About the job

Job summary

The railway is a vitally important part of the UK’s transport infrastructure.  This role represents an excellent opportunity to take on an important leadership role that cuts across all three rail groups in the Department for Transport and the wider rail industry. The successful applicant will sit right at the heart of the Department’s work to sponsor the railway.  They will influence senior government and industry stakeholders to identify, manage and find solutions to interfaces between the many projects and operational priorities of the railway, ensuring that the needs of both rail users and taxpayers are properly balanced.

Job description

Are you comfortable leading in complex, uncertain environments?  Can you identify issues and work with senior colleagues in Government and beyond to resolve them?  Are you excited about leading a team that plays a unique co-ordinating and problem-solving rail for those who lead the railway, both in DfT and in our arms-bodies and partners?  If so, I would be delighted to receive your application to become the Deputy Director, Rail Interfaces.  

 The railway supports around 1.5 billion passenger journeys per year and contributes over £40 billion annually to the UK economy.  Public funding for the railway was almost £26 billion in financial year 2022-23.  It is a top priority for the Department to ensure that this funding is spent effectively and efficiently, delivering integrated high quality outcomes for rail users whilst also delivering good value for taxpayers. 

 The railway is a large and complex system with many constituent parts that come together to deliver for passengers and freight users.  Network Rail, a public-sector arms-length body, is responsible for the operation, maintenance and enhancement of much of the network, whilst mainly private-sector train and freight operating companies operate train services. 

Sitting right at the heart of the Department’s work to sponsor the railway, the Deputy Director, Rail Interfaces will have a unique opportunity to lead, influence and develop solutions to interfaces between the vast array of projects and operations that are underway to keep the railway running and ensure that it can deliver for passengers and freight users now and in the future.  The team is currently managing over 80 interfaces and recent work led by the Rail Interfaces team has included ensuring that High Speed Two Ltd, Network Rail and train operating companies have robust plans in place to deliver an optimised timetable for passengers and freight users across the existing railway and the new High Speed Two line when it opens.  The team has also led work to plan for and manage interfaces between the different schemes that are set to contribute to a significant upgrade of the railway in the north of England over the next decade, as well as planning for the integration of rail services on the new East-West rail line with the rest of the railway.  These are challenges that require exceptional leadership, collaboration and facilitation skills to bringing people together and create the right environment for joined up outcomes, focusing on priorities for Ministers, passengers and taxpayers.

The Deputy Director Rail Interfaces will work seamlessly across the Department’s Rail Strategy and Services Group, Rail Infrastructure Group and High-Speed Rail Group, facilitating strong dialogue between the key players at all levels, including Directors-General. They will work with and influence senior colleagues in external delivery partners including Network Rail, HS2 Ltd and train operators to ensure integrated delivery, helping to achieve the best outcomes for rail users and best value for the taxpayer. 

The Deputy Director will work with internal and external partners to: - 

-Provide strong leadership to their team and to colleagues across the Department and the rail sector in pursuit of collaborative and integrated decision-making. 

-Ensure that their team of highly skilled Rail Interface Managers is supported to identify and manage all aspects of the interfaces between rail programmes and projects.  Ensure that the team is well engaged and supported to deliver its objectives. 

-Lead strategically: use their networks, sector knowledge and influence with senior colleagues and partners to ensure that major project and operational decisions are taken in line with ministerial priorities and delivering passenger benefits, freight outcomes and value for the taxpayers. 

-Steer and direct the Rail Integration Board, made up of Director-level representatives from DfT and arms-length rail delivery bodies, generate buy-in and to resolve the trade-offs that are needed to deliver the best outcomes for taxpayers and rail users. 

-Provide assurance to the Department’s senior governance bodies, Executive Committee and ministers that rail interfaces are being managed and ministerial priorities are being delivered.   

-Create the right environment to bring in expert rail advice from Network Rail, HS2 Ltd and train operators into integration decision making within the Department for Transport. 

-Ensure that rail strategy, policy and planning take full account of the opportunities of the new high-speed railway services. 

-Lead flexibly: respond to unexpected developments and any changes in the rail governance landscape by focusing on developing practical and deliverable solutions to new issues. 

Person specification

You will need to be able to show, through your application, that you have the professional skills, breadth of experience and personal qualities for this post, as well as the leadership skills to succeed at Deputy Director level in the Senior Civil Service.

The successful candidate must be able to demonstrate their experience and skills against the following essential criteria:

-You will be a talented leader with the proven ability to lead and inspire multifunctional teams, develop capability and create an engaged and motivated workforce. 

-Strong thought leadership with an ability to articulate a clear vision for the future.

-You will have excellent communication skills with an outstanding ability to engage and influence senior leaders within both public and private sector bodies to work collaboratively to deliver a common vision.

-Evidence of effective decision making at pace, balancing a range of diverse stakeholder views.

-You will be an experienced programme management professional with a strong understanding of how large programmes are driven forward, as well as the programme management tools that are used and how projects and programmes are governed.

Whilst not essential, it would be highly desirable for candidates to have:-

-A good understanding of the railway industry structure and costs.

We are committed to diversity and inclusion and welcome applicants from all backgrounds.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £85,000, Department for Transport contributes £22,950 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 the online form. This should be completed no later than 23:55 on Friday 12th April 2024

The application will include:

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 (no longer than 1000 words) explaining how you consider your personal skills, qualities and experience provide evidence of your suitability for the role, with particular reference to the criteria in the person specification.

Failure to submit both documents will mean the panel only have limited information on which to assess your application against the criteria in the person specification.

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 particular characteristics, you will have the option to select 'prefer not to say’.

All monitoring data will be treated in the strictest confidence and will not be provided to the selection panel. 

Should you encounter any issues with your online application please get in touch with us via scscandidate.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Shortlist

Your application will be acknowledged when it is received.  

The panel will select a shortlist of candidates whose applications best demonstrate suitability for the role, by considering the evidence provided against the essential criteria set out in the Person Specification.

Candidates applying under the Disability Confident Scheme who meet the minimum selection criteria in the job specification are guaranteed an interview.

Assessment

Shortlisted candidates may be asked to take part in a series of assessments which could include:

• Staff Engagement Exercise - a presentation and Q&A with a representative staff group from across the DfT.

These assessments will not result in a pass or fail decision. Rather, they are designed to support the panel’s decision making and highlight areas for the panel to explore further at interview.

Interview

You will be asked to attend a panel interview in order to have a more in-depth discussion of your previous experience and professional competence in relation to the criteria set out in the Person Specification.   

The Success Profile Framework will be used to assess and recruit the most suitable candidate.  As well as Experience, we will also be using the following four behaviours will be used at the interview stage:

• Leadership
• Seeing the Big Picture
• Making Effective Decisions
• Communicating and Influencing

Further information about Success Profiles can be found here:

Interviews are expected to take place virtually via MS Teams, all shortlisted candidates will be asked to prepare a 5 minute presentation.

Offer and Feedback

Unfortunately, due to the anticipated number of applicants for this role, we are unable to provide feedback to those not successful at shortlist stage. Candidates who are shortlisted and attend an interview will be offered verbal feedback from a member of the interview panel.

The timeline later in this pack indicates the date by which decisions are expected to be made, all candidates will be advised of the outcome as soon as possible thereafter, and we will advise on any delays.

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.