Research jobs

Research Director – Impact and economic evaluation specialist

Job Details

Full time

Research

London / Hybrid / Remote

About you

We’re looking for an ambitious and commercially  impact and economic evaluation expert, who wants to join a business where they can really contribute to its success and growth. You must have a passion for policy themes including sustainability, economic development and regulation.

The ideal candidate will have a strong background in econometrics, UK based social market research, and policy evaluation. This role requires a strategic thinker with excellent leadership skills and a passion for using data to drive social impact.

You should have a degree in Economics, Econometrics, Statistics, or a related field and extensive experience in econometric modelling, policy evaluation, and social market research.

You will be able to demonstrate a proven track record of leading and managing research teams and have excellent analytical and problem-solving skills.

You must have excellent communication and presentation skills and have the proven ability to work collaboratively with clients and stakeholders as well as your project teams and wider research team.

We look for people who are leaders with the right balance of motivation, drive and support, you should be collaborative and keen to work alongside your peers to continue to create success here at IFF.

About the role

This is an exciting opportunity to join our leadership team as a Director or Associate Director. You’ll build impact and economic evaluation capability across our team working on sustainability, economic development and regulation, applying econometric methods in evaluating policies and interventions.

There is the possibility to influence business direction and build a team over time that will ensure we continue to be experts in a developing research market.

We have a growing evaluation business using a range of methodologies for a wide variety of public sector clients. You will be working alongside our existing team of evaluators to deliver statistical impact analysis, theory-based impact analysis and economic / value for money evaluation. You’ll be working with survey data and a range of secondary datasets.

Your work will be with a variety of people, projects and clients and you’ll be responsible for the delivery and leadership of key evaluation projects, leading project teams, liaising with clients and ensuring work is delivered efficiently and profitably.

Working with team heads across a variety of sectors including net zero, environment, business, industrial and infrastructure policy you’ll work towards targets and support in winning new business. You’ll adopt a key leadership role within the research team motivating others and supporting the development of the research team.

Key Responsibilities

  • Managing and directing the evaluation process across projects through the full project cycle.
  • Be a company expert in impact and economic evaluation research
  • Lead and develop our internal evaluation expertise.
  • Design and implement robust econometric models to assess the impact of social programmes and policies.
  • Oversee the development and execution of research methodologies, including data collection, analysis, and interpretation.
  • Provide strategic insights and recommendations to clients based on research findings.
  • Collaborate with stakeholders to understand their needs and ensure research projects align with their goals.
  • Nurture long-term relationships with clients whilst working to develop new ones
  • Present research findings to clients, policymakers, and other stakeholders in a clear and compelling manner.
  • Stay up-to-date with the latest developments in econometrics and social market research to ensure the highest quality of work.
  • Attend and participate in weekly Director meetings and regular board meetings
  • Contribute to the continuous development and improvement of IFF Research
  • Coach, mentor and line manage more junior members of your project teams/ the wider research team
  • Promote the IFF culture and encouraging a collaboration and team cohesiveness

Employee benefits

Competitive remuneration

  • Competitive salary
  • Pension – we’ll contribute 12% of your basic salary
  • Holiday – 28 days per year, in addition to bank holidays, with an additional day at 3 years and then 5 years service

Health & wellbeing

  • Private healthcare
  • Flexible working policy, with part-time and remote options available. As well as the ability to work around our core hours (11-3), allowing you start earlier or finish later so it works for you
  • Enhanced family leave policies – maternity and paternity

A sociable & supportive culture

  • Quarterly team days and lunches
  • Dedicated social and wellbeing committees who organise events throughout the year
  • Multiple sports and interest groups to join
  • 2 paid volunteering days

About IFF

IFF is an award-winning social and market research agency, which sits at the summit of UK public policy and social research, conducting many of the largest and highest profile studies in the sector. Because no two projects are the same, our experienced team provide tailor-made research solutions, adapting our approach to issues and audiences. Meaning the research we deliver is tailored to each client’s specific needs.

As a full-service agency, we offer a full suite of research and evaluation services, including data collection, data analysis and reporting, covering quantitative and qualitative methodologies. We have a range of expertise across our key sectors which are: Business & Enterprise; Education; Energy & Environment; Financial Services; Higher Education; Housing; Learning & Skills; Regulation; and Work, Welfare & Wellbeing

We’re really proud that time and time again we hear that the best thing about working here is our people. We attract and retain some of the most talented, friendly and interesting people within the industry. People with different ways of thinking and working, but with a shared goal of delivering impactful insight that makes a difference.