About the job

Job summary

This role offers you the opportunity to join an exciting, fast-paced environment working hard to deliver ministerial commitments for the benefit of the public. As a Service Architect, you will be a key decision maker and liaise with the most senior internal and third  party stakeholders who are involved in some of the most cutting-edge skills and topics within information technology.

As a Head of  Service Architect and Tooling, you will lead a matrix team of CS and contract resources of Service Design and Transition managers, You will also design and deliver services that; support business needs; reuse existing service components where appropriate; are proportionate and affordable; effectively span multiple suppliers, components, and support levels.  You will lead on the production of comprehensive service designs, incorporating the entire end-to-end eco-system that includes business requirements, wider standards, Enterprise Services capabilities, and external suppliers and consumers. You will lead on programmes and projects of work, acting as a Subject Matter Expert and ensuring the design meets user and wider home Office needs.
 
You will work within the Service Design and Tooling team but will work closely with Live Services, ESN Service Operations, and the wider ESMCP programme workstreams as well as the suppliers and the Emergency Services organisations’ representatives.  
 
You will promote a team culture that embodies the Civil Service Values and rewards teamwork, client-orientation, delivery focus and technical excellence.

Job description

Our main day to day responsibilities will be:  

• Lead on the production of service designs which ensure that support for new products and services are comprehensive, efficient and take into account the entire service eco-system.  
• Lead on developing and documenting the proposed service design for the integration and implementation of products and services, working with external suppliers and across other areas of ESMCP to ensure that the requirements are included in business cases, project plans, supplier procurements and Service Design Packages 
• Exercising strong stakeholder management skills to drive completion of a service design, including brokering decisions and bridging technical and business disputes by weighing up risk, complexity impact and deliverability.
• Lead on the production and maintenance of a transition pipeline for the proposed products and services, highlighting key demands on the team, and providing meaningful pipeline data. 
• Forecast the required resourcing for the transition pipeline and allocating resources accordingly. 
• Manage a small team of Service Design; Transition; Project Managers and Business Analysts to complete service design and transition activities. 

Note: The post-holder may be required to carry out other duties within the scope of the grade and within the limits of their skill, competence, and training.  

There will be some travel expected  within  the UK and mainly between London and Bristol. All travel expenses will be met by the Business Area. 

Part time is not an option for this role due to business requirements.

Person specification

You will also be expected to carry out the following day to day activities:

• demonstrating leadership qualities by mentoring and line managing members of the Service Management community, supporting them to perform to their full potential and driving succession planning.
• maintaining a working knowledge of projects and change programs both in the pipeline and in delivery with respect to the specific customer organisation.
  building effective partnerships across the technology organisation to share best practice.
• representing customers in Service Readiness reviews and assessments.
  participating, contributing to and supporting collaboration initiatives and career development within the IT Operations community, building in-house capability via a professional community of practice.

Essential Criteria

You’ll have a demonstrable passion for Service Management, with the following skills or extensive experience in:

• Evidencing strong process, technical and team leadership skills, with a passion for delivering leading edge designs and inspiring a culture of technical excellence and innovative solution design  
• Navigating the complex landscapes of technologies, third party suppliers (driving the procurement process), internal and cross-government teams.
• Managing and delivering complex service solutions within time, cost, and quality targets, ensuring solutions are robust, resilient, and appropriately implemented, tested, and documented.
• Defining standards, owning, and contributing to the technical roadmap and strategy.
• Anticipating and advising on future technology changes that present opportunities for the product or service.
• Communicating clearly in a language which meets the needs of different users and stakeholders through selecting the appropriate channels and formats and managing expectations whilst adapting to stakeholders’ reactions with flexibility.
• Demonstrating a flexible and pragmatic approach to accommodate the demand of each project accordingly whether using DevOps, agile or waterfall delivery model.  
• Relevant project/programme management qualifications (Agile/Prince 2/DevOps/SIAM/Lean) or a willingness to acquire them.

The skills listed above are reflective of the Home Office Profession Skills and Competency Model (based on the industry standard SFIA framework). Please see below for the relevant skills required for your role: 
 
Strategy and Architecture: 
Advice and Guidance 

• Methods and Tools (METL) – level 4 

Change and Transformation: 
Change Implementation 

• Project Management (PRMG) – level 4

Change Analysis 

• Business Situation Analysis (BUSA – level 5 

Delivery and Operation:
Service Management   

• Service Acceptance (SEAC) – level 4

Technology Management

• Technology Service Management (ITMG) – level 5 

Relationships and Engagement: 
Stakeholder Management

• Stakeholder Relationship Management (RLMT) – level 4

Desirable Criteria

For this role, the below experience would be beneficial, but is not essential:

• Identifying process improvements and defining best practice, inspiring teams to follow this. 
• Understanding of Lean, Agile and DevOps principles within a Product-centric delivery model.
• Managing the employee lifecycle from identifying new roles to employee exit.
  Understanding of ITIL functions and methodologies

Benefits

• Learning and development tailored to your role
• An environment with flexible working options
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
• A Civil Service pension with an average employer contribution of 27%

Things you need to know

Selection process details

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

As part of the application process you will be asked to complete a CV and Personal Statement (1000 words maximum).

Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.

Please note your Personal Statement should be aligned to the Essential Criteria as set out in the job advertisement.

CVs will not be scored.

The sift will be conducted on the Personal Statement.

Successful candidates shortlisted for interview will be tested on all behaviours outlined in the job advertisement and technical skills.

In addition, candidates will be tested on the technical skills listed in the job advert that are reflective of the Home Office DDaT Profession Skills and Competency Model. The technical skills will be tested against the industry standard SFIA framework - Click here for Framework

The following technical skills will be tested at interview with a 10 min pre-assigned presentation:

• Change Management
• Service Design and Transition
• Service Management
• Tooling and Asset Management 

Sift and Interview dates

The sift will take place week commencing 22nd January 2024.

Interviews will take place week commencing 12th February 2024.

Interviews will take place remotely. Further details and instructions will be provided closer to the scheduled interview.

Further Information

Please read the essential skills for this position carefully. We will only consider those who meet the listed requirement. 

If you have previously made an unsuccessful application for a role with the same essential skills and are not able to demonstrate how you have developed these skills since your last application please reconsider applying as your application is unlikely to be successful.

For meaningful checks to be carried out, individuals need to have lived in the UK for a sufficient period of time to enable appropriate checks to be carried out and produce a result which provides the required level of assurance. You should normally have been resident in the United Kingdom for the last 3 years if the role requires CTC clearance, 5 years for SC clearance and 10 years for DV.  A lack of UK residency in itself is not necessarily a bar to a security clearance and applicants should contact the Vacancy Holder/Recruiting Manager listed in the advert for further advice.

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

We often have similar roles available at different grades. If a candidate is suitable for a similar role or a lower grade than they have applied for, we may offer the candidate that role without the need for them to go through a further selection process.

The successful candidates will be required to hold or be willing to secure Security Check clearance.

Where business needs allow, some roles may be suitable for a combination of office and home-based working. This is a non-contractual arrangement where all employees will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of their working time in an office, subject to local estates capacity, by Spring 2024. Applicants can request further information regarding how this may work in their team from the Vacancy Holder (see advert for contact details).

Please ensure that all examples provided in your application are taken directly from your own experience and that you describe the examples in your own words. All applications are screened for plagiarism and copying and generating of examples/answers from internet sources including Artificial Intelligence. If any is detected the application may be withdrawn from the process. Further action, including disciplinary action, may be considered in such cases involving civil servants. Providing false or misleading information would be contrary to the core values of honesty and integrity expected of all Civil Servants.

Every day, Home Office civil servants do brilliant work to develop and deliver policies and services that affect the lives of people across the country and beyond. To do this effectively and fairly, the Home Office is committed to representing modern Britain in all its diversity, and creating a welcoming, inclusive workplace where all our people are able to bring their whole selves to work and perform at their best.

We are flexible, skilled, professional and diverse. We work to recruit and retain disabled staff and area Disability Confident Leader. We are proud to be one of the most ethnically diverse departments in the civil service. We are a Social Mobility Foundation top 75 employer.

New entrants are expected to join on the minimum of the pay band.

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.

For further information please see the attached notes for candidates which must be read before making an application.

Existing Civil Servants should note that some of the Home Office terms and conditions of employment have changed. It is the candidate’s responsibility to ensure they are aware of the Terms and Conditions they will adopt should they be successful in application and should refer to the notes for candidates for further details.

Transfer Terms: Voluntary.

If you are invited to an interview you will be required to  bring a range of documentation for the purposes of establishing identity and to aid any pre-employment checks.

Please see the attached list of Home Office acceptable ID documents.

Any move to the Home Office 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

Reasonable Adjustments

If a person with disabilities is at a substantial disadvantage compared to a non-disabled person, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes. 

If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should:

• Contact Government Recruitment Service via HOrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs
• Complete the “Assistance Required” section in the “Additional Requirements” page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if you're deaf, a language service professional

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

Feedback

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

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.