Radio & Technical Standards Manager
Maritime and Coastguard Agency
About the job
Job summary
Are you an experienced leader with a drive to develop your management skills?
Do you have experience working within teams dealing with complex safety related activities?
Can you manage a variety corporate business activities, such as financial planning, contract management and personal management?
If so, we are looking for a Radio & Technical Standards Manager 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
This role holds responsibility for the outcomes of the Radio Team within the branch and for providing non-technical, corporate management and leadership to enable the technical leads to focus on their specialised areas of work. The successful candidate will also be responsible for developing an overarching plan which reconciles priorities with available resources in conjunction with the technical leads.
As the Radio & Technical Standards Manager, it will be your role to ensure that Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) continues to meet its obligations in respect to SOLAS Ch. IV by the development of policy in relation to radio spectrum for maritime purposes, technical standards for maritime radio equipment; and that radio equipment installations onboard UK vessels meet the UK’s SOLAS obligations.
You will be key to ensuring that UK’s interests are represented by RSTSU in radio standards, installation and spectrum related matters at the required international and domestic forums.
This is an exciting opportunity for a first-class manager (that doesn’t require any specialist maritime skills or qualifications) to lead a team of technical experts, who are contributing to the UK’s efforts in domestic and international legislation.
Your responsibilities include but are not limited to:
- Managing the ancillary corporate functions of the RSTSU, including, but not limited to, finance, contract management, recruitment, personnel management, internal corporate tasks, external queries Parliamentary Questions (PQs) etc, management of stakeholder events and quality management.
- Liaising directly with the policy and technical experts to develop and maintain a plan of prioritisation, considering the requirements of safety and statutory obligations and available resources.
- Supporting the technical leads to ensure the development of new technical standards, interpretation of existing standards, and the production of the necessary SI’s, M-Notices and other documentation and publications.
- Taking full ownership of the lifecycle of the existing Technical Advice Contracts, ensuring that the necessary expertise is available and allocated to technical leads at all times.
For further information about the role and responsibilities, please see the attached role profile.
Person specification
About You
To be successful in this role, you will need to have experience of working in a complex safety related activity such as contract/programme management, policy development/management, or the management of technical standards.
Line management and corporate functions will be one of your strengths. You can develop and maintain relationships with colleagues, senior managers and stakeholders with ease due to your exceptional communications skills.
You will be comfortable with the prioritisation of conflicting workloads and the balancing of statutory obligations within financial, resourcing and other constraints.
In addition you will have experience and knowledge of the lifecycles of corporate business activities, such as finance, contract management and personal management.
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.
There may be a requirement for occasional international travel on official duty, which may involve overnight stays. Notice will be given prior to travel.
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 Experience.How to Apply
As part of the application process, you will be asked to complete a CV and personal statement. Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.
Within your CV and personal statement please demonstrate your knowledge and experience of:
- Working in a complex safety related activity such as contract/programme management, policy development/management, or the management of technical standards.
- Prioritisation and the balancing of statutory obligations within financial, resourcing and other constraints.
- Line management.
- Stakeholder engagement, with external bodies and internal stakeholders.
- The lifecycles of corporate business activities, such as finance, contract management, personal management etc.
Your personal statement will be limited to a maximum of 1,250 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.
The sift is due to take place on 4th & 5th March 2024.
Interviews/assessments are likely to be held w/c 18th March 2024.
This interview could be conducted online via Teams or face to face at one of our offices. 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.
You’re encouraged to become familiar with the role profile, as you may be assessed against any of the criteria recorded within.
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.
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
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.