About the job

Job summary

Please refer to Job Description

Job description

We encourage applications from people from all backgrounds and aim to have a workforce that represents the 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 workplace where everyone feels valued and a sense of belonging. To find out more about how we do this visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice/about/equality-and-diversity.

Diary Manager in Ministerial Private Office

Executive Officer x 2

Private Office and Parliament

The Private Office and Parliament Directorate is recruiting permanently for two Executive Officer (EO) Diary Managers. This campaign is being run externally and so is open to all who consider themselves suitable for the roles and meet the eligibility criteria in the wider advert within Civil Service Jobs. There is one vacancy in the Minister for Prisons and Probation’s office and one vacancy in the Minister for Sentencing’s office.

Location:

Successful candidates will be based at the following location:

1. 102 Petty France, London

Successful applicants will be expected to attend 102 Petty France at least 3 days a week. This hybrid working arrangement is not contractual and as a result staff could be asked to attend their base location more frequently.

Ways of Working

At the MoJ we believe and promote alternative ways of working, these roles are available as:

• Full-time, part-time or the option to job share
• Flexible working patterns
• Flexible working arrangements between base locations, MoJ Hubs and home.

If we receive applications from more suitable candidates than we have vacancies for at this time, we may hold suitable applicants on a reserve list for 12 months, and future vacancies requiring the same skills and experience could be offered to candidates on the reserve list without a new competition.

Salary

New entrants to the Civil Service will be expected to join on the minimum of the pay range. 

If you are already a civil servant and are successful in an external recruitment competition for a role with us, your starting pay will be the better of:

• promotion terms or transfer terms, as appropriate; or
• pay on appointment arrangements (minimum of pay range)

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ)

MOJ is one of the largest government departments, employing over 90,000 people (including those in the Probation Service), with a budget of approximately £9.5 billion. Each year, millions of people use our services across the UK - including at 500 courts and tribunals, and 133 prisons in England and Wales.

Further information can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice

The Work of Private Office and Parliament

 The Ministry of Justice’s Private Office is a friendly and collaborative group. It is also a busy and interesting place to work – it is the interface between Ministers, the rest of the Department and other government departments. This is an invaluable opportunity for someone to gain insight into the heart of the department. The individual will play a key role in helping to deliver the priorities that the Minister for Prisons has set out.

Diary manager - The role

We are looking to recruit a diary manager to work in a Ministerial Private Office. The work is fast-paced and sits at the very centre of the Department, and close to key decision making. It requires the ability to adapt to new information, constantly reprioritise and work closely with various stakeholders across Private Office, MoJ and externally. This role will give you the autonomy to lead on exciting areas and learn how a Private Office works. 

Key responsibilities include: 

• To provide an efficient and comprehensive diary management service to a Minister.
• Exercise excellent judgement and flexibility in managing potential conflicting diary issues in a tactful and sensitive manner.
• Responsible for organising meetings and making travel arrangements when required.
• Attend regular meetings to coordinate diaries, agree priorities and monitor workloads. 
• Work as part of the Private Office team, supporting the day-to day operations of the wider office through flexible and effective team working, to provide an efficient, accurate, confidential, and comprehensive service.
• Providing additional support to the team on shared tasks and other duties that would reasonably sit within the portfolio. All roles across the team are expected to be flexible to respond to emerging priorities. Supporting the Private Secretary as and when required.
• Responsible for overseeing Freedom of Information Requests. 

Skills and Experience

Essential: 

• You’re enthusiastic, confident and have a passion for providing excellent service delivery within a fast-paced environment.
• Possess excellent organisational skills and be detail oriented.
• Strong oral and written communication skills and excellent interpersonal and team working skills.
• You’re a proactive individual with a high degree of organisational ability, attention to detail and manages time effectively.
• A “can-do” attitude and team player who can drive forward multiple priorities simultaneously. 
• You work well with others and can build meaningful relationships with stakeholders.

Desirable:

• Previous experience working in a private office environment is desirable but not essential.
• Previous experience of acting as a PA/taking on Diary manager duties is desirable but not essential.

Candidates applying from HMPPS should note that the Ministry of Justice does not have the same conditions of employment as HMPPS. It is the candidate’s responsibility to ensure they are aware of the terms and conditions they will adopt should they be successful.

The MoJ is proud to be Level 3 Disability Confident. Disability Confident is the approach through which we offer guaranteed interviews for all people with disabilities meeting the minimum criteria for the advertised role as set out in the job description.

Application process

You will be assessed against the Civil service success profiles framework.

Experience 

You will be asked to provide a CV during the application process in order to assess any demonstrable experience, career history and achievements that are relevant to the role.

Behaviours

During the application process you will be asked to provide an example of how you have met the following behaviour (see Annex A for more information):

• Communicating and Influencing (Lead behaviour) – 250 word limit
• Delivering at Pace – 250 word limit
• Making Effective Decisions – 250 word limit

Please also refer to the CS Behaviours framework for more details at this grade:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/717275/CS_Behaviours_2018.pdf

Should we receive a large number of applications, we will sift primarily on the lead behaviour of Communicating and Influencing. Successful applicants will then be invited to an interview, testing both behaviours and strengths.

Candidates invited to Interview

Please note that interviews will be carried out remotely.

During the panel interview, you will be asked behaviour-based questions to explore in detail what you are capable of, and strengths-based questions to also explore what you enjoy, and your motivations relevant to the job role.

There is no expectation or requirement for you to prepare for the strengths-based questions in advance of the interview, though you may find it helpful to spend some time reflecting on what you enjoy doing and what you do well.

There is 1 interview stage for this vacancy. You will be assessed on the following behaviours:

• Communicating & Influencing
• Making Effective Decisions 
• Delivering at Pace

You can refer to the CS Strengths dictionary for more details:  Success Profiles - Civil Service Strengths Dictionary (publishing.service.gov.uk)

Interviews are expected to take place in March 2024.

Contact information 

Please contact Amelia Prusinski (Amelia.Prusinski@justice.gov.uk) if you would like to know more about the role or what it is like working in our team.

Annex A - The STAR method

Using the STAR method can help you give examples of relevant experience that you have. It allows you to set the scene, show what you did, and how you did it, and explain the overall outcome.

Situation - Describe the situation you found yourself in. You must describe a specific event or situation. Be sure to give enough detail for the job holder to understand.

• Where are you?
• Who was there with you?
• What had happened?

Task - The job holder will want to understand what you tried to achieve from the situation you found yourself in.

• What was the task that you had to complete and why?
• What did you have to achieve?

Actions - What did you do? The job holder will be looking for information on what you did, how you did it and why. Keep the focus on you. What specific steps did you take and what was your contribution? Remember to include how you did it, and the behaviours you used. Try to use “I” rather than “we” to explain your actions that lead to the result. Be careful not to take credit for something that you did not do.

Results - Don’t be shy about taking credit for your behaviour. Quote specific facts and figures. Explain how the outcome benefitted the organisation or your area. Make the outcomes easily understandable.

• What results did the actions produce?
• What did you achieve through your actions and did you meet your goals?
• Was it a successful outcome? If not, what did you learn from the experience?

Keep the situation and task parts brief. Concentrate on the action and the result. If the result was not entirely successful describe what you learned from this and what you would do differently next time. Make sure you focus on your strengths.

Person specification

Please refer to Job Description

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £31,169, Ministry of Justice contributes £8,446 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.https://justicejobs.tal.net/vx/candidate/cms/About%20the%20MOJ

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.