Data and Insights Manager

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Apply by: 9:00 am on 30 September 2024 Start date: ASAP

Term: Permanent. Full-time (40 hours per week), working Monday - Friday.

Salary: Competitive (dependent on qualifications and experience)

Location: Office based model with flexibility.

At Sparx, we love the energy that comes from being together in the office. Collaboration and connection drive our success, so we encourage everyone to be here as much as possible. That said, life happens! If you need to do the school run, wait in for the plumber, or handle an unexpected errand, we get it! Our Responsible Flexibility approach means you can manage those moments without worry-because we trust you to get the job done.

Are you passionate about using data to make a real difference?

Do you want to lead ground breaking insights that impact millions of learners?

Your Opportunity

Imagine using your incredible data skills to help Sparx Learning on its mission to change the world by improving lives through education. This is your chance...

We are looking for a passionate, engaging and technically strong Data & Insights Manager to join us in our goal to make a difference to the lives of millions of learners.

Data is, and will be, the cornerstone of our success, and with over 2.3 million learners already benefiting from our portfolio of products across Maths, Reading and Science (and more to come), we are developing one of the leading educational datasets in the world. We are in the unique opportunity to leverage this to create ground-breaking insights and solutions and you can help us do that.

If you are driven to make a real difference, keen to join a team that is passionate about improving education, are ready for a challenge and eager to lead the charge in managing and utilising our incredible data, this is the role for you.

Join us and become part of something truly amazing and help us change the world - one data point at a time!

We are looking for an experienced Data & Insights Manager to lead our team of data experts. Specifically you are:

• Passionate about Data: Fuelled by your love of data - managing and using it to have tangible impact.

• Data Expert:Possessing a deep understanding of insights, data science and data engineering, with advanced skills in R and SQL, along with a proven ability and willingness to apply these skills hands-on everyday. Experience using Google Big Query, Dataform and Looker Studio would be beneficial as would a degree in a quantitative discipline such as Maths, Science, Statistics etc.

• Inspirational Manager: With a proven track record in developing, managing and mentoring high performing data teams

• Strong Collaborator: Experienced in building strong relationships with a wide range of stakeholders and excited to collaborate with teams across Sparx

• Excellent Communicator: Ability to clearly communicate and translate technical findings into practical recommendations and compelling visualisations for audiences of all backgrounds

• Purpose-driven: Guided by a passion for education (and ideally with experience in the education sector) and a commitment to making a difference

• Committed to Growth: Dedicated to continuous personal development and fostering growth within the team.

• Kind and Approachable: And, of course, your warmth and approachability make you a pleasure to work with!

We believe in recruiting exceptional people and empowering them to do incredible things. We are committed to having a genuinely diverse team with a range of lived and learnt experiences. You might have skills in some but not all of the areas above, but If you think you can make a real difference to Sparx and the schools that we work with, we'd love to hear from you.

What we'd love you to do

In this full-time position, you will play a pivotal role in ensuring our incredible data is fit for purpose and helping us leverage it to its full potential through ground-breaking insights and solutions. You will lead our team of Data Scientists (Insights) and Data Engineer to deliver powerful, timely insights to our schools and internal teams as well as maintaining the integrity of our data. Additionally, you will develop strong relationships with stakeholders across Sparx-ranging from Senior Leadership and Product to Engineering, Content, and School Support-to deeply understand their data and insights needs, fostering a data-driven mindset throughout the organisation.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the Sparx Data & Insights team: Develop, manage and mentor the talented team of two Senior Data Scientists (Insights) (more in the future) and a Data Engineer fostering a motivated, high-performing, supportive customer centric team culture and a high level of connectedness to each other and the wider Sparx teams.

• Deliver Impactful Insights: Translate data into amazing actionable insights (for both our internal teams and for our schools) that drive impact and help improve student outcomes.

• Develop and manage our Data: Work with the Data Engineer and Engineering team to ensure our data is optimised, fit for purpose and available for our teams and users, and look for new external data sets to complement our own.

• Strengthen our data culture:Foster a data-driven mindset across the organisation, and develop the ability for teams to self serve their data needs.

• Scale our impact: Develop scalable data solutions to support our rapid growth.

• Support future innovation: Empower internal teams to use data to identify new product developments and support new innovations, and also look for new opportunities to use our data to increase our impact

A bit about us

At Sparx, our mission is to inspire and empower young people to reach their fullest potential. We believe in fostering an environment where future generations can achieve their dreams. Proudly serving over 2 million children, 40,000 teachers and 2,300 schools worldwide, we're continuously working hard to expand our impact even further and make a positive difference. So, if you're ready to grow within an agile, exciting environment then you've come to the right place!

We're not just a company-we're a community of innovators, thinkers, and doers who are united by a shared mission: to revolutionise education. Our teams are as diverse as they are dynamic, bringing together a mix of talents and passions. Whether you're a cyclist, a DJ, a scholar, or an adventurer, you'll find a place where you can bring your whole self to work.

Based at Oxygen House within the vibrant city of Exeter, we focus on offering the best support to our people and having a good presence in the office is just one of the ways we do this. Our office is truly an exceptional space, not only for the amazing people and collaborative environment but it comes complete with a welcoming atmosphere and complimentary organic meals, making it a place we're sure you'll love to be...and did we mention the onsite gym and fitness centre!

Find out more about where we are based and our fantastic working environment here

Join us and become part of something truly amazing and help us change the world - one data point at a time!

Our benefits

We're about living life, not putting it on hold. Sparx Learning employees have the opportunity to enjoy a whole range of benefits, a few of which include:

25 days annual leave, rising each year with length of service, to a maximum of 30 days, plus the opportunity to buy an additional 5 days leave.

Comprehensive private medical and dental insurance, life assurance, virtual GP and an employee assistance programme.

Company pension.

Enhanced family leave and pay.

A generous individual personal development budget

Paid sabbatical with qualifying length of service.

Sustainability is something we are passionate about, so we have a range of environmentally friendly benefits including green travel incentives, an electric car lease scheme and cycle to work scheme.

When based in the Exeter office, employees can enjoy locally produced, organic, free cooked meals.

What is the interview process?

1st Stage: Virtual Screening Call - A chance for us to learn more about you and your experience, as well as for you to get to know more about us!

2nd Stage: Virtual interview with our Technology Director and a member of our People Team. This is your moment to shine-showcase your skills and personality.

3rd Stage: In-person interview at our offices. You'll meet our management team, tour our amazing workspace, and complete a task to demonstrate your skills in action.

Sparx does not hold a licence to sponsor visas. Therefore, we are unfortunately not able to process any applications that require sponsorship.

If you require an alternative recruitment method, or there is anything we can do to support you within the recruitment process, please do get in touch with us either by emailing us at recruitment@oxygenhouse.com or phoning us on 01392 440 400.