Assistant Consultant

This is an exciting full-time opportunity in a fast-growing organisation that is delivering a real impact on air quality and carbon emissions reductions worldwide.

We are looking for a highly numerate consultant with strong problem-solving skills and an interest in improving air quality and addressing climate change. We value staff who enjoy taking the initiative, who work effectively with colleagues, and who produce work to a high technical standard.

At Aether, our unwavering commitment to success is deeply rooted in the belief that our people are our greatest asset. We take immense pride in fostering a culture where every individual is not just an employee but an integral part of our business.

Who is Aether?

Aether is a niche environmental consultancy specialising in the compilation, reporting, and review of emission inventories and projections, and the development of sectoral policies and measures for business, local and national governments globally. With some of the world’s leading scientific experts in the fields of Climate Change and Air Quality we have built a strong reputation with customers and collaborators around the world by delivering innovation and technical excellence.

As an owner-managed business Aether has a strong culture, founded on happy, motivated and valued employees and on delivering positive outcomes for all stakeholders.  The four founders have grown the company to its current complement of thirty-eight and the company is at a very exciting stage as it transitions from an owner-managed business into a scalable platform that is well positioned for growth. 

The role

Successful applicants will contribute to a wide-ranging project portfolio across Aether, as well as business development tasks. The post holders will spend most of their time working on technical projects, undertaking data handling/processing, desk-based research, and presenting/discussing the results with the project managers. Contributions to other project areas such as report writing, presentations and meetings with customers can also be expected, as well as some administrative tasks. The post holder will be encouraged to work independently and as part of a team where appropriate. 

Required Experience and Skills

Qualifications

A 1st or 2:1 degree in a relevant scientific subject or evidence of equivalent skills/experience.

Experience

Graduates or early career professionals. 

Skills & knowledge

  • Excellent numerical and data handling skills are essential. Proficiency in, and demonstrated application of MS Excel techniques
  • Good organisational skills, including time management. The ability to work across simultaneous tasks, effectively coordinating and prioritising work with project teams
  • Effective communication and interpersonal skills
  • A high standard of presentation and report writing
  • Fluent English is essential

The following would also be of benefit:

  • Knowledge of, and a passion for, improving air quality and addressing climate change
  • Proficiency in other languages would be advantageous
  • Proficiency in, and demonstrated application of, at least one programming language (e.g. Python) would be advantageous
  • Familiarity with spatial mapping software e.g. GIS

Attributes

As an owner-led organisation, with a staff made up primarily of scientists committed to tackling Air Quality and Climate Change, Aether has developed a very strong culture of staff well-being, individual empowerment, and a strong sense of doing what’s right for all stakeholders. The right candidate for this role will need to exhibit:

  • Alignment with, and constant consideration of, the goals and culture of the organisation, acting as a role model to the entire organisation.
  • An understanding of the specific nuances of a small and dynamic organisation and a willingness to be hands-on to get things done.

Working at Aether

Aether is committed to bringing the best technical knowledge, data management and advisory services to enable our clients to make good decisions. We have a strong company ethos, and we have built long-term relationships with our clients and a strong forward pipeline of projects. We pride ourselves on being seen by staff as a positive place to work, and we are committed to maintaining our supportive, collaborative, and positive working environment while delivering great value to our clients.

We have a flexible work model with staff located across the UK, with a main office in Oxford and local hubs in Bristol and London. Our flexible model aims to support a work-life blend that meets the career aspirations of our staff and the needs of our clients. 

Aether is committed to promoting equity, diversity, and inclusion at every level of the business, and is a Disability Confident Employer. As members of the scheme, Aether will ensure that any applicant who has a disability as defined by the Equality Act 2010, is eligible to request that their application be considered for a guaranteed interview for any role, providing the applicant meets the essential role criteria set out in the job description. Please contact recruit@aether-uk.com for further information and to discuss any adjustments that might be needed regarding your application.

Remuneration & Benefits

Starting salary from £26k with a performance-related bonus and a benefits package that includes:

  • Positive company culture focused on happy, motivated, and valued employees.
  • Regular team building events and conservation days.
  • Company pension contribution set at 8% of salary.
  • Flexible approach to working and hybrid working options.
  • Enhanced maternity and paternity pay.
  • 32 days’ holiday per calendar year (bank holidays included) with 3 days’ additional fully paid leave between Christmas and New Year. Additional leave with length of service.
  • Professional training fund of up to £1,000 per year per person.
  • Bike to work scheme.

Application

To apply for this position, please email your CV and a covering letter to recruit@aether-uk.com, clearly stating “Assistant Consultant” in the email subject.

All applicants must be eligible to live and work in the UK.

Testimonial

Don't just take our word for it...

“If we have a need for any more reports in the future Aether will be first on my list.”

Alan Hardy, Kyson Design

“Aether delivered training workshops and generated learning materials for our SSN members, providing technical content in a manageable and comprehendible format. We particularly benefitted from their extensive knowledge and ability to interpret the needs of our members into the training materials.”

Jennifer Anderson, Sustainable Scotland Network

“The team at Aether works very professionally and communicates very well which makes working with them a pleasure. Outputs are delivered on time to high quality. The team brings the rigour of technical knowledge and expertise and finds innovative ways of communicating complex messages. I would be happy to recommend the Aether team to organisations working on analysing and presenting emissions information in the public domain.”

Fiona Glover, States of Jersey

“Engaging Aether to support us to develop the first GHG Inventory System and first Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) for the United Republic of Tanzania has been a rewarding experience due to their high level of professionalism, creativity, timeliness and value for money. We will definitely consider Aether in our future initiatives.”

Abbas Kitogo, Programme Specialist Energy and Climate Change, UNDP Tanzania

“The professional service provided by your company was of very high quality and completed within agreed timelines.”

Matthew Dudley, UNFCCC Secretariat

“Saint Lucia embraces the professional approach with which this project was undertaken by Aether, particularly their ability to develop mentorship relations with local government experts. This provides a basis for ensuring that the pool of local experts remain engaged and recognized over successive processes.”

Annette Rattigan-Leo, Chief Sustainable Development and Environment Officer

“Aether's approach to couple innovative visualisation with high expertise manpower delivered valuable insights for our inventory work.”

Umweltbundesamt (Germany)

“Aether is a great partner for work in the area of European Air Emissions. The team was committed, reliable, well organised and had a deep technical understanding and motivated other partners with their good spirit.”

Umweltbundesamt: Environment Agency Austria

“Aether was a great asset in involving/engaging with Member States experts on highly technical subjects regarding GHG reporting. Very clear communication of issues and results.”

Andreas Pilzecker, DG CLIMA

“Professional team and very collaborative communication. Effective result in terms of suggestions for improvement in the quality of the inventory and proposals on how to streamline specific topics.”

Italian Institute for Environmental Protection and Research

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