Consulting Director - Public Policy

If you are experienced in leading research and analysis in the area of justice and home affairs and looking for a new opportunity that brings career growth, we might have the ideal role for you.

ICF has been supporting the development of European Union (EU) policies on security, migration, civil protection, and justice for almost twenty years. Using the latest research and evaluation, we support the need of the European Commission to inform decisions on policies and programmes.

We also support programmes that exchange learning about what works and highlight good and innovative practices with the European Commission and its (Executive) Agencies. Growth in our business means we are looking for an experienced policy research professional to lead our work in this area. This will be a senior appointment in this important area of EU policy, and the successful candidate will help us grow our research and evaluation capability. We expect to appoint at Consulting Director level, subject to expertise.

The role is positioned in an ICF team dedicated to provision of policy-relevant research, analytical and evaluation services to the EU institutions.   The core responsibilities of the role will be to:

• Support, through leadership, ICF’s policy research and evaluation services for the European Commission and its agencies. Specific responsibilities will include leading the evaluation and consultancy framework contracts that ICF has with DG HOME, JUST, ECHO as well as directing projects secured under these frameworks.

• Direct and support the capture and delivery of research, analytical and evaluation proposals, for DGs of the European Commission (especially DG HOME and DG JUST) as well as for EU decentralised agencies.

• Build our in-house team and wider network of public policy research specialists.

• Be an active member of the senior management team of this area of our business, working with colleagues to ensure its effective management and achievement of agreed business goals

• Provide line management support to team members and contribute to the efforts to enhance the capability of the team and ICF.

The successful candidate is likely to have:

• A strong academic background; ideally at PhD level in social sciences, public policy,  international relations or a related discipline.

• At least 15 years of professional experience in EU public policy within the European context; experience of working in a consultancy capacity would be an advantage.

• Experience of conducting high quality EU level research and evaluation assignments, including the development and implementation of research within areas like security, migration, civil protection, humanitarian aid or justice.

• Strong analytical skills and the ability to develop sound conclusions and policy-relevant recommendations.

• Knowledge of the EU public policy and research community, including networks of experts.

• Experience in managing teams, coaching or mentoring colleagues and providing regular feedback to support their development.

• Demonstrable experience in winning and successfully delivering research, impact assessment and evaluation projects and contracts for the European Commission.

• Excellent communication skills, including experience with presenting key concepts to clients; both internal and external.

• Excellent verbal, written, analytical and presentation skills in English, additional European languages an advantage.

The successful candidate will be able to demonstrate the following personal qualities:

• Sound research and business ethics, including the protection of proprietary and confidential information. Strong commitment to and interest in the policy fields referred to above.

• Ability to lead a team to success, inspiring, motivating and supporting more junior colleagues to achieve their potential.

• Strong entrepreneurial talent to identify and realize new opportunities as well as new innovations / approaches that will secure success in proposals.

• Ability to work within multi-cultural, multi-disciplinary teams spread across several countries.

• Commercial acumen and an understanding of the policy consulting business model.

• Ability to work with all levels of internal staff, as well as clients and sub-contractors.

• Excellent communication skills, including experience with presenting key concepts to clients; both internal and external. Excellent verbal, written, analytical and presentation skills in English, additional European languages an advantage.

• Commitment to the employee progression and development.

The role could be based either in the UK or Belgium. ICF has UK offices in London, Leeds, Birmingham and Plymouth and an office in Brussels.  ICF has a hybrid working model that provides flexibility in working arrangements. The role is expected to entail some travel within Europe.

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Working at ICF

Working at ICF means applying a passion for meaningful work with intellectual rigor to help solve the leading issues of our day. Smart, compassionate, innovative, committed, ICF employees tackle unprecedented challenges to benefit people, businesses, and governments around the globe. We believe in collaboration, mutual respect, open communication, and opportunity for growth. We can only solve the world's toughest challenges by building an inclusive workplace that allows everyone to thrive. We are committed to creating a culture where we embrace our differences in ideas and identities. Together, our employees are empowered to share their expertise and collaborate with others to achieve personal and professional goals. Learn more about what we dohttps://www.icf.com/ and our commitment to inclusionhttps://www.icf.com/company/about/diversity-inclusion.

Brussels, Belgium (BE75)