At a Glance
- Tasks: Join our team to tackle digital preservation challenges and develop innovative solutions.
- Company: The British Library, the national library of the UK, dedicated to preserving knowledge.
- Benefits: Flexible working hours, a defined benefit pension scheme, and a collaborative environment.
- Other info: Hybrid role with opportunities for career growth and a commitment to diversity and inclusion.
- Why this job: Make a real impact on preserving the nation's digital memory while developing your skills.
- Qualifications: Experience in software development, particularly Python, and strong communication skills.
The predicted salary is between 30000 - 40000 £ per year.
About the role
Looking for a new technical job with a bit of a difference? Want to help develop new solutions for preserving the nation’s published digital memory? Then this might be the job for you! The British Library has an exciting opportunity for a new Technical Analyst to join our small team of analysts in our Digital Collection Management & Preservation department.
The British Library's digital collection is vast and varied, with everything from digitised manuscripts and books, to born-digital personal archives, eBooks and eJournals, digital electoral registers, sound content, the UK Web Archive, and much more. In total, the collection includes many millions of individual digital objects and millions more digital files, at petabyte scale.
In this role, you will apply analytical and technical expertise to digital collecting challenges, collaborating on key technical projects to develop practical solutions for managing and preserving the Library’s digital collection. Specifically, we are embarking on implementing our new digital repository system and are looking for someone with good software development experience (predominantly Python) to collaboratively develop and implement our ingest workflows, as well as support their ongoing maintenance and improvement. We work closely with colleagues from many different parts of the Library to do this, including collecting areas and technology staff, as well as vendors. You’ll need to have good verbal and written communication skills to ensure you can effectively discuss our challenges, solve problems, and offer guidance to a variety of stakeholders.
We are looking for a proactive, self‑motivated individual who can work insightfully when presented with a technical problem, to develop and present a coherent argument for a chosen way forward.
Your responsibilities will include:
- Research & Development: Apply technical analysis and development skills to digital preservation challenges, and assist in identifying, delivering, and enhancing repository functionality.
- Support and Troubleshoot: Work closely with business users to explore, explain, and resolve technical issues or configurations impeding the successful use of our repository systems.
- Project Expertise: Provide expert technical knowledge to cross‑divisional Library projects developing ingest, preservation, and management solutions.
- Flexibility & Teamwork: Commit to team working, showing a willingness to take on a range of tasks and develop new skills as required to support Library services.
This is a fantastic opportunity to contribute directly to the long‑term stewardship of the Library's vast digital material within a dynamic programme of work. This is a hybrid role, based from either Yorkshire or Boston Spa.
What we can offer you:
- Access to a defined benefit Civil Service pension scheme.
- Flexible working arrangements, including flexi‑time.
We are unable to provide sponsorship under the UK Skilled Worker visa for this role. Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check (DBS check).
Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn.
We particularly welcome applications from Black, Asian, Mixed Race and other ethnically diverse candidates and disabled candidates. Creating an inclusive workplace is the core of our business and a way to engage the diversity of thought that is essential to achieve our aims.
Technical Analyst employer: The British Library
The British Library is an exceptional employer, offering a unique opportunity for a Technical Analyst to contribute to the preservation of the nation's digital memory. With a commitment to flexible working arrangements and a supportive work culture, employees are encouraged to grow their skills while collaborating on innovative projects that have a meaningful impact. Located in Boston Spa or St Pancras, this role not only provides access to a defined benefit Civil Service pension scheme but also fosters an inclusive environment where diverse perspectives are valued.
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We think you need these skills to ace Technical Analyst
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