About the job

Job summary

The Director of Finance, Business Planning and Governance is a substantial and challenging senior leadership role, reporting to the agency's CFPO. He/she will be a key member of the agency's Investment Committee and confident at operating at Board level. 

He/she will be directly accountable for:

• Leading and managing financial, business planning, governance and risk activities across the VOA;
• Securing the resources required by the agency to meet its commitments through discussion with clients including DCLG, DWP, HMRC and Welsh Government;
• Building strong influential relationships with internal and external stakeholders, senior leaders in HMRC, HMT, and client departments.
• Leading and managing the Spending Review process;
• Leading and delivering the medium-term financial strategy;
• Effective and efficient delivery of financial transactional services;

Job description

The role is also responsible for:

• Improving the maturity and analysis of investment decisions within the agency;
• Delivery of a set of unqualified, externally published, agency Financial Accounts;
• Managing effective corporate governance and assurance procedures;
• Delivering robust agency performance information and improving the reporting process;
• Developing and embedding the VOA’s Risk Management Strategy;
• Building financial and risk capability across the VOA;
• In-year management accounting and improving the quality of forecasts, ensuring the agency lives within its means and drives value for money;
• Leading the annual business planning and budget allocation process;
• Effective deployment of resources to deliver directorate objectives;
• Leading a team of c30 FTEs and a budget of c £2m.
• Overseeing VOA security strategy and policy and ensuring robust business continuity.

Person specification

Essential Requirements

• A confident and credible relationship builder, able to inspire trust and confidence, and build constructive relationships at a senior level with other senior colleagues in the agency, finance colleagues in Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs, and other government departments
• Ability to identify and use best financial practice to improve business performance
• Strong track record as a senior manager in leading a financial management function in a large or complex organisation;
• A visible and inclusive leader, who can be a credible trusted advisor and inspire and motivate at team and organisation and partner level, with an emphasis on embedding culture change and a continuous improvement mindset;
• CCAB approved accountancy qualification

Desirable Requirements

• Ability to lead and manage a professional finance and business planning function, and to build financial capability in teams;
• Well-developed professional skills including strategic planning, production of financial accounts, understanding of the annual business planning, forecasting and allocation processes, risk management, and corporate governance and assurance.
• Experience of supporting the delivery to complex transformation and / or digital change programmes

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £75,000, Valuation Office Agency 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

Throughout the process you will be assessed using the Success Profiles Framework.​

Application​

To apply for this post, you will need to complete the online application process outlined below. This should be completed no later than Sunday 31st December at 11:55pm. ​

• A CV setting out your career history with key responsibilities and achievements, qualifications and previous skills. Please ensure you have provided reasons for any gaps within the last two years.

• A Personal Statement outlining your suitability for the role, paying particular attention to the person specification and how you consider your personal skills, qualities and experience provide evidence of your suitability for the role (1,250 word limit).

Failure to complete both the CV and Statement of Suitability will mean the panel only have limited information on which to assess your application against the criteria in the person specification.

Shortlist​

A panel, including the vacancy holder, will use your CV and personal statement to assess your application and select those demonstrating the best evidence provided against the criteria set out in the ‘Person Specification’ section. 

If you are shortlisted for interview, you will be asked to take part in a staff engagement exercise.  This assessment will not result in a pass or fail decision but is instead designed to support the panel’s decision making and highlight areas for the panel to explore further at interview. This assessment will be conducted virtually and full details of how to participate will be provided to you.

Interview

The final stage of the assessment is a panel 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 skills in relation to the criteria set out in the Person Specification.​

At the interview we will use Civil Service behaviours and technical skills to assess candidates.

The behaviours for this vacancy are:

Making Effective Decisions  

Leading and Communicating

Collaborating and Partnering

Delivering Value for Money

You can find more details and guidance on behaviours and technical skills via the Success Profiles gov.uk page. 

We will also ask you to prepare and deliver a 5 minute presentation during your interview. Details of this will be provided if you are shortlisted for interview.​

Please note interviews will be conducted face to face at our Canary Wharf office.

The timeline in the next slide outlines the steps in the assessment process and indicates the date by which a decision is expected to be made. Candidates will be advised of each outcome stage as soon as possible thereafter. ​

Panel members​

The panel members for this assessment will be:​

Toby Nerval, Chief Finance and People Officer; Sadia Khan, Director of People Group and Alan Colston, Chief Valuer.

Selection Process Timeline

We will try to offer as much flexibility as we can, but it may not be possible to offer alternative dates for interviews. You are therefore asked to note the below timetable, exercising flexibility through the recruitment and selection process. 

The anticipated timetable is as follows:

Advert closing date: Sunday 31st December 2023.

Shortlisting: W/C 15th January 2024.

Assessments: W/C 22nd January 2024.

Interviews:W/C 5th February 2024.

​

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. 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.