Senior Manager — Data Strategy & Economics in Derby

You will lead complex advisory engagements for major infrastructure, utilities, and transport clients — helping them quantify the financial value of their data and build the investment cases that drive board-level decisions.

This is a specialist data strategy consultancy that has built a distinctive and growing practice around a single question: what is an organisation's data actually worth? They work with some of the UK's largest organisations — typically at CDO and CFO level — to map where data drives financial outcomes, build the models that translate data quality into business value, and shape investment decisions that other firms can't make with confidence. It's a discipline that sits at the intersection of strategy consulting and financial modelling. It's rigorous, it's commercial, and it's genuinely differentiated from what the Big 4 or generalist strategy houses offer.

The firm is around 40 people, award-winning, profitable, and growing. This hire is a significant one — a senior consulting professional who can own engagements, lead client relationships independently, and help shape the practice at the next stage of its development.

What you will actually do:

• Own senior client relationships at C-suite and Director level — CDOs, CFOs, and their direct teams
• Lead data valuation and data strategy engagements end-to-end, with accountability for quality and commercial outcomes
• Build and present the analytical and financial cases that move senior decision-makers to act
• Identify, shape, and convert new opportunities — this is a commercial as well as a delivery role
• Coach and develop junior team members, with real visibility into your impact
• Contribute to the firm's methodology, propositions, and IP

What we are looking for:

You are a consulting professional at Senior Manager level — likely with 8–12 years of experience — who owns engagements and client relationships independently. Your background will include:

• End-to-end engagement ownership with commercial accountability — P&L, scope, and quality
• Direct C-suite or board-level client relationships
• Strong analytical and financial modelling capability — comfortable translating complex data or operational problems into financial terms
• Clear, compelling communication at executive level — written and verbal
• Evidence of business development — identifying and converting opportunities, not just delivering them
• Genuine depth in at least one of: data strategy, data economics, data asset management, or commercial/investment case development

You are likely coming from:

• A data strategy or analytics consultancy — PA Consulting, Baringa, Dufrain, Artefact, or a Big 4 data advisory practice
• A strategy house with significant data or transaction advisory exposure — Oliver Wyman, EY-Parthenon, Deloitte S&O, PwC Strategy&, Kearney

You will not be a fit if:

• Your career has been primarily in-house, in technology delivery, or in data engineering and governance implementation
• You have not owned external client engagements commercially

Why this role, why now:

The timing is genuinely interesting. Data Economics is an emerging discipline. Joining now means shaping what the practice becomes — contributing to methodology, building client relationships, and having real influence over how the firm grows. That opportunity closes as the firm scales. The conversations are at the right level from day one. You will be presenting to CDOs and CFOs within weeks of joining. There is no queue to get to the senior table.

The package reflects your market value. Base salary is benchmarked against senior consulting market rates. Bonus is performance-linked. Equity is available at this level — with a realistic exit horizon that a large firm or Big 4 partnership simply cannot offer in the same timeframe. It is a small firm that thinks big. Forty people, no layers of management, low politics. Your work is visible, your voice carries, and the founding team remains hands-on. Culture is built on intellectual rigour, trust, and a genuine commitment to doing something new.

Flexibility with purpose. Around 60% in-person collaboration, with genuine autonomy to shape the rest of your week around where you do your best work. The firm's primary clients include major national infrastructure organisations — some travel to client sites is expected.

How to apply:

This role is being recruited on a confidential basis by Nicholson Glover. The client's name will be shared with suitable candidates at first conversation stage. To apply or find out more, please get in touch with Francis Nicholson at Nicholson Glover.