Candidate Specification
Programme Manager, Y Lab
Salary: £31,500pa to £42,500pa plus benefits
Location: Cardiff
Term: until March 2018
Hours: Full-time, 37.5 hours per week
Y Lab is a collaboration between Nesta, Cardiff University and the Welsh Government. This post will be a Nesta
programme manager in Y Lab’s core Nesta/Cardiff University team. The goals of Y Lab are to:
● work with public services and other organisations in Wales to develop and test new solutions to major
societal challenges
● build innovation capacity within the Welsh Public Sector by modelling and demonstrating different
methods in action
● contribute to the knowledge base on public services, innovation, efficiency and effectiveness.
Y Lab will deploy a range of different approaches and methods to achieve its goals including:
● Open innovation methods like challenges and prizes
● Innovation funds and grant programmes
● Policy trials, practical programmes and other hands-on interventions.
The aim of Y Lab is to bring together a diverse team from across Nesta, Cardiff University and elsewhere to
adopt a prototyping, experimental approach to some of the major challenges facing public services in Wales
and:
● generate new knowledge on successful public service innovation;
● develop and test new solutions to major public service challenges;
● build innovation capacity within the Welsh public sector by modelling and demonstrating different
methods in action;
● apply learning from elsewhere in Wales.
The role
● Manage grants and non-financial support to innovators within Y Lab’s Digital Innovation Fund portfolio,
monitoring progress and reporting against contract milestones
● Developing and maintaining public services digital innovators network
● Work with Cardiff University researchers to leverage their expertise into public service reforms
● Ensure that supported innovations are generating robust evidence of impact through timely, high
quality evaluations
● Draw together learning from supported innovations and wider work in digital public services to
generate interesting and impactful communications
● Contribute to development of further public services innovation work
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Represent Nesta and the programme to a wide range of external audiences
The person
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The skills and commitment to champion digital developments to the public sector
A background of digital innovation
Knowledge of Welsh public services
Fastidious financial management skills and attention to detail
Very strong programme management skills developed through demonstrable, relevant experience
Able to successfully manage a wide range of relationships, especially arts and research organisations
Strong influencing skills
able to work across a range of public service innovation projects
An adept and confident networker
Flexibility and ability to iterate programme design if required
About Nesta
Nesta is the UK’s leading independent expert on innovation. We exist to grow the UK’s capacity to innovate,
helping to generate great ideas and bring them to life. We are independently funded with an endowment
originally provided from the National Lottery and we are became a charity in early 2012.
We achieve our mission through a combination of four core capabilities:
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Generating new knowledge and insights about how innovation happens in the economy, society and
public services, and making this knowledge available and accessible.
Supporting skills, methods, tools and capacity to innovate, both in leading edge fields (from digital
technology to creative industries) and in fields where innovation is less supported (such as local
government).
Linking diverse networks of people and organisations, and using our convening power to open up new
possibilities and to help with implementation and diffusion of innovations.
Helping fund innovative ventures, projects and programmes, particularly ones focused on solving
compelling problems. We do this as an investor, a grant-giver, and through programmes that combine a
mix of types of support.
For further information on: Nesta please visit www.nesta.org.uk
How to apply
To apply for this role please submit your application by clicking here.
Closing date: 19 October 2015
1st interviews will be held 26 October 2015
2nd interviews will be held 6 November 2015