About the job

Job summary

This position is based nationally.

Job description

We encourage applications from people from all backgrounds and aim to have a workforce that represents the wider society that we serve. We pride ourselves on being an employer of choice. We champion diversity, inclusion and wellbeing and aim to create a workplace where everyone feels valued and a sense of belonging. To find out more about how we do this visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice/about/equality-and-diversity.

Job Title/ Position	Lead Finance Business Partner
Band/Grade	G7
Number of Vacancies	2
Business Group	Contracts, Change, Rehab & Youth
Directorate	FBP Directorate
Location	‘National’ – Occasional travel will be required to meet business needs.
Hours	37
Working Pattern	Permanent
Role Type/ Team	Finance

Ministry of Justice an Inclusive Employer

We recognise the challenges that people with (multiple) protected characteristics may experience on the job market and in their career progression. We are fully committed to be an inclusive employer of choice and ensuring equity of opportunity for all. We welcome the unique contribution diverse applicants bring in terms of their culture, ethnicity, race, nationality or national origin, age, sex, gender identity or expression, religion or belief, disability status, sexual orientation, educational or social background or any other factor. To find out more about how we champion diversity and inclusion in the workplace please visit https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice/about/equality-and-diversity

Overview

The G7 Finance Business Partnering role, in the MOJ Finance Function provides you with the unique opportunity to contribute to the delivery of the Chief Finance Officers priorities.

The 2 advertised posts will be within the Finance Business Partnering directorate and specifically supporting the Contracts, Change, Rehabilitation & Youth DD group.  Both roles will support HQ HMPPS stakeholders in delivering on the Agency’s priorities and key organisational objectives.  

The FBP should spend a significant proportion of their time within the group’s business areas supporting key senior stakeholders interacting regularly to build and sustain trust, ensuring they keep strategic oversight of all agendas.

The FBP teams will work with other Finance teams across the function to provide a high-quality finance service to the department, and, form a close co-operative relationship with the Management Accounting Centre of Excellence.

Role Purpose

As an experienced Finance Business Partner, you will have responsibility to support budgets and diverse business areas. This will include providing advice to budget holders, challenging budget holders on spending plans, ensuring spend aligns with strategic priorities, drive value on spending plans, enhance financial stewardship, upskill the business in finance skills, build and maintain trusted relationships with budget holders.  You will be responsible for the overall integrity and management of the financial position for your business area. You will have effective leadership, interpersonal and communication skills. 

As G7 Finance Business Partner, being accountable to G6 Senior Finance Business Partner, you will manage complex budgets and contribute to future spending review plans. In this role you will have overall responsibility for the delivery of balanced budgets and driving out savings, for your portfolio. You will be comfortable working with infrequent management guidance.

Delivery of results through others and effective negotiation at senior levels will be key. G7 Finance Business Partners will develop and maintain business partnerships and relationships and influence others where there may be divergent and conflicting views. This role requires significant leadership, management, representational and influencing skills.

You will engage the wider finance function to access centres of excellence to provide a full service to budget holders, influencing and engaging others across finance to maintain and enhance financial control.

Finally, the G7 Finance Business Partner will coach and mentor junior members of the team and the wider profession to help build professional capability.

Responsibilities

The job holder will be required to undertake the following duties and responsibilities;

• Delivery – Lead the delivery of timely and robust financial information to enable you to influence business decision making for your area of responsibility.
• Budget – Work with budget holders to develop robust budget plans and monitor those plans.
• Spend Control – Influence the affordability and prioritisation of business plans and seek to maintain spend within their  financial boundaries.
• Business resources – Monitor headcount plans and limits, look at resource mix issues and cost of resources to deliver business priorities
• Stakeholder Management – Identify and manage stakeholder relationships and need for senior level support. Manage internal and external relationships as appropriate.
• Risks & Issues – Identify and monitor budget risks and opportunities. Develop mitigating actions and work with the business to monitor.
• Guidance & Support – Provide support, guidance and coaching for budget holders. Show commitment to personal development. Promote effective individual and team performance.
• Financial assurance – Provide advice on spending types, VAT treatment, accounting treatments and adherence to spending controls to budget holders.
• Development of the function – Play an active part in developing the capability of the function, aiding and contributing to the vision and objectives. Translating the vision to team objectives.
• Project Finance – Develop financial modelling within business cases, engage finance and economic keyholders as business cases progress.
• Governance – Understand and advise on governance routes for change according to financial tolerances.
• Commercial acumen – Understand the commercial landscape, pipeline and financial impacts of contracts according to their payment base and mechanisms.
• Line management – Manage and support SEO’s within your regions, who will directly report to you.

Other duties

The post holder will be required to work in a flexible way and undertake any other duties reasonably requested by line management which are commensurate with the grade and level of responsibility of this post. This may also include working closely with other MoJ Finance staff to develop solutions/problem-solve, engaging in project work to drive finance improvements.

Key skills and knowledge

• Experience of managing large scale, complex or contentious business area finances

• Working knowledge and understanding of financial control regimes
• Excellent stakeholder management skills, including the ability to work across boundaries to influence and gain confidence of senior leaders and sponsors
• A track record in influencing and challenging budget holders

Success Profiles  

Success Profiles will enable a fairer and more inclusive method of recruitment by enabling us to assess the range of experiences, abilities, strengths, behaviours and technical/professional skills required for different roles. This flexible approach to recruitment focuses more on finding the right candidate for the specific role. To find out more about Success Profiles to support your application please click here for further guidance.

Civil Service Behaviours

The following Grade 7 Civil Service Behaviours are essential to this post and will be assessed upon application:

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

Please refer to the Civil Service Behaviours Framework, which can be found here, to complete this application: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/717275/CS_Behaviours_2018.pdf

In the event that we receive a large volume of applications we reserve the right to conduct the sift based on one lead behaviour. The chosen lead behaviour for this campaign is Leadership.

Specific Experience, Ability or Technical Skills Required

Ability

• Strong leadership, interpersonal skills and authority
• Excellent communication, networking and negotiating skills
• Ability to work across multiple areas, bringing together expertise from a range of teams to drive valued outcomes

Experience

• Experience of providing professional finance services to senior stakeholders and influencing business decisions.
• Experience of building, maintaining and leveraging collaboration networks and partnerships
• Experience of communicating financial information to a non-financial audience 
• A statement of suitability is required consisting of a maximum 500 words

Technical

Strong technical expertise – CCAB or equivalent qualification (or at the latter stages of their qualification) is an essential pre-requisite.

In addition to salary, a pensionable, non-contractual specialist allowance will be applied to this role. Specialist allowances apply to certain roles only, are non-transferable to other roles and are subject to annual review.

Professional Skills The core skills following are mandatory.

Key for Levels of Professional Skills

• A = Awareness
• W = Working
• P = Practitioner
• E = Expert

Core	Level
Budgeting, forecasting, and costing	P
The Budgeting Framework	P
Commercial acumen	P
Investment appraisal and evaluation	P
Strategic analysis and insight	W
Oral and written presentation skills	W
Performance and risks	W
Understanding the role of the NAO	W
Data and analytics interpretation	E
Useful	Level
Taxation	A
Government financial reporting	A
Supporting the PAC agenda	A
Risk management and fraud	A
Interpretation of Accounts	A

Travel

The MoJ offers Hybrid Working arrangements where business need allows. This is an informal, non-contractual form of flexible working that blends working from your base location, different MoJ sites and / or from home (please be aware that this role can only be worked in the UK and not overseas). Some roles will not be suitable for Hybrid Working.  Similarly, Hybrid Working will not suit everyone’s circumstances. Arrangements will be discussed and agreed with the successful candidate(s) and subject to regular review.

Application Process

To apply please complete the online application form. Applications will be sifted by a panel who will look at the Civil Service Behaviour framework and what is evidenced in your application. Should a large number of applications be received, an initial sift may be conducted using the lead behaviour, Leadership. Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift or progressed straight to interview. Applicants will be expected to demonstrate the essential role requirements within the application behaviour responses. 

Candidates who are successful following the sift process will be invited to interview, where the behavioural elements and strengths will be tested further alongside other elements of the post, and they will be required to prepare a presentation as part of the interview process. Further details will be provided to shortlisted candidates in advance of the interviews.

Training

The Ministry of Justice is committed to staff development and offers an extensive range of training and development opportunities.

Networks

The opportunity to join employee run networks that have been established to provide advice and support and to enable the views of employees from minority groups to be expressed direct to senior management. There are currently networks for employees of minority ethnic origin, employees with disabilities, employees with caring responsibilities, women employees, and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees.

Interview dates: Expected mid/late May 2024

For further information please feel free to contact Kalpesh Shah at email address kalpesh.shah@justice.gov.uk

Person specification

Please refer to Job Description

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £54,358, Ministry of Justice contributes £15,165 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, Strengths and Experience.https://justicejobs.tal.net/vx/candidate/cms/About%20the%20MOJ

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.