About the job

Job summary

Are you a strong and capable leader who strives for continuous improvement?

Have you got exceptional senior stakeholder management experience, with strong influencing skills?

Do you have a strong background in project management or delivery?

If so, we’d love to hear from you!

Job description

This is an exciting opportunity to work in a cutting-edge policy area as part of the UK SHORE flagship programme.

The UK Shipping Office for Reducing Emissions (UK SHORE) team in DfT’s Maritime Directorate was set up in 2022 to manage a new £206m R&D programme to accelerate the technologies necessary to decarbonise the UK’s domestic maritime sector.

The programme delivers a suite of interventions across the full range of the technology readiness level (TRL) scale, including the Clean Maritime Research Hub, the Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition and the Zero Emission Vessels and Infrastructure scheme.

This role will focus on the successful delivery of current interventions, managing multi-million-pound grant funding schemes to ensure value for money and maximum benefits are realised. This will require working closely with stakeholders across Government, industry, academia and NGOs, managing the relationship with key delivery partners, and disseminating learnings from the programme across the maritime sector.

 Responsibilities include but are not limited to:

• Leading the delivery and implantation of UK SHORE interventions to support the maritime sector’s growth and decarbonisation goals. This will include managing existing grant funding competitions, ensuring value for money, maximising benefits and disseminating learnings.
• Lead preparations for a maritime decarbonisation bid into the next Spending Review (SR). Working collaboratively across multiple teams and using learnings from the UK SHORE programme and stakeholder engagement, you will design the future programme of work and prepare an evidence-based SR bid to continue driving progress towards Net Zero.
• Support cross-Divisional work to refresh the Clean Maritime Plan, providing clear objective advice to Ministers on maritime decarbonisation policy proposals and supporting Government and industry to deliver the commitments set out in the plan.
• Manage the relationship between the UK SHORE team and key delivery partners, including Innovate UK, the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and the Connected Places Catapult.
• This post will give the post-holder the opportunity to hone strong leadership and stakeholder engagement skills, learn about R&D and innovation, as well as develop project management skills.

For further information, please see the attached Role Profile

Person specification

About you:

The successful candidate will have:

• Experience of Senior Leadership engagement within a Project Management / Delivery position.
• Understanding of the wider strategic context of delivery such as policy.
• Experience of developing or influencing policy including problem solving to achieve positive policy outcomes.
• Working within Research and Development, generating concepts and new ideas.

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. 

There may be occasions where you will be required to travel to other DfT offices and attend meetings and visits around the UK and internationally.

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 . 

https://careers.dft.gov.uk/our-agencies/department-for-transport-central/

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.

As part of the application process, you will be asked to provide a CV, Personal Statement and evidence of 1 behaviour.

For your Personal Statement, please provide detailed evidence of the following:

• Experience of managing a partner organisation to deliver on a project.
• Experience of understanding the wider strategic context of delivery such as policy.
• Internal and external stakeholder engagement, influencing the decision-making process and obtaining buy in from stakeholders.

For your behaviour examples please provide evidence of when you have demonstrated the following behaviours:

• Working Together

Your Personal Statement will be limited to 750 words. Each behaviour example will be limited to 250 words.

Should a large number of applications be received, an initial sift may be conducted using the lead behaviour which is Working Together. Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift or progressed straight to interview.

Please fully utilise the 750-word count when completing your personal statement.

The sift is due to take place from week commencing 5th February 2024.

Interviews are likely to be held from week commencing 19th February 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
• A written Policy exercise

This interview will be conducted online via MS 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.

More information about Technical

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.

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.