About the job

Job summary

You will be part of DDaT’s cutting-edge ServiceNow DevOps function which provides real-time monitoring of the core technology, infrastructure, applications and services within the Home Office, providing a consolidated single operational view of the Home Office technical estate.

You will be part of the Operations team focused on providing an industry-leading approach to the administration of the ServiceNow platform, exploiting the latest technologies, techniques and service management best practices to provide innovative solutions for real-time monitoring, automation and industrialisation of the platform.

You will work closely with your team and others such as the Service Desk, Incident Managers, Project Managers, Service Transition, suppliers and the Cyber-Security Operations Centre (CSOC), to ensure services are effectively monitored, incidents are addressed and services are restored within agreed Service Level Agreements.

Job description

Your main day-to-day responsibilities will be: 

Monitoring:

• Raising incidents in a Service Management toolset, logging and initiating necessary resolution activities.
• Supporting incident and problem resolution activities, regularly engaging with other DDaT teams and/or suppliers to ensure service performance, availability and security is maintained in line with agreed SLAs.
• Tracking incidents using service management tools, and producing supporting reports/data as required.

Onboarding:

• Agreeing Operations’ service acceptance criteria.
• Assessing the readiness of new/updated services against agreed service acceptance criteria, formally confirming Operations’ acceptance of new/updated services once acceptance criteria have been met.

Tooling:

• Create and maintain process and knowledge documentation for team and users.
• Executing advanced scripting of business rules, UI Policies, Client Scripts, ACLs, Workflow Activities.
• Service operations and escalated support, assisting in the management of the ServiceNow platform, including core configuration, user administration, core application administration and service administration and upgrades.
• Collaborate with team members to look for ways to continuously improve our enterprise platform related processes.

This post is eligible for a DDaT RRA. Successful Candidates with exceptional skills and experience may be assessed for RRA between £3,000 - £5,000. This allowance is subject to an initial review within six months of taking up the post and thereafter an annual review in-line with departmental priorities and could be reduced or withdrawn at any time.

Where business needs allow, some roles may be suitable for a combination of office and home-based working.  This is a non-contractual arrangement where all employees will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of their working time in an office, subject to local estates capacity, by Spring 2024.  Applicants can request further information regarding how this may work in their team from the Vacancy Holder (see advert for contact details).

Due to business needs, this role is not suitable for part-time working.

Person specification

You will also be expected to carry out the following day to day activities: 

• Proactively contributing to continuous service improvement through the identification of process and procedure improvements.
• Undertaking knowledge management activities: identifying, controlling and storing any relevant information, and maintaining knowledge items to ensure that they are current, relevant and valid.
• Sharing knowledge and expertise with others, coaching and supporting team members as required.
• Undertaking appropriate training for the role and seek to constantly improve yourself and team performance through personal development.
• Participating, contributing to, and supporting collaboration initiatives and career development within the IT Operations community, building in-house capability via a professional community of practice.

Essential Criteria

You’ll have a demonstrable passion for IT support, with the following skills or strong experience in:

• ServiceNow System Administration experience.
• Good interpersonal skills, with an ability to communicate effectively and professionally.
• Ability to work as part of a team and to engage effectively with suppliers and customers.
• Knowledge of networks, operating systems, middleware, and applications, with a willingness to learn new technologies and maintain industry knowledge.
• Good analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Demonstrating a strong sense of ownership and drive to follow tasks through to completion.
• Maintaining a customer focus.

The skills listed above are reflective of the Home Office DDaT Profession Skills and Competency Model (based on the industry standard SFIA framework). Please see below for the relevant skills and levels required for the role:

• Knowledge Management (KNOW)  Level 1
• Incident Management (USUP) Level 3
• Problem Management (PBMG) Level 2
• IT Infrastructure (ITOP) Level 3
• Service Level Management (SLMO) Level 3
• Customer Service Support (CSMG) Level 2

Desirable Criteria

Ideally you will also have the following skills or some experience in:

• Performing a similar role within the Civil Service or at other organisations.
• Understanding and/or experience of adhering to ITIL v3 / v4 service management processes and procedures.
• Using an enterprise monitoring toolset to monitor infrastructure, network and applications.
• Using a Service Management toolset to log and update service incidents.
• Understanding of Lean, Agile and DevOps principles within a Product-centric delivery model.
• ServiceNow Certified System Administrator (CSA) is desirable, but would be expected to achieve within the first 12-months in post.

Benefits

• Learning and development tailored to your role
• An environment with flexible working options
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
• A Civil Service pension with an average employer contribution of 27%

Things you need to know

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Experience and Technical skills.

This gives us the best possible chance of finding the right person for the job, drives up performance and improves diversity and inclusivity.

As part of the application process, you will be asked to complete: 

• A CV detailing job history/skills
• A Statement of Suitability (personal statement) (maximum 500 words)

Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.

The Statement of Suitability should be aligned to demonstrate your skills and experience for the role and how you meet the essential criteria as detailed in the job description.

For guidance on how to construct your personal statement, you are encouraged to visit Civil Service Careers. Links – Statement

The sift will be held on the Statement of Suitability (personal statement). The CV will not be scored.

If you are successful at sift stage, you will be invited to an interview which will be Technical-based questions on all listed Technical Skills. 

Sift and Interview dates

Sift is expected to take place from week commencing 8th January 2024.

Interviews are expected to take place from week commencing 22nd January 2024.

We will try to meet the dates set out in the advert, however on occasions these dates may change. 

Interviews will be carried out via video. Candidates will be required to have access to:

• A laptop (personal or work) with a working webcam
• Good internet connection
• Skype for Business/Microsoft Teams

Further information

Please read the essential skills for this position carefully. We will only consider those who meet the listed requirement. 

If you have previously made an unsuccessful application for a role with the same essential skills and are not able to demonstrate how you have developed these skills since your last application please reconsider applying as your application is unlikely to be successful.

For meaningful checks to be carried out, individuals need to have lived in the UK for a sufficient period of time to enable appropriate checks to be carried out and produce a result which provides the required level of assurance. You should normally have been resident in the United Kingdom for the last 3 years if the role requires CTC clearance, 5 years for SC clearance and 10 years for DV.  A lack of UK residency in itself is not necessarily a bar to a security clearance and applicants should contact the Vacancy Holder/Recruiting Manager listed in the advert for further advice.

A location-based reserve list of successful candidates will be kept for 12 months. Should another role or similar role become available within that period you may be offered this position. 

We often have similar roles available at different grades. If a candidate is suitable for a similar role or a lower grade than they have applied for, we may offer the candidate that role without the need to go through a further selection process providing the role has the same behaviours and essential skills.

When completing your application you will have the opportunity to select your preferred location(s). Please ensure you select all locations you are interested in. Candidates who are successful at Interview will be placed in order of merit per location and provisional job offers will be made in strict merit order per location preference. Provisional offers are made, as they are on condition that you successfully pass all pre-employment checks.

Note for Candidates:

Please ensure that all examples provided in your application are taken directly from your own experience and that you describe the examples in your own words. All applications are screened for plagiarism and copying of examples/answers from internet sources. If any is detected the application will be withdrawn from the process. Further action, including disciplinary action, may be considered in such cases involving internal candidates. Providing false or misleading information would be contrary to the core values of honesty and integrity expected of all Civil Servants. 

If you are currently an agency member of staff working within the Home Office, a contractor or contingent worker you can only apply for roles that are advertised externally, i.e. outside the civil service. If you are eligible to apply for a role, you are required to select yourself as an external applicant and not internal when submitting your application on Civil Service jobs. This will prevent any delays in pre-employment checks should you become successful in being made an offer of employment after the Interview stage.

Visa sponsorship   

We are unable to sponsor any individuals via Skilled Worker Sponsorship/Tier 2 (General) work visas as we do not hold a UK Visa & Immigration (UKVI) Skilled Worker License.   

Every day, Home Office civil servants do brilliant work to develop and deliver policies and services that affect the lives of people across the country and beyond. To do this effectively and fairly, the Home Office is committed to representing modern Britain in all its diversity, and creating a welcoming, inclusive workplace where all our people are able to bring their whole selves to work and perform at their best.

We are flexible, skilled, professional and diverse. We work to recruit and retain disabled staff and area Disability Confident Leader. We are proud to be one of the most ethnically diverse departments in the civil service. We are a Social Mobility Foundation top 75 employer.

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.

For further information please see the attached notes for candidates which must be read before making an application.

Existing Civil Servants should note that some of the Home Office terms and conditions of employment have changed. It is the candidate’s responsibility to ensure they are aware of the Terms and Conditions they will adopt should they be successful in application and should refer to the notes for candidates for further details.

Transfer Terms: Voluntary.

If you are invited to an interview you will be required to bring a range of documentation for the purposes of establishing identity and to aid any pre-employment checks.

Please see the attached list of Home Office acceptable ID documents.

Any move to the Home Office 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 Adjustments

If a person with disabilities is 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 Government Recruitment Service via HOrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs
• Complete the “Assistance Required” section in the “Additional Requirements” page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if you're deaf, a language service professional

If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the ‘Contact point for applicants’ section.

Feedback

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

Security

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.