Role can be based in London, Glasgow, Manchester, York, Birmingham or Bristol.

We are looking for a highly experienced human factors professional to join our Specialist Team. As a Principal Inspector specialising in Human Factors, you will provide expertise in order to help achieve the delivery of ORR’s regulation of health and safety on Britain’s railways. We will expect you to help drive improvements in the management of system risk and reliability of the rail network.

You will develop, direct, and carry out inspections on key human factors topics. You will provide technical support to incident investigations, sometimes taking on the role of an expert witness for those areas where you have a proven body of work. You will contribute to the technical and operational policy surrounding the implementation of new regulatory requirements and writing of guidance or approaches to assessment.

You will lead a small team of human factors specialist inspectors, directing their work and assigning priorities to ensure the efficient operation of your team. You will help ensure their continued personal development to maintain their capability. You will mentor or coach inspector colleagues in human factors, periodically delivering training in the discipline.

You will build constructive working relationships with a range of stakeholders, taking the strategic lead in ORR’s engagement with the rail industry on human factors which will contribute to ORR’s governance of the implementation of industry recommendations. Together you will develop tools, approaches and strategies that support the operation of the rail industry.

As a leader you will be expected to support, empower and be a role model for members of the team, and to involve yourself in corporate activities that make ORR a great place to work. We will expect you to be a self-starter and to positively demonstrate ORR’s values and ways of working. You will be a decisive leader and engaging collaborator who can instil change. Together with your line manager, you will be responsible for maintaining and developing your own human factors competence and expertise in order to maintain continued Chartered membership.

Your key responsibilities, although not exhaustive, will include:

• Leading a small team of human factors specialist inspectors, directing their work and assigning priorities to ensure the efficient operation of your team. You will help ensure their continued personal development to maintain their capability.
• Assisting investigations, providing Human Factors expertise and input– potentially acting as an expert witness.
• Providing Human Factors reactive support for complaints and enforcement action.
• Working closely with ORR colleagues to ensure our approaches to Human Factors issues are evidence-based, and are delivered and enforced on the ground, sharing intelligence with ORR colleagues and informing technical and operational policy, including publishing guidance where needed.
• Providing a strategic lead on ORR’s engagement with the rail industry on human factors, including attendance at high profile cross industry forums.
• Supporting ORR in meeting RAIB recommendation handling requirements.
• Managing the Human Factors content in our knowledge sharing platform and Strategic Risk Chapter (SRC).
• Engaging confidently with a range of stakeholders, from Board level through all levels of management and employees and their representatives, including trade unions, to ensure ORR’s approach on Human Factors issues is clear, credible and reflects our role as an integrated safety and economic regulator.
• Applying technical expertise at sites and meetings around the UK. Delivering presentations, briefings, and expert advice on Human Factors topics to promote good practice both within ORR and to the rail industry.
• Developing and delivering our Human Factors training course to other ORR inspectors to support the development of their competency.
• Pursuing continuing professional development in Human Factors/ Occupational Psychology necessary for your role and to maintain or develop your status within the CIEHF/BPS.

When assessing your application, these are the criteria that you are assessed against:

• Leadership of teams and management of staff remotely located.
• Significant experience of successfully applying human factors in the rail sector and/or another high hazard industry to reduce risk.
• Experience of formulating and implementing a human factors strategic or technical approach for effecting improvement in one or more human factors topic areas.
• Experienced written and oral communicator, with the ability to present technical content effectively to the layman, a technical audience and other professionals.

• Significant, demonstrable human factors expertise in key topic areas, for example, workload, human error, fatigue, human factors integration and design, competence management and non-technical skills, and workplace assessment.
• Awareness of the Health and Safety regulatory framework.

• Degree in Ergonomics or Human Factors.
  
  OR
  
  Degree in an engineering subject or psychology, AND relevant post-graduate qualification in Ergonomics / Human Factors, or equivalent.

• Full driving licence.

• Registered/Chartered member or Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Ergonomics and Human Factors (CIEHF) commensurate with your skills or experience is expected.

• A Registered/Chartered Occupational Psychologist, with the British Psychological Society (BPS) and Division of Occupational Psychology (DOP).