Job title: information analyst 

Job location: flexible

Responsible to: senior intelligence analyst

Job profile

Principal working contacts

  • Head of data and information
  • Intelligence and analysis manager
  • Intelligence team members
  • Inspection planning team members
  • Strategic inspectors
  • Inspection team managers
  • Information governance team
  • Internal and external communication teams
  • Internal ICT/digital colleagues
  • Managers and employees of the Care Inspectorate
  • Analytical and policy colleagues in Scottish Government and other national organisations

Job purpose

The information analyst is an analytical and technical specialist who is responsible for the production of a variety of analytical products that meet professional standards to support the organisation to be risk-based and intelligence led, and for supporting the development and management of data assets to enable this.

Key responsibilities

Intelligence and analysis:

  • Produces analytical reports and products to agreed timescales and professional standards.
  • Is a highly skilled analyst with considerable expertise in at least some of the following: Intelligence analysis, statistical analysis and reporting, data science, performance analysis and reporting.
  • Brings their analytical skills to bear within a complex data environment, with the technical skills to manage and developing data assets in collaboration with colleagues both internally and externally.
  • Uses expert knowledge of relevant data and analytical techniques to develop and deliver intelligence products that will help the organisation focus on mitigating key risks, and direct our work where it will have greatest impact.
  • Adheres to and promotes the Code of Practice for Official Statistics, producing high quality statistical publications which meet the needs of a wide range of users both within the Care Inspectorate and outside.
  • Provides advice on statistical and analytical methods and is highly skilled in a range of associated software.
  • Develops new and innovative approaches to turning large quantities of operational data into valuable information assets and managing those assets to deliver actionable insights.                
  • Delivers high quality intelligence products that provide advice and recommendations to decision-makers.

Relationship management:

  • Builds and maintains strong working relationships with a range of customers, managing customer expectations and ensuring products meet customer requirements.
  • Represents the team at a variety of fora, both within the Care Inspectorate and outside, including government departments, the care sector and professional groups.
  • Excellent communicator who is confident in collaborating with stakeholders and presenting key analysis and findings to both internal and external audiences.
  • Ensures effective working protocols in accordance with the Care Inspectorate’s policies, with colleagues across the organisation’s functions.
  • Projects a professional image for the Care Inspectorate when dealing with colleagues and external stakeholders.
  • Demonstrates enthusiasm for delivering excellent customer service.
  • Demonstrates a commitment to the Care Inspectorate’s aims, vision and values and to the Care Inspectorate’s overall objective of improving care in Scotland.
  • Carries out duties in accordance with our Health and Safety policies, procedures, guidance, practices and legislative requirements, taking reasonable care for your safety and that of others who may be affected by what you do or fail to do while at work.

Other duties

This job may require some travel.

This job description is a broad picture of the post at the date of preparation. It is not an exhaustive list of all possible duties and it is recognised that jobs change and evolve over time. Consequently, the post holder will be required to carry out any other duties to the equivalent level that are necessary to fulfil the purpose of the job, and to respond positively to changing business needs.

Person specification

Attributes

We will use these attributes to recruit the role.

Experience

Essential:

  • Providing a professional service with a significant level of autonomy.
  • Using a range of analytical methods to gain insight from complex data.
  • Apply coding skills to access and manipulate large volumes of data from a variety of sources as well as identifying data inconsistencies and ensuring data quality.
  • Experience in some of the following:
    • statistical analysis and reporting
    • data science
    • intelligence analysis
    • data management
    • performance measurement and reorting.
  • Experience in working with internal and external partners at all levels.
  • Experience in presenting complex information and analysis to a range of different audiences.

Desirable:

  • Developing data standards and definitions.
  • Official statistics production.

Education, qualifications and training

Essential:

  • Educated to Degree level (SCQF Level 9) with a significant numeric component.
  • Evidence of commitment to continuing professional development.

Desirable:

  • Intelligence Analysis qualification.

Skills and knowledge

Essential:

  • Advanced data, statistical and analytical skills.
  • Expert user of core M365 applications, in particular Excel.
  • Experienced user of statistical, query and data management software for ETL and reporting purposes (e.g. SAS, SQL, DAX, R, Python).
  • Previous use of business intelligence tools (e.g. PowerBI, Tableaux).
  • Excellent data management and manipulation skills.
  • Understanding of data quality issues and validation techniques.

Desirable:

  • Research experience.
  • Knowledge of relevant national data sources including open data.
  • Code of Practice for Official Statistics.
  • Qualitative data analysis.

Key performance outcomes

We will use these key performance outcomes to recruit for the role. Successful applicants will be assessed against all the performance indicators used in the Performance Development Review System once established in the role.

Effective communication

Essential:

  • Articulate and positive communicator on a 1-1 basis and in larger groups.
  • Ability to express complex ideas clearly and concisely and to adapt communication to suit different audiences.

Impact and influence

Essential:

  • Demonstrates ability to influence at all levels.
  • Ability to give realistic advice, based on relevant, up to date and verifiable information.
  • Evidence of building positive relationships, engaging and collaborating effectively with others internally and externally.

Improvement focus

Essential:

  • Identifies gaps in information and makes appropriate suggestions for improvements.
  • Aware of trends and changes and maintains professional knowledge and skills.
  • Listens to feedback and ideas and takes considered and appropriate action.
  • Uses knowledge and experience to gather and consolidate information in order to make appropriate changes and improvements.
  • Ability and willingness to learn new skills quickly.

Objective decision making

Essential:

  • Demonstrates analytical and systematic approach to problem solving.
  • Ability to make appropriate and realistic judgments, based on professional expertise, relevant, up to date and verifiable information.
  • Ability to analyse complex information.

Planning and organisation

Essential:

  • Involves others where appropriate and optimises resources to achieve desired results.
  • Regularly reviews joint goals and targets and reprioritises where necessary.
  • Recognises the need to be flexible in order to meet changing priorities.
  • Ability to manage workloads under pressure to tight deadlines.

Team working

Essential:

  • Contributes to and supports the work and decisions of the team.
  • Contributes to the shared vision and purpose and shares this effectively.
  • Works collaboratively with a wide range of teams across the Care Inspectorate and external colleagues.
  • Willingness to share expertise and knowledge with colleagues.