Principal Consultant/Associate Director for Social Policy
Principal Consultant/Associate Director for Social Policy
VVA - Valdani Vicari & Associati
Brussels, Milan or Remote
Who we are:
VVA Brussels is a fast-growing policy and market consultancy providing top quality advice to the European institutions and private sector clients. We are a truly European company, part of a group based in Brussels and Milan with a team of professionals from many different academic and national backgrounds. What motivates us is our mission to progress the “European project” by helping our clients:
- anticipate change;
- design public policy responses;
- understand how the EU can improve the lives of Europeans, support European businesses and transform our economy and society; and
- communicate decisions and actions to key stakeholders.
Our Social Policy Team has a high-profile, expanding project portfolio for the European Commission and its agencies across a range of policy topics such as employment, labour mobility, equality, vocational education and migration. We currently run projects and framework contracts for DG EMPL, DG JUST, ELA, the EP LIBE and FEMM committees and others.
Our success is due to our excellent team of consultants and researchers, and we are now looking to strengthen our team with the appointment of a Principal Consultant or an Associate Director who will be focussing on qualitative and quantitative policy research and analysis.
Role description:
We are looking for an experienced Principal Consultant/Associate Director who will contribute to leading and developing our core business in the area of social policy, in line with our vision, mission and values. As Principal Consultant/Associate Director you will:
- Manage complex projects, develop methodologies and deliver evidence-based outputs on time and to the satisfaction of our public policy clients;
- Contribute to the development of our business activity by identifying opportunities and developing winning proposals;
- Lead proposals and research consortia, develop budgets and ensure project profitability;
- Provide intellectual & methodological leadership in projects and proposals;
- Contribute to the leadership and growth of the team by bringing fresh and innovative ideas;
- Encourage collaboration and mutual learning across team members;
- Contribute to the internal training programme and help to develop junior team members.
Who we are looking for:
All of the above implies that the candidate has at least the following desirable experience and skills:
- Experience in managing large and complex research projects from inception to completion;
- Ability to lead large multidisciplinary and multicultural teams involving partners, experts, and internal teams;
- Experience in writing and winning competitive bids for public-sector clients;
- Ability to foster talents of colleagues at VVA by leading by example and fostering opportunities to learn and grow;
- Ability to write and communicate with clients, partners, experts, and colleagues in excellent English;
- Sectoral expertise in social policy topics, such as employment, social rights, equality, citizenship, education, VET;
- Good knowledge of the EU Better Regulation Guidelines methodologies for evaluations and impact assessments;
- Problem solving attitude;
- Experience of a minimum 5 years in public policy consultancy and project management;
- A relevant master’s degree.
The following additional experiences and skills are not a must but will be considered an asset:
- Established network of partners and experts whom you will be able to activate from day one to win, manage and deliver diverse public policy projects;
- Proven track record in leading and growing a multidisciplinary team in a public policy consultancy or similar.
All our professionals are strongly oriented to problem solving, goal achievement and client satisfaction and show a strong basis of leadership. The ideal candidate has an entrepreneurial and proactive mindset and feels at ease in a dynamic company oriented to growth into innovative domains.
Examples of our team’s projects:
- Studies for DG EMPL and ELA under the Framework contract on services related to the coordination and provision of support to the EURES network including:
- Study supporting the ex-post EURES evaluation and the second biannual EURES report;
- Support to the EURES network 2021-2022;
- Support to the EURES network 2021-2023 on Targeted Mobility Schemes and Cross-Border Partnerships.
- Study on social services with particular focus on personal targeted social services for people in vulnerable situations, for DG EMPL;
- Study to support the preparation of a retrospective and prospective analytical document, in view of a legislative proposal on binding standards for equality bodies, for DG JUST;
- digital iNtegrAteD system for the social support of migraNts and refugEes (NADINE), under the Horizon 2020 programme for REA;
- Pilot project for Cultural and Creative Industries: Finance, Learning, Innovation and Patenting for Cultural and Creative Industries (FLIP for CCIs), for DG EAC;
- Precarious work from a gender and intersectionality perspective, and ways to combat it, for EP FEMM;
- Towards a strategy taking VET to a new level in Luxembourg, for DG REFORM;
- Support to improve the quality and effectiveness of the French Centres of Vocational Excellence (“Campus des métiers et des qualifications”), for DG REFORM;
- Study on “Cyber violence against women”, for EIGE.
What we offer:
- Competitive salary, pension scheme, annual company performance-related bonus scheme, private healthcare, meal vouchers;
- Diverse and high-profile projects on subjects from the top priority of the European Union’s political agenda in the area of social policy;
- A very dynamic, exciting and international work environment;
- Excellent opportunities for professional development with high levels of autonomy and room for growth;
- Prospects for training, mentorship, and career progression.
The position can be based in one of our offices in Brussels or Milan or be completely remote with occasional trips to Brussels. Only pre-selected participants will be contacted and invited for interviews, which depending on the location, will be held in person or via teleconference.
If you are interested in this position, please provide your CV and a 1-page cover letter outlining why you are interested in and suited for the job.
