Associate - Closing Date: 26th February 2024

UK Associate

LOCATION: London (Monday-Thursday in the office)

CONTRACT: Full-time

SALARY: £32,500-£42,500

START DATE: April-May 2024

ABOUT MORE IN COMMON 

More in Common is a research agency working across the US, UK, Germany, France and Poland to tackle polarisation and division. More in Common leads and supports initiatives to build more united, inclusive, and resilient societies. Our mission is to understand the forces driving us apart, help societies find common ground and bring people together to tackle shared challenges.

In the UK, our work is best described as being part consultancy and part think tank. We provide a full suite of research services including polling and focus group research; evidence reviews and secondary data analysis; audience mapping and audience strategy; strategic communications strategy and campaign development. More in Common are members of the British Polling Council.

Our work is informed by our ground-breaking segmentation of the British public. This unique values-based lens to our quantitative and qualitative research means we can understand not only what the public thinks on the big challenges facing British society today – but crucially why they think it.  Our insights help leaders in government, the media, business, and civil society to develop better strategies and communications – particularly in reaching disengaged communities far from the Westminster/London bubble – and to better navigate tricky and divisive issues.

Over the last year, More in Common has published agenda-setting thought leadership on a whole range of debates facing British society – from exploring the public’s starting points on climate action and tackling crime and anti-social behaviour; to understanding how the British public is navigating major debates from trans and gender identity to the conflict in Israel and Palestine; to highlighting the public’s expectations on mental health reform and what’s next for the levelling up agenda. Our work is regularly covered in the British press and media and we’ve developed a series of partnerships with broadcasters and newspapers to deliver top-quality research insights.

Through our consultancy, More in Common has also supported dozens of partners with insights and strategic communications support. We’ve helped national institutions such as the BBC, British Library and National Trust to better understand their audiences, we’ve helped partners in government and civil society with the set-up and delivery of the Homes for Ukraine scheme, and we’ve supported a range of partners to test their manifesto ideas from the National Farmers Union to Rethink Mental Illness among many others.

In 2024, More in Common has a range of exciting projects in the pipeline, including:

• Helping civil society organisations prepare campaigns, messaging and policy proposals ahead of the next General Election;
• Making diversity and inclusion interventions more evidence-based to resonate effectively with socially conservative groups;
• Better understanding the public’s expectations on climate transition over the coming years
• Helping major national institutions to better understand and communicate with their audiences
• Continuing our work on the Homes for Ukraine scheme, working to ensure similar support for other refugee groups and exploring the lessons for making community sponsorship work;
• Exploring new ways of bridging the divide between elite and public attitudes, through new approaches to measuring and tracking public opinion.

DIVERSITY + EQUITY + INCLUSION

We will have a better chance of uniting divided societies if our team reflects a broad range of social and cultural backgrounds, beliefs, political opinions, and life experiences. We particularly encourage applications from underrepresented and minority communities.

ABOUT THIS ROLE

More in Common is seeking a full-time Associate as we grow our team and advance our mission of building a more united and inclusive UK, where all people feel respected, better understood, and share a sense of belonging. More in Common UK is a small team with a start-up culture where everyone is expected to execute a range of responsibilities. The Associate will work closely with the UK Team across our core areas of research, communications, partnership, and client work. The role will report to our UK Senior Associate. 

The Associate will serve as a key member of the UK team, working on quantitative and qualitative research projects for our clients and partners and as part of our wider thought leadership, delivering high quality outputs and supporting More in Common’s communications and dissemination work.

Research

• Support and execute a range of quantitative and qualitative research projects for More in Common’s own thought leadership work and our client/partner work
• Manage external research vendors relationship including scheduling focus groups and project managing opinion polling research
• Analysis, interpretation and manipulation of quantitative data, and willingness to learn how to perform statistical/econometric analysis
• End-to-end project management for quantitative and qualitative public opinion research projects from design, execution (drafting surveys and discussion guides, and with time, moderating focus groups), analysis, report writing and presentation of insights (including data analysis)
• Drafting and co-authoring public-facing research reports for More in Common and reports and briefings for clients and partners

Partnership/Client Management

• Day-to-day support and project management for a range of our client and partner projects
• Identifying new partners, clients, and opportunities across various sectors from business to civil society to the public sector
• Drafting proposals and responding to tenders for those potential partners and clients and supporting on pitches.
• Delivering trainings and briefings for clients and partners drawing on insights from More in Common’s research
• Drafting grant reports and taking responsibility for day-to-day account management on client-facing projects
• Producing timely and high-quality outputs and deliverables as agreed with clients and partners

Events and Dissemination

• Organising in-person panel events and online webinars – including co-ordinating the planning and preparation of More in Common’s programme of Party Conference events.
• Drafting and developing data briefings and press releases for journalists, conducting data checks, and designing and publishing reports on our website
• Drafting op-eds, Twitter threads, blogs and newsletters using More in Common’s insights
• Designing and delivering webinars and short insights products to disseminate our latest insights and research to partners and the wider eco-system

JOINING MORE IN COMMON

With over 45 staff across five countries, each member of our team makes a vital contribution to our impact, and we put a strong emphasis on team selection and values. We look for people who:

• Are strategic, rigorous, restless, energetic and creative
• Are able to think ahead and get big stuff done
• Are committed to a process of ongoing learning
• Have direct experience with and understand people from different perspectives and backgrounds
• Are excited to do work that works across political divides and that promotes shared national identities
• Are interested in reaching left behind communities
• Are excited to work with heart as well as head
• Want to be part of finding practical solutions.

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

We look for great people before we look for specific qualifications and experience. However, the following will be an asset for this role:

• The ability to write well and at pace for a range of audiences
• An understanding of how to interpret quantitative and qualitative data and to tell a story from that data
• Experience of organising or co-ordinating high-profile events to disseminate research would be desirable.
• Curiosity for understanding and engaging people, and a desire to tell new stories that focus on building upon common ground in Britain today
• A track record of project management - from inception through to delivery and evaluation
• Experience of translating research and insight into products, briefings, and training programmes for a range of partners
• An understanding of the UK political system and a keen interest in current affairs and UK public policy
• A hunger for disseminating More in Common’s work, particularly through traditional and social media outlets
• Professional background in an opinion research public affairs, policy or strategy consultancy, or civil society would be desirable

COMPENSATION

• Competitive salary (between £32,500 and £42,500) and excellent benefits along with generous leave policy
• Personal learning and growth budget

HOW TO APPLY

The application deadline is 5pm, 26^th February 2024.

Applications should include a CV and a 500-word op-ed responding to the following brief: Write a 500-word op-ed about something that is happening in British society today that should be getting more attention from politicians and the media than it is currently getting.

Please apply via More in Common’s Personio website: https://more-in-common.jobs.personio.com/job/1415430?display=en

Indicative Timeline (please note these dates remain subject to change)

• Initial conversation with Senior Associate w/c 4 March
• Meetings with Team Members: From 11 March
• Written Exercise: 8-11 March
• Final panel interview with UK Director: 19 March

We expect to make an offer to the successful candidate by 22 March 2024.