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Innovation Engagement and Co-ordination Senior Associate London, England

Financial Conduct Authority

Full Time London, England 50000 GBP ANNUAL Today

Job description

Innovation Engagement and Co-ordination Senior Associate

The team/department

An innovative industry demands an innovative regulator.

The FCA’s Innovation department is looking for talented, motivated and outcome focused individuals with varied experience and backgrounds to join our enthusiastic and diverse team. We sit within the Data, Technology and Innovation Division, which is at the forefront of transforming the FCA as we meet the demands of a digital regulatory future.

We support the FCA to be a progressive and forward-thinking regulator. We protect consumers, encourage competition and work with innovative financial services firms to deliver the best products and services that they can. We see our role as enabling the financial services sector to achieve its potential. In a nutshell, we want to support innovative businesses in the interest of consumers and markets, not just scrutinise them.

We are currently recruiting an Engagement and Co-ordination lead to join our Change and Development team.

Change and Development is a new team within Innovation. Technology is rapidly changing financial services and we must ensure that we evolve alongside the industry we regulate. Our aim is to be at the forefront of regulatory innovation – over the last few years our Regulatory Sandbox, firm support model, and TechSprint programme have been adopted by other regulators around the world, as well as producing cutting-edge thinking in sectors such as artificial intelligence and emerging technology.

But in the Change team, our role is to ask, “what’s next?”. And then build it.

We’re responsible for the department’s transformation agenda, including scoping and developing new service lines and initiatives, optimising existing ones, as well as our external and internal engagement programme.

In this role you will work with a broad array of stakeholders on exciting cross-cutting sectors. We work closely with technologists, financial institutions, start-ups, academia and peer regulators to ensure that FCA Innovation is a modern and bleeding-edge regulatory function.

For anyone thinking of joining, a strong interest in emerging technology such as AI, CryptoAssets, Machine Learning, DLT and blockchain, cloud and digital transformation would be a plus.

What you will be doing (the role)

Work closely with our Communications division to shape the Innovation Comms strategy. This will include working across the department to agree priority messages, overarching narrative, success metrics, outcomes, delivery timeline and the creation of brilliant content that gets our stakeholder’s attention.
Ownership of the Comms relationship and to act as single point of contact for Innovation and the FCA Comms department. Ensure consistency and alignment with the broader FCA Comms strategy. Co-ordinate across our departmental workstreams and feed into central comms team via regular updates and maintain a clear forward agenda.
Express creative freedom to identify and scope new and opportunities to land our strategy, such as podcasts, online media, or even in the metaverse!
Oversee the launch of refreshed Innovation brand and style, working with graphic designers and embedding into BAU.
Build-up an active stakeholder network and an engagement programme within the FCA, seeking opportunities to input and amplify our communications and convey the Innovation messages to appropriate stakeholders.
Overall ownership and delivery of internal Innovation pulse content, co-ordinating across teams to ensure we have helpful and up to date content.
Liaise across department to build up and maintain a repository of assets, such as stock briefings, ‘lines to take’ and slide templates.
Co-ordinate our published material, including speech writing, FCA website updates and other publications, ensuring timely and clear updates into our central Comms division.

The skills and experience you will have

Minimum

We are a signatory to the Government’s Disability Confident scheme. This means that we will offer an interview to disabled candidates entering under the scheme, should they meet the minimum criteria for a role. A minimum criterion needs to be measurable from reviewing a candidate’s CV.

Exceptions may apply if due to the volume of applications we are not able to interview all eligible candidates who qualify under the scheme.

Evidence of working pro-actively and independently to scope and deliver communications or stakeholder engagement projects.
Experience scoping, developing and managing engagement initiatives within an organisation.
Strong communicator (written and verbal) with the power to engage, motivate and influence a diverse range people at all levels
Understands content strategy and how to identify, create, disseminate and measure content that drives engagement
Ability to co-ordinate projects and collaborate with varied stakeholders.

Essential

Experience of turning complex business goals and information into communication objectives, clear key messages, and engaging content
Experience of working on strategic communications and developing a compelling overarching narrative or story from constituent parts.
Ability to build strong working relationships both internally and externally, to persuade and influence and gain credibility and respect from all areas of the organisation
Strong planning and organisational skills managing multiple project workstreams
Ability to work unsupervised and/or as part of a team, with the ability to balance, prioritise and manage competing demands.
Willingness to exercise your own judgement and initiative when creating a strategy and building and engagement network.

Desirable

Knowledge of financial services, especially within regulation, the FinTech or emerging technology sectors
Experience of working in a public sector or finances services engagement or communications role.
A strong breadth of stakeholder experience would be beneficial, ranging from public sector, private sector and/or consumer facing work.

What you will get from the role

Creative freedom: we are a team that values new ideas and approaches, and you will be encouraged and supported to develop new ideas and given the backing to implement them.
The opportunity to lead on and take ownership of the overall Innovation Comms strategy, working with specialists and input from central comms. The Innovation Department has been in growth mode, growing in terms of both numbers as well as new teams, capabilities and market facing services. This is an exciting time to shape our story and help land our comms strategy with the outside world.
This is a high profile and cross-cutting role – our stakeholders range from incumbents and start-ups, to tech firms and Government. We also have a significant international presence with our Global Financial Innovation (GFIN) Network.
Exposure to new ideas, opportunity to increase knowledge and expertise of the technology sector, and to build a network within the FinTech and RegTech ecosystems.
Work with a dynamic, diverse and friendly team of colleagues who are passionate about their work and believe in open collaboration.

The job grade for this role is Senior Associate – Corporate

The salary range in London is up to £50,000 per annum plus a competitive benefits package, including a non-contributory pension
The salary range in Edinburgh & Leeds is up to £46,500 per annum plus a competitive benefits package, including a non-contributory pension

Our competitive Flexible Benefits Scheme gives you the opportunity to create a personalised benefits package, tailored to suit your lifestyle. You can use this allowance to purchase additional benefits such as dental or cycle to work or you have the option top up your base salary by taking this as cash. Additional information on the core benefits you will receive can be found

here

About the FCA

The FCA regulates the conduct of 50,000 firms in the UK to ensure our financial markets are honest, fair and competitive. We do this to make sure markets work well for individuals, businesses and the economy as a whole. For more information on what we do, our three-year strategy can be found

here.

The FCA's Values & Diversity

Our ambition is to create a diverse and inclusive workplace that reflects the society we serve, helping us to be a better regulator

Flexible working

We welcome applications from candidates who are looking for flexible arrangements. Many of our staff work flexibly including working from home, staggered hours, and job shares. We can’t promise to give you exactly what you want but we won’t judge you for asking.

Multilocation & hybrid working

As part of the FCA’s on-going commitment to develop our national presence, most of our vacancies are now open to working in our Edinburgh, Leeds, and London offices. This means that as part of the application process you will be able to select your preference of which office location you would like to work from. The FCA also supports hybrid working which means you will be able to work from home up to 60% of the time over a month with the remainder of your time in one of our three office locations.

Useful information

Applications for this role close on at midnight on Wednesday 8th March 2023
Got a question? If you are interested learning more about the role, please contact Melanie Dubock at [email protected] if you are an internal candidate and Ifrah Azam at
[email protected]
if you are an external candidate
The interview process will include a competency-based interview. For additional guidance and support on the FCA’s interview process, please visit our careers site
here.