Senior Analyst: Analytics & Data Science

at  Essex County Council

SENIOR ANALYST: ANALYTICS & DATA SCIENCE

Fixed Term, 12 months
Full Time, 37 hours per week
Up to £49,606 per annum (see end of document for payment structure)
Location: Chelmsford
Working Style: Anywhere worker
Closing Date: Wednesday 17th July 23:59pm
Essex County Council’s award-winning Data & Analytics service has been growing and evolving for some time now; and isn’t done yet.
We’re seeking a highly skilled and experienced senior analyst to support the team in advancing our data science initiatives in Essex. The ability to harness data science skills is paramount for this position. Utilising data science methodologies and statistical techniques, we aim to provide invaluable insights to our organisation, facilitating evidence-based decision-making processes. Our mission is to ensure that every decision undertaken by Essex County Council is underpinned by robust evidence.
Through the application of data science and statistical methodologies, we confront challenges head-on, unlocking the transformative potential of data to enhance our understanding of the county and drive meaningful change throughout our communities. If you’re enthusiastic about joining a dynamic network comprising data scientists, analysts, engineers, designers, and more, then this opportunity is tailor-made for you.
You can learn more about the team by reading our insight blog or visiting our open data website.
The Job
The role of senior analyst offers a varied set of responsibilities and accountabilities, that you can read more about in the job profile below.
Senior Analysts in the Data & Analytics team are expected to work across a range of portfolio areas depending on organisational need, but this role will be primarily supporting the Health and Care Analytics portfolio. Health and Care Analytics is a term used which encompasses Population Health and Population Health Management, often using linked datasets and the derived insight to enable action across the wide determinants of health and the full life course. It seeks to shift focus on care from reactive to proactive, looking at how data and analytics can be used to identify vulnerable cohorts, whole populations or system challenges.
Recent analytics projects with population health colleagues include identifying hotspots of households with hazardous living conditions, modelling presence of frailty in small communities, and developing a cost of living index.
Core Skills

It is important to us that senior analysts possess a range of skills, including the ability to:

• Create replicable analytical pipelines from source data,
• Identify optimal range of analytical methods and products to suit business need,
• Transform data to enable the successful delivery of analytics and data science projects,
• Use statistical and data science methods to derive insight from data,
• Communicate effectively and engage customers with insight stories from data analysis,
• Manage relationships with key customers, understanding the needs of their service(s),
• Represent the team, advocating the use of analytics in decision making, and,
• Embed quality assurance across own work and that of the team

Educated to degree level or with equivalent experience
Coding and automation (R, SQL, Python)
Recruitment Process

As part of the application process, please ensure that you provide a supporting statement when prompted, telling us:

• What skills you possess that make you suitable for the role, and
• What experience you have gained that can support our team’s mission

Following a shortlisting process we will then invite successful candidates to an interview, and set a task we expect you to complete ahead of this. We expect to schedule interviews towards the end of July/early August
Development
We support the development of our staff in their careers. Over the past five years, 75% of team members have earned promotions into new role. We consistently offer opportunities to develop new skills through project working or training and encourage staff to spent 10% of their time on training and development.
You can read more about development opportunities in the team in our insight blog, specifically these blogs from Bella , Fran , and Caroline & Louis .
Base
This role is considered an ‘anywhere worker’ by Essex County Council and is predominantly a remote position. However, there is an expectation to be in the office in Chelmsford, Essex, at a minimum of once a month, and when required on an ad hoc basis for different business needs.
Salary & Benefits
Our Essex Pay policy means we look at the job market nationally to offer competitive salary rates for all positions. The current rate for the job for this is £ 49,606 per annum, which is regularly evaluated. Our pay policy means that all people within a role are paid the same rate, except for training and development reasons.
Where development needs are identified throughout the recruitment process, new starters will be offered a minimum of 85% of the rate for the job. Upon starting, you will work with your line manager to create a development plan to increase your salary to the rate for the job within a maximum of 24mths.
Essex County Council is proud to offer an excellent benefits package to all employees. More information can be found at https://workingforessex.com/working-here/pay-reward?source=workingforessex.com .
To read more about us please visit: Chief Executives Office
Why Essex?
Essex County Council has a location to be proud of. Our 1,300 square miles stretch from Constable Country to the Thames Estuary, from the dynamic M11 corridor to the traditional seaside resorts of Clacton and Walton. England’s oldest town, Colchester, and two of its newest – Basildon and Harlow – are right here. Along with the City of Chelmsford, the county town, they form our major population centres. It means real choice and makes Essex the ideal place for your career. Read more about us here.
Essex County Council is proud to be a Disability Confident Leader. We’re committed to interview all disabled applicants who choose to apply under our Job Interview Scheme if they meet the minimum requirements of the job. Please speak to our Recruiters if you require any reasonable adjustments during the process.
We’re also committed to interview all veterans and care leavers, who meet the minimum requirements of the role for which they are applying.
What you should do next
If you are interested in finding out more about this role, we would love to hear from you. Please apply via the link.
Essex County Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults, and expects all employees and volunteers to share this commitment.
If you have queries on this role or require anything further, please email resourcing.team@essex.gov.uk
Follow us on Facebook , Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn . Further details can be found on our careers page .
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Job Profile: Senior Analyst
Functional Responsibilities:

Customer Engagement

• Responsible for engaging with our services, spotting opportunities where data and analysis can influence future strategy and supports delivery against our organisational outcomes
• Understanding customers’ business priorities and formulates insightful, proactive, analysis and evidence-based recommendations that helps to achieve their strategic priorities within functional business plans.

Managing Projects & Supporting Analysts

• Working with customers to effectively scope analytical projects, helps create realistic project plans, and facilitates the satisfactory delivery of project milestones
• Overseeing our analytical projects, supporting junior team members to effectively apply their skillsets in a public sector environment
• Supporting the development of a continuous improvement and learning culture, coaching, and assisting other team members development

Enhancing Organisational Literacy

• Helping to enhance data literacy and understanding of analytics across all services.
• Demonstrating the value that data and analytics can bring in supporting the success of functional plans
• Communicating complex analytical outputs in engaging and clear ways ensuring customers possess a foundational understanding of the team’s work and unique skillsets

Delivering Best Practice Analytics

• Responsible for providing the Council with the latest intelligence to manage risk and target resources effectively, reduce avoidable demand and influence behaviour change to improve outcomes for the local population
• Knowledgeable on range of analytics, statistics, and data science methodologies, can find suitable applications, and can interpret outputs clearly and accurately.
• Checking and challenging the teams analytical work so that we produce high quality outputs that customers can take confident action from

Data Management

• Supporting the continued goal of ‘making data accessible’, both through identifying the data needs of internal customers and team members
• Promoting the need for robust and reliable data and ensuring the team’s outputs and the data used are credible and trustworthy
• Ensuring data projects are utilising best practice principles that promote the efficient and effective use of data. This includes ensuring projects are replicable, scalable, and transferable

Competencies:
Analysis and problem-solving skills. You understand and can help teams apply a range of methods to analyse research data and synthesise findings. You know how to engage sceptical colleagues in analysis and synthesis. You can advise on the choice and application of techniques, and can critique colleagues’ findings to assure best practice.
Communication. You know how to listen to the needs of the technical and business stakeholders and explain them to each other. You can manage stakeholders’ expectations . You are flexible and capable of proactive and reactive communication. You know how to facilitate difficult discussions within your team or with diverse senior stakeholders.
Data management. You understand data governance and how it works in relation to other organisational governance structures. You can participate in or deliver the assurance of a service
Data modelling, cleansing and enrichment. You can produce data models and understand where to use different types of data models. You understand different tools and can compare between different data models. You can reverse-engineer a data model from a live system. You understand industry-recognised data-modelling patterns and standards
Data visualisation. You know how to use the most appropriate medium to visualise data to tell compelling and actionable stories relevant for business goals. You can present, communicate and disseminate data appropriately and with high impact
IT and mathematics. You can share your knowledge and experience of IT and mathematical skills with others, including tools and techniques. You can define those most appropriate for the environment
Logical and creative thinking. You can ensure that the most appropriate actions are taken to resolve problems as they occur. You can coordinate teams to resolve problems and implement solutions and preventative measures.
Project Management.You know how to share knowledge and experience of project management methodologies with others, including tools and techniques. You can define those most appropriate for the environment
Data quality assurance, validation and linkage. You can set up a system to get data ready for use and specify how data should be cleansed and prepared. You can bring data together from different sources and communicate the limitations of data. You know how to peer-review colleagues’ outputs to ensure quality
Statistical methods and data analysis.You understand and can apply a range of practices. You can develop deeper expertise in a narrower range of specialisms. You can start to apply emerging theory to practical situations.

Behaviours:

• You display a positive and respectful attitude in the workplace. You raise concerns and challenges in a productive manner, seeking resolution to workplace challenges.
• You treat and speak to all members of the team, and any external colleagues you may interact with, fairly, equitably and courteously
• You work with honesty and integrity, conducting yourself in a professional and productive manner
• You perform you job to a reasonable, acceptable standard, and to the best of your ability
• You adhere to organisational and team policy around absence and attendance
• You call out poor behaviours when you see them, or raise with members of the management team
• You work with humility, taking accountability for any mistakes, and welcoming constructive feedback openly.
• You are dependable, delivering what you commit to, attending meetings you accept invitations for, and letting people know if these things are unachievable

Please refer the Job description for details