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Permanent Contract | 37 hours per week | £45,395 to £49,379 per annum (Grade L) | Norwich

We’re looking for an Innovation Manager to join Norfolk County Council (NCC) to manage innovation projects on behalf of the council. It’s a key role within our innovation team, where you will support our innovation framework and help develop our innovation incubator. We, in common with other councils, face complex challenges. We want to look at how we bring fresh thinking and approaches to find new solutions, ensuring that we deliver benefits for the council, those who use our services, and Norfolk residents.

At NCC we are fiercely ambitious for the people of Norfolk and strive to be one of the highest performing counties in the country. Our corporate strategy has 3 guiding principles:

• No one left behind: we want to improve social mobility through inclusive growth so that all people can prosper, no matter who they are or where they live
• Prevention over cure: we want to see a focus on prevention and early help as fundamental in tackling those issues that create adversity in people’s lives
• A local approach: we do not believe that one size fits all and will use our understanding of people and place to target services where they are most needed
  

We believe that, building on our county’s identity, our size, scale and influence, we can play a significant and strategic role in delivering growth, opportunities and good quality of life across Norfolk, while maintaining and cherishing our environment, countryside and heritage.

There is a growing demand across the Council for specialist skills that can support innovation, business change and improvement. This key role sits within the council’s Strategy, Design and Delivery Directorate, which is responsible for our strategy, performance reporting and working collaboratively with colleagues to support the design and delivery of people-centred public services. It’s a team that has a broad remit and involvement across the organisation, and one that have a big impact on ensuring positive outcomes for the people of Norfolk.

We are looking for an enthusiastic self-starter who will help drive Norfolk County Council’s innovation agenda to be upstream of emerging thinking, technology and research. You will have demonstrable experience of leading innovation projects, user centred design and scaling innovations up and out. Based on evidence, you will also have the ability to know when to stop or change innovations. You will be empathetic, inquisitive and use highly effective expertise to build capability and confidence in innovation approaches, including how to test and learn. You will be a strong advocate of collaborative working and evidence-based decision making.

We’re looking for someone who can build effective relationships quickly and think creatively to bring fresh thinking and influence decisions. You’ll need first class communication and relationship building skills, a positive and proactive approach, and a real desire to drive collaborative and evidence-based change. You will have a structured yet flexible approach, keeping the end goals in mind.

We know we’re asking for a lot, but in return we think we have a lot to offer. There’s the role itself, where you will play a key role in developing and implementing a new approach to challenges that will have positive benefits for the county of Norfolk and could lead to new good practice. Then there’s the working environment here, where we put work life balance at the forefront and offer flexible, hybrid working arrangements, all underpinned by first class technology. We’re open to people working from home for a significant portion of the time, but if you’re already in (or would consider relocating to) Norfolk, we think our unique blend of beaches, broads, countryside, culture and cuisine is hard to beat!

If you’re still reading, and you think you have what it takes, then we would love to hear from you.

We want our people to be inspired and motivated to work well together, make the most of our workspaces, enjoy a healthy work-life balance, and deliver excellent services to Norfolk and its people. Flexibility is built into the way we work, with hybrid working a key feature for many roles. Our technology platform and equipment are first class, enabling you to connect and collaborate remotely. We ask that you have in place good Broadband connectivity.

Already a Norfolk County Council employee? See and apply for all internal and external vacancies via myOracle using your @norfolk.gov.uk or @nccal.ac.uk email address.

Before you apply please see the full job description and person specification in the below link – this will help you to shape your application to demonstrate how you meet the criteria for the role.

Job description and person specification

You can also find out about the rewards and benefits we offer as well as our other terms and conditions.

These are some benefits you can enjoy by working for Norfolk County Council:

• Competitive salary
• Generous holiday entitlement with the ability to buy and sell leave
• Health and Wellbeing services including fast-track physiotherapy and a free counselling service
• Flexible working opportunities including flexi-time, part time, remote and hybrid working – dependent on your job role and business need.
• Financial benefits such as:
  • ‘ Norfolk Rewards’ our employee discounts programme which helps you save money on almost anything, from everyday groceries and clothes, to holidays, new technology, gym membership, trips to the cinema and days out.
  • A Blue Light card for Fire Service and Social Care Workers
  • Relocation expenses paid upfront (where applicable)
  • An advance of your expenses if you travel for work
  • Local Government Pension Scheme with generous employer contribution, life assurance, death in service payments and dependants’ pensions .
  • A payment if you refer someone you know to a hard to fill job.
  • Tax efficient ways of getting extra pension, new bikes and electric cars.
    

Closing date: 21 June 2023