Principal Socio-Economic Consultant

As the world’s largest pure play sustainability consultancy, we work with leading organisations to build a sustainable future. With that mission, we know that ‘our time is now’.

We are looking for a talented and enthusiastic Principal Socio-Economic Consultant to join our growing Social Sustainability team. You’ll work in the area of social sustainability, leading a focus on social and economic advice. This enables our clients to make the business cases, secure consents and maintain a social license to operate across market sectors.

At ERM, we wrap the social aspects of sustainability into one team called Social Sustainability. Our team is concerned with how the transition to a low carbon future impacts society. We explore themes such as climate justice, just transition, economic restructuring, workforce and supply chain themes, equity, social license to operate, social performance, social value and social investment. 

In this pivotal role you will lead our social and economic assessments. We work across sectors including major infrastructure, renewables, diversified power, technology, transport, finance, and government organisations. Examples of our diverse clients include SSE, RWE, ESB, Voltalia UK, World Bank, Google, Microsoft, Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ), Equinor and HS2 Ltd.

For this role you’ll be interested in how infrastructure affects society. You will manage social and economic assessments, review evidence and policies, engage with stakeholders, and write reports. You’ll supervise project teams, work with existing clients, build relationships with new clients, and contribute to company growth.

Hybrid working is available from our offices based in Manchester, Bristol or London. We also consider part time and flexible working patterns.

Examples of our current and recent projects

• A Green Book business case including a cost benefit analysis of the Viking CCS project
• Sector baseline and economic assessments to support growth, innovation, and decarbonisation in the UK science and chemicals industry
• Social impact assessment for Spirid na Mara offshore windfarm in Scotland to international standards
• An economic case for digital infrastructure in Slough
• An evaluation and social return on investment of the Zayed Sustainability Prize in UAE
• Preparation of a community investment strategy and action plan for a private developer in Toronto

Tasks include

• Technical leadership of socio-economic assessments, human population and community assessments to UK EIA and consenting programmes
• Provide technical support to team members on social performance e.g. identification of material social performance risks and opportunities
• Provide advice on matters relating to economic development, social value, social performance and social sustainability, and community benefit
• Build capacity of our early years professionals to provide on the job training and guidance on the delivery of socio-economic assessments
• Contribute to business development activities through the development of proposals, client presentations, and marketing initiatives

Why join ERM?

Flexible working to suit your life – need to do the school run? Not a problem! More productive and happy if you work from home a few days per week? Go ahead! Love to travel? Ask about our Cross Border Remote Working! You’ll have 25 days annual leave + public holidays, 6% employer pension contribution, twice annual promotion opportunities, annual salary review and performance related bonus, private medical insurance, life assurance, income protection, EV car salary sacrifice scheme, Cycle2Work scheme, travel season ticket loan, volunteering and Give As You Earn opportunities, employee assistance programme and premium account for Calm (the #1 app for sleep and meditation) in order to look after your wellbeing, plus discounts on gym membership and gift cards for a wide variety of retailers and restaurants.

We offer employees a safety first, diverse and inclusive culture in which difference is embraced, valued and celebrated. Through the ERM Foundation we provide support for nonprofit organisations and social enterprises that share our commitment to creating a more sustainable and equitable world.  With a robust career framework in place and 20+ technical communities of global experts you can join, there are great opportunities to advance your career here at ERM. Take a look at our Sustainability Report and watch our video to learn more.

About you

• Degree qualified in a relevant discipline such as economics, geography or a social science
• Seasoned professional already operating at Principal Consultant level or above, requiring little direction
• Extensive experience of conducting socio-economic impact assessments in line with UK technical guidance (including, for example, HMT Green Book)
• Good knowledge of UK EIA planning and consenting regimes including TCPA and DCO
• Ability to co-ordinate with UK and international teams to support company campaigns and growth initiatives
• Demonstrable experience working within cross-cultural team environments - this will be critical to success
• Fluent in spoken and written English; additional languages would be advantageous
• Very strong analytical, report writing and Excel skills

About us

At ERM, sustainability is our business. 

We are the world’s largest advisory firm focused solely on sustainability, offering unparalleled expertise across business and finance.

ERM partners with clients to operationalize sustainability at pace and scale, through our unique combination of strategic transformation and technical delivery capabilities.

Our diverse global team of experts works with the world’s leading organizations to help them set clear sustainability targets, measure progress and operationalize strategy through deep implementation and business transformation.

With more than 50 years of experience, our ability to integrate sustainability solutions and our depth and breadth of technical knowledge are why organizations choose to partner with us as their trusted advisor.

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