Job Banner

Director of Data infrastructure and Statistics - Hybrid

United Kingdom Req #53
29 August 2024

Salary: from £81,500 per annum negotiable depending on experience

Hours: 35 hours per week

Contract: Permanent

Reports into: Chief Data Officer

Location: Hybrid - A blend of working from home and your nominated hub office, we have hubs in London, Bristol, Manchester and Oxford. Specific patterns for working in the office are not mandated, and the frequency of time worked in the office is agreed with your manager. Meeting in person is something we value so you may need to travel on occasion to any of our hub offices.

About the role: 

This is an exciting time to be the voice of HESA data and lead our official statistics. This role will call on you to be Public speaker, content publisher and data commentator, whilst you bridge the gap between the data and our customers, making our data easy to access, understand and use.  You will be key in transforming our outputs through investment programmes (‘Data Publication Modernisation’ which you will lead, and ensure the HESA website presents headlines, outputs, coding manuals and other artefacts with user experience in mind).

About the team:

The Data Collection and Statistics directorate collect, assure and disseminate data about higher education (HE) in the UK on behalf of public authorities who require it to carry out their statutory and/or public functions.

As the trusted source of HE data and analysis, we play a key role in supporting and enhancing the competitive strength of the sector.

 

You will also lead the provision of innovative high-quality official statistics products and data output infrastructure and ensure Jisc compliance with:

  • the Code of Practice for Statistics
  • Pre-Release Access Orders
  • relevant data-related legislation as it relates to our data outputs (e.g. HERA 2017, Statistics and Registration Service Act 2007, legislation relating to the Devolved Administrations of the UK)
  • any National Statistician’s and regulatory guidance (e.g. Intelligent Transparency, Quality assurance of administrative data)

Providing strategic leadership to the team’s leading the delivery of the specification, development and maintenance of our data infrastructure (e.g. Data engineering, AI and machine learning, DevOps, ETL, Storage, Modelling, data stewards and coding manuals).  Working in collaboration with our Group CTO function to ensure our infrastructure is optimised for security, reliability, performance and the necessary compliance (DP, etc).

You will have a keen input in evaluating & implementing new technologies and approaches that enable Jisc to scale and evolve our data and official statistics offering to include more data science, automation & to deliver our content through channels which are most helpful to customers.

Principle contacts for you in this role are;

Internal

  • Regularly with Chief Data Officer and other EMG members regarding strategy and priorities
  • Company Secretary, Director of Corporate Affairs, Data Protection leads.
  • Jisc Board and DCS Oversight Board Trustees.

 

External

  • Representatives of external organisations, others from within the HE sector, e.g. HE institution or representative body and other key stakeholders
  • Policy and political stakeholders up to ministerial level
  • Senior staff in statutory and other data customers (government and statutory bodies)
  • Sector groups (UUK, Guild, IHE), conferences, forums etc..

 

 Some of your key responsibilities will include:

  • Champion the use of statistical information across the HE sector, to support decision-making processes.
  • Expert at bridging the gap between our data and our target audience – our audience being time poor and not necessarily proficient in our specialist language.
  • Represent Jisc and HESA in a range of external groups and forums, acting as an effective ambassador for Jisc.
  • Manage HESA output product lifecycle – leading the creation and delivery of product roadmaps.  
  • Ensure the combined needs of Jisc and our various statutory customers are met (government, funding and regulatory bodies), as they relate to our statistical and other data outputs and uses.
  • Manage the staff of the Data Infrastructure and Statistics group: conducts/oversees appraisals, identifies training needs, delegates work, and identifies and addresses any personnel issues.
  • Ensure the delivery of data to other internal users across Jisc, provide Jisc level sponsorship for data stewardship, data engineering and best practice supporting Jisc’s use of data and metadata.
  • Be advocate for the possibilities of data linking, and for a coherent, (cross-Government Statistical Service ‘GSS’, cross sector) approach to related statistics;
  • Make full use of the cross-Government Statistical Service and sector networks to benefit from the combined knowledge of peers to help overcome challenges in our organisation;
  • Ensure the budget for the Group is monitored and spend is in line with budget. Any unforeseen spend is mitigated
  • Take shared ownership for the strategy of HESA line of business and the Jisc data strategy.
  • Work with the Heads of Teams to ensure management decisions align with the delivery of the strategy, priorities and product roadmaps

 

Key Skills and Experience: 

  • Ability to lead world class official statistics and communicating their value to our audience.
  • Able to inspire and motivate internal team to deliver excellent output products for members
  • Brilliant communication skills – able to bridge the gap between data and user needs.  Able to deliver value and insight personally, and to convey what the data is saying through presentation and written artefacts.
  • Understanding of the role of statistics and data in helping shape policy and delivering value for customers.
  • Ability to undertake ‘Head of profession’ role for official statistics, full understanding of and experience in developing high-quality UK national official statistics outputs and compliance.
  • Ability to create a customer focussed strategy and innovate to develop existing and new data-based products and services with an understanding of the future needs and demands of the sector.
  • Experience in managing and navigating complex relationships to ensure combined needs are met – especially for Jisc in relation to our core purpose(s) and those of our statutory customers.
  • Experience in handling challenging situations and people in a way that achieves planned outcomes.
  • People skills. Ability to influence and manage senior stakeholders, both internally and externally.
  • Educated to degree level or equivalent experience

 

 Don’t meet every single requirement?

We know that sometimes people can be put off applying for a job if they think they can’t tick every box, so we encourage you to apply even if you do not meet 100% of the requirements, but you feel this role is perfect for you. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles!

 

Why work for us?

At Jisc, everyone plays a key role and gets the chance to feel part of it, that to us is the definition of a meaningful career. We want to create a culture of lifelong learning. You can look forward to a rewarding job with opportunities to develop and make a real difference to the education and research sectors.

 

We believe a balance between your personal and professional life is essential to your happiness and fulfilment. We work flexibly at Jisc and focus on outputs rather than presenteeism and are open to a whole range of ways of working.

 

It isn’t about how many hours you spend at home or at work; it’s about the flow you establish that brings energy to both parts of your life. Our hybrid working policy is flexible, and the frequency of time spent in your nominated office will vary across teams and job roles.

 

Take a look at our fantastic benefits! We offer:

  • Flexible work pattern, which can adapt to suit your schedules and personal commitments
  • 31 days annual leave (plus bank holidays) that includes an additional three closure days over Christmas plus the opportunity to buy up to an additional 5 days
  • Generous flexible pension schemes
  • Protection benefit – life cover
  • Annual Jisc performance award
  • A range of wellbeing lifestyle benefits including company paid health care cash plan, employee assistance programme, mental health first aiders and support
  • A generous budget to support you with external learning and Continuous professional development
  • Allocated allowance of up to £250 to equip your home office
  • Financial well-being support including access to preferential loan and savings plans, mortgage advice, will writing tools and support and resources to help you make the most of your money
  • The opportunity to donate to charity tax-free with our Payroll Giving benefit
  • Electric Car Lease Scheme and option to purchase SmartTech – spreading the cost of your everyday white goods and technology
  • A wide range of discounts from retailers and big-name high-street stores and CSSC membership
  • Family friendly policies including enhanced parental, maternity and paternity leave and opportunity for career breaks
  • Support your volunteering with up to 3 days volunteer leave
  • Cycle to work scheme and eye care scheme including free eye test vouchers and £70 towards new glasses for VDU use
  • Free flu vaccinations
  • Employee recognition awards and travel loans
  • A company culture which supports and promotes personal learning and development, including access to thousands of courses on LinkedIn Learning

 

Equity, diversity and inclusion:

At Jisc, we don’t look for ‘sameness’, but to truly include people who can add unique perspectives and experiences to our culture, and we are working hard to achieve progressive change. ‘Always inclusive’ is one of our six guiding principles which actively encourages us to bring our whole authentic selves to work. We believe that our commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion is fundamental to our success.

 

Jisc believes our people make all the difference in cultivating an inclusive culture that welcomes ideas, encourages innovation, and values belonging. We work with passionate colleagues to strengthen knowledge and awareness, provide learning and development opportunities, and foster multiple employee networks which create a sense of community and influence our policies and practice.

 

We work hard to create an equitable experience for our candidates and workforce which embraces all aspects of their identity including race and ethnicity, religion and belief, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, trans identities, age, class, disability, neurodivergence, or veteran status.

 

Application process:

We want you to showcase your talent throughout the recruitment process. Please let us know how we can best support you to do that; for example, if there are any reasonable adjustments we may be able to put in place. We will be happy to help you.

Please note that you will be required to have a basic DBS check if you were successful. 

 

Just so you know, we review CVs as soon as we can and aim to provide an update on your application within 4 weeks of receiving it.  However, you may hear from us a lot sooner, so please keep an eye out for our emails or calls! 

 

Closing date for applications is 30th September 2024.

 

Jisc has an active sponsor licence to recruit on a Skilled worker visa basis. Candidates wishing to apply who require sponsorship should determine the likelihood of obtaining a Certificate of Sponsorship for the role by assessing their circumstances against the relevant Home Office criteria. Jisc does not offer any financial re-imbursement towards the applicant costs, such as re-location, skilled worker visa and dependant costs or the immigration health charge.

 

You will need to create an account and sign in to apply for a role

 

 

Other details

  • Job Family Professional
  • Pay Type Salary
This posting is inactive.