For our full Job Description, check out our website!

Power to Change is the think-do tank that backs community business. We turn bold ideas into action so communities have the power to change what matters to them. We know community business works to build stronger communities and better places to live. We’ve seen people create resilient and prosperous local economies when power is in community hands. We also know the barriers that stand in the way of their success. We’re using our experience to bring partners together to do, test and learn what works. We’re shaping the conditions for community business to thrive. 

Role Purpose

As a Practice and Innovation Manager, you will lead the design and delivery of a range of practice-based partnerships, demonstrator initiatives, and test and learn activities, helping to turn bold ideas into action and shaping the conditions for community businesses to thrive. This will involve working collaboratively with community businesses, governments, organisations, and networks at national, regional and local levels. It will involve a varied programme of work which could include designing a new initiative to tackle barriers faced by community business, managing grant or investment funds to support activity, convening people from different sectors and facilitating discussions/workshops, or acting as a learning partner to test new approaches and share what emerges to influence wider policy and practice. You will work as part of a team as well as with passionate professionals across our organisation to amplify the efforts of community businesses and put them at the heart of a fairer economy.  

 For further information about us and our current priorities to build community power, finance the future economy, and take back the high street please see Power to Change - We back community business from the ground up.  

Role responsibilities 

• Lead the design and delivery of a portfolio of practice-based partnerships, demonstrator initiatives, and test and learn activities.

• Regularly engage with community businesses across England to understand their experiences and use this to inform and shape the design and delivery of our activities.

• Establish and maintain relationships with potential co-funding partners, donors, and organisations to shape and deliver collaboration and partnership opportunities (e.g. Combined Authorities, local government, trusts and foundations, social investors).

• Project management, including coordinating the activities of team members and project collaborators to ensure activities are delivered to a high standard and agreed timelines.

• Manage project budgets for your area(s) of work, including overseeing expenditure in line with activities.

• Manage relationships and contracts with delivery partners for commissioned work.

• Work collaboratively to support team members in the delivery of their project activities and learning.

• Communicate the activities and outcomes of our demonstrator, test and learn, and practice work (e.g. through blogs, speaking at events, representing the work at partnership meetings).

• Contribute to securing income earning opportunities and partnerships, helping to generate ideas, shape proposals and devise budgets.

• Collaborate with colleagues in the Organisation Services Team to ensure the processes and systems we use are proportionate for community businesses and align with our think-do approach.

• Work collaboratively with the Policy and Insight Team to capture and share learning, including informing the team’s work on policy development.

Collaborative responsibilities   

• Represent Power to Change, attending events, monitoring developments, and providing visibility through social media content, blogposts and analysis. 

• Embed and continue to review diversity, equity, and inclusion into our work.  

• Be an active and engaged colleague, taking part in support and learning activities.  

• Provide ad-hoc assistance to other team members as required. 

Skills and experience 

• Strong inter-personal and relationship-building skills with internal colleagues, including across different teams. 

• A successful track record of working collaboratively with external partners, which could include through networks, coalitions and alliances. 

• An ability to spot opportunities and develop innovative solutions / respond creatively to them. 

• An ability to convene partners, host conversations and/or facilitate workshop discussions. 

• Project management skills and experience, including managing project budgets.   

• A skilled communicator who is able to influence through written and verbal communications. 

• An ability to flex and be adaptive, changing activity or ways of working in response to what we learn. 

• Understanding and/or experience of the social sector (e.g. social enterprise, community business, think tanks). 

• Confident in using IT systems including MS Office and databases (such as Salesforce). 

• Knowledge and/or experience in at least one of our current activity or thematic priority areas (e.g. community power, financing the future economy, high streets)]