Senior Occupational Psychologist

Government Recruitment Service; City Of London; On-site; GBP 45,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

A government agency in the UK is seeking a Senior Occupational Psychologist to lead the design, delivery, and evaluation of assessments for the Fast Stream graduate programme. You will provide evidence-based psychological insights to enhance public service quality while managing multiple projects. Ideal candidates should have a Doctorate in Occupational Psychology and experience in assessment design and project management.

Qualifications

• Significant experience in occupational psychology and assessment design.
• Capability in managing client relationships and multi-project scenarios.
• Knowledge of ethical standards in psychological assessments.

Responsibilities

• Lead the design and evaluation of Fast Stream assessments.
• Provide evidence-based advice to clients.
• Manage projects to meet client needs and timelines.

Skills

Psychological assessment techniques

Project management

Statistical analysis

Consultancy

Education

Doctorate in Occupational Psychology

Tools

Statistical software

Job description

Overview

The Fast Stream and Emerging Talent (FSET) team is part of GPG, where this role is positioned. FSET activities include:

• Delivering the Fast Stream, the government’s flagship graduate leadership programme, for approximately 2,000 Fast Streamers. This includes a high quality and end-to-end training programme and assessment framework.
• Delivering other emerging talent programmes including Apprenticeships and Beyond Boundaries.

This role will be responsible, in particular, for the design, delivery and evaluation of the Fast Stream assessments, which assessed over 60,000 applicants last year. The Civil Service Fast Stream is a highly prestigious graduate programme designed to develop the next generation of leaders in the UK civil service. It aims to attract and nurture talented individuals with diverse backgrounds, equipping them with the skills and experience needed to tackle complex policy and operational challenges.

As the Senior Occupational Psychologist, you will be responsible for ensuring that the assessments are selecting individuals that can drive change and enhance the quality of public services, in a fair and inclusive way.

You can find more information about the Fast Stream on our GOV.UK page:

https://www.civil-service-careers.gov.uk/fast-stream/

This post is part of the wider GOPP, the largest Occupational Psychology community in the UK. With over 250 members across major government departments, agencies and arms-length bodies, the GOPP offers an unparalleled environment for professional growth. Your career in the GOPP will develop both your technical and consultancy capabilities, providing ample opportunities to connect with fellow professionals. We encourage you to sign up to the profession upon joining the Civil Service.

As the Senior Occupational Psychologist for Fast Stream, you will be responsible for leading on the design, delivery and evaluation of the sift and assessment centre exercises. You will collaborate closely with other teams in FSET to ensure a joined up and seamless service for candidates.

The main focus of the role for the next 12-18 months is to innovate and refresh the sift methods ensuring they meet customer needs and reflect leading assessment techniques for the 60,000+ candidates that complete them. You will also lead on a review and changes to the Fast Stream Assessment Centre (FSAC). You will also support the implementation of an evaluation strategy to measure the effectiveness of recruitment and on-scheme assessments.

Key Responsibilities:

• Provide up-to-date impartial, relevant and evidence-based advice to clients on the psychological and behavioural implications of their plans/practices.
• Managing multiple projects at all stages of the consultancy cycle.
• Conduct problem analysis and determine all the client requirements and issues to be addressed. Liaise directly with clients, keeping them informed in a timely manner.
• Contribute to the design, development and evaluation of recruitment, learning and development and on-scheme assessments.
• Liaise closely with the wider Fast Stream and Early Talent team, working as part of a multi-disciplinary team to meet client needs and deliver projects to required timescales.
• Apply professional judgement and expertise in selecting robust, cost-effective and relevant psychological tools and techniques to meet client needs
• Providing professional occupational psychology advice and guidance to clients and senior leaders to ensure adherence to industry best practice and the highest ethical standards.
• Provide expert advice, and support for candidates requesting reasonable adjustments during the recruitment process.
• Support the design and delivery of comprehensive training packages to train assessors, interviewers and role players.
• Representing the Occupational Psychology profession at working groups, committees and other forums across government to inform policy and operations.
• Researching new and emerging assessment methods/processes; setting up and conducting detailed studies to explore their impact and efficacy.
• Carry out complex statistical analysis and interrogation of data to quality assure assessment outcomes to ensure they are consistent, reliable, valid, free from adverse impact and legally defensible.
• Line management of trainee occupational psychologists.