About the job

Job summary

The Government People Group exists to work with departments, professions, and functions to build a modern, effective Civil Service. We support the government workforce with the right skills and capability. We are working with leaders to get the right people in the right jobs, with the right skills and continuous learning to excel in their roles. We provide leadership, and in turn, create leaders with exceptional line management capability across departments, influencing partners in the wider public sector and beyond. This involves getting our retention and reward strategy right, to nurture specific skills, and create pride and resilience in our workforce.

Our role is also to provide system leadership across central government in pulling together back office services. Collectively, we help support the Cabinet Office’s priority to drive efficiencies, and reforms that will make government work better, to ultimately provide a better service to the public.

This is a unique opportunity to use your hard-earned knowledge, expertise and experience to shape and influence programmes to implement shared services for hundreds of thousands of people across the whole of government.

Your experience of shared services will be used to advise and guide clusters, departments and other organisations in the design and implementation of their shared service centres.

Job description

The Shared Services Strategy Directorate is part of the Government People Group in the Cabinet Office and works across government to define, implement and realise the Shared Services Strategy for Government. This strategy has at its core the establishment of five shared service centres to provide HR and finance services to Departments and their Arms Length Bodies. 

This is a unique opportunity to use your hard-earned knowledge, expertise and experience to advise and influence programmes to shared service centres for hundreds of thousands of civil servants across the whole of government.

You will join a small team with SaaS ERP, BPS and enterprise architectural expertise. They provide tailored technical, design and analytical support to clusters and functions, to support delivery of the shared services for government strategy. As clusters start to implement designs this team will be come ever more crucial. 

This role will require strong delivery skills as well as the ability to articulate the risks and opportunities clearly, both in written and verbal communication. It will also require an analytical mind able to assess options and model future patterns to maximise benefits and efficiency.

You will provide advice and guidance to department clusters and other organisations to influence and support their programmes, specifically: 

• Representing the Shared Services Directorate with the clusters as they work to implement the vision of five shared service centres across government.
• Establish close working relationships with relevant senior stakeholders in each of the clusters.
• Work with colleagues in the Platforms, Data and Interoperability Directorate to advise on the design of current and future Government People Group services to align with the Shared Services Strategy for Government.
• Author information and guidance and publish it on OneGovCloud, our internal web platform for government shared services.
• Support and contribute to the work of other teams in Government People Group.
• Line management of the Shared Service Design Lead.
• Supporting the clusters.
• Assessing central services to check that they are aligned to clustering and fit for purpose
• Liaison with central government functions such as CDDO, GDS, Government People Group, Government Finance Function, Government Commercial Function, etc. as appropriate.

Person specification

The post holder will need to demonstrate the ability to use their initiative, identify opportunities and take forward initiatives.

The post holder will be working with stakeholders in both business and technical domains, and experience of enterprise architecture would be helpful. It is expected that the post holder will work towards gaining a qualification in enterprise architecture (if they do not already have this).

Essential Criteria

• Experience in shared services.
• Architecture experience, ideally in the context of a shared service.
• Ability to influence and collaborate across boundaries and in sensitive environments. 
• Proven ability to work with experts to resolve problems, understand challenges and identify actions and solutions.
• Good oral and written communication skills, with an ability to get complex information across in a clear and succinct way.
• Strong interpersonal skills and ability to build and maintain excellent working relationships with stakeholders.

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 will also count towards this level of attendance.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £53,400, Cabinet Office contributes £14,418 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 and Experience.

Application process

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.

A CV outlining your previous experience, with key responsibilities and achievements. You will add your information into a structured form rather than attaching a document.

A Personal Statement explaining how your skills and experience are relevant to the role. This should include examples showing how you have completed similar responsibilities and activities. You should focus on the essential criteria listed in the responsibilities section of the advert. The statement is limited to no longer than 750 words.

An initial sift of your CV and Personal Statement will be conducted against the Essential Criteria outlined in the job description.

Should a large number of applications be received, an initial sift may be undertaken using the CV. Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift, or progressed straight to assessment/interview.

Selection process

During the blended interview you will be assessed against your experience and the behaviours that are contained within this advert.

Expected timeline (subject to change)

Expected sift date – TBC
Expected interview date/s – TBC
Interview location - Online

Further information

Please note terms and conditions are attached. Please take time to read the document to determine how these may affect you.

A reserve list may be held for a period of 12 months from which further appointments can be made.

Any move to Cabinet Office from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax Free Childcare. Determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk

If successful and transferring from another Government Department a criminal record check may be carried out.

In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service or Disclosure Scotland on your behalf.

However, we recognise in exceptional circumstances some candidates will want to send their completed forms direct. If you will be doing this, please advise Government Recruitment Service of your intention by emailing Pre-EmploymentChecks.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk stating the job reference number in the subject heading. 

For further information on the Disclosure Scotland confidential checking service telephone: the Disclosure Scotland Helpline on 0870 609 6006 and ask to speak to the operations manager in confidence, or email Info@disclosurescotland.co.uk

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.

New entrants are expected to join on the minimum of the pay band.

Reasonable adjustments

If a person with disabilities is put at a substantial disadvantage compared to a non-disabled person, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes. 

If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should: 

• Contact Government Recruitment Service via cabinetofficerecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs. 
• Complete the ‘Assistance required’ section in the ‘Additional requirements’ page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional.

If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'contact point for applicants' section.

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.