Advert for a new Co-convenor for a Better Way
We are seeking applications for a Co-Convenor for a Better Way, with a deadline of Monday 18th March 2024 at 5.00pm.
This is a fantastic opportunity to work with a brilliant and inspiring group of people working across sectors right across the country. If you’d like to find out more before you apply, please contact info@betterway.network.
About the network
A Better Way is a network of people committed to changing the way things work for the better – improving services, building community and creating a fairer society. Growing fast, we now have over 1,200 people in the network, from across the UK and beyond, spanning the voluntary, public and private sectors and fields of activity. The network was established in 2016, and is hosted by Civil Exchange, and is guided by a Core Group.
The network has been shaped by its members, and a set of founding principles and a model of behaviour change which have come out of our discussions. What these mean in practice is illuminated by Building a Bigger We, a collection of 36 short essays written by our members, published in 2022. Since 2020 most of our network meetings have been online, and we have continued to evolve our operating methods, for example launching a podcast in 2023. We continue to be ambitious not just in spreading good practice but also shaping the national debate and influencing systemic change. Here is further information about who we are and how we operate.
The network has a very good track record in fundraising from charitable foundations for the network’s core activities. We have also been seeking to supplement this income, with public sector commissions, voluntary contributions for our network members and other forms of earned income.
Currently, we have two part-time Co-Convenors. These are Arvinda Gohil and Steve Wyler:
Arvinda will retain her current focus on establishing and supporting a Better Way ‘Learning Lab’ - a cohort of members who are keen to apply Better Way thinking in their field of work, in order to bring about change of nationwide significance.
Steve is intending to step down as Co-Convenor once a replacement can be found, though he also intends to continue to support the network on a voluntary basis, including with membership and events administration.
About the opportunity
The role of the new Convenor will be to support and develop the network as a whole, finding ways to enhance its reach and impact. A particular priority in 2024 will be to ensure the network has the resources it needs to continue to grow and develop in the years ahead.
Currently the role includes:
Building a community of membership, welcoming members, curating connections between them, and designing, arranging and facilitating programmes of online events on different topics and themes, as well as an annual National Gathering.
Reflecting on the learning from Better Way discussions and distilling this learning to produce Better Way publications and frameworks for change.
Spreading the word through bulletins for members, our website and through social media and identifying interviewees for our podcasts (which are hosted by two of our members, Polly Neate and Roger Martin).
Taking the Better Way thinking into wider arenas, including national conferences and national media, drawing on Better Way insights to contribute to shaping key areas of national public policy, and building relationships with like-minded networks and organisations engaged in systems change.
Building distributive leadership within the network, including working with ‘thought leaders’ from the network and with the Better Way core group to reflect on our methods and impact and work out how best to grow the network’s reach, diversity and influence.
Taking the lead in raising funds for the network and reporting to funders.
Ambitions for 2024 and beyond include:
Finding ways to mobilise our existing movement to have greater impact, with a clearer set of messages, so we can generate more change at scale. We are planning to set up a Task Force of members to help us do this.
Going further in terms of Equity, Diversity, Inclusion (EDI), and also getting better at describing our impact.
Putting the network onto a more sustainable footing, in terms of funding, support and governance.
The Co-Convenors’ work has evolved as the network itself has changed, and we expect this to continue, with the new Convenor developing and shaping the role, while taking account of suggestions from members and guidance from the Core Group, and working collaboratively with Arvinda as the other Convenor.
This is a very enjoyable and satisfying role, which involves everything from the most strategic to the most basic tasks and working with a vast swathe of different, wonderful people.
We expect the work to take anywhere between one and three days a week at different points in the year, based on current activities, but that could change depending on how the person appointed decides to develop the network. A minimum of £25k is available to start with for the role going forward (with a nominal free-lance daily rate of £550, including any VAT if applicable). The successful candidate will need to fundraise to supplement this.
The fee will either be paid on a free-lance basis or as a grant to an organisation seconding an individual part- time.
The qualities and experience we’re seeking
Ambition for a Better Way, strong personal drive and an ability to innovate to help it evolve, informed by an understanding of the network and its potential, demonstrated by active engagement in the past.
A demonstrable track record of making change happen, including in ways that address structural inequality, and of doing things differently, either through delivery or pushing at the boundaries of thinking or both.
A personal commitment to the principles of the Better Way, with leadership and personal qualities that match the Better Way behaviours, and an understanding of why these are important. This may come from lived as well as professional experience.
The convening power and influence to attract new people to the network, particularly from across the voluntary and public sectors and from different backgrounds, including new influencers who can help deliver systemic change.
A successful track record of fundraising and/or income generation.
Someone who listens deeply and is good at stimulating and facilitating a conversation in which everyone feels welcome and is able to participate and learn from each other, but is also intellectually curious, always looking for better ways of doing things, and able to challenge existing ideas and practices to help the network develop new thinking.
Strong communication skills both in person and in writing and ideally also in social media, able to distil and communicate complex and sometimes disparate views passionately and clearly to different audiences.
We strongly welcome applications from people from communities that experience discrimination and marginalisation.
How to apply for the role
Please write to info@betterway.network by 5pm on Monday 18th March 2024 with your CV and setting out on no more than two sides of A4:
Why you would like to carry out this role
What qualities and experience you would bring; and
How you would like to see the network develop.
Please let us know if you have any access requirements and do contact us in the meantime if you would like further information: info@betterway.network.
Interviews will be held online on Monday 15th April 2024.
Closing date for applications: 5.00pm on Monday 18th March 2024.