Project Manager / Senior Project Manager

Key information

• Permanent role, part-time or full-time

• Deadline for applications, Sunday 7th January, 2024

• Candidates invited to interview will be asked to participate in:

• 1 hour written task to be completed over a 48-hour period prior to interview

• 1 hour interview anticipated to take place remotely between late January – early February 2024

• Possibility of brief follow-up conversations that may help the candidate and hiring team come to a decision

  Salary bands:

• Project Manager: £32,000 - £38,000 full-time equivalent (FTE)

• Senior Project Manager: £38,000 - £45,000 FTE

About Renaisi

Renaisi is a social enterprise that has helped people and places to thrive since 1998. We are leaders in place-based change and experts in using learning to drive change and understand the intersecting and complex nature of social challenges.

We support change by:

• helping people experiencing economic and social exclusion
• enabling organisations – from community groups and charities to local authorities – to understand and improve their impact
• supporting funders to learn about the value and role of their investments
• working with businesses to be more inclusive employers
• encouraging place-based organisations and practitioners to strengthen their approach.

Over the coming years we aim to:

• Empower people facing economic and social exclusion.
• Enable social and private sector organisations to tackle socio-economic exclusion.
• Challenge the systems that perpetuate and entrench socio-economic exclusion and marginalisation.
• Interrogate our own role in preventing change and perpetuating harmful systems.

Why join us?

Renaisi has a clear social purpose and we're proud of the impact and change we have fostered, locally and nationally, since 1998.

In 2023 we are pushing boldly into a new strategic direction, that will challenge us and our stakeholders.

If you believe, like we do:

• that despite incredible effort and commitment from so many we’re not seeing the depth of change needed to turn things around

• that we must do something different, re-think how we work, who we work with and what we expect of each other.

It’s an exciting time to join us.

As a social enterprise we reinvest any profits back into our programmes and services to forward our mission. Our values reflect how we behave and our work. We value strengths rather than picking at weaknesses, and we make time to understand and hear people. When it comes to taking responsibility for our work and our mission, we own it, and we are curious about people, learning, and the issues we work on.

We’re looking for a Project Manager or Senior Project Manager to join our creative and dynamic Consultancy Team.
We will offer you varied experience and the opportunity to develop a valuable skill-set across a range of areas including: research and evaluation, facilitation, place-based and systems change. You’ll develop these skills through partnerships with charitable funders, non-profits and local authorities.

We welcome applications from candidates with a range of professional experience. In this round, we’re especially interested in speaking to candidates who already have some project management experience and experience in mixed methods evaluation and social research. We welcome candidates who are knowledgeable about quantitative methods for social sector contexts such as summarising and visualising monitoring and survey data, economic evaluation methods like value for money or social return on investment analyses, or inferential statistics and quasi-experimental designs.

What does the Consultancy Team do and who do we work with?

Our Consultancy Team has an excellent reputation in the social sector. The projects we deliver are diverse in their size and scale, but fall into three main categories:

• Evaluation: supporting organisations to help them understand their impact and assess where value is created. We are also experienced in more developmental approaches to evaluation, helping organisations learn and adapt in real time.

• Social research: exploring particular issues in greater depth working with more marginalised groups

• Learning partnerships: supporting organisations with a more structural learning approach tailored to their context and culture. This can include long-term relationships over a number of years, as well as shorter more strategic advice.

We also have a track record of engaging in large, complex programmes of change in places.

Our clients are charities, public services, local and regional government bodies and funders. Current and recent examples include The National Lottery Community Fund, BBC Children in Need, the Health Foundation, Youth Endowment Fund, Right to Succeed, and a range of local and regional government bodies including the London Mayor's Office and several London borough councils.

What will it be like working in this role?

As a Project Manager or Senior Project Manager in the Consultancy Team you will manage a variety of projects, mostly research or evaluation-related but with the opportunity to gain some experience across different teams in our organisation.

Some of your time will be devoted to internal, business development work, for example writing proposals and pitching for new projects, facilitating team training, serving on internal working groups (e.g., equitable evaluation) or providing consultancy services to our own frontline services team.

Some of your time will be devoted to external, client-facing work collaborating with partner organisations and their stakeholders through consultancy services. Our Project Managers and Senior Project Managers are responsible for the day-to-day management of external contracts with clients. You will oversee the performance of the contract, manage junior staff working on the project, be the main point of contact with clients, and manage the budget and project team resourcing effectively.

We will match you with projects based on your skills and experience, and as far as possible with areas that interest you or will benefit your professional development. We can’t predict what types of client projects you might be working on in the future, but they are guaranteed to involve interesting social issues and an insight into how different organisations work.

This is an excellent opportunity for someone who is driven and would like the chance to develop both themselves and work with us to challenge the root causes of economic and social exclusion to strengthen communities across the UK.

What’s the difference between Project Manager and Senior Project Manager?

The Project Manager Role

We expect Project Manager candidates to be earlier in their career, from someone with some experience managing projects, but looking to step into their first official project management role to someone with more years of experience in project management. The agreed salary would be based on experience within this spectrum.

As a Project Manager, you can expect to lead day-to-day delivery of smaller or less complex projects in our portfolio, working closely with a Senior Project Manager or Principal Consultant who will be serving as the project director who will have responsibility for overall project quality assurance and strategic direction.

Project Manager candidates may have some experience in or be enthusiastic about developing experience in one or more of the following areas: evaluation and research, facilitation and training, place-based and systems change, local government, or equity-driven and participatory research methods.

Project managers will devote a larger amount of their effort towards external, client-facing work. Project managers will incrementally assume more responsibility for internal, business-development activities such as contributing to proposals, developing areas of specialism, or supporting cross-organization initiatives.

The Senior Project Manager Role

We expect Senior Project Manager candidates to be more advanced in their careers, with more significant experience in project management, and specific expertise they can bring to the role, such as extensive experience working on issues of interest for Renaisi such as place-based or systems change programmes, or considerable experience using complex, rigorous or innovative research methodologies that could enhance the work of the consultancy team.

As a Senior Project Manager, you can expect to lead day-to-day delivery of larger or more complex projects in our portfolio, working closely with a Principal Consultant who will be serving as the project director who will have responsibility for overall project assurance and strategic direction. You can also expect to serve as project director on some smaller and less complex projects, or as an advisor on projects around which you have specialist knowledge.

We encourage Senior Project Manager applications from candidates with a depth of experience in one or more of the following areas: evaluation and research, facilitation and training, place-based and systems change, local government, or equity-driven and participatory approaches.

Senior Project Managers will devote a larger proportion of their time than Project Managers to internal, business development initiatives such as writing proposals and pitching for new contracts, training the team in- and producing external communications relating to a specialist area or areas, and supporting cross-organisation initiatives.

About you

You will be somebody who is excited to contribute towards our mission to challenge the root causes of economic and social exclusion and strengthen communities across the UK. You will also be somebody who feels a strong connection with our values.

You will be somebody who holds the skillset to be an effective project manager. You will be a skilled verbal and written communicator, have good attention to detail to ensure projects say on track and within budget, have excellent problem-solving skills, be adept at cultivating strong client and colleague relationships, and be confident managing multiple tasks and priorities at once.

In addition to these skills, in this round we are especially interested in hearing from candidates who have relevant experience or training in the following.

In this round, we’re especially interested in speaking to candidates who already have some project management experience and experience in mixed methods evaluation and social research, and in particular candidates with some quantitative methods expertise.

Job description – what the role involves

Duties and responsibilities

The role is incredibly varied, suiting driven individuals and giving them a chance to develop both themselves and the organisation. This role includes:

Project Management
• Project managing projects for external clients or internally at Renaisi
• Responsibility for adhering to agreed budgets, resource plans and timelines, meeting project milestones, and managing the work of the project team, subcontractors and partners
• Senior Project Manager only: Project Director for smaller projects for external clients, having overall responsibility for quality assurance.

Conducting Research and Analysis
• Designing and implementing high quality research, analysis and evaluation methodologies for projects. This might include: designing discussion guides; conducting interviews in person or over the phone; setting up and running surveys; facilitating focus groups and workshops; and recruiting participants
• Managing robust and imaginative analysis of qualitative and quantitative data to create insight for Renaisi and our clients. • Ensuring ethical approaches are used in all of our research.
• Senior Project Manager only: research and analysis will take a less central role for the Senior Project Manager, however, the role will still be expected to carry out: o some research, such as: interviewing strategic / senior stakeholders, collecting complex observational data o overseeing the analysis process and developing frameworks to guide the team to carryout robust analysis

Business development work
• Preparing and contributing to proposals for new client commissions as part of a wider team.
• Supporting pitch presentations for new client commissions.
• Senior Project Managers only: proposal writing, pitching and winning new business will be a significant part of the role. Senior Project Managers would be expected to lead this process rather than contribute.
• Senior Project Manager only: developing products, resources and training for the team around specialist/expert areas, building towards representing Renaisi in a particular area.

Supporting clients
• Drafting accessible and concise reporting outputs of evaluation findings.
• Presentation of findings to clients and stakeholders.
• Providing capacity building support that upskills individuals delivering projects.
• Managing and facilitating workshops for clients and their grantees, focused on topics like visioning, learning, analysis.
• Maintaining strong client relationships for commissioned work, ensuring that communication is regular, proactive and respects client confidentiality.
• Attending client meetings as necessary and being prepared to attend evening and weekend meetings and events as required.
• Senior Project Manager only: providing strategic support, guidance and advice to individuals delivering projects.
• Senior Project Managers only – presenting research/project findings at large scale events.

Team Management
• Line management of junior staff within the consultancy team.
• Establishing and maintaining effective working relationships with colleagues at all levels.
• Leading on recruitment of junior staff. • Developing and delivering training sessions for team members.
• Senior Project Manager only: sharing knowledge of specialist /expert areas with the team through blogs, trainings, development of new products

Company
• Contribute to organisational learning, for example through internal initiatives such as sustainability and equal opportunities, internal evaluation or equitable evaluation
• Promoting the image of Renaisi, which may include attending conferences, training, exhibitions and other events and preparing publicity material.
• Promote equal opportunities and cultural development
• Carry out all duties in accordance with Renaisi’s Equal Opportunities Policy

Notes
1. In addition to the above, you may be required to carry out any other duties required to ensure the implementation of the programmes and projects or other areas of work for which the company is responsible.
2. This list is not to be regarded as exclusive or exhaustive. Any additions or alterations will be put in writing by the Chief Executive or a Company Director.

Person Specification – your skills, knowledge and experience

(E) - Essential

(D) - Desirable

Project Manager

1. Values and equalities
Proven and demonstrable commitment to the principles and practice of equal opportunities in employment, and ability to promote the Company’s Equal Opportunities Policies.(E)
Identify with the values and ethos of Renaisi.(E)

2. Experience
Experience of social research and evaluation in an applied setting.(E)
Experience designing and facilitating workshops or training sessions.(D)
Experience designing and managing projects effectively through the full life cycle of proposal, implementation, delivery, completion and post project review. (E)
Experience designing and delivering research and evaluation projects within a strong ethical framework.(D)
Experience of building trust and collaboratively relationships with a variety of different stakeholders.(E)
Experience of working on interventions to improve places and local systems. This could be in roles that influence policy around place-based change, working in public sector or VCSE organisation that use place to achieve positive economic impact, or research and evaluation roles that explore the impact of place-based work. (D)
Experience line managing junior colleagues, and supporting them with their progression and development. (D)

3. Knowledge
Good knowledge of the issues affecting the communities and organisations that Renaisi works with. (E)
Knowledge of research and evaluation methods and analysis, including both qualitative and quantitative methods.(E)
Interests in one or more of the following areas: (E)
- Employment and skills
- Public health
- Youth sector
- Education
- Families and carers
- Community engagement
- Arts and culture

4. Attributes
Prioritising, planning and managing multiple tasks. (E)
Managing project teams and maintaining positive working relationships with other staff. (D)
Communicating effectively, both orally (presentations, client meetings, telephone) and in writing (reports, PowerPoint slides, blogs).(E)
High quality analytical skills involving a high attention to detail and accuracy.(E)
Confidence to liaise and negotiate with clients in person and via email / telephone.(E)
Strong interpersonal skills and empathetic. (E)
Self-motivated and able to act on own initiative.(E)
Ability to work with diverse groups – including vulnerable participants in research and evaluation.(E)
Interest in and ability to work across different projects and sectors.(E)

5. Qualifications
None are specifically required for this role, and we would rather see evidence of skills through experience and previous outputs

Senior Project Manager

1.Values and equalities
Proven and demonstrable commitment to the principles and practice of equal opportunities in employment, and ability to promote the Company’s Equal Opportunities Policies. (E)
Identify with the values and ethos of Renaisi.(E)

2. Experience
Experience of social research and evaluation in an applied setting.(E)
Experience designing and facilitating workshops or training sessions.(E)
Experience designing and managing projects effectively through the full life cycle of proposal, implementation, delivery, completion and post project review.(E)
Experience designing and delivering research and evaluation projects within a strong ethical framework.(E)
Experience of building trust and collaboratively relationships with a variety of different stakeholders.(E)
Experience contributing or leading proposal writing and representing your company in pitches for new business. (D)
Experience presenting your ideas, findings to a wide variety of stakeholders.(E)
Experience of working on interventions to improve places and local systems. This could be in roles that influence policy around place-based change, working in public sector or VCSE organisation that use place to achieve positive economic impact, or research and evaluation roles that explore the impact of place-based work.(D)
Experience line managing junior colleagues, and supporting them with their progression and development.(E)

3. Knowledge
Good knowledge of the issues affecting the communities and organisations that Renaisi works with.(E)
Knowledge of research and evaluation methods and analysis, including both qualitative and quantitative methods.(E)
Knowledge in a specialist area (place, systems, local government, specific research methodologies) that could enhance the work of Renaisi with new and current stakeholders.(E)
Interests in one or more of the following areas: (E)
- Employment and skills
- Public health
- Youth sector
- Education
- Families and carers
- Community engagement
- Arts and culture

4. Attributes
Prioritising, planning and managing multiple tasks. (E)
Managing project teams and maintaining positive working relationships with other staff.(E)
Communicating effectively, both orally (presentations, client meetings, telephone) and in writing (reports, PowerPoint slides, blogs). (E)
High quality analytical skills involving a high attention to detail and accuracy.(E)
Confidence to liaise and negotiate with clients in person and via email / telephone.(E)
Strong interpersonal skills and empathetic .(E)
Self-motivated and able to act on own initiative .(E)
Ability to work with diverse groups – including vulnerable participants in research and evaluation.(E)
Interest in and ability to work across different projects and sectors.(E)

5. Qualifications
None are specifically required for this role, and we would rather see evidence of skills through experience and previous outputs.

Our employee benefits

• We offer 25 days of annual leave per year, plus statutory and public holidays. After each year of service, you accrue an additional day of annual leave, up to a maximum of five,

• 5x SCR (social corporate responsibility) days,

• Cycle to work scheme,

• We support your family with our enhanced maternity, paternity and adoption pay offer,

• NEST pension scheme,

• Hybrid working pattern,

• We help you grow by offering a range of learning and development opportunities,

• We support your wellbeing through resources and information in our Wellbeing Pack, leading initiatives through our internal Wellbeing Team, and support from our internal Mental Health First Aiders,

• We offer additional benefits of a free annual eye test, and free fruit, coffee and tea in all of our offices.

How to apply:

Please apply by completing the application form. Please attach a CV and answer all sift questions to outline your skills and experience against the S/PM Job Description - Person Specification . For questions or queries about the role please contact Cathy Hearn at c.hearn@renaisi.com or n.rejc@renaisi.com.

CLOSING DATE: Sunday 7th of January 2024 at 12:00 pm. Applications received after this time will not be considered.

We encourage applicants to submit their applications as soon as they can.

Renaisi is an equal opportunities employer. If you require any adjustments as part of your application please contact us to discuss.

No agencies please.