About the job

Job summary

This Executive Level IT Architecture role has accountability for working with appropriate senior business stakeholders and their Senior Leadership team to optimise the development, alignment, and delivery of strategic IT change within a business or technology domain.

This role will provide leadership and direction to drive the alignment of business and technology through Information Technology architecture.

The Chief Architect will demonstrate competencies across three key areas: 

Interpret Business Needs

• Reviews current business strategy and engages senior business stakeholders to identify the business drivers, associated business services and capabilities (future and current state) and the associated IT capabilities to support successful change and achieve desired business outcomes.
• Collaborate with business and technical stakeholders to develop aligned business and technical blueprints and roadmaps aligned to the IT and business strategy.
• Support the development of business requirements for specific project investment and ensure alignment against the blueprints, roadmap, strategy.
• Support the realisation of solution through architecture into delivery, roll-out and operation, and full systems lifecycle management including evergreening technology platforms.

Assess & Apply Technology

• Analyses the technology industry trends that could apply to HMRC within VOA and how HMRC interacts and supports intermediaries (including IDV&A).
• Leads the evaluation of new and innovative technology related to the domain through paper-based analysis and exercises, proof of concepts, prototypes and pilots working closely with business and technical stakeholders.
• Accountable for the development of discussion papers and points of view that support the introduction of change that can improve business outcomes.
• Actively supports the aspirational design of associated systems and platforms aligned to the domain strategy.
• Accountable for the design and development of successful solutions architectures to support project investment.
• Provide oversight and support across the project delivery lifecycle to ensure the integrity of solution are maintained and that business outcomes achieved.
• Acts as a consultant on a broad range of technologies, platforms, and vendor offerings to drive targeted business outcomes and acts as a pre-sales consultant to business stakeholders.

Provide Enterprise Guidance for The Domain (Intermediaries and VOA)

• Accountable for leading the development of appropriate artefacts including; transformation maps, standard definitions, reference models and architecture designs and guides for the domain to accelerate and align specific solution architectures.
• Support architectural governance of individual solutions against the domain strategy and artefacts to assess the impact of new and ongoing technology investment on the business and IT estate
• Designs and directs the governance activities associated with ensuring solutions architecture assurance and compliance.

Job description

Key Responsibilities:

• Gain an understanding of the overall business strategy and relevant operational and policies strategies and help translate these into effective IT change.
• Validate that HMRC’s IT Strategy remains aligned to the appropriate operational and policy strategies and support updates as necessary.
• Engage with other IT Leaders and the wider government community to develop a cross government perspective for their domain areas and ensure HMRC interests are represented and opportunities for HMRC are exploited.
• Overall support the delivery of more effective business change.

Key Interactions

• Manage a matrixed team
• HMRC Director Generals and their Senior Leadership Teams
• HMRC Strategy Units
• HMRC Transformation Teams
• Executive Committee
• Enterprise and Solution Architects
• Other CDIO Units
• Third Party IT Suppliers
• Other Government Departments

Person specification

We are seeking an experienced leader and manager who holds or is working towards TOGAF9 certification and a demonstrable track record of working with or in Solution Architecture and Enterprise Architecture practices. We want to hear from candidates with a real strong customer service ethos that has delivered tangible benefits in large and complex environments. We require someone who has the skills and experience to build lead highly skilled technical IT teams, and through them, drive cultural change.

The successful applicant will need to demonstrate relevant experience and effective delivery of the following essential criteria.

Essential Criteria:

• Clear track record of working successfully with and influencing senior stakeholders – both internally and externally –and providing clear advice on complex issues to technical and non-technical audiences alike, well versed in the relationship between people/skills, organisation structures, process, information, and technology (POPIT).
• Demonstrable understanding of compliance within a complex data driven environment.
• An excellent knowledge of business and technology concepts including trends, models, and architecture.
• A thorough understanding of Enterprise Architecture in its broadest application (e.g. Zachman), considered to be an expert and thought leader in this domain.
• Ability to work under pressure and to respond quickly to changing circumstances and tight timetables as priorities evolve and escalate, maintaining clarity of thinking and the ability to prioritise
• Clear evidence of successful vendor management in a multi-supplier environment and wider commercial ‘nous’, demonstrating an understanding of market pressures and realities.

Desirable qualifications and professional memberships:

• Degree level education
• TOGAF9 certified or willing to work towards this.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £75,000, HM Revenue and Customs contributes £20,250 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

Application:

To apply for this post, you will need to complete an online application by submitting the following:

• A CV setting out your career history, with key responsibilities and achievements. Please ensure you have provided reasons for any gaps within the last two years.
• A Statement of Suitability explaining how you consider your personal skills, qualities and experience provide evidence of your suitability for the role, with reference to the criteria in the person specification.

Your CV and Statement of Suitability should reflect your most relevant and recent skills and experience in relation to the role. Therefore, we recommend that each document is no more than two A4 pages long.

Assessments:

If shortlisted for interview, you will be asked to take part in a Staff Engagement Exercise (SEE) and an Individual Leadership Assessment (ILA). 

Assessments don’t result in a pass or fail decision. Rather, they are designed to support the panel’s decision making and highlight areas for further exploration at interview.

Full details of the assessment process will be made available to candidates if shortlisted for interview.

We will send you a copy of any report for any assessment that you may have undergone as part of the recruitment process (where applicable).

Interview:

You will be asked to attend a 90 minute interview for a more in-depth discussion of your previous experience and professional competence. 

As part of your interview, you will be asked to do a task-based assessment. You will not be required to prepare something in advance for this.

Interviews are expected to take place week commencing 18th March 2024 and will be held in person at our Leeds Regional Centre (subject to change) full instructions will be issued prior to interview.

Regardless of the outcome, we will notify all candidates as soon as possible once all interviews have concluded.

All Criminal Record Checks applications are considered fairly in accordance with the DBS Code of Practice and the Recruitment of ex-offenders Policy.

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.