About the job

Job summary

Use your coding skills to help shape our environment for future generations. 

This is a great opportunity to work knowledge in a highly collaborative environment. We will therefore expect you to have proven expertise in API development with a focus on writing unit and integration tests and building and deploying automation. You’ll also have excellent technical knowledge of Microsoft .NET (C#); SQL Server Development; Entity Framework; and ASP.Net MVC. Above all else, you’ll be a collaborative team-player working with other developers, architects, and business analysts to ensure the best practices and standards are followed. You will have a passion for using technology to deliver the best business outcomes.  

Mentoring and coaching junior developers and sharing your knowledge and expertise this is an opportunity grow our development capability within Ofgem and as part of our DDaT profession you will have set career paths for progression such as DevOps, Architecture and as a Principal Developer.   

As a member of the Digital Delivery team which sits within the Delivery and Schemes directorate, you will find plenty of opportunity to make best use of new technologies as you deliver digital solutions. With the support of our multi-disciplinary AGILE project team, you will be comfortable working at pace as you provide a technical and application perspective to every challenge, making recommendations on how we could improve ensuring you have some autonomy within the role. From identifying and fixing bugs to writing code and working with build and release pipelines, you will take technical ownership at every stage of our business application requirements.  

We know we achieve our best work when we have a broad cross section of opinions and skills within our team. We therefore welcome candidates from all backgrounds, and especially welcome individuals from underrepresented groups. While this is a full-time role, flexible working patterns, part time opportunities and job shares are welcome, so we will see to it that you are able to achieve the work-life balance that is best suited to your lifestyle commitments. We will also provide you with a generous benefits package alongside fully flexible hybrid working which is currently 1 day within the offices based in either Central London, Glasgow or Cardiff. 

Job description

Ofgem works on behalf of energy consumers to ensure that every household and business in the UK can rely on a safe, affordable, and environmentally sustainable energy supply. We are playing a vital part in accelerating the transition to Net Zero and a carbon neutral energy system - a goal that everyone wants to achieve. Whatever your role, you will be playing your part in creating new energy solutions that are great for customers, and great for the environment. 
 
Ofgem has a culture of inclusion that encourages, supports, and celebrates the diverse voices and experiences of our colleagues. It fuels our innovation and helps ensure we can best represent the consumers and the communities we serve. Everyone is welcome - as an inclusive workplace, our employees are comfortable bringing their authentic selves to work. 

Purpose  

• Support the Principal Developer (Tech Lead), and the wider team developing and maintaining the delivery of digital solutions and services that support Ofgem in its regulatory duties.  
• Work closely within a formal delivery team applying technology to achieve efficient and effective business outcome, with a view to continuous improvement.  

This role will be part of our DDaT profession within Ofgem. Throughout your tenure, you will be supported by the profession in all aspects of professional and personal development as well as the chance to work flexibly across different projects and teams.  

Person specification

Key Responsibilities  

• Plan and lead development on sets of related stories. 
• Understand the entire system and take responsibility for teaching this to others. 
• Work with other disciplines to understand what needs building. 
• Find ways to improve system security, robustness, resilience, and stability. 
• Guide and advise others on technical areas you have expertise in, modern development standards and approaches to understand user stories. Coach and mentor more junior colleagues. Lead on and participate in recruitment as required. 
• Work collaboratively with colleagues from the Delivery and Schemes directorate, within Digital Delivery and across the Security, Digital Services and Data teams - building relationships, learning from each other, and sharing best practice. 

Key Outputs and Deliverables   

• To work as part of a team with Developers, Business Analysts, Project Managers, Automation Testers, and the IT Infrastructure team to develop and deliver functionality to manage key Ofgem renewable energy schemes.  
• Work closely with colleagues to ensure development is high quality and functioning as expected, as well as planning and delivering yourself on the work of others and your own. 
• Clearly document your work through designs, code commenting, architecture designs and user documentation/training.  
• Actively contribute to Software Engineering Profession seeking to continually improve. 

Essential Criteria

• (Lead criteria) Proven expertise as a Microsoft .NET Developer (C#) in:
  - RESTful APIs
  - MVC and/or Razor
  - Unit Testing
  - Entity Framework and Relational Databases 

• (Lead criteria) Sound knowledge of a wide range of technologies and libraries using in an enterprise such as logging and monitoring, authentication/authorisation, cloud hosting environments (Azure), systems integration, source control, package management etc. 
• An understanding of common security issues and how to mitigate them.
• Experience of Troubleshooting and debugging applications. 

Desirable Criteria

• Experience of mentoring, coaching or leading other developers.
• Experience working with Azure DevOps including CI/CD pipelines, build automation and deployment. 

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £45,614, OFGEM contributes £12,315 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, Experience and Technical skills.

When you press the ‘Apply now’ button, you will be asked to complete personal details (not seen by the sift panel), and upload a copy of your CV anonymising all details where necessary.  

You will then be asked to answer 3 Technical Questions evidencing how you meet the essential and desirable skills and capabilities listed in the role profile. Please ensure you demonstrate clearly, within these answers how you meet each of the essential and desirable skills and capabilities. 

The Civil Service values honesty and integrity and expect all candidates to abide by these principles. Ofgem take any incidences of cheating very seriously. Please ensure all examples provided are of your own experience. Any instances of plagiarism or other forms of cheating will be investigated and, if proven, the relevant applications will be withdrawn from the process. 

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.