About the job

Job summary

The Government Property Agency is changing the way the Civil Service works and is at the forefront of the Government's transformation agenda; reshaping the relationship civil servants have with their place of work. The Agency is central to the delivery of key Government policies including moving 22,000 Civil Service roles out of London by 2030 and tackling climate change by contributing to the Net Zero agenda. To do this we are delivering a major change programme across the UK and consolidating our portfolio in order to save £1.4 Bn over 10 years. 

Beyond the bricks and mortar, the GPA is about providing great workplaces for our people. Through programmes like Hubs, Whitehall Campus and Smart Working you will be in the vanguard of creating model working environments and promoting flexible working practices. 

This is an ambitious and exciting task, for which we need innovative people, with strong commercial acumen, who are passionate about visualising and implementing customer needs. Launched as an Executive Agency of the Cabinet Office in 2018, we’re a relatively new department and we are growing fast so we also need people who thrive in ambiguity, can adapt quickly to change and are comfortable stepping outside of their remit to drive outcomes.

The GPA is committed to representing the communities we serve by making Diversity, Equality and Inclusion part of everything we do.

To ensure that we are always recruiting and retaining a diverse mix of talent, we are particularly inviting applications from candidates who are disabled, ethnically or gender diverse, and people who identify as being part of the LGBTQ+ community.

Job description

GPA has moved from “start up to scale up” stage and is reaching the end of its first wave of digital transformation. We have implemented the best in class systems such as Microsoft Dynamics 365, ServiceNow, Salesforce, Planon IWMS and will be implementing other systems like JIRA, Confluence, Ardoq and Microsoft 365. The GPA has delivered all of its major digital & data implementation and now requires a period of stabilisation, embedding & consolidation over the next 18 months to drive efficiencies before embarking on the next phase of innovation. 

We are seeking a dynamic and experienced Business Systems Manager to lead the strategy, architecture, delivery and operation of critical corporate systems within the GPA. The successful candidate will play a key role in driving digital innovation, ensuring seamless integration of systems and optimising operational efficiency.

Key Responsibilities: 

• Develop and articulate a clear corporate systems strategy aligned with GPA’s Property and Digital Strategy and industry best practices. 
• Lead the design and development of the enterprise, business and application architecture ensuring scalability, flexibility and alignment with enterprise architecture principles and standards. 
• Collaborate with stakeholders to define and prioritise system requirements, considering long-term business strategy and target operating model. 
• Oversee end-to-end project delivery for corporate systems, ensuring projects are completed on time, within scope, and on budget. 
• Establish and maintain effective operational processes for ongoing system functionality, including monitoring, maintenance, and support. 
• Implement and maintain robust configuration management processes for corporate systems to ensure systematic control of configuration items and adherence to standards. 
• Lead the planning and execution of release and deployment activities for corporate systems, ensuring a smooth transition of changes from development to production environments. 
• Stay abreast of technological advancements relevant to business systems, assessing their potential impact and overseeing the integration of new technologies to enhance system capabilities such robotic process automation (RPA) and AI tools like Microsoft Copilot.
• Ensure comprehensive documentation of configurations, releases, and changes, facilitating knowledge transfer within the team and contributing to the overall knowledge management strategy. 
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to ensure seamless integration of corporate systems into daily operations.
• Identity, assess, and mitigate risks related to corporate systems strategy, architecture, delivery and operations.

Person specification

We encourage applications from people from all backgrounds and aim to have a workforce that represents the communities and wider society that we serve. We pride ourselves on being an employer of choice. We champion diversity, inclusion and wellbeing and aim to create a sense of belonging in a workplace where everyone feels valued.

Experience & technical skills

• Demonstrated experience in developing and implementing strategic plans for corporate systems that align with organisational goals and industry best practices.
• In-depth knowledge and experience in designing and implementing robust and scalable business and systems architecture. Qualifications in Enterprise Architecture, such as TOGAF. 
• Experience in implementing and managing IT Service Management (ITSM) best practices to enhance the delivery and support of IT services within the organisation. Certifications in ITSM, such as ITIL Foundation
• Experience in delivering large and complex technology led projects. Qualifications / certifications in project management such as PMP (Project Management Professional) or PRINCE2 or APMG AgilePM
• Familiarity and experience with the IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL) framework, including successful rollout and adoption of ITIL practices for improved IT service delivery. Certifications in ITSM, such as ITIL Foundation
• Experience in monitoring industry trends, technological advancements, and best practices to drive continuous improvement initiatives for enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of corporate systems.
• Strong leadership skills, including the ability to lead and inspire cross-functional teams, foster a collaborative work environment, and mentor team members of skill development.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £51,700, Government Property Agency contributes £13,959 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, Experience and Technical skills.

We encourage applications from people from all backgrounds and aim to have a workforce that represents the communities and wider society that we serve. We pride ourselves on being an employer of choice. We champion diversity, inclusion and well-being and aim to create a sense of belonging in a workplace where everyone feels valued.

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 (RIS) to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative.

The Civil Service welcomes applications from people who have recently left prison or have an unspent conviction. Read more about prison leaver recruitment (opens in new window).

Sift

The sift is due to take place week commencing 22nd March 2024.

As part of the application process, you will be asked to include a CV and a 1000 word personal statement. The personal statement should then align with the person specification.

Interview

Applicants successful at sift will be invited to interviews, which are due to take place week commencing 2nd April 2024 in a GPA office. This is subject to change dependent upon where most successful candidates are based. You must be willing to travel to any of the GPA locations for your interview. If you are unable to attend a face to face interview due to extenuating circumstances, we advise that you reach out to the recruitment admin team to find out if alternative means can be arranged prior to submitting your application.   

At interview, applicants will be scored against 4 behaviours - Managing a Quality Service, Working Together, Seeing The Bigger Picture, and Leadership

Interview questions will be a blend of Behaviour, Experience, Strength and Technical (core skill) questions.

Further Information

Any move to GPA from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax Free Childcare. Determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk

Reasonable Adjustment

If a person with disabilities is put at a substantial disadvantage compared to a non-disabled person, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes. 

If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should: 

Contact the vacancy holder at BenMccoll@michaelpage.com to discuss your needs.

If successful and transferring from another Government Department a criminal record check may be carried out. 

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.

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 had their employment continued. Any applicant’s 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.

This role is full time only. Applicants who wish to work an alternative pattern are welcome to apply however your preferred working pattern may not be available and you should discuss this with the vacancy holder before applying.

Please note: in addition to the standard pre-employment checks for appointment into the Civil Service, all candidates must also obtain National Security Vetting at Security Check (SC) clearance level for this vacancy. You will normally need to meet the minimum UK residency period as determined by the level of vetting being undertaken, which for SC is 5 years UK residency prior to your vetting application. If you have any questions about this residency requirement, please speak to the vacancy holder for this post.

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

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check (opens in a new window).

See our vetting charter (opens in a new window). 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.