Research Director – Transport & Infrastructure
Job Description
Job title: Research Director – Transport & Infrastructure
Company: Ipsos
Job description: Job Description:
Role overview
Ipsos Public Affairs Transport & Infrastructure team provides robust evidence and strategic insights to policy makers, government bodies and agencies, transport operators and not-for-profit organisations. This includes clients in the road and rail sectors, aviation and active travel. Our work also spans key cross-cutting areas that are integral to the way our transport and infrastructure system operates and is used. This includes environmental sustainability and decarbonisation, the role of transport in society and communities, active travel and public health and wellbeing, safety, the impact of transport and infrastructure developments on businesses and the economy, and local and regional development.
We’re looking for a Research Director We are looking for a highly capable methods expert specialised in either quantitative or mixed method research, with substantial commercial and business development experience. Transport and infrastructure policy expertise is highly desirable but not essential.
We are ideally looking for someone to be based from our London, Manchester or Edinburgh offices. Ipsos UK offers a hybrid working environment, 3 days in the office and working the rest from home.
What will I be doing?
This is an exciting opportunity for a dynamic leader and experienced researcher. You will direct high-profile studies which influence and inform decision-making and policy within Government, including at the national, regional and local level, as well as working with non-governmental bodies, agencies and charities. You will also lead a key client account and drive growth in our business.
We are looking for a highly capable methods expert specialised in either quantitative or mixed method research, with experience in business development and managing client accounts. Experience of working in transport and infrastructure policy is desirable but not essential.
The main responsibilities will comprise:
- Taking responsibility and accountability for overall delivery and quality of projects (including large and complex multi-year projects).
- Designing research methods which stand up to scrutiny, providing clients with quality and innovation.
- Overseeing all aspects of the project lifecycle, from inception to design of questionnaires and sample strategies, to leading analysis plans and delivering final data and reporting outputs.
- Signing-off deliverables (e.g. questionnaires, presentations and reports) which meet clients’ and stakeholders’ objectives, adopting creative approaches where relevant.
- Leading proposals and revenue generation, including making pricing recommendations.
- Developing a strong understanding of our clients’ needs and helping to grow our business. This includes leading growth through responsibility for a key client account, and/or growing our business in new areas – with new clients, or in new research methodologies or advisory and consultancy areas within transport and infrastructure.
- Communicating effectively with clients, internal and external suppliers, and internal colleagues both in writing and verbally.
- Supporting and supervising team members to deliver work, and supporting the team lead to effectively manage the team – for example through resourcing and contributing actively to business planning and development.
- Effectively overseeing relationships with suppliers and internal operations colleagues to ensure the objectives of the research are met on time and to budget.
- Being accountable for the financial performance and overall quality of projects.
- Contributing to the successful working of the Transport and Infrastructure team and its positive, supportive environment where people are encouraged to challenge themselves to grow, learn and develop their skills.
- Line management of staff.
What do I need to bring with me?
Essential:
This role will suit candidates who are experienced leaders and enjoy building long term relationships with clients, often delivering at a fast pace. We welcome interest from people with either a quantitative and/or mixed methods background. We are looking for someone with:
- Experience of preparing, writing, costing and pricing proposals typically between £100k – £1m – including for Government. Experience of Government procurement and proposal processes is essential.
- Desire to lead a key client account relationship and to grow our business.
- Excellent client handling and supplier negotiation skills.
- Excellent quantitative and mixed method research skills. This includes the ability to develop high-quality research materials meeting client objectives, and to interrogate quantitative and/or qualitative research findings to construct strong narratives on studies that make impact.
- Ability to lead multiple projects at any one time, to deliver quality and profitable work.
- Confident and clear written and verbal communication skills, including experience of preparing presentations and written reports with a high level of accurate use of English.
- Ability to support other members of the team to develop their research and project management skills.
- Line management experience.
- An interest and enthusiasm for transport & infrastructure policy, ideally with experience in this area.
What is in it for me?
Ipsos UK offer an attractive basic salary and a rewards package including 25 days annual leave, a pension scheme and a great range of flexible benefits to suit your personal needs. For roles at Research Manager level and above we also offer private healthcare.
In addition to this we have a fantastic Learning & Development offer delivered through a mix of face to face, online or on-demand; you can read more by clicking .
We realise you may have commitments outside of work and will consider flexible working applications – please highlight what you are looking for when you make your application.
Ipsos is committed to equality, treating people fairly, promoting a positive and inclusive working environment and ensuring we have diversity of people and views. We also recognise that this is important for our business success – a more diverse workforce will enable us to better reflect and understand the world we research and ultimately deliver better research and insight to our clients.
About Us:
Ipsos is one of the world’s largest research companies and currently the only one primarily managed by researchers, ranking as a #1 full-service research organization for four consecutive years. With over 75 different data-driven solutions, and presence in 90 markets, Ipsos brings together research, implementation, methodological, and subject-matter experts from around the world, combining thematic and technical experts to deliver top-quality research and insights. Simply speaking, we help the biggest companies solve some of their biggest problems, serving more than 5000 clients across the globe by providing research, data, and insights on their target markets. And we’re proud to share we’ve received our Great Place to Work Certification in 2022 & 2023!
Expected salary:
Location: Manchester
