Research Officer (Open Competition)

A. Details

Position: Research Officer

Grade: Executive Officer (EO)

Whole time equivalent: Full-time (35 hours per week)

Reports to: Strategic Development Manager

Duration: 13 months Specified Purpose Contract

Role Closing Date: 12 noon Thursday 12th February 2026.

B. Department & Role Overview

The Arts Council is the Irish Governments agency for developing supporting and promoting the arts in Ireland. We work in partnership with artists arts organisations public policy makers and others to build a central place for the arts in Irish life.

At the Arts Council we are committed to being well informed and evidence based in our decision making policy development advocacy and advice. Our strategy Making Great Art Work commits us to developing greater capacity in research and many of the strategy objectives have research implications. New policies developed by the Arts Council over the past 4 years have also raised a significant number of new research commitments. Arts Council initiated research publications are available on our website.

Overall responsibility for research sits within the Strategic Development Department (SDD) of the Arts Council including the management of core research projects. While a range of other research projects are led out by teams across the organisation it is the role of the Strategic Development to provide a framework that supports and facilitates good practice and maintains oversight.

As the Research Officer you will support the development and implementation of the Arts Councils research framework which covers the following area:

• Research knowledge - ensuring the arts Council has access to the research it needs as the national development agency for the arts;

• Managing research - the processes and protocols for how we plan for manage and undertake research;

• Utilising research ensuring we use and apply research in our development and decision making how we share and communicate research;

• Capacity building and partnership - Developing competencies and working with others.

  
  

C. Key Responsibilities

As an Officer you will:

• Support the values vision and mission of the Arts Council;

• Have a clear understanding of the Officer role objectives and targets and how they support the objectives of your Department the Arts Councils strategic goals and the ten year strategy Making Great Art Work;

• Strive to develop implement and support new ways of working effectively to meet objectives;

• Actively share information knowledge and expertise to help the team to meet its objectives;

• Be flexible and willing to adapt positively contributing to the implementation of change;

• Take responsibility and be accountable for the delivery of agreed objectives;

• Successfully manage a range of different projects and work activities at the same time;

• Maintain a strong focus on delivering high performance and service delivery;

• Create and maintain collaborative internal and external relationships;

• Utilise and promote project management guidelines and templates;

• Provide cover to other Teams/Departments as required.

As the Research Officer you will:

• Engage with and develop specific knowledge skills and competencies around the Arts Councils research framework;

• Support the organisation to access existing research and identify needs and priorities for new research;

• Support the building and maintenance of key research and information resources and accompanying systems and protocols including the ACs research log and research repository.

• Support the development scoping and writing of research specifications;

• Both lead on and provide support to research projects;

• Monitor and maintain an overview of research activities happening across the organisation;

• Share the outcomes of research and support its use in strategy policy and programme development;

• Help the Arts Council to develop research capacity and competencies;

• Create manage and maintain relevant data sets;

• Manage and carry out day-to-day project management activities including planning and scoping progress tracking and status reporting updating project management logs;

• Support the preparation of presentations/ documents for internal and external distribution;

• Organise and contribute to meetings and events with internal stakeholders (staff/advisers and Council) and also externally with partners service suppliers state bodies and the arts sector;

• Support and actively contribute to the preparation and delivery of communications including updating the Arts Council internal intranet and external website with relevant notification and materials;

• Track budgets and manage payments and service supplier related paperwork;

• Take and issue minutes at meetings consultations training events etc.;

• Act as key link person with other Arts Council departments and teams and with external strategic partners;

• Act as a point of contact for enquiries relating to relevant areas of evaluation and measurement.

Note: Arts Council roles and responsibilities are subject to change as per on-going and future organisational requirements and developments. Other duties appropriate to the grade that may be assigned from time to time.

D. Skills Knowledge and Experiences

• Experience of working in a research or evaluation related role and/or working in the area of public policy;

• Knowledge and experience of a range of research methods and statistical techniques;

• Excellent analytical skills including the ability to gather and analyse research engage in critical analysis and express complex information in a clear concise way;

• Excellent administrative skills and a proven ability in project management;

• An ability to be methodical and thorough and pay attention to detail;

• Excellent communication skills with an ability to express yourself in a clear and articulate manner when speaking in writing and when using other social tools of communication;

• Excellent interpersonal skills including the capacity to deal with a range of different people in varying positions;

• Excellent IT competencies - allowing you to operate the various elements within the Arts Councils IT systems; including its online services CRM EDM the Microsoft Office suite of programmes;

• Experience of multi-tasking across projects and programmes of work;

• Experience of working on your own initiative on projects and programmes of work;

• An understanding of the work of the Arts Council as a public body and of its strategic objectives - as set out in its 10-year Strategy Making Great Art Work - available on the Arts Councils website;

• A commitment to high standards of public service;

• The ability to communicate through the Irish language both verbal and written is desirable but not essential.

E. Qualifications

• A third level degree or equivalent professional qualification in a field relevant to public policy research is desirable but not essential.