About the job

Job summary

We recognise the challenges that people with protected characteristics may experience on the job market and in their career progression. We are fully committed to being an inclusive employer and ensuring equal opportunities. We are keen to make our workforce as diverse as possible, and we hope to attract applications from underrepresented groups, including ethnic minorities, people with a disability, and people with gender diverse identities.

Do you want a role which has exposure to senior stakeholders and the opportunity to shape future reward strategy?

Would you want the opportunity to work on leading projects within the reward portfolio?

Do you have strong numerical skills, experience with using evidence to make effective decisions and enjoy working with data?

If so, then we would love for you to apply!

Job description

Transport is fundamental to our society. A safe, secure, efficient and reliable transport system is something that we all depend upon as it is vital for supporting a strong, productive economy and the jobs and homes people need. The Department for Transport is made up of the central Department (DfTc) and five Executive Agencies – the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency; the Vehicle Certification Agency; the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency; the Maritime and Coastguard Agency; and Active Travel England. We work with our agencies and partners to support the transport network that helps the UK’s businesses and gets people and goods travelling around the country.

This role will have the opportunity to work on a range of Reward policies to attract, motivate and retain our staff. It will be varied, fast paced and a great place to learn and make a difference. Reward is a vital strategic enabler in the recruitment and retention of the capability we need to deliver our organisational priorities and a key element in supporting DfT’s strategic objective to Be an Excellent Department.

Responsibilities

Key accountabilities of the role include:

• DfT is a leader amongst Civil Service departments in pay and employee benefits, so the post holder will develop the expertise to collaborate across government and continue to be a key player in the pay and reward community.
• Leading pieces of work within the pay and reward portfolio, which will involve developing, improving, and delivering pay and reward policy, utilising project management skills, pay and reward knowledge and analysis of data.
• Providing complex advice and assurance on a range of relevant pay and reward matters, to ensure decisions are made which are in line with Department for Transport policies, that manage risk appropriately, and are in line with Treasury or other public sector frameworks.
• Playing a key role in the SCS (senior civil servant) reward lifecycle, including annual pay increases and performance awards.
• Supporting with planning and delivery of key milestones and activities in support of roll-out of SCS capability-based pay progression.
• Partnering with the business for pay exception cases and pivotal role allowances, seeking cross-government advice and approval where relevant.
• Providing expert Reward advice to our Arm’s Length Bodies (ALB) shareholder and sponsor colleagues on a range of queries, annual pay remits and senior salary cases.
• Leading on general briefing, Parliamentary Questions (PQs), Freedom of Information (FOI’s) requests, data commissions and correspondence on relevant pay and reward matters, with due regard to deadlines and department protocols.

For an in-depth insight into the role please refer to the Role Profile.

Person specification

To be successful in this role: 

• You will be a HR professional with experience of working with/in a pay and reward function, thus being able to demonstrate a strong working knowledge of pay and reward matters.
• You will have strong numerical skills and feel comfortable analysing and interpreting data to inform decision making and/or development of organisational solutions.
• You will have excellent communication (written and verbal) skills, with the ability to confidently communicate information to a range of colleagues and stakeholders. 
• You will be able to build and maintain strong and collaborative working relations with colleagues, external parties and stakeholders.
• You will be highly organised and able to prioritise and manage a dynamic and challenging workload effectively, whilst delivering a high-quality output, and having strong attention to detail.

Additional Information

A minimum 60% of your working time should be spent at your principal workplace, although requirements to attend other locations for official business, or carry out detached duty in another DfT workplace, will also count towards this level of attendance. 

Occasional travel to other DfT offices will be required.

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. 

Find out more about what it's like working at the Department for Transport

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.

How to apply

When considering applying please look at how your experience relates to the role, and within your CV and Personal Statement please provide detailed evidence of your experience of the following:

• Experience of working in HR specifically with/in a pay and reward function.
• Strong numerical and analytical skills with the ability to interpret data to inform decision making and/or development of organisational solutions.
• Excellent communication (written and verbal) skills, with the ability to confidently communicate information to a range of colleagues and stakeholders.
• Ability to build and maintain strong and collaborative working relations with colleagues, external parties and stakeholders.

Your personal statement will be limited to a maximum of 750 words.

The sift is due to take place from 3rd January 2024

Interviews/assessments are likely to be held from 16th January 2024

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 with a presentation

This interview will be conducted online via Teams. Further details will be provided to you should you be selected for interview.

You’re encouraged to become familiar with the role profile, as you may be assessed against any of the criteria recorded within.

The Department for Transport alongside other Government Departments recruit using Success Profiles. This means for each role we consider what you will need to demonstrate in order to be successful. This gives us the best possible chance of finding the right person for the job, drives up performance and improves diversity and inclusivity.

For further information on Success Profiles visit our Careers website.

Please see attached candidate notes for further information about our recruitment process.

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

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.