About the job

Job summary

We recognise the challenges that people with protected characteristics may experience on the job market and in their career progression. We are fully committed to being an inclusive employer and ensuring equal opportunities. We are keen to make our workforce as diverse as possible, and we hope to attract applications from underrepresented groups, including ethnic minorities, people with a disability, and people with gender diverse identities.

Would you like the opportunity to manage a multi-billion pound budget for fourteen train operating companies? 

Do you enjoy working collaboratively and building working relationships to deliver business objectives? 

If so, we are looking for a finance professional to join our Passenger Services Finance team, and we would love to hear from you.

Job description

The Department for Transport’s (DfT) focus is on putting passengers and users at the heart of our transport system, helping to build a stronger economy, and supporting investment and regeneration. The Covid-19 pandemic completely altered the financial landscape of the rail industry, with Government now retaining most financial revenue and cost risk, and train operators having to agree annual business plans with the Department.    

As Passenger Services’ Financial Reporting Manager, you will be responsible for managing and reporting on a circa £3bn net cost budget that is spent by fourteen train operating companies (TOC) under a series of contracts.  The financial performance of Passenger Services is the single most significant determinant of the Department for Transport’s Group financial performance, and you will gain valuable and rewarding experience in a highly complex commercial environment.  You will also be responsible for managing and reporting on elements of programme spend that do not relate to the train operating companies. 

You will lead a team of circa three individuals, drawing on financial resource within the wider Market Teams that manage the day-to-day interaction with train operating companies, as well as policy and reform teams. You will be responsible for creating a culture that brings out the best in the wider team, encourages challenge, and values professionalism. Through your team you will be responsible for:

• Managing the monitoring, reporting, and forecasting of the financial performance of each operator contract.
• Ensuring that internal and external budgets, forecasts, and reporting are robust, evidence based and delivered on time.
• Developing and documenting consistent and effective financial standards and processes, ensuring that all financial risks and opportunities are fully understood, monitored, and reported.
• Leading on the provision of expert financial advice, support, and challenge, for both financial and commercial matters.

To successfully achieve these aims requires partnership working and the development of positive relationships with a wide-ranging community of internal and external partners.  You will collaborate with senior leaders, procurement, group finance, legal, technical and specialist advisers, all with the common goal of working to deliver the Department’s objectives.

If you would like to find out more about what it's like to work at DfT Rail, please click here.

In this role your key duties and responsibilities will include:

• Leading on the delivery of high-quality presentations and papers to an informed audience of internal and external partners on financial aspects of both the operator portfolio and non-operator portfolio.
• Overseeing delivery of reporting to external organisations including but not limited to His Majesty’s Treasury, the Office for National Statistics, and the Infrastructure and Projects Authority.
• Enhance reporting including by adopting the Government Efficiency Framework and the ‘fishbone’, ensuring alignment when and where appropriate.
• Managing the preparation and submission of the financial elements of periodic and Supplementary Estimate forecasts for revenue and expenditure, providing high quality analysis on the portfolio position and considering appropriate adjustments to operator submissions.
• Contributing to the Financial Reporting Improvement Programme co-sponsored by the Department and a senior industry representative.

Person specification

About you

You will be a qualified and experienced finance professional with excellent interpersonal skills including the ability to confidently engage and operate with senior leaders, and also build collaborative relationships with internal and external partners. 

You will demonstrate analytical thinking and intelligent analysis of complex financial information, and be able to draw out common strategic themes, understand linkages and dependencies and take full account of wider policy and operational issues. 

You will be a team player, with the ability to work across boundaries and establish credibility with, and actively persuade and influence members of the rail community both within and outside of the Department. 

You will be flexible and resilient, and demonstrate excellent time management skills to plan, prioritise and manage multiple tasks and deliver through others.   

You will be confident using Microsoft Excel and display excellent presenting and drafting skills.

Additional Information 

You will have the option to be either based in our Leeds or Birmingham office attracting the national salary, or London office attracting the London salary. Occasional travel will be required to attend meetings or team events at London.

A minimum of 60% of your working time should be spent at your principal workplace, although requirements to attend other locations for official business, or carry out detached duty in another DfT workplace, will also count towards this level of attendance.

Benefits

Being part of our brilliant Civil Service means you will have access to a wide range of fantastic benefits. We offer generous annual leave, attractive pension options, flexible working, inclusive working environments and much more to support a healthy work/life balance.

Find out more about what it's like working at the Department for Transport.

Things you need to know

Selection process details

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

How to apply

When considering your experience, please tailor your CV and personal statement (maximum word count of 1250) to provide evidence of the following:

• Experience of the public finance sector and building collaborative relationships with a wide range of senior stakeholders and delivering through others.
• Experience of building subject matter expertise.
• Experience of gathering, analysing and interpreting financial information, and considering this in the context of programme-wide activity.
• Experience of presenting complex financial information to a broad range of audiences.
• Experience of balancing competing objectives and views to plan and deliver a solution.

After submission of the first stage of your application you will be invited to complete a Civil Service Verbal Test and Civil Service Numerical Test. If you successfully pass the test, you will be invited to complete the final stage of the application. 

Please complete the online tests as soon as possible (within 24-48 hours is recommended), the closing date for the tests is 23:55pm on 07/01/2023. If you fail to complete the online test before the deadline your application will be withdrawn. Guidance for the test will be available when you are invited to take the test. The tests are administered online and accessed via the CS Jobs website.

The sift is due to take place week commencing 08/01/2024.

Interviews/assessments are likely to be held on week commencing 22/01/2024.

We will try to meet the dates set out in the advert. There may be occasions when these dates will change. You will be provided with sufficient notice of the confirmed dates.

The selection process will be designed specifically for the role. As a result, your assessment will include:

• An interview and a presentation exercise

This interview could be conducted online via Teams or face to face at one of our offices. Further details will be provided to you should you be selected for interview.

Reasonable Adjustments

As a Disability Confident Leader employer, we are committed to ensuring that the recruitment process is fair, accessible and allows all candidates to perform at their best. If a person with a visible or non-visible disability is substantially disadvantaged, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.

Complete the “Assistance required” section in the “Additional requirements” page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need during the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at an interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional.

If you need a reasonable adjustment so that you can complete your application, you should contact Government Recruitment Service via dftrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.

Document Accessibility

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

This job advert contains links to the DfT Careers website. Our website provides useful guidance and information that can support you during the application process. If you cannot access the information on our website for any reason, please email DRGComms@dft.gov.uk for assistance.

Further Information

For more information about how we hire, and for useful tips on submitting your application for this role, visit the How We Hire page of our DfT Careers website. You can find detailed information about the recruitment process and what to expect when applying for a role.

Pre-employment Checking

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. 

A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5-year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government.

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.