About the job

Job summary

The Submarine Delivery Agency (SDA) is a part of the Ministry of Defence responsible for the procurement, in-service support, and disposal of the UK’s nuclear submarines. Our work is of unparalleled strategic importance nationally and internationally, ensuring the security of the UK’s continuous at-sea nuclear deterrent, and delivering some of the most technically complex programmes in defence.

Here you’ll find a community to belong to – whether that’s alongside project teams with a shared vision or as part of an employee network of like-minded individuals. We believe that, by celebrating different backgrounds and perspectives, together we’ll achieve the extraordinary.

Discover more about our work:

We offer 25+ days’ holiday, flexible and hybrid working, enhanced parental leave schemes, shopping discounts, and an exceptional employer pension contribution of around 27%, to help work work for you.

For security reasons this role is open to sole UK nationals only. A ‘sole UK national’ refers to an individual who holds citizenship solely in the UK, without dual citizenship or nationality from another country.] We’re unable to offer visa sponsorship.

This role requires you to have lived in the UK for the last 5 years and obtain Security Check (SC) security clearance. Clearance must be obtained without any caveats that prevent you from carrying out the role you have been recruited for. If it isn’t obtained, or is obtained but with caveats that prevent you from carrying out the role, any conditional offer made to you will be withdrawn. Obtaining SC security clearance can be a lengthy process, and we reserve the right to withdraw any conditional offer made if the necessary security clearance isn’t obtained within 12 months.

Job description

Do you thrive developing positive and engaged relationships in a complex and ever-evolving environment? This could be the perfect position for you! We at the Submarine Delivery Agency (SDA) are seeking an experienced leader to join our team as a Senior Qualified Accountant in Barrow-in-Furness.

You will have the opportunity to work alongside projects offering significant scope, with responsibility across delivery, policy, strategic direction, and leadership, whilst working closely with suppliers and a wide stakeholder base. You will strategically lead an experienced and dynamic financial team, encouraging a culture of imaginative thinking, learning from experience, and driving for improved quality by challenging the status quo.

As a Senior Qualified Accountant, you will ensure that project costs are rigorously controlled, and relevant financial and performance reporting requirements are met through the provision of specialist financial services. You will enable the Project Team to deliver on scope, to time and to budget and make informed strategic decisions.

Want to find out more about what we do in the SDA? Discover more below:

• Discover the Submarine Delivery Enterprise
• Why people like working for the SDA

For tips to help you with your application, please follow this link.

At the SDA, we champion flexible ways of working. Regular in-person attendance is required (this is expected to be a minimum of 40%) to promote the benefits of face-to-face collaboration alongside flexibility of hours to support work-life balance. Initially, you may be expected to attend more frequently to familiarise yourselves with the site, the team, and your role.

What you’ll be doing

• Lead an experienced and dynamic financial team ensuring appropriate delegation of work, support, and capability development opportunities for the team.
• Oversee the monthly financial forecasting process for the Project Team, including financial risk, and accurate and insightful commentary, challenge, and variance analysis. Lead on the Financial input and information at the monthly forecast reviews to empower stakeholder decision making.
• Oversee the Financial input to the Annual Budget Cycle (ABC) process in conjunction with Project Managers (PM)/Project Control Manager (PCM) also with the production of the Programme Cost Review (PCR) forecasts and the provision of the ABC Briefing Pack.
• Work collaboratively with a variety of stakeholders in providing technical accounting guidance, advising of key risks, and ensuring the accuracy and robustness of reporting. Develop Cost Models in support of business case approvals. Also, to monitor project expenditure against approval. Lead the team in actively supporting audit and internal compliance. Advise on accounting and forecasting implications of policy and programme decisions.  Liaise with Finance & Accounting (F&A) colleagues to ensure that VAT and FOREX treatment is correct.
• Provide key support to the business area to analyse, understand and report on financial performance against delivery schedules and targets, provide analysis of risks and opportunities, and working collaboratively, provide prompt evaluation of proposals and Business Cases.
• Earned Value Management (EVM) analysis to demonstrate project performance and analyse variances to plan, determine impact on the schedule and cost to complete the scope of work. Ensure consistency with IYM and EVM reporting.

Person specification

To be successful with your application, you'll need to show that you meet the following essential criteria:

• Qualified Accountant CCAB (including CIMA, ICAEW, ACCA, CIPFA, ICAS, Chartered Accountants Ireland, or International equivalent qualification), with full membership (with letters) of the relevant accounting body and up to date CPD records.
• Extensive experience in Management Accounting or Financial Accounting, presenting financial information or public sector accounting.
• Demonstrable experience in a strategic financial role delivering against a complex and challenging financial environment.
• Previous leadership experience with exposure to senior stakeholders, and the ability to work to own initiative.

In addition to the responsibilities above, the following technical competences and behaviours will be assessed at interview:

• Cost Management (Expert)
• Financial Planning, Reporting and Resource Allocation (Practitioner)
• Leadership
• Communicating and Influencing

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £58,500, Ministry of Defence contributes £15,795 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

Your application will go through the following stages of assessment:

1. Pre-sift - We will check that you meet any essential or eligibility criteria that are listed in the Person Specification section of this advert. On your CV, please clearly show how you meet the essential criteria.
2. Sift - Your CV will be assessed against the following categories, using a simple numerical scoring system: Key Achievements; Relevant Experience; Applied Knowledge and Skills. Please follow our guidance on CV writing for best chance of success.
3. Interview - If you're invited to interview, you'll be assessed against the Sift categories listed above, as well as the Technical Competences and Behaviours listed in the Person Specification section of this advert.

Offering at a lower level

If you’re not successful at interview, we may offer you a role at a lower level if this is a match for your skills and experience. If this applies to your application, you’ll be scored against criteria for the lower-level role and offers will be made in merit order. If you accept this position, you’ll be able to take advantage of opportunities to develop your career as part of our team.

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

Open to UK nationals only.

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.