Venesky-Brown’s client, a public sector organisation in Cardiff, is currently looking to recruit a Lead User Researcher for an initial 6 month contract with option to extend on a rate of £331.17/day (Inside IR35). This role will be predominantly remote with some travel to offices in Cardiff. Responsibilities: - Supervise and develop other user researchers to assure and improve research practice - Coach, train and mentor others and give direction on which tools or methods to use - Responsible for delivery of a core training programme on specialist research processes across the wider directorate programme and services - Act as a recognised expert and advocate for the approaches, continuously reflecting and challenging the team. - Effectively get buy-in from the organisation. - Contribute to selection of the user research approaches for projects and initiatives and plans own user research activities. - Support the adoption of agreed approaches. - Lead on the planning and organisation of complex activities and implement new ways of working, proposing service changes or policy which impact the whole directorate. - Demonstrate experience in a wide range of user research methods and help teams to adopt them. - Understand what problem the team is trying to solve and align user research activities to inform decision making and action. - Plan user research for services with challenging user needs and complex user journeys. - Demonstrate experience in a wide range of user research methods and help teams to adopt them. - Align user research activities to help your team understand changing user behaviour. - Lead and be responsible for the implementation of a range of policies and operating procedures for own work area and proposes policy, or service changes which impacts the wider organisation. - Carry out other duties as required. Essential Skills: - Educated to Masters level or equivalent qualification / experience - Practical experience, working at this level, across the range of work procedures and practices. - Evidence of continuous professional development. - Proficiency and experience in a user researcher role at a similar level, planning and leading user research activities on complex services. - Proficient at aligning user research activities with wider plans to inform a service proposition. - Familiar with iterative methods and techniques to allocate and optimise the division of functions between the human, machine and organisational elements of IT systems and the functions themselves in terms of ergonomic impact. - Familiar with systematic and iterative design of the physical and cognitive interfaces to create an effective user experience in a software system, product or service with attention paid to variety of locations and access devices employed by users. - Familiar with methods and techniques for delivering effective and accessible presentations, either face-to-face or online within various contexts and to a variety of audiences. - Information Acquisition skills to identify gaps in the available information required to understand a problem or situation and devising a means of resolving them. - Attention to Detail skills to apply specific quality standards to all tasks undertaken to ensure that deliverables are accurate and complete. - Interpersonal skills to establish relationships, contributing to an open culture and maintaining contacts with people from a variety of backgrounds and disciplines. - Teamwork skills in working collaboratively with others to achieve a common goal. - Communication skills as an effective, approachable and sensitive communicator in different communities and cultures with the ability to adapt style and approach to meet the needs of different audiences. - Agility skills to adapt style and approach to meet the needs of different audiences. Desirable Skills: - FEDIP Senior Practitioner, or equivalent recognised Advanced Professional qualification. - Theoretical and specialist knowledge, gained with the following certifications (or equivalent): CXA - Certified User Experience Analyst - Experience of supervision and development of other user researchers to assure and improve research practice. If you would like to hear more about this opportunity please get in touch.