Senior Researcher (Economics and Impact)

Senior Researcher (Economics and Impact)

Note for applicants: We're hiring two roles at this level with different focus areas. Read both descriptions carefully, then apply for the role that fits your skills and experience best.

At BOP we’re committed to building an inclusive workplace. If you have a disability or require any reasonable adjustments during the application or interview process, please let us know. We’re happy to accommodate your needs to help ensure a fair and accessible experience for every applicant. We actively encourage applications from people who can bring diverse perspectives to our work, especially those whose lived experiences are underrepresented in our sector.

Details

Salary (commensurate with experience): £30,750 - £38,950 for Senior Researchers.

There is structured scope for progression for each role.

Contract type: Full time, Permanent

Location:  Manchester or London (Manchester preferred). Minimum two days per week in the office following probation, three days during probation

Travel: Regular UK and international travel

Reporting to: Chief Economist 

Annual leave: 25 days holiday (including 5 days during the Christmas closure period) plus bank holidays

Pension: 5% matched.

Summary of required skills: We're looking for someone with strong quantitative and economic analysis skills who is comfortable with impact studies, Green Book business cases and evaluations, and confident using Excel for modelling. They'll need sharp critical reasoning and the ability to write clearly, turning complex analysis into crisp, well-structured reports for clients.

The role of a senior researcher at BOP

A senior researcher at BOP is responsible for conducting research and analysis and communicating it clearly in reports and slide decks. Every researcher works within multiple project teams and so has to coordinate and plan their own workload. 

Illustrative day in the life of a senior researcher at BOP

• Conduct economic impact analysis on a major venue, festival or sector
• Provide economic modelling as part of an evaluation of a creative sector intervention
• Consult with stakeholders to understand the latest trends in the theatre sector
• Draft a set of slides based on a survey of creative businesses, to show the key factors driving their business growth.
• Talking a client through some early findings to help develop and refine our analysis.

As a senior researcher you will be expected to...

Undertake a range of research and consultancy tasks across our portfolio of economics, research and evaluation work:

• Setting up and running economic impact models
• Providing punchy, insightful, and clear analysis, including the use of specialist software if relevant
• Setting up surveys and field work (e.g. building online surveys and arranging programmes of interviews)
• Undertaking telephone and in-person interviews and focus groups and analysis.
• Report and presentation writing, including helping to shape a clear and coherent narrative

Project manage smaller studies and parts of other studies, working closely with Project Directors, and continuing our reputation for high quality while maintaining profitable projects. 

Client management, including ensuring our clients are engaged in the consultancy process. 

Contribute to the tendering process (i.e. to bid writing and pitch preparations).

You will also be expected to undertake any reasonable duties as required by the Directors, for instance but not exclusively: project administration, contribute or have responsibilities in communications and marketing activities, or wider operational activities (e.g. knowledge management, cross-company projects etc.).

This role is primarily Monday to Friday during normal UK office hours. But candidates for this role should note that due to the needs of our clients, including those based in different time zones and regions where the working week differs, a flexible approach to working hours is required. This may occasionally involve working outside standard office hours. We operate a flexi-working policy, which allows flexibility in how and when hours are worked.

The role may require some travel, as projects require.

What we are looking for

Key requirements

• 3+ years’ work experience – either in a consultancy business, research organisation, or a BOP client area.
• High level quantitative research and analysis skills, including economic analysis. You must be able to use Excel for analysis and modelling. You should have exceptional critical reasoning skills.
• Experience in impact studies, economic analysis, HM Treasury Green Book business cases, evaluations, market or audience research.
• Strong report writing skills. You must be able to write crisp business English, prepare well-formatted reports, and quickly cut to the chase to present sharp analysis to our clients.

Desirable requirements

Skills and experience:

• A relevant (post-)graduate level qualification, with an economics or related component
• Experience with data analysis software

Knowledge and expertise:

• Subject areas:
• Economic and social analysis and modelling (impact assessment, Green Book business cases etc.)
• Research methods, including evaluation
• Market research
• Existing datasets related to our work e.g. government datasets.
• Languages: languages other than English are valuable but not essential, e.g. Arabic, Mandarin or Spanish

Personal attributes:

• Passionate about your own personal growth.
• Detail focused with a belief in rigour and excellence.
• Client focused – engaged and responsive.
• Committed to progress and positive change in the sector.
• Well prepared, organised and efficient.
• Proactive and self-organising.

About BOP

BOP Consulting is a global research and consulting practice for culture and the creative economy. 

Our economics, research and evaluation practice is a market-leader and for 25 years has brought robust, rigorous analysis and research which has helped measure, understand, and evidence the impact of the sector. Our flagship reports include work for UNESCO, Edinburgh Festivals, DCMS, and many major cultural institutions. 

We are open to applicants in both our Manchester and London offices, but are primarily seeking candidates for our Manchester office, which was established in March 2026. This is a great opportunity to help BOP develop its presence in the city, supporting the Office Heads to deliver work across the UK and overseas from the Manchester base.

We welcome applicants from all backgrounds. We want to make sure our workforce is diverse and representative of the communities we work with, and that our opportunities are open to all.

Applying for the role 

If you have any questions or to organise a discussion with one of our team about the role and working at BOP, please email kristina@bop.co.uk.  

To apply, please submit your survey response and short CV by 23:59 on Friday 7th August 2026.

Using AI in your response

AI tools can be helpful for reviewing clarity, tone and accuracy of written work. However, our clients choose to work with us for the deep sectoral and research insight and expertise held by our team. They do not want generic outputs written by LLMs. We take a similar approach to our recruitment processes. 

For this application, we want to hear from you, in your own voice, about why you think you are a good fit for the role. Responses that have clearly been mostly drafted using AI will be scored less highly by our human reviewers (and believe us, it’s obvious!). 

Recruitment timeline

• Application deadline – 23:59 7th August 2026
• First-round interviews are expected to take place in mid to late August, with second-round interviews one week later.