Senior Consultant
Evaluation and Impact
January 2016
Information for Applicants
1 year fixed term
If you would like a large text version of this
document, please contact us.
OPM Group
252B Gray’s Inn Road
0845 055 3900
London
www.opm.co.uk
WC1X 8XG
www.dialoguebydesign.co.uk
United Kingdom
info@opm.co.uk
OPM Group
Senior Consultant
Contents
About the OPM Group ............................................................................................... 1
Job description .......................................................................................................... 2
Purpose .................................................................................................................. 2
Main responsibilities ............................................................................................... 2
Salary .......................................................................................................................... 4
Person Specification ................................................................................................. 4
Selection Process...................................................................................................... 7
Terms and Conditions .............................................................................................. 7
The OPM Group Charter ........................................................................................... 8
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About the OPM Group
OPM Group is an independent employee-owned research and consultancy organisation
which supports and champions the delivery of social impact. We’re made up of two divisions:
OPM and Dialogue by Design. We work with public, private and third sector organisations to
deliver research and insight, evaluation and impact analysis, and stakeholder/public
engagement. Dialogue by Design is our specialist consultation planning and analysis service.
As employees we own our business and everything that we do as a business is to improve
social outcomes.
Our ambition is to be:

The market leader in understanding and measuring social impact through research
and evaluation, giving the third sector and others the evidence to show the good they
do.

The leading provider of digital consultation services.

An organisation that’s known for going beyond insight and engagement to help
organisations understand how to deliver social impact in a changing world.

An exemplar employee owned business that helps others get the best out of their
people as we do ours.
To help us do that we’re looking for experienced evaluation practitioners to join our
growing team. It’s varied work, from large-scale complex evaluations of integrated care
programmes to evaluations of third sector grant programmes tacking key issues affecting
local communities.
You’ll need to be highly skilled and knowledgeable about evaluation approaches and
techniques, but with the flexibility to work across a range of disciplines. Experience with
undertaking economic assessment and / or knowledge of health and social care datasets
would be a bonus, as these are growth areas for us. We’re a small company so expect to
pitch in to our engagement, consultation and research work when needed.
As a senior consultant you’ll be managing your own projects from day one, so you’ll need
experience as a manager with budget, team and quality responsibility. We might be
dedicated to social impact but we do it in a commercial world, so you’ll also need the skills
and confidence to sell our services convincingly. Our senior consultants design, win and run
their own projects, so as you develop you’ll have the opportunity to shape your practice in
line with the market and your interests. Last but not least, we have an enviable reputation for
robust and insightful work, so your dedication to high quality delivery should match ours.
You’ll have the opportunity to develop your career with guidance from experienced
practitioners, working alongside colleagues with exceptional skills and the same dedication to
social impact. We’re proud of our culture: we take shared responsibility for the success of
the Group, and we celebrate that success together too.
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If you think that this role would suit you please fill out an application, making sure you tell us
about your project management and evaluation experience, as well as what you could bring
to our business.
If you’d like to discuss the role further, please contact Lauren Roberts, Principal Consultant in
Evaluation, on 07920 492 222.
Equality and diversity
OPM Group has made a commitment to promoting equality and diversity in all our work. We
have a full programme of activities to support continuous improvement, including regular
briefings for all members, training for managers and practice exchange sessions.
Job description
Purpose
We are looking for a Senior Consultant to join our Evaluation and Impact team. This role
involves managing complex or sensitive projects and supporting and overseeing the work of
Consultants.
The post holder will play a key role in the delivery of high quality, profitable projects and in
developing OPM Group’s reputation with clients and partners. They will work closely with
Principals and Consultants.
Main responsibilities
Please note this job description is intended as a general guide and is not exhaustive. It may
be reviewed according to future requirement and business needs.
Delivery

Leading and managing the design and implementation of evaluation projects. This
will include:

methodology design and project planning

budget management and accountability for project profit and loss

project performance and delivering projects to OPM Group’s quality standards.

Project direction and provision of support to project managers on small and medium
sized projects.

Managing client relationships on a day to day basis on all aspects of project delivery,
to ensure there are good communications, problems are identified and resolved
quickly and a long-term client relationship is established.

Providing support or management to projects and as requested in other OPM
Group’s key functional areas (research, engagement, consultation).

Leading on/producing high quality reports on complex issues to agreed standards.
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
Taking responsibility for analysis of and reporting on qualitative and quantitative data,
including economic assessments.

Understanding the value of and using appropriate IT packages in relevant aspects of
project work, including specialist research and consultation and infographics
software.

Understanding the wider public sector policy landscape within which our evaluation
work is commissioned

Meeting personal targets, project deadlines and expected quality standards.
Business Development

Winning new business including gaining and responding to invitations to tender,
negotiating untendered projects, developing opportunities through relationship
building, and proposal writing.

Participating and where appropriate leading in pitches for new business.

Raising OPM Group’s profile by participating in other business development and
marketing activities including events and seminars, blogging, producing journal
articles etc.
Leadership and management

Line management responsibility for a group of consultants/analysts providing ongoing
mentoring, development and performance support as required.

Contributing to short and long-term business and capacity planning.

Actively contributing to professional skills development at a team level.

Living out OPM Group’s values.
Personal and Development

Actively developing personal professional skills which may include another area of
expertise in one of OPM Group’s core functions or sectors of activity.
Other

Undertaking any other appropriate duties as required.

Understanding and actively supporting our policies on Equality and Diversity

Actively promoting charter behaviour internally and externally with clients.
Key relationships

Principals and Consultants

Project teams including support staff

Other members of OPM Group
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
Senior Consultant
Clients, partners and other key stakeholders.
The post holder should meet regularly with their line manager to review performance and
personal development.
The post holder will come into contact with all members of staff, and is expected to attend
OPM Group days - such as members’ days and the annual retreat.
Salary
Up to £58,000
Person Specification
Essential
Desirable
Training and
Education

Good relevant under-graduate degree
or equivalent qualification.

Relevant higher degree
or other relevant postgraduate qualification.
Experience

Demonstrable experience of
designing, managing and delivering
multi-method evaluations

Experience of managing
staff (on projects and /
or as a line manager).

Good experience in complex analysis
and report writing in an applied
setting.


Demonstrable experience of
successful project management,
including managing budgets, client
relationships and teams.

Recognised expertise
(through educational
qualifications or work
experience) in one or
more of the following
areas: health, social
care, education, early
years, complex families.
Experience of work winning,
tendering and proposal writing.

Evidence of commercial
skills: business
development; work
winning; contract
management.

Experience of
undertaking, managing
or directing economic
assessments

Previous consultancy
experience.

Work with charities and
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VCSOs.
Skills and
knowledge
Behavioural

Excellent oral and written
communication skills, including report
writing.

Ability to tailor communications
appropriately to the audience.

Confident and effective public
speaker capable of delivering high
quality presentations to senior
audiences.

Credibility with senior managers and
clinicians.

Confident, resilient and able to deliver
high quality outputs

Experience of handling and analysing
large datasets.

Rigorous project management skills.

Strong analytical skills.

Good quantitative analysis and
numeracy skills.

Good understanding of the policy
issues in one or more of OPM
Group’s key sectors.

Excellent organisational skills.

Very good knowledge and experience
of using Microsoft Office (Word,
Excel, PowerPoint)

Able to act on own initiative. Self-

Familiarity with
databases.

Experience of managing
projects involving
vulnerable or seldom
heard stakeholders, and
/ or focused on
evaluating the impact of
public services.

NVivo, SNAP, SPSS
and other software or
technology-based
processes supporting
evaluation activities.

Able to produce high
quality reports using
visual techniques and
infographics.

Strategic thinker.

Creative problem solver.

Good IT skills.

Ability to develop
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skills
motivated and good at managing time
and workload in a fast-paced
commercial consultancy environment.

Very strong customer focus;
excellent customer service and client
awareness.

Able to work well with diverse client
and community groups, including
groups of senior managers and
vulnerable people.

Able to work collaboratively with
colleagues.

Enthusiasm for learning.

Exceptional attention to detail.

Ability to work to deadlines and under
pressure and willingness to ‘do what
needs doing’ when timescales are
tight.

Able to juggle and deliver multiple
projects against competing deadlines.

Able to cope with a high degree of
ambiguity.

Flexible – willing to work on different
types of projects and across different
sectors.

Good understanding of what is “fit for
purpose”. Able to see the client
perspective.
Special
circumstances

Willingness to travel.

Willingness to work occasional
unsociable hours, including early
mornings, evenings and weekends.
General

A commitment to OPM Group
ownership and governance model.

A commitment to the values of OPM
Group and to observing the OPM
charter.
staff/experience with
project team and line
management.
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
Ability to behave in a manner
consistent with principles of fairness
and equality, supporting the
implementation of our Equality and
Diversity policies.
Selection Process
You will need to complete an application form and return it to recruit@opm.co.uk. Please
note that CVs will not be accepted.
If your application is taken forward, you will be invited to attend an interview and to complete
some assessment tasks.
If you are successful in your application, we will conduct verbal and/or written reference
checks with your approval. We will need to see your original birth certificate and/or passport
as well as your educational certificates. We will also request your completion of an
occupational health questionnaire. When the enquiries are completed satisfactorily, OPM
Group will make a formal offer of appointment
Our provisional recruitment schedule is:

Deadline for applications
Monday 25 January 2016

Interviews
Friday 5 February 2016
Skills testing of disabled applicants
Applicants who satisfy the minimum standards of the role may be asked to take a number of
ability tests before being progressed to the next stage of the recruitment process. These
include online numerical and verbal reasoning assessments supplied by a psychometric test
provider. If an ability test has a feature that, in the opinion of the applicant, places a disabled
person at a substantial disadvantage to other candidates, the OPM Group agrees to take
such steps as is reasonable to mitigate the disadvantage.
Should an applicant be able to demonstrate their ability for the role as laid out in the job
description (able to meet the minimum standards of the role as outlined in the necessary
column in the person specification), by any alternative method, this will be given due
consideration by the OPM Group.
The OPM Group agrees that should disabled applicants meet the minimum requirements of
the job and are able to demonstrate their competency through ability tests or any other
comparable method; they will be given an automatic right to interview.
Terms and Conditions
A full copy of the terms and conditions of employment at OPM Group is distributed upon
appointment.
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Employees are entitled to 30 days leave per year plus statutory bank holidays.
You will have the opportunity to contribute to a pension scheme.
Location
You will work at 252B Gray’s Inn Road, WC1X 8XG (near King’s Cross and St Pancras
stations).
The OPM Group Charter
Working with you to improve social results
The OPM Group is committed to improving the quality of life for all communities by working
with clients and the public to help them achieve the social results they desire.
As a member of the OPM Group:

I am committed to delivering high quality work and to helping to achieve social results.

I am committed to my own development to sustain and increase my contribution to
the OPM Group, and expect others to provide appropriate support and opportunities.

I will behave with integrity, honesty and courtesy at all times, and expect the same
from others.

I will contribute to providing a productive and supportive working environment, and will
ask for and offer support when it is needed, and expect others to do the same.

I will be fair and open in my expectations of others, and expect the same from them.

I will take responsibility for reflecting and demonstrating the values of the OPM Group
outside the organisation.
All members of the OPM Group are expected to uphold the charter in the organisation, and
be active in ensuring its principles and values underpin all our behaviours, work and the
continued success of the organisation.
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