The Behavioural Insights Team (BIT) is looking for an exceptional candidate to join as an Advisor working in BIT: North, our office in Manchester. The successful applicant will work on a range of projects in a wide range of policy areas including: health and social care integration, increasing physical activity and increasing recycling and reducing fly-tipping. Each of these projects will require the Advisor to find ways in which behavioural insights can be applied to policy problems. BIT North’s main focus of work is embedding behavioural insights across Greater Manchester. BIT North also has a portfolio of work across the North West and the successful applicant will have a key role to play in further developing this work.

The then Prime Minister created BIT in 2010 to apply behavioural science to public policy in the UK. In February 2014 we became a social purpose company, owned by the Cabinet Office, Nesta (an innovation charity) and our employees.

BIT works around the world in almost every area of public policy. Whilst the subject and output of our projects varies considerably, there are common threads: we try to understand the contexts in which people make decisions; we notice small details; we come up with innovative ideas for solving policy problems and we measure everything we do as robustly as we can.

As well as displaying professional excellence, BIT selects staff on the basis of our company values: always prioritising social impact; empiricism and humility; fresh thinking, collaboration; and public service.

The Manchester team currently has 2 full time members of staff and we work very closely with BIT’s London office. This is a great opportunity to help shape our existing programmes of work as well as to help us grow a vibrant regional office delivering significant social impact across the North of England.

As an Advisor you will work on a wide range of projects providing expert advice and project management. You will likely lead aspects of projects working to a Senior Advisor, and will also undertake discrete pieces of work (such as literature reviews or scoping out various aspects of projects). You will also work collaboratively on other projects across BIT as required. You will get regular exposure to a range of senior stakeholders and be expected to actively contribute to company development. Most of our Advisors have a Masters degree in a relevant subject (economics, psychology or similar) and prior work experience in either a policy or consultancy role.

Your role is very likely to include:

• Supporting the design and implementation of interventions to: support health and social care staff to work together more collaboratively, increase physical activity rates amongst people with long-term health conditions and increase recycling rates;
• Designing evaluation methods for interventions to reduce loneliness and social isolation; and
• Designing communication materials.

• An understanding of the behavioural science literature and how it can be applied to help solve complex policy problems;
• Good project management skills;
• Ability to support the design and implementation of rigorous evaluations, including but not limited to randomised controlled trials;
• Excellent written and verbal communication (for example ability to write short, to-the-point policy papers for senior politicians or public servants);
• Strategic thinking and creative problem solving;
• Strong teamwork skills - as a part of a small team you will need to be reliable and willing to take responsibility for the small details of projects, meetings and daily routines; and
• Experience developing or delivering government policy (for example, having worked in government or in public sector consulting).

*Masters in a relevant subject area (including, but not limited to behavioural economics, psychology, design thinking, evaluation methods); and

• Experience of working in or with local public services (e.g. local government, local NHS etc)

• If you do not already hold the right to work in the UK and/or require sponsorship in order to continue working here, you should think carefully before applying. This is because we will be unable to sponsor you unless there is no other suitably qualified settled worker available to fill the role or your current immigration status means that the resident labour market test will not apply in your case.
• The Behavioural Insights Team is committed to a policy of Equal Employment Opportunity and is determined to ensure that no applicant or employee receives less favourable treatment on the grounds of gender, age, disability, religion, belief, sexual orientation, marital status, or race, or is disadvantaged by conditions or requirements which cannot be shown to be justifiable.