Network Resilience Consultant (CEO Secondment Opportunity)

Citizens Advice; Birmingham; Hybrid; GBP 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Citizens Advice seeks a Network Resilience Consultant (CEO Secondment) for a 12-month secondment starting September 2026. The role supports Local Citizens Advice offices navigating major change, building resilience and collaboration across the network.

Ideal candidates are Chief Executives with credibility and change leadership skills, able to work flexibly across offices, including remote arrangements, to deliver on a national programme and strategy.

Qualifications

• Experience as Chief Officer or CEO within Local Citizens Advice
• Credibility, empathy and strategic change leadership skills
• Ability to navigate Local Government Reorganisation and Devolution contexts
• Comfort with leading in a voluntary sector environment and complex governance structures
• Strong relationship-building across senior volunteers and charity boards

Responsibilities

• Support CEOs, Chairs and Trustee Boards to navigate significant change in the external political and funding landscape
• Build trusted relationships that encourage collaboration across organisations
• Identify risks and support planning to influence stakeholders and position themselves for new opportunities
• Facilitate strategy development, decision making and organisational change to protect and develop client services across wider geographic areas
• Explore opportunities for innovation, cost effectiveness and missions-led service change
• Develop practical resources, tools and learning that strengthen the network
• Work as part of a small, highly skilled team of Network Resilience Consultants delivering a national programme through online and face-to-face support

Job description

This opportunity is ONLY open to people who are currently a Chief Officer at a local Citizens Advice.

Join the Stronger Together Programme

Network Resilience Consultant (CEO Secondment Opportunity)

12-month secondments from September 2026. Ideally, we are looking for a minimum 0.5 fte commitment, but are open to exploring other options.

Are you a Chief Executive with the credibility, empathy and strategic change leadership skills to help fellow Local Citizens Advice offices navigate one of the biggest periods of change the network has faced?

We're looking for experienced Network CEOs to join the Network Resilience Team and play a pivotal role in delivering the Stronger Together programme.

Over the next three years, Stronger Together will support around 150 Local Citizens Advice offices affected by Local Government Reorganisation and Devolution. As a Network Resilience Consultant, you'll work alongside Chief Officers, Chairs and Trustee Boards to help them collectively build resilience, strengthen collaboration, mitigate risk, influence commissioners and seize new opportunities in a changing funding landscape.

About the role

Working across groups of Local Citizens Advice offices within Local Government Reorganisation and Devolution areas, you will:

• Support CEOs, Chairs and Trustee Boards to navigate significant change in the external political and funding landscape
• Build trusted relationships that encourage collaboration across organisations.
• Identify risks and support planning to influence stakeholders and position themselves for new opportunities
• Facilitate strategy development, decision making and organisational change to protect and develop client services across wider geographic areas
• Explore opportunities for innovation, cost effectiveness and missions-led service change.
• Develop practical resources, tools and learning that strengthen the network.
• Work as part of a small, highly skilled team of Network Resilience Consultants delivering a national programme through online and face-to-face support.

The aim of the programme isn't simply to respond to change. It's to help local Citizens Advice emerge stronger, more influential and better equipped to serve communities in the years ahead so collectively and service wide, we deliver on our missions.

We're looking for someone who can:

• Thrive in ambiguity and adapt their approach as local needs evolve.
• Build trust quickly with experienced Chief Officers, Chairs and Trustees.
• Influence and bring organisations together without formal authority.
• Take a collaborative, consultative approach that empowers others rather than directing solutions.
• Manage multiple priorities while maintaining strong programme and project discipline.
• Coach leaders to build long-term capability and confidence.
• Understand charity governance and have experience of leading structure change processes.
• Appreciate the unique dynamics of volunteer organisations.
• Remain resilient, calm and supportive while working through complex and emotionally demanding change.

What we're offering

• 12-month secondment starting from September 2026.
• Flexible working from 0.5 FTE, with your existing salary and travel costs covered.
• An opportunity to make a lasting impact across the Citizens Advice network during a period of transformational change.
• The chance to work alongside an experienced Network Resilience Team on a high-profile strategic programme,
• Gain valuable, transferable knowledge and skills highly relevant to the new environment the network is working within.

The continuation of this role beyond August 2027 will be determined through the 2027/28 business planning cycle.

We welcome applications from experienced network leaders who are passionate about collaboration, organisational resilience and strengthening Local Citizens Advice for the future. Please ensure you have agreement from your Chair before applying for this role.

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) is of strategic importance within the organisation and recognised as integral to all we do as a service.

Central to pursuing our EDI mission is building diverse and inclusive teams in which everyone has a sense of belonging. We believe inclusion is a social justice issue - a principle that underpins our all EDI work. To that end, we particularly welcome applications from people we would like to see better represented in our organisation and sector - people of colour, LGBTQ+ people and disabled people. We follow the social model of disability. We will offer an interview to disabled candidates who indicate they wish their application to be considered under our Disability Confident Interview Commitment where they meet our selection criteria in their application. Some of our roles attract a high volume of applications and in some circumstances where it is not practicable or appropriate, we may limit the number of interviews offered to disabled and non-disabled candidates. We will provide reasonable adjustments as needed.

We're a flexible employer, so this role may suit anyone who'd prefer a flexible arrangement to help their work/life balance, many of our colleagues spend most of their time working remotely. Whilst we prefer a blended approach between a local office, if one is near you, and home we're open to being flexible on location, occasionally a role may require you to be based in a certain location if that's the case it will be detailed in the advert or job description. This can be discussed in more detail during your interview.

The National Citizens Advice operates from offices in England and Wales, with 4 regional offices based in Cardiff, London, Birmingham and Leeds, therefore all successful applicants must be based within England or Wales.

Please be aware that Citizens Advice is not a sponsoring organisation. Therefore the successful applicant must already possess the right to work in the UK or be able to secure the right to work in the UK independently.

We have been awarded the top charity in Third sectors' employer index, where it's recognised that Citizens Advice is an organization that not only prioritises the people we serve but also values the wellbeing of its employees.

Citizens Advice seeks to redeploy internal staff who are at risk or under notice of redundancy and will prioritise them in the recruitment process where necessary. If you have been confirmed as at risk or under notice of redundancy please ensure you indicate this in the at-risk box in your application.

This vacancy closes at 23.59 on the closing date.

For more information about the organisation, our values and benefits please see the following link - Information, values and benefits