About the job

Job summary

Our reward package:

We’re looking for an exceptional Land Observations Manager to oversee our network of automated land surface stations which record weather and climate observations.

As our Land Observations Manager you will be based at our Exeter HQ. This job may be suitable for hybrid working, which is where an employee works part of the week in the office and part of the week from home. This is a voluntary, non-contractual arrangement and the location advertised will be your contractual place of work. The successful candidate must commit to regularly visiting Exeter and other relevant team locations to liaise with the team and the wider Surface Observations and Operations teams.

Why join us?

We invest in our people to unlock their full potential. As our Land Observations Manager, we will support you to develop and thrive to be the best you can be.  We champion positive physical and mental health in the workplace and are committed to being an inclusive organisation, providing a working culture that actively values an equal and diverse workforce. 

As our Land Observations Manager, your starting salary will be £38838.00.New joiners to the Met Office will start on the salary band minimum. Our 2022-25 pay award means the salary will increase to £41725.00 from 1st April 2024, and you will be able to progress towards £45257.00 over time.

Your total reward package is potentially worth up to £53757.00 annually, which includes basic salary, potential corporate bonus and employer pension contributions.

Your package includes:
- Outstanding Civil Service pension with an average employer contribution of 27%
- Flexible hours and homeworking
- Annual Leave starting at 27.5 days (plus Bank Holidays) rising to 32.5 days (plus Bank Holidays) after 5 years and option to buy or sell up to 5 days per year of annual leave
- Cycle to work scheme for the purchase of a bicycle and equipment to support healthy, low carbon travel
- Access to discounted shopping, inclusive of retail, leisure and lifestyle brands

Job description

Who we are:

We provide critical weather services and world-leading climate science to deliver extraordinary impact and benefit across the globe. Our work helps people make better decisions to stay safe and thrive.

Together:

• We’re a force for good - focusing on our environmental and social impact
• We’re experts by nature - always learning and developing to do things better
• We live and breathe it - putting our purpose at the heart of decision-making
• We’re better together - understanding partnerships and inclusivity make us greater
• We keep evolving - pushing boundaries to make tomorrow better for our customers

Find out more about our values - https://bit.ly/3fokaRD

Job Purpose:

Observations are fundamental to almost all the services that the Met Office provides - as direct data and products; for initialising NWP and other models; for verification of forecasts; as the basis for many weather/climate related consultancy services and for providing evidence of climate change. There is an increasing demand for more observational data and new and innovative ways of meeting the customer requirements for data. A key part of our work relates to the management of a large network of land surface stations across the UK and overseas, where carefully-calibrated weather and climate observations are routinely made, recorded and transmitted. As our Land Observations Manager the key responsibilties are:

• ensuring that observations delivered from the Land Surface Observing Networks meet internal and external customer requirements and performance measures,
• managing the technical delivery of and leading change to the land based observation networks and ensuring we provide accurate weather and climate information to underpin the products and services that the Met Office offers,
• line and task management of a team of network specialists and analysts,
• working as part of the wider Surface and Observations Operations teams and acting as a deputy to the Surface Observations Operations Manager where required

Person specification

Essential Qualifications, Skills & Abilities:

1. A degree or equivalent in Science or Engineering Discipline
2. Evidence of having managed or led a team and/or evidence of having mentored and trained other team members in an operational setting
3. Evidence of a broad knowledge of observing systems, the scientific principles behind the measurements and the characteristics of the observational data
4. Proven ability to communicate technical information clearly and concisely to a range of customers and suppliers who have varying levels of technical understanding
5. Proven ability to plan and prioritise the work of a multi-skilled team to deliver change and manage multiple customer requirements to varying timescales and deadlines
6. Able to demonstrate an understanding of the importance of developing staff to meet their full potential within the context of managing day to day operations

Desirable Qualifications, Skills & Abilities:

We encourage you to apply if you believe you meet our essential criteria, but your application will be even stronger if you have:

1. An in depth knowledge of operational in-situ Surface observing systems and an understanding of WMO guidance relating to the provision of land-based meteorological observations.
2. Experience of working with financial processes.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £38,838, Met Office contributes £27 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

How to apply:

If you share our values, we’d love to hear from you. Apply below using your CV and a Cover Letter/Supporting Statement which evidences how you meet each of the essential criteria - we recommend candidates use the CARL (Context, Action, Result and Learning) method for presenting evidence of skills.

Closing date 26/02/2024 at 23:59 with interviews commencing from 11/03/2024. You will hear from us once the closing date has passed.

If successful, please note we are unable to offer expenses for travel to your normal place of work. Please ask at interview if you would like extra clarity on how often this requirement is likely to be.

How we can help:

If you are considering applying and need support to do so, please contact us via Careers@metoffice.gov.uk You can request adjustments either within your application or by contacting us. Should you be offered an interview, please be aware there may be a selection exercise which could include a presentation, written test or a scenario-based activity. You can select in your application to be considered under the Disability Confident Scheme. To be invited to interview/assessment under this scheme, your application must meet the essential criteria for the role.

We understand that great minds don’t always think alike and as an equal opportunities employer we welcome applications from those with all protected characteristics. We recruit on merit, fairness, and open competition in line with the Civil Service Code.

We can only accept applications from those eligible to live and work in the UK - please refer to GOV.UK for information. We require Security clearance, for which you need to have resided in the UK for at least 3 of the last 5 years to be eligible. You will need to achieve full security clearance within your first 6 months with us.

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.