About the job

Job summary

Are you an experienced Commercial leader looking for a new challenge?

Can you deliver value for money while delivering meaningful work that will have an impact across the nation?

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) is a small government department with a big mission: to keep food safe, ensure that it is what it says it is, and that it is increasingly healthy and more sustainable. This wide-reaching remit impacts consumers across the country, and we work hard to deliver ‘food you can trust’ while also offering real value for the taxpayer.

We’re looking for an experienced and talented Head of Commercial who can ensure the work carried out by the FSA’s contractors serves its purpose so that our Commercial Team is best placed to deliver its vital service within the organisation.

Job description

The FSA spends £85m a year on public contracts to enable us to better ensure the safety and quality of food across the UK. You will have responsibility over both the value for money and risk management of these services, ensuring that we are in compliance with regulations and managing relationships with a broad range of varied stakeholders.

Continuous improvement sits at the heart of this role. You will lead the transformation of our procurement processes, ensuring that they are fit for purpose and embrace emerging technologies to better serve our customers. At the same time, you’ll be a passionate advocate for professional development who can build the capabilities of the Commercial Team, empowering them to deliver a top class service that makes a real difference.

You will champion the principles that guide the Commercial Team’s work, creating value for our customers, managing commercial risk within the organisation, and ensuring that our processes are straightforward and easy to follow.

Communication will be key to your success in the role, as you represent the FSA at cross-government commercial sessions and lead our relationship with counterpart departments in other areas of the Civil Service.

If you are a skilled leader and decision-maker with a history of driving high-quality Commercial work, this is a role that allows you to make a tangible difference on the way we deliver ‘food you can trust’ to dinner tables across the country.

Person specification

Please read the attached Candidate Pack to discover further details about the role, our organisation, who we are looking for and the criteria we will assess against during the selection process.

We look forward to receiving your application and wish you every success.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £67,392, Food Standards Agency contributes £19,523 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.

Full details of the selection process are detailed in the attached candidate pack. 

Application and shortlisting

You will be asked to provide personal details (not seen by the Panel) and to confirm your eligibility to apply for the role.  

Technical: You will be asked a question to confirm that you meet the Technical requirements of the role. 

• MCIPs (or working towards Level 6) or comparable qualification.

If you cannot answer yes to this question – you will not be able to proceed further with your application.

You will then be asked to complete an application which will be used to assess you against the following essential and desirable criteria. (Desirable criteria will only be assessed in the event of a tie between candidates).

Essential criteria

Experience

• Lead criteria: Experience of public sector procurement and leading and driving the professionalisation of a high-performing Commercial Team
• Demonstrable experience of managing complex procurement processes and delivering value for money
• Demonstrable experience of delivering commercial results at pace that benefit the team and the wider organisation
• Experience of utilising excellent communication and stakeholder management skills to obtain support and engagement for commercial proposals from stakeholders at all levels

Desirable criteria (Desirable criteria will only be assessed in the event of a tie between candidates).

Experience   

• Knowledge of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015, Procurement Act 2023, Cabinet Office Spend Controls and other relevant procurement legislation and guidance

Lead Criteria

An initial sift may take place on just the identified Lead Criteria indicated.

In the event that we receive a large number of applications, the minimum pass mark for the Lead Criteria may be raised at shortlisting stage. Candidates who apply under the DCS, GPTW or RIS schemes and meet the minimum requirements will be unaffected by the pass mark raise.

Interview

If successful at shortlisting stage, you will be invited to a final interview in which we will assess you against the following Experience requirements of the role and Civil Service Behaviours Level 4

Behaviours

• Seeing the Big Picture
• Making Effective Decisions
• Communicating and Influencing
• Managing a Quality Service

Experience

• Experience of public sector procurement and leading and driving the professionalisation of a high-performing Commercial Team
• Demonstrable experience of managing complex procurement processes and delivering value for money
• Demonstrable experience of delivering commercial results at pace that benefit the team and the wider organisation
• Experience of utilising excellent communication and stakeholder management skills to obtain support and engagement for commercial proposals from stakeholders at all levels

Assessment exercise

As part of the interview process, you will be asked to prepare a presentation.  Further information will be provided to you on the invitation to interview email.

Expected Timeline

Advert closes: 29th July 2024

Sift: Expected to take place from 30th July 2024

Final panel interview: Expected to take place w/c 26th August 2024

Interviews will be held remotely via MS Teams. (If you do not have the Microsoft Teams application installed on your computer, you can join on the web without installing the application).

Please note that indicated dates may be subject to change.

The FSA is dedicated to a policy of equal opportunity for all.

Being truly reflective of our society and building a culture where everyone can perform at their best is critical to the work of the FSA. We are looking to recruit from the widest possible talent pool and encourage candidates to apply from a diverse range of backgrounds. We are proud to be an inclusive, equal opportunities employer and are committed to ensuring that all candidates are treated fairly throughout the recruitment and selection process and beyond. All appointments are made on merit.

Please be assured that diversity or socio–economic information requested during the course of your application plays absolutely no part in our selection processes and is not seen by anyone assessing applications.  Any information provided is anonymised and used for statistical purposes only.

We actively review the deployment of talent on a periodic basis in the interests of optimising personal development and the achievement of business plans.

Childcare Vouchers

Any move to the Food Standards Agency 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

Reserve List

A reserve list will be held for a period of up to 12 months from which further appointment may be made.

Candidates that do not pass the interview, but have demonstrated an acceptable standard may be considered for similar roles at a lower grade.

Visa Sponsorship

Please note that the FSA does not hold a licence to sponsor any visa applications and we are unable to provide any advice about visas.

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.