Innovation Lead (Design Thinking and Discovery) London, England
Job description
Job title: Innovation Lead (Design, Thinking and Discovery)
Salary: £75,000 - £90,000
Location: Palestra, London – Hybrid
Contract Type: TfL Band 4, Permanent
Overview of project/role
We need a creative and expansive innovation leader to bring new ideas into TfL, ground them in the real world challenges facing the business and drive their exploration.
Transport for London (TfL) is an ambitious organisation. Whether it is achieving a Net Zero operation, driving ever better customer experience and active travel, becoming a more efficient organisation, or achieving Vision Zero in safety. Innovation is key to making these ambitions real. Innovation can open TfL to new ideas and accelerate their take up to drive better results.
You will lead our Discovery and Design Thinking team, part of the Open Innovation team. You will act as the bridge between internal TfL clients experiencing real world challenges and the market-place of innovators.
This is a fun and creative role, engaging in the huge potential of new ideas and applications to drive positive change, as well as building great relationships with peers across TfL. It’s an awesome platform to deliver real world change to one of the world’s greatest cities and drive your future career.
Specifics
- The key product of the role is to generate well defined and prioritised new prospects for trial.
- You need to build strong internal relationships with peers so you can understand their issues and ambitions at depth.
- You need to be able to see the best of what the market can offer and critically see through the hype.
- You will need to care about people and be able to manage a smart and motivated team.
- You need to be able to create simple and effective business processes to enable the team to deliver.
- You will need to be able to work hand in glove with your peer in our Trials team to deliver an end-to-end process of ideas, experiments and business impact for TfL
Key Accountabilities:
- To identify and manage strategic commercial partnerships for TfL, in the academic, start-up and commercial sectors where disruptive business models and new technologies could impact TfL, to create new value through delivering policy outcomes quicker, better or cheaper
- To manage work with senior TfL leaders, to challenge the status quo, developing problem statements to find innovative new solutions to our biggest challenges aligned with organisational priorities, transform TfL’s ways of working and inform future business planning activity.
- To improve, manage and document the end-to-end processes, through the innovation hub, for internal stakeholders through a lean and agile process. Including defining problem statements, prioritisation, production of business case, securing resource, etc. to enable TfL to support the delivery of viable solutions to some of London’s biggest challenges that are of greatest value.
- To manage and improve the end-to-end process, through the innovation hub, for external stakeholders. Including, defining problem statements, engaging with the best innovators from across the world to test and trial solutions and develop business cases to scale solutions in London, through an agile and lean process.
- To provide quality assurance on everything produced in the Innovation Hub and prioritise the Innovation projects based on multiple factors including profitability, policy outcomes, reputation benefits etc to ensure greatest value.
- To maintain knowledge on key technology and market developments on the horizon, ensuring market intelligence is shared as appropriate with the TfL colleagues to inform business decisions.
- To identify external third party funding sources for TfL in the area of transport innovation, devising and delivering a structured process for achieving this.
Skills;
- Proven ability to influence at a senior level internally and externally
- Strong management skills to motivate and develop staff
- Excellent ability to develop creative ways of working, which delivers excellent customer service, and to ‘think outside of the box’ in a productive approach.
- Proven + highly developed consultancy-style skills, including contracting, managing expectations and relationship building.
- Ability to create a compelling case for innovation and change that provides value for TfL
- A commercial outlook, identifying commercial / financial implications + wider organisational/industry approaches to develop robust plans.
- Willingness to explore options and act against the way things have traditionally been done.
- Openness to ideas, seeking out and listening to suggestions from others; and to trying new ideas
- Strong analytical skills, able to draw on a wide range of quantitative/qualitative data to develop recommendations and plans
Knowledge:
- Excellent understanding of the strategic transport agenda in London, the UK and globally
- Extensive knowledge of TfL operations, or the major principles that can be applied from equivalent organisations
- Excellent understanding of co-creation and mutual value partnerships, accelerators and R&D
- Excellent understanding of the practical challenges and constraints of delivering successful innovation and partnerships in a large organisation or public sector institution
- Good understanding of emerging technologies(Machine learning/AI, quantum computing, data, connectivity, engineering in the transport context)
- Good understanding of business case or cost/benefit methodology as applied to a wide range of projects and experience of applying methodology in appraisals, prioritisation and scenario planning
- Strong technical knowledge of open innovation, data management, analytical techniques, performance management and continuous improvement methodologies
- Excellent knowledge of how to engage effectively with a range of stakeholders, including public and private sector, and in working collaboratively to assess business, operational, commercial and customer implications
- Some knowledge of applying new routes to market, scaling and commercialisation
Experience:
- Experience of agile delivery / programme management, and adapting that approach to organisation constraints.
- Experience of building innovation and R&D partnerships preferably in context of a large organisation or public sector institution.
- Some experience of leading the development of business cases in support of investment programmes.
- Strong experience of working with accelerators, start-ups, corporates delivering practical innovative solutions that are adopted by the business.
- Significant experience of communicating outcomes effectively to influence decision making/ behaviour at all levels of management (including MD level) .
- Significant and proven experience of managing and motivating staff in an open innovation hub or accelerator.
- Significant experience in a consultancy type role, including contracting and maintaining relationships with clients (int or ext).
- Experience of matrix working with embedded staff as relevant to the specific projects.
Equality, diversity and inclusion:
We are committed to equality, diversity and inclusion. We want to represent the city we serve, which will help us become a more innovative and efficient organisation. Our goal is to make our recruitment as inclusive as possible. We are a disability confident employer who guarantee an interview to any disabled candidate who meets all of the essential criteria. We also use anonymising software that removes identifying information from CVs and cover letters to make the process fair.
Application Process:
- Please apply using your CV and a two page covering letter. Word format preferred and do not include any photographs or images
The closing date for applications is Wednesday 6th September @ 23:59
Benefits:
In return for your commitment and expertise, you will enjoy excellent benefits and scope to grow. Rewards vary according to the business area but mostly include:
- Final salary pension scheme
- Free travel for you on the TfL network
- A 75% discount on National Rail Season Ticket and interest free loan
- 30 days annual leave plus public and bank holidays
- Private healthcare discounted scheme (optional)
- Tax-efficient cycle-to-work programme
- Retail, health, leisure and travel offers
- Discounted Eurostar travel
We will make every effort to give you as much notice as possible, however some interviews/assessments could be organised at short notice.
We may close this advert early if we receive a high volume of suitable applications.
