About the job

Job summary

About OPSS 

Do you care about the safety of products and want to protect people and places? Can we use your skills, knowledge and experience to enable UK business to thrive? If the answer is yes, then we would like to hear from you! 
 
We are the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS), part of the Department for Business & Trade (Previously the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy). We are here for the purpose of making regulation work to deliver real world impact. Regulation is a powerful Government tool to address market failures, influence behaviour and promote positive action. Crafted and delivered well, regulation can be an enabler of growth, innovation and efficiency.

Since early 2018 we have been building a positive and creative team that enjoys a position of influence and respect within an organisation that continues to grow, most recently with the addition of construction products regulation planned.

Our primary purpose is to protect people and places from product-related harm, ensuring consumers and businesses can buy and sell products with confidence.

Further information can be found on our website here

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles. We embrace diversity and promote equality of opportunity. We are committed to building a team that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives and skills. There is a guaranteed interview scheme (DCS) for people with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

We are Inclusive

We are fully committed to being an inclusive employer and ensuring equal opportunities. We are keen to make our workforce as diverse as possible and recognise how important inclusivity is to achieve the best outcomes. We hope to attract applications from all underrepresented groups.

We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation if required to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform crucial job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request accommodation. 

Job description

About The Team 

We are the OPSS Digital and Technology team, and we build digital services focused on product safety and regulation. 
 
Our team is a mixed team of civil servants and contractors that collaborate in agile service teams working on user centred designs. 
 
We have an exciting portfolio of services that have internal and external users and there are already further services in our pipeline for future development. 
 
This is an exciting time to be at OPSS Digital. As a fast-growing area of the Department for Business and Trade, we’re raising compliance standards across the board and making a real-world impact on millions of lives nationwide. 
 
We are currently looking for an Associate Product Manager who will be expected to use their knowledge of user needs and business goals to frame problems and set priorities for their delivery teams. 
 
This is an entry-level role for civil servants who may be looking to progress to product manager. 
 
OPSS has sites in Birmingham, London and Teddington. This role is based in our Birmingham office at Cannon House. There will be a need to travel to our other sites on occasions. 

Our Product Managers help with the delivery of our digital services, and we need excellent product managers! Can you contribute to a team to build services to help people? If yes, we want to hear from you! 
 
This is a key role, building quality digital services that help OPSS achieve its goals. You’ll represent our users and product owners, setting priorities to build what they need. 
 
Our digital service portfolio is growing all the time and at different stages of maturity from live to emerging services. Depending on priorities, you could be taking over an existing live service or one that’s in the development pipeline. Along with the rest of the team, you’ll be helping lead OPSS colleagues through the service development life-cycle. 
 
Our flexible working policy ensures a healthy work-life balance. We also nurture talent and offer a broad range of learning and development opportunities that will help you flourish in your role. 
 
We work hard to maintain a positive working culture and are committed to helping you fulfil your potential. We value diversity and provide an open, inclusive and supportive environment to help you do your best work. 
 
If you're interviewed, you will be tested on a mixture of behaviours and strengths. 

Job Description: 

• Support our team of Senior Product Managers with the aim of progressing to a Product Manager. 
 
• Provide direction to the elements of a service that you are assigned, bringing delivery teams together to work with a common purpose. 
 
• Identify the skills and resources needed in the team and support bringing them in. 
 
• Form the vision for our services. You’ll talk to users and OPSS colleagues and partners to develop that vision over time. 
 
• Provide constructive challenge to delivery teams. 
 
• Maintain a high-level road-map that helps users, colleagues and partners understand the direction and priorities of the service. 
 
• Make sure that users are heard throughout the delivery process. Use their feedback to drive continuous improvement and keep us passionate about the right things. 
 
• Collaborate with OPSS business owners to understand business and partner priorities, getting the information that will help make our services better. 

Person specification

Skills and Experience

Desirable Criteria  

• Understanding of digital services and their life-cycle. 
• Knowledge of Government digital standards. 
• Understanding of agile working, ideally with practical experience, but we will provide training. 

Personal Attributes & Skills 

• Have excellent people and communication skills.
• Problem solving and ability to help others.
• User centred focus.
• Able to communicate to clarify, help, influence, and challenge constructively.
• Promote collaborative working.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £32,858, Department for Business and Trade contributes £8,871 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Things you need to know

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Strengths and Experience.

Interviews for this vacancy will be conducted virtually. We will, however, consider in-person interviews by exception. 

Please ensure that you check your emails regularly as all updates from us will be sent to you this way.

To apply for this post, you will be asked to complete the following as part of the online application:    

• A CV setting out your career history, with key responsibilities and achievements. Provide employment history that relates to the Essential criteria, and that any gaps in employment history within the last 2 years are explained. The CV should not exceed more than 2 x A4 pages. 
• A Personal Statement of up to 500 words, explaining how you consider your personal skills, qualities and experience provide evidence of your suitability for the role in reference to the Essential criteria.

It is likely that the sift will take place 1-2 weeks after the closing date and interviews 3-5 weeks after the closing date though this is subject to change.

In the event of a large number of applicants, an initial short sift will be conducted on the Personal Statement. Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift or progressed straight to assessment/interview.   

Reasonable Adjustments 

We are committed to supporting candidates so they can perform at their best throughout the recruitment process. This includes making reasonable adjustments to our process. In order to request an adjustment:  

Complete the ‘Assistance required’ section on the ‘Additional requirements’ page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process.  

Alternatively contact the Government Recruitment Service at DBTrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.   

If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section. 

Candidate Support 

You may want to join a virtual Candidate Support Session. These sessions include helpful tips and advice on the recruitment process, from application to interview.   

Please see attached Candidate Pack for further information on: Diversity and Inclusion; Benefits; Learning and Development; Working Patterns and what we deliver as a department.  

Further Information: 

• A reserve list may be held for a period of 12 months from which further appointments can be made. Reserve Lists will be for each location and appointments made in merit order based on location preferences.    
• Any move to the Department for Business and Trade from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. 
• The Department will not consider sponsoring a visa or issuing a Certificate of Sponsorship. We are unable to offer advice on any Visa and Immigration cases.   
• New entrants are expected to join on the minimum of the pay band.   
• Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty. Any applicant who has details held on the IFD will be refused employment.    
• A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5-year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government.   
• Terms and Conditions are attached.  Please take time to read the document to determine how these may affect you.   
• Please note – the successful candidate will be expected to remain in post for a minimum of 18 months before being released for another role. 

In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service on your behalf. 

However, we recognise in exceptional circumstances some candidates will want to send their completed forms direct. If you will be doing this, please advise Government Recruitment Service of your intention by emailing Pre-EmploymentChecks.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk stating the job reference number in the subject heading.  

Feedback

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window). The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria. The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.