learn from others; to take the time to care for ourselves and each other; and to have fun together. Our work is founded on an awareness of power, privilege and pluralism inspired by feminism, intersectionality, and anti-colonialism. We want you to help us build these values into how we work, particularly with others.

This is a great opportunity to influence the future of how data works in our society, shape the culture of a new organisation, work with a range of interesting people, and learn a lot on the way.

Who are you?

As our Head of Delivery and Operations, you’ll be good at:

  • Picking things up and trying stuff out
  • Clear and efficient communication
  • Collaborative working, including across organisations
  • Holding people to account with care and compassion
  • Being proactive and getting things done
  • Prioritising and focusing on the work that really matters
  • Asking for help when you need it
  • Investing in your own personal and professional development

You should have skills and experience in most of the following:

  • Project and programme management
  • Customer and client management
  • Process design and adoption
  • Project and programme planning, budgeting and proposal writing
  • Building teams and associate or contractor networks
  • Adopting and adapting online tools and services
  • Organisational and culture development
  • Financial management and reporting to external funders
  • Handling contracts and other legal agreements
  • Monitoring, evaluation and learning
  • Fundraising for grants and/or business development

But we know that’s a lot, and we don’t expect you’ll be great at all of these.

What will you do?

In your first 6 months, you’ll:

  • Support the delivery of a range of projects and programmes, including delivering reports, workshops and other events.
  • Support the scoping and development of new grant funding and/or business development opportunities to ensure we have the resources to deliver against our mission
  • Develop and iterate lightweight processes – for example around project and delivery management, financial reporting, opportunity monitoring, and internal and external communications – that ensure we focus on and deliver on our goals and objectives.
  • Identify and build relationships with the people and organisations who can support the delivery of this work, as contractors, associates and team-mates.
  • Identify and configure the technology platforms and services that support us as we deliver our work and track our impact.

What else will you get?

Like the rest of the team, you ‘ll benefit from:

  • flexible remote working
  • 5 weeks (25 days pro rata) holiday + bank holidays
  • 3 days company-wide holiday between Christmas and New Year
  • 5% employer pension contributions
  • other perks to be determined in consultation

What are the next steps?

If you are interested in this role, please send a CV and cover letter to jeni@connectedbydata.org by 8am on 27th February 2023. The cover letter should describe your skills and experience against the criteria listed above, and why you are interested in the role.

If you have any questions about the role, or want to chat about it before applying, please get in touch with jeni@connectedbydata.org.

If you are not certain that you meet all the criteria, or want to explore a different working pattern, please consider applying anyway; there is considerable flexibility in the way this role could work. We are open to job shares and other flexible working arrangements (currently all of us work part time, fitting around other family, education and freelance work commitments).

We would particularly like to see applications from people from under-represented, marginalised or under-privileged backgrounds and communities.

Working hours

7.5 hour days
3-4 days/week

Location

Fully remote or hybrid (London)
UK timezone

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