About the job

Job summary

Do you really care about recruitment and the candidate experience?

Do you understand how to attract and recruit specialist talent?

Do you love being hands on with candidates, sourcing and nurturing leads?

Do you want to join the original and best Specialist Talent Acquisition team in Government?

DWP are expanding our Recruitment and Talent Acquisition capability. We want skilled recruiters, talent sourcing and talent acquisition professionals to apply to join our award-winning team.

Job description

In DWP, Talent Acquisition Managers (TAMs) are respected recruitment subject matter experts. We focus on candidate attraction and candidate experience for DWP’s hard-to-fill and specialist roles.

The core of what we do is all about finding great candidates and getting them to apply.

We’re responsible for understanding DWP’s recruitment needs, our senior and specialist roles and how to fill them, and for making and informing strategic recruitment decisions.

Each Talent Acquisition Manager partners with specific practices, functions and areas within DWP (especially DWP Digital), and provides expert recruitment advice, recommendations and solutions to key senior stakeholders.

Our TAMs recruit for high volumes of roles, managing multiple live and forthcoming campaigns at any one time.

TAMs manage their own workload. You’ll prioritise and balance the time and capacity needed to work with stakeholders within DWP, against the need to engage with candidates in the marketplace and find creative ways to reach new talent and make hires.

TAMs represent the Specialist and Functional recruitment team within DWP. Outside the department they represent DWP, on social media, talent sourcing platforms and at events.

Person specification

When giving details in your employment history and personal statement you should highlight your experience in line with essential criteria below:

• A confident, persuasive communicator and influencer, with internal stakeholders of all levels and with potential candidates for DWP roles (especially specialist, digital and senior roles)
• Good skills in written English, specifically an ability to write good, persuasive, engaging copy for job adverts and candidate messaging
• Experience of autonomously sourcing and managing candidates for specialist and/or senior roles, especially digital/technology roles. Thorough understanding and high level of competence with the tools (eg LinkedIn) and techniques required for this activity.
• Knowledge, experience and understanding of the specialist recruitment market, and of recruiting in a digital/technology context, or another specialist context.
• Able to source, collate and utilise recruitment market data and talent insights using a range of tools and resources (and a thorough understanding and high level of competence with the tools and techniques required for this activity).
• Good decision-making skills: ability to understand and solve problems, make suggestions and expert recommendations based on the available data, especially in a recruitment context.

If you would like to learn more about the role, please contact peter.sweeney1@dwp.gov.uk.

Benefits

• An employer pension contribution of up to 27% For further information please click here.
• Annual leave rising up to 30 days, (based on your working pattern).
• Family friendly flexible working arrangements, such as hybrid working, job sharing, term-time working, flexi-time and compressed hours.
• Learning and development tailored to your role this could include industry recognised qualifications, coaching and mentoring. 
• An inclusive and diverse environment with opportunities to join staff networks including: Women’s Network, National Race Network, National Disability Network (THRIVE) and many more.

• An employer pension contribution of up to 27% For further information please click here.
• Bring your authentic self to work with 'I Can Be Me in DWP'
• Discount and savings on shopping, fun days out and more
• Sports and social Activities

Salary Information

Pay for this role is from £35,711 to £36,545.

Existing Civil Servants who secure a new role on lateral transfer should maintain their current salary.

Existing Civil Servants who gain promotion may move to the bottom of the next grade pay scale or 10% increase in salary whichever would be the greater.

Location

Applicants should apply for suitable posts where they can travel to and from their home office location daily within a reasonable time.   

Please be aware that this role can only be worked in the UK and not overseas. Relocation costs will not be reimbursed. 

Hybrid Working

This job role may be suitable for hybrid working, which is where an employee works part of the week in their DWP office and part of the week from home.  This is a voluntary, non-contractual arrangement and your office will be your contractual place of work. The number of days that anyone will be able to work at home will be determined primarily by business need but personal circumstances and other relevant circumstances will also be taken into account. If you are successful, any opportunities for hybrid working, including whether a hybrid working arrangement is suitable for you, will be discussed with you prior to you taking up your post.

Things you need to know

Selection process details

Stage 1: Application

Your application will consist of three parts:

1. A Personal Details application form.

2. Your employment history detailing your responsibilities, skills, accomplishments, plus your qualifications and relevant training. Please copy this information into the box field provided.

3. Personal statement up to 1000 words. Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.

When giving details in your employment history and personal statement you should highlight your experience in line with essential criteria listed in the Person Specification.

The sift panel will use the information in your employment history and personal statement to assess your experience, skills and knowledge against the essential criteria above.

You will receive one combined score for both your Employment History/CV and Personal Statement, which will be provided in your Personal Statement score.

Important Information

• You will be asked to complete your employment history any information that you would customarily share on a CV should therefore be entered onto the application form.
• Personal details that could be used to identify you including your name, contact details and address must be removed for your application to be considered.
• If your employment history/personal statement contains any personal details your application will be withdrawn.

Stage 2: Interview

If you’re successful at sift stage you will be invited to a video interview via Microsoft Teams. There, you will be assessed against the Essential Criteria listed in the Person Specification.

You’ll be asked to prepare and deliver a 5-minute presentation. You’ll be notified of the details in advance of the interview.

Interviews will take place as soon as possible following the deadline for applications for this vacancy.

To help you prepare and settle into the interview you will be sent the interview questions in advance of the interview, at least 5 days prior to your interview. These questions should be treated as confidential and should not be shared. The interview panel may ask you other questions which will not be shared in advance, including follow-up questions, and those about your experience and abilities.  Candidates should be asked further probing questions if their response is deemed to require further information to determine suitability for the role.

Further information:

Find out more about Working for DWP 

A reserve list may be held for a period of 6 months from which further appointments can be made.

Reserve list candidates will be posted in merit order by location.

Any move to DWP 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 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. 

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.

Before applying for this vacancy, current employees of DWP should check whether a successful application would result in changes to their terms & conditions of employment, e.g. mobility, pay, allowances. Civil Servants that would transfer into DWP from other government organisations, following successful application, will assume DWP's terms & conditions of employment current on the day they are posted, unless DWP has stated otherwise in writing.

The Civil Service values honesty and integrity and expects all candidates to abide by these principles. Please ensure that all examples provided in your application are taken directly from your own experience and that you describe the examples in your own words. Applications will be screened and if evidence of plagiarism or copying examples/answers from other sources is found, your application will be withdrawn. Internal DWP candidates may also face disciplinary action.

Reasonable Adjustment

At DWP we value diversity and inclusion and actively encourage and welcome applications from everyone, including those that are underrepresented in our workforce.

We consider visible and non-visible disabilities, neurodiversity or learning differences, chronic medical conditions, or mental ill health. Examples include dyslexia, epilepsy, autism, chronic fatigue, or schizophrenia.

If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should:Contact Government Recruitment Service via DWPRecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.

Complete the “Reasonable Adjustments” 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.