About the job

Job summary

Are you an experienced leader who can drive IT Service Management excellence for key critical IT systems and services so that performance targets are met and exceeded?

Can you autonomously optimise vendor relationships with a proven track record of outstanding commercial and IT Supplier Management activity?
   
If so, we are looking for a Head of IT Service Management to join us at the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) and we'd love to hear from you!   

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) implements the government’s maritime safety policy in the United Kingdom and works to prevent the loss of life and occurrence of pollution on the coast and at sea.    

Safer lives. Safer Ships. Cleaner Seas.    

Our vision is to be a world-leading organisation, accelerating the transition to sustainable shipping with non-negotiable safety standards. We put our people, our customers and our planet at the heart of everything we do.   

 We welcome applications from all communities, and we don’t discriminate against any identity. We’re interested to hear from you, regardless of your background.

Job description

The Head of IT Service Management is responsible for overseeing the strategic planning, development, and execution of supplier management activities within the organization. This role is vital in ensuring the efficient and effective sourcing, evaluation, negotiation, and ongoing relationship management with suppliers to meet the Agency’s business objectives.

Leading the team within Service Operations autonomously, seeking and encouraging improvement throughout the service as well as guiding others inside and outside the team, providing expertise in the discipline of IT Service and Supplier Management.  As the owner of key processes, they will ensure successful delivery of beneficial changes with minimum disruption to IT services. Supplier and Service Management activity is reviewed with the required financial and contract acumen ensuring value for money whilst rooting out opportunities for optimisation and cost saving.

They are considered as a trusted partner across the IT directorate and wider Agency in representing the IT strategy and MCAs goal in delivering excellent customer service and creating an environment and providing the tools, to empower and enable our people to be the best they can be to achieve our outcomes.

Your responsibilities include but are not limited to:   

Leadership:

• Responsible for setting the vision and strategy for service management, ensuring processes are owned and maturing.
• Lead and motivate a high performing, enthusiastic team, ensuring adequate resources and capacity.
• Responsible for the services that deliver core business applications across MCA including delivery of the vision as set by the service owner, continual service improvement, service innovation, value and efficiency.

Supplier Management / Engagement:

• Establishing, developing and leading commercial relationships with technology suppliers. 
• Management of IT Suppliers, ensuring delivery against contractual obligations and performance against set targets via regular service reviews. 

Service Delivery

• Reporting performance quality measures and ensuring they meet good practice and standards.
• Supporting continuous review of operational and performance insights and trend analysis.

Stakeholder Management: 

• Working and communicating effectively with business representatives across MCA to ensure services are delivered according to their expectations. 
• Own the reporting of performance metrics ensuring they meet required standards and SLAs.

For further information about the role and responsibilities, please see the attached role profile.   

Person specification

About You  

• To be successful in this role, we are looking for an individual that has experience and confidence in leading a service management team, with proven results of driving supplier management maturity.
• Developing, implementing, maintaining, and reviewing systems and service standards to ensure professional excellence, expertise, and value for money is something that you will be familiar with. 
• You can take the appropriate action to anticipate, investigate and resolve problems in systems and services when needed.
• You will have the ability to establish mechanisms to seek out and respond to feedback from customers about service provided. In addition, the ability to develop proposals to improve the quality of service with involvement from a diverse range of staff, stakeholders, or delivery partners.

Additional Information  

This role will be based in the Southampton HQ. MCA supports flexible working and operates a hybrid working model between home and office for this role, giving you greater flexibility over where and when you work.   

The expectation is that you will spend a minimum 60% of your working time based at your principal workplace or out on official business. Details of the arrangement will be discussed further with your line manager.

This role requires the successful candidate to partake in the out of hours on call rota to cover high priority incidents outside of normal working hours. 

This role also requires SC Clearance.

Please refer to the special features section on the role profile for further information.  

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.

Click here to get a copy of the MCA Staff Benefits Brochure     

Find out what it's like to work at the Maritime and Coastguard Agency    

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 Technical skills.

How to Apply    

 As part of the application process, you will be asked to complete a CV and personal statement. Please see the following details on how to apply.

Within your CV and personal statement please demonstrate your knowledge and experience of:  

• Leading and motivating a service management team to deliver high quality customer service to target.
• Proven Results in developing and implementing supplier management strategies that contribute to cost savings and business growth.
• Experience in developing, implementing, maintaining, and reviewing systems and service standards to ensure professional excellence, expertise, and value for money.

Your personal statement will be limited to a maximum of 1,000 words.   

It is essential when submitting your personal statement that you provide as much detail as possible, and utilise the full word count given, against the essential criteria outlined above as this will be used in conjunction with your CV to assess candidate suitability to move to the next round in the recruitment process.    

Please note, we are working with MatchTech for this recruitment process.

To apply for this role, please click here to access the MatchTech portal where you will be asked to submit your CV and Personal Statement.

All applications will be collected by MatchTech (our recruitment partners), which will then be sent to MCA for internal sift.

The sift is due to take place from 27th February 2024.

Interviews/assessments are likely to be held w/c 11th March 2024.

This interview will be conducted via face to face at one of our Southampton office. Further details will be provided to you should you be selected for interview.   

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. 
• A presentation. 

As part of your interview you will be assessed against: Government Digital and Data Profession Capability Framework

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.

For further information on National Security Vetting please visit the following page https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/demystifying-vetting

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

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.