Senior Associate Strategy & Policy

Please note that this role will close at 00:01 on Monday 4 August, and therefore we advise getting your application in by no later than midnight on Sunday 3 August.

About Ofcom

As the UK’s communications regulator, we’re delivering vital work that helps keep the UK connected and shapes the future of how we’ll stay connected with each other.

Our work covers everything from phones and broadband, through to TV, radio, the postal service, and wireless devices. We’re also taking on the challenge of making the online world a safer place. And we need people of all backgrounds, skill sets, and experiences to help us achieve our goal of making communications work for everyone.

About the team you’ll be part of

The Strategy and Policy team plays a pivotal role in setting the Ofcom’s strategic direction and ensuring it has a clear pathway to deliver against its key priorities. We are also at the forefront of providing the organisation with the strategic insight and analysis needed to anticipate future challenges and opportunities that exist within this rapidly evolving space. Our work takes a broad range of forms, but key responsibilities include:

• Thought leadership on emerging policy issues – working collaboratively with other teams to decide Ofcom’s position on new or cross-cutting consumer, public policy and competition issues
• Horizon scanning and market/strategic insight – understanding how the communications sector may develop in future to inform our wider policy programme
• Delivering Ofcom’s strategic priorities – leading major projects that set the future direction of regulation in the sector
• Ofcom’s corporate strategy – working with senior management and the Board to set Ofcom’s strategy, define its priorities and assess their delivery

We have a clear focus upon supporting the development and wellbeing of all our colleagues. Our culture is underpinned by four important corporate values: excellence, agility, collaboration and empowerment.

The purpose and scope of the role

This is a unique opportunity to contribute to the most strategically significant organisational and policy questions that Ofcom faces across the breath of its remit. The successful candidate will coordinate delivery teams and work with a wide range of internal and (to a lesser extent) external stakeholders, and will need to be willing to work across the full range of areas that our team is responsible for and across all of the sectors Ofcom regulates. Strategy & Policy Managers typically manage multidisciplinary project teams and report to a Project Director, typically a Principal.

Your key responsibilities

Project management and delivery

• Managing strategic projects, under the guidance of more senior colleagues, including taking ownership of key day to day responsibilities (e.g. timelines, budget, governance, internal and external stakeholders)
• Taking an active role in setting direction for projects, in dialogue with senior stakeholders
• Depending on the circumstances, either overseeing or leading the delivery of high-quality reports for publication and presenting the results to internal and external stakeholders
• Manage upwards, exercise good judgement in proactively managing and mitigating risks
• Occasionally acting as Project Director, with ultimate responsibility for the quality of output and for liaising with internal clients at Director level

Analytical work and thought leadership

• Leading policy development in specific areas and providing advice and guidance to others across a range of policy areas
• Developing and applying intellectually robust analytical approaches – including identifying the key questions to answer; mapping the problem space in a logically complete way; developing hypotheses; etc – whether in relation to commercial, public policy or organisational issues.
• Contributing proactively to debates about strategic, policy and organisational issues, providing thought leadership within the Strategy & Policy team and across the wider organisation.
• Representing Ofcom at external meetings and developing an external network to improve Ofcom’s understanding of stakeholder positions

Team management

• Taking responsibility for managing, motivating and developing junior colleagues in your capacity as Project Manager or Director
• Contributing to the ongoing development of the team and Ofcom as an excellent place to work

The skills, knowledge and experience you’ll need for success

Essential

You should have a demonstrable ability to…

• Executing plans: lead teams across a portfolio of projects, taking ownership of progress against deadlines and production of deliverables, shaping projects and identifying necessary work proactively
• Lead, with the support of a Principal or similar, at least one of the following:
• strategic policy development – including establishing or using analytical frameworks for thinking about regulatory policy
• commercial strategy analysis - including an understanding of key drivers of profitability in different industries
• internal corporate strategy and planning – whether in a commercial or public-sector context
• Articulating ideas: communicate clearly both orally and in writing, and producing text suitable for publication in a policy/regulatory context.
• Effective presentations: you should have a demonstrable ability to produce effective presentations, including strong PowerPoiont skills.
• Harmonising work collaborate effectively with colleagues from different teams, specialisms and backgrounds

Desirable

• Scanning horizons: effectively manage upwards and proactively manage risks and mitigate before they occur, exercising good judgement
• Channelling influence: tailor arguments to different audiences
• Understanding of commercial dynamics in our sectors

Inclusivity Statement

Ofcom has a clear mission: to make communications work for everyone. To be able to deliver on this, we want our organisation to reflect the diversity of background, experience, upbringing and thought that exists across the UK. We aim to recruit from the widest pool of candidates possible – no matter your social background, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, or disability.

Where positions are listed as full-time, we remain open to reduced hours, part-time arrangements, job shares, and other flexible working options. From day one, we champion flexible work arrangements to accommodate individual needs.

We also warmly welcome applicants who are returning to the workforce after a break – for whatever reason. If you have taken time away and are ready to rejoin, we look forward to reviewing your application.

Our recruitment processes prioritise accessibility and inclusivity. If you need adjustments, information in an alternative format, or prefer to apply in a different way, please contact us at [email protected] or call 0330 912 1378.

As a Disability Confident Leader, we offer interviews to disabled applicants who meet essential criteria for advertised roles. Learn more about this scheme here. https://careers.ofcom.org.uk/careers/how-we-hire/