About the job

Job summary

Influence the work of a nationally-vital organisation.

The Home Office is a fascinating place in which to pursue your professional goals. As the government department tasked with keeping the population safe and ensuring the nation’s economy is able to prosper, we handle a vital mission. One of our key responsibilities is in relation to protecting our borders and ensuring everyone who enters and resides in the country does so legally, and as such, the actions of our Immigration Enforcement team are at the heart of this work.

Job description

This is a particularly exciting time to join us, as we are currently in the midst of a transformation programme in which we are seeking to define and enhance our culture and systems. This will include ensuring that our activities are perfectly targeted and that every action and decision is based in firm evidence, so the role of Deputy Director of Operational Delivery is particularly central to this mission – particularly as your work will have an influence on the activities of more than 6,000 staff members!

Guiding our teams through this vital period of change, you will work in partnership with a wide range of stakeholders to ensure that Immigration Enforcement is receiving the support it needs to successfully achieve its goals. Forming close relationships with partners across departments and the Migration and Borders Mission, you will work at the highest levels, bringing a strategic approach to every challenge.  

Crucially, you will have a strong front-line focus, so you will see to it that we are using our people to best effect, so that we can deliver enforcement activities that are based on assessments of threat and harm. As such, you will manage both operational incidents, as well as critical incident efforts being coordinated by the wider Home Office, and you will take the lead on assurance, integrity and risk. It is important that we are maximising the benefits of our investments, so you will also be responsible for managing and effectively utilising key technical resources, such as the Atlas case management system and the Vantage management information system.

This is an exciting opportunity to work at the most senior levels, influencing everyone from the Director General to those working in immigration enforcement across the Civil Service. To excel in the role, you will therefore come from a similarly complex, politically-influenced environment, in which you have strategically advised and influenced colleagues. We need to drive transformation from the roots up, so you will know how best to challenge assumptions and take colleagues on a journey of change. With great analytical and communication skills, you will have experience of working with front-line colleagues, so you will be an inspirational leader who is well-versed in shaping organisational values and behaviours. Some knowledge of the borders and the migration system would obviously be helpful, and you will understand how to make best use of complex technology projects.

Join us in this fascinating challenge, and we are confident that you will find an unparalleled career opportunity. With a competitive benefits package and plenty of development opportunities, we will see to it that your knowledge remains in-line with your ambitions.

For further information about this exciting opportunity, please refer to the candidate pack attached at the bottom of the page.

Person specification

Essential Criteria 

The successful candidate will need to demonstrate their knowledge, experience, capability and behavioural approach to a high standard against the following key criteria:

• experience of advising and influencing peers and senior colleagues at a strategic level, with strong analytical skills and the ability to communicate clearly and compellingly in a complex, politically influenced environment
  
  
• experience of working successfully with front line staff to build credibility, challenge assumptions and working practices and influence direction in a complex environment
  
  
• high levels of personal impact, with a proven track record of delivery at scale and pace while role modelling organisational values and behaviours
  
  
• strong leadership and people skills, with a track record of developing, leading and motivating teams and creating a working culture that enables all staff to give of their best.

Desirable criteria

• Some knowledge of the borders and migration system and the operational environment
  
  
• Experience as an intelligent customer of complex technology projects

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £75,000, Home Office 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

Online Application

Please follow the Job Advert instructions on the Civil Service Jobs website to apply online, no later than 23:55hrs on Monday 8th April 2024.

Provide some basic personal information;

• A CV - setting out your career history, highlighting specific responsibilities and achievements that are relevant for this role, including details where budgets and numbers of people managed, relevant achievements in recent posts, together with reasons for any gaps within the last two years;
• A Statement of Suitability – (limited to 1250 words) providing evidence in response to essential criteria: It is essential that in your written application you give evidence, using examples, of proven experience. These responses will be developed and discussed with candidates invited for interview.
• Diversity Monitoring - as part of the online application process, you will be asked a number of diversity-related questions. If you do not wish to provide a declaration on any of the characteristics, you will have the option to select 'prefer not to say'. See the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy: 2022 to 2025 (HTML) - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) for more information.

It is essential that in your written application you give evidence, using examples, of proven experience. These responses will be developed and discussed with candidates invited for interview. Failure to submit both a CV and Supporting Statement will mean the panel only have limited information on which to assess your application against the criteria in the person specification.

For further information on SCS careers and the application process, please see below:

Home Office SCS Further Information

Home Office Senior Leaders - Home Office Careers

Home Office SCS Application Process

Applying for Senior Civil Service vacancies - Home Office Careers

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

Open to UK nationals only.

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.