About the job

Job summary

Do you want a career where you can make a real difference? Join the Ministry of Defence Guard Service (MGS) to protect Defence from threats such as crime, terrorism, espionage, and sabotage by providing the highest quality of security services through professionalism, excellence, and trust.

We are looking for a Security Area Operations Manager to join our Gold Standard Security Service and play a crucial role to the business requiring resilience, alertness, and organisational skills. Due to the nature of the role and its high-profile locations, it is essential that our Security Operations Manager has a strong work ethic, great teamwork, customer service, communication, and management skills. We are looking for individuals who are willing to go above and beyond to support and manage security operations across the Defence estate. If you can demonstrate this from past or current experiences, we want to hear from you and see this detailed in your CV.

This position is advertised at 37 hours per week.

Job description

The Ministry of Defence Guard Service (MGS) provides high quality security services at over 170 MOD sites across the United Kingdom. The MGS has guarded the Defence Estate for over 30 years including high profile locations such as MOD Main Building in London, Whitehall and His Majesty’s Naval Bases at Portsmouth, Devonport, and the Clyde. We provide access control, military working dogs, control room operations and other security services. We play a vital role supporting the Defence Mission and work to protect the Defence estate and personnel from crime, terrorism, espionage, and sabotage threats.

The MGS has over 2,700 employees and is part of the Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO). MGS Security Officers are often the first point of contact for employees, visitors and contractors on sites and we pride ourselves on our professional, customer-focused culture. Behind our operational workforce is a range of head office roles which support our security professionals to develop and execute the organisations strategy, managing its budget and resources, leading, and developing our staff, maintaining relationships with stakeholders, monitoring and evaluating our performance and identifying new opportunities.

All are working towards our Vision to be recognised as an outstanding provider of security services and our five Values underpinning this Vision include:

1. Integrity – Always do the right thing. Respect yourself and others. Treat people fairly.
2. Vigilance and Preparedness – Keep careful watch for risks and incidents. Be ready to act.
3. Professionalism – Know the job thoroughly. Seek continuous improvement. Maintain high standards.
4. Helpfulness - Always be ready to assist people. Leave a lasting positive impression.
5. Teamwork – Working with colleagues who are collaborative, respectful, open and trustworthy, who are passionate about excellence and protecting Defence.

There are plenty of opportunities for development, access to funded professional qualifications and specialist training. We are a growing organisation with opportunities to progress your security careers and if you align with our Values, we’d love to hear from you!

Working Pattern: 

This is a flexible working position at 37 hours per week. The successful candidate will be required to work from site 3 days per week. The exact working pattern will be explained in full during the interview.

If you need to contact Defence Business Services (DBS) regarding this vacancy, please indicate that your vacancy is being handled by Resourcing Team 1. If you experience any technical difficulties with the CS Jobs system, please contact the Support Team at candidate@support.oleeo.com  

Person specification

As the Area Operations Manager for MGS Area 1, you will have approximately five Operational Managers as direct reports, assisting you with the operational requirements at the units where MGS Security Officers are based. Your main responsibility is to lead in all aspects of operational delivery for your Area of Responsibility (AoR) ensuring the required security tasking is delivered to a high standard and visiting these sites on a regular basis which may include overnight stays.

The key duties are as follows:

• Responsible for leading audit and assurance throughout the MGS footprint to support and maintain the National Security Industry (NSI) Gold Standard.
• Maintaining an appropriate level of visibility within the AoR and implement good communication regimes.
• Deal promptly with complaints and HR casework, ensuring all Operational Managers (OMs) are following MOD Policy in taking care of absence, recruitment, complaints, and misconduct.
• Review and authorise unit Joint Business Agreements (JBAs) and working patterns/rosters within AoR on an annual basis.
• Ensure that accurate and efficient use is made of the Department's resources by implementing and conducting an effective system of audit and assurance including the accuracy of performance and output returns.
• Ensure service delivery is maintained at agreed levels and provide regular assurance to the Regional Manager by communicating with OMs and reviewing the information entered on the Performance and Operational Reporting Tool (PORT) and operational output returns.
• Maintaining operational output returns and continual maintenance of the Multi Tracking Tool (MTT) on a weekly/monthly basis.
• Ensuring effective Employee Relations within AoR, engaging, and working with the recognised Trades Unions, involving, and consulting with them as appropriate.
• There is an on-call process that covers the Regional Operational Area, this is an additional task that is optional to the successful candidate.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £35,290, Ministry of Defence contributes £9,528 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 and Experience.

At application stage you will be assessed against the following:

Experience:

• CV including Job History and Previous Skills

Behaviours: 

• Leadership 
• Communicating and Influencing

At interview you will be assessed against the following:

Behaviours:

• Making Effective Decisions
• Leadership
• Communicating and Influencing
• Changing and Improving

Application sifting is scheduled to take place on week commencing 08/07/2024.

Interviews are due to take place at HMNB Clyde, Faslane, Helensburgh, G84 8HL and will be conducted week commencing 22/07/2024.

We want to offer opportunities to all who are successful at interview for our roles, but this isn’t always possible, so we do hold candidates on an active reserve list for 12 months. It is also possible that we may offer similar lower graded role/s to reserve candidates or, if no reserves are appointed, candidates that meet the lower grade criteria in merit order.

Medical - MGS applicants are required to attend an MGS Security Officer Medical Check.

As a result of the changes to the UK immigration rules which came into effect on 1 January 2021, the Ministry of Defence will only offer sponsorship for a skilled worker visa under the points-based system, where a role has been deemed to be business critical.   

The role currently being advertised has not been assessed as business critical and is therefore NOT open to applications from those who will require sponsorship under the points-based system. Should you apply for this role and be found to require sponsorship, your application will be rejected, and any provisional offer of employment withdrawn.  

MOD Recruitment Satisfaction Survey – we may contact you regarding your experience to help us improve our customer satisfaction. The survey is voluntary and anonymous. You may however be given the opportunity to provide additional information to help us improve our service which includes the collection of some personal data as defined by the United Kingdom General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR). The MOD Privacy Notice sets out how we will use your personal data and your rights. 

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

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.