Skip to main contentCMA1944 Economics Director
Competition & Markets Authority
Apply before 11:55 pm on Monday 2nd October 2023
Details
Reference number
Salary
Job grade
Contract type
Type of role
Economist
Policy
Project Delivery
Senior leadership
Strategy
Working pattern
Number of jobs available
Contents
Location
About the job
Job summary
Are you an economist, with significant experience of competition work?
Are you capable of leading and motivating a team of economics professionals?
If so, an exciting opportunity for an Economics Director exists within the Competition & Markets Authority's (CMA) Office of the Chief Economic Adviser (OCEA).
If you want to work in a fast-paced and challenging environment undertaking important work in the public interest, then this could be the ideal role for you.
About the CMA
We help people, businesses, and the UK economy by promoting competitive markets and tackling unfair behaviour. Our work is wide ranging, ambitious and often new and challenging.
Job description
What you will do
As a senior member of the Chief Economic Adviser’s leadership team, you will provide key strategic direction, advice and quality assurance that ensures the delivery of high-quality economic analysis across the CMA’s case work.
You will bring exceptional leadership and vision to the Economics Team, fostering a culture of economics that facilitates teamwork, information sharing, ideas and analytical support amongst the team. Additionally, you will share responsibility for managing and developing our economists, improving staff capability through recruitment, coaching, mentoring and management.
This is a varied and rewarding role, which offers the chance to work across the full range of projects the CMA undertakes, including investigations into mergers and markets, competition and consumer enforcement cases, regulatory appeals, digital markets unit work, and monitoring of the functioning of the Internal Market and subsidy advice.
What you will need
You will need a post-graduate degree or doctorate in economics, as well as excellent knowledge and experience of competition economics. An understanding of current competition, consumer and regulatory issues is also essential.
You will exhibit a strong track record of providing high quality economic advice across relevant cases, studies and enquiries, as well as senior level experience of leading and delivering complex projects involving technical economic analysis.
You will possess strong communication, leadership and team-working skills, with a demonstrable ability to manage and develop high-calibre economists and work effectively with other professional groups.
CMA prides itself on being a great place to work and strives to ensure that staff have the opportunity to grow and expand their skills portfolio. As well as being a hugely rewarding, diverse and stimulating place to work, you will have an opportunity to work for the public good and to stretch and develop yourself while doing so.
To find out more about this opportunity and about working for the CMA, please see below and click on the APPLY button.
Further details on the CMA can be found on the CMA’s YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter pages.
Application closing date: 11.55pm on Monday 2nd October 2023.
Person specification
Key responsibilities will include the following:
- To be accountable for the quality of economics work on cases across the range of the CMA’s work through leading, challenging and reviewing the work of the case teams and to ensure the effective and robust delivery of economic analysis on CMA cases.
- To provide strategic direction, advice and quality assurance to economists on inquiries, including participating directly in more complex inquiries.
- Alongside other Economics Directors, to support the Chief Economic Adviser in providing professional leadership for economics work at the CMA and ensuring that the economic work is of consistently high quality, represents state-of-the-art thinking and is appropriately communicated to specialist and other
- To be a key member of the OCEA’s Leadership Team with shared responsibility for managing and developing economists, driving forward talent management, and improving staff capability through recruitment, coaching, mentoring and staff and work management.
- To ensure that a “culture of economics” is developed and maintained, in which economists share information on cases, provide analytical support to each other, cascade development ideas and feel part of a professional grouping in the CMA.
- To have direct line management responsibility for a number of Grade 6 Assistant Economic Directors, setting clear expectations of them to help in leading and managing economists in case teams.
- To work with the OCEA’s Leadership team to ensure the effective allocation of economic work across economists to ensure effective delivery but also to provide stretch opportunities for economists.
- To represent the CMA effectively in front of external parties by communicating the CMA’s views and work clearly and compellingly, and building relationships of influence with stakeholders.
Behaviours
We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
- Leadership
- Seeing the Big Picture
- Delivering at Pace
- Making Effective Decisions
- Communicating and Influencing
Technical skills
We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:
- Competition and applied Economics
Benefits
As well as the interesting and varied work you’ll do to contribute to effective competition in the UK, and to ensure consumers get a good deal when buying goods and services, you’ll also benefit from:
- An exceptionally generous pension scheme with a significant employer contribution and range of options, including a tax-free lump sum at the point of retirement and injury, ill-health and life assurance benefits
- 25 days leave (increasing to 30 days over five years), plus 8 public holidays and an additional day off for the King’s birthday. In addition, you’ll be able to access a wide range of other types of leave as and when you need it, including generous maternity, paternity, shared parental leave and adoption options, as well as paid special leave for volunteering
- Season ticket loans, cycle to work scheme, flu vaccinations and eye tests
- Access to the Civil Service Sports & Leisure, giving discounted gym membership, high street discounts, free access to UK wide attractions and a free Tastecard
- A range of wellbeing benefits, including an employee assistance programme, flexible working options and family friendly policies, regular networking events and professional learning opportunities at work.
Any move to the CMA from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax-Free Childcare. Determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/ .
If you’re already a civil servant being appointed on level transfer, you’ll retain your existing terms, including annual leave. Where you’re being promoted, however, you’ll receive the greater of a 10% pay increase or the new grade minimum. Applicants new to the civil service may be considered for appointment at a salary higher than the starting point indicated above (depending on skills, knowledge, experience and qualifications).
The CMA, like many other organisations, have moved to a hybrid working model with a mix of office and home working. We believe this supports us to deliver our best work while allowing the flexibility to maintain balanced and healthy lives. Our staff work at least 40% of their time from their office location.
We are fully committed to being an inclusive employer and ensuring equal opportunities. We want a diverse workforce that reflects the consumers we serve. We welcome applications from under-represented groups, including ethnically diverse people, people with a disability, people with diverse gender identities and from people of different ages.
The CMA is an accredited Disability Confident Employer. Disabled applicants meeting the minimum criteria for the job will be given the opportunity to demonstrate their abilities at an interview.
Things you need to know
Selection process details
As part of the application process you will be asked to complete a CV, personal statement and an online application form. Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.
The selection process will comprise of the sift (CV & application review) an assessment and an interview. Arrangements for the interview will be enclosed in the invitation sent when you schedule your interview slot. Interviews will be conducted either in person at a CMA office or virtually by Microsoft Teams.
An initial sift based on lead criteria 1, 2 and 3 may be held if a large number of applications are received. If your application then progresses to a full sift, all elements of the essential criteria listed under Person Specification of the role profile will then be considered.
Please note that it is essential that your personal statement is aligned to provide evidence that you have the knowledge and recent practical experience for each of the following selection criteria in your application:
1) Post-graduate degree in economics (Lead Criteria);
2) A proven strong track record of providing high quality economic advice across several relevant cases, studies and enquiries simultaneously (Lead Criteria);
3) Evidence of an excellent knowledge and experience of competition economics and understanding of current competition, consumer and regulatory issues (Lead Criteria);
4) Senior level experience of leading and delivering complex projects involving technical economic analysis, within defined resources and tight timescales;
5) Experience of effective leadership and strong team working skills with demonstrable ability to manage and develop high-calibre economists and work effectively with other professional groups;
6) Excellent communication skills, with the ability to communicate and explain complex issues with clarity, simplicity and precision to both specialist and non-specialist audiences both orally and in writing;
7) Evidence of excellent interpersonal and representation skills and experience of negotiating and exerting influence with senior decision makers.
8) A commitment to creating an environment that celebrates diversity and inclusion and promotes a culture of respect towards colleagues at all levels.
The sifting dates are Tuesday 3rd October to Friday 13th October 2023.
Successful candidates at the shortlisting stage will be asked to participate in an Individual Leadership Assessment (ILA). Further details can be found in the Candidate Information Pack, page 6.
The ILA will take place Monday 16th October – Friday 27th October. You will be contacted to arrange a suitable time to complete the assessment.
Interviews will be held Tuesday 31st October – Friday 10th November (possibly into the week beginning 13th Nov if needed), via MS Teams or in person at a CMA office, to be discussed with you at interview invite stage. You will be sent an email with full details of your arrangements for interview.
Those invited to interview will be asked to prepare a presentation based on a topic or case study provided in advance of the interview.
The first part of the interview process will be the presentation. You will then conduct a Panel interview. The panel interview will be approximately 1 hour in length where you will be asked questions based on the Behaviours, Experience and Technical skills outlined in the role profile.
If you have any inquiries relating to your application, you can email recruitment@cma.gov.uk.
Reasonable adjustments:
In order for a person with disabilities not to be put at a disadvantage compared to a non-disabled person, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.
If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should complete the “Assistance required” section in the “Additional requirements” page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need during the recruitment process.
For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if you are deaf, a Language Service Professional.
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.
Security
Nationality requirements
Working for the Civil Service
We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).
Apply and further information
Contact point for applicants
Job contact :
- Name : CMA Recruitment Team
- Email : recruitment@cma.gov.uk
- Telephone : 0208 738 6808
Recruitment team
- Email : recruitment@cma.gov.uk
Further information
