Head of Technology Category - #1749115

Details Reference number 410247 Salary £96,000 - £131,000 GCO Pension, GCO Terms. Up to 20% performance-related-pay available on accreditation. GBP Job grade SCS Pay Band 1 Commercial Specialist Contract type Permanent Business area GCF - Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Type of role Commercial Working pattern Flexible working, Full-time, Job share, Part-time, Compressed hours Number of jobs available 1 Contents

• Location
• About the job
• Benefits
• Things you need to know
• Apply and further information
  
  

Location Assignment Location: Bristol BS1 5AH, Birmingham B3 1AQ, London SW1P 4DF, Peterborough PE2 8YY

Occasional travel required (2-3 days per month).

Relocation costs will not be reimbursed. About the job Job summary

In Defra, we deal with a vast range of issues that profoundly impact peoples lives. We are responsible for Englands environment, countryside and rural economy, the food and farming sectors and have a lead responsibility for protection from a wide range of natural threats and hazards. The main purpose of the Technology Category Team is to provide commercial support to Defra with and via our Digital, Data and Technology Services team as well as supporting group organisations such as the Environment Agency and Rural Payments Agency for example.

Defra has an exciting ambition and strategy to deliver on four priority outcomes: the Environment (improving the environment through cleaner air and water, minimised waste and thriving plants and terrestrial and marine wildlife); Net Zero (reducing greenhouse gas emissions and increase carbon storage in the agricultural, waste, peat and tree planting sectors to help deliver net zero); Floods and resilience (reducing likelihood and impact of flooding and coastal erosion on people, businesses, communities and the environment); Agriculture, food, fisheries, animal welfare and biosecurity (increasing the sustainability, productivity and resilience of agriculture, fishing, food and drink sectors, enhancing biosecurity and raising animal welfare standards).

There is a significant and exciting commercial challenge in delivering these strategic priorities alongside core technology transformation and efficiency saving deliverables. Technology underpins many of these priorities and our team provides the commercial support and expertise across the organisation to achieve this. Our ambition is to build on our existing expertise and develop a commercial organisation that reaches new levels of performance and is willing to adopt innovative commercial approaches. We are expected to deliver maximum value and benefits from our expenditure.

This is a great opportunity to lead, motivate and develop a forward-thinking and professional commercial team of circa. 60 to make a real and meaningful difference on our journey to create commercial expertise at the heart of sustainable business delivery.

The successful candidate will undertake a senior strategic leadership role. They will be responsible for effective spend management through innovation and transformation to meet the Defra strategic outcomes, whilst also fulfilling its Spending Review targets.

The Technology Commercial team are responsible for c £400m (and growing) spend per annum across multiple technology subcategories including: Digital workplace, service operations, security, hosting/cloud, connectivity (WAN LAN SD WAN), unified communications, mobile, core IT platforms, technology services and key projects supporting major digital programmes through application development and maintenance services (DDaT).

Job Description

As Head of the Technology Category you will lead the commercial strategy, designing and implementing the commercial frameworks, outsourcing policies, and supplier relationships to deliver the desired commercial outcomes across Defra.

You will develop effective strategic and operational approaches for promoting innovation across the function. You will improve delivery within designated categories through rigorous and strong leadership across the profession that supports the business strategic outcomes.

You will hold a business-critical senior leadership role and will need to have the confidence to manage relationships with a wide range of senior stakeholders, within Defra and other senior leaders across wider government, including the Government Commercial Function.

You will lead, motivate and direct a professional commercial team to develop and implement corporate initiatives to ensure business outcomes are met and to ensure continuous improvement in the field of commercial activity.

Locations:

The successful candidate(s) will be able to agree a contractual workplace from those locations listed in this advert. When selecting your location listed in this job advert please be aware that this will be your contractual base location with a requirement to spend a minimum of 60% of your working time in this organisational workplace.

Your time spent on official duties at workplace locations other than your contractual office such as supplier, customer or partner locations required to perform your role is included in the 60% attendance.

This requirement will however take into consideration any reasonable adjustments agreed upon appointment for people with a disability, flexibilities agreed for those with specific caring responsibilities, or other similar temporary flexibilities.

Person specification

• Lead, motivate and develop a professional commercial team to enable them to challenge and influence; deliver corporate outcomes and to ensure continuous improvement in all commercial activity.
• Challenge and drive measurable improvements in the governance and policy making, working collaboratively to deliver optimum commercial approaches and promote category management principles across the core spend activity.
• Champion the commercial engagement on prescribed expenditure or specialism, promoting and leading on the end-to-end commercial DNA process on behalf of the function.
• Take the strategic lead on supplier relationship and contract management to deliver customer outcomes whilst recognising the importance of the suppliers commercial drivers / objectives.
• Promote, develop and influence Defra group to deliver value for money. Achieve savings targets and sustainable outcomes through innovative procurement routes and maximising the value and outputs of existing and new commercial arrangements.
• Engage with key strategic internal and external policy makers, key stakeholders such as Ministers, Directors and Senior Management peers to ensure commercial best practice is applied. Able to influence strategic decision-making across Defra.
• Promote commercial principles within the Defra group and wider Government, influencing policy where appropriate.
• Drive and lead on reducing unnecessary complexity thereby reducing inefficiency and cost, while increasing the quality of procurement outcomes.
• Drive progress against key deliverables and provide expert advice on commercial risk management; deliver innovative and flexible approaches to support the complex business agenda and the strategic objectives at corporate level.
• Engage and support lead customer directorates to develop their commercial capability.
• Employ excellent communication, negotiation and influencing skills to enable effective change management with stakeholders at all levels (including board members) who may hold conflicting views.
• Be amongst the most senior members of the Government Commercial Function and play a role in the broader commercial reform programme led by the Government Chief Commercial Officer;
• Play a key leadership and change management role in developing a strong commercial function for the DEFRA Group and across government.
  
  

Technical skills

We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:

• An accomplished commercial professional with a track record of setting high standards and delivering large-scale technology procurement portfolios and or programmes to time and quality
• Experience working in a complex and demanding environment requiring effective prioritisation and being open to innovative ideas and challenge. Experience leading strategic contract negotiations and resolving supplier disputes through negotiation
• Experience of successfully influencing a diverse range of senior internal and external stakeholders, building effective relationships at a senior level as well as with demanding senior stakeholders and suppliers at a strategic level
• Excellent leadership skills on a similar scale, able to motivate and inspire a high performing team. Communicates clearly and honestly influencing stakeholders for mutual benefits. Foster inclusivity and develop strategies to enhance capability
  
  

Benefits

As a valued employee of the Government Commercial Organisation (GCO), you will have access to all the benefits the centre has to offer; including flexible working, generous benefits, Career Coaches, Mentors, L&D, a Commercial College, active talent management and, most importantly, access to commercial projects that will far exceed the scale and complexity on offer elsewhere in the UK.

For existing Civil Servants: For full details of the impact on any move across the civil service on your existing terms and conditions, please read the candidate pack. Please note that any move across the Civil Service may have implications on your ability to continue to claim childcare vouchers.

Things you need to know Selection process details This vacancy is using Success Profiles , and will assess your Experience and Technical skills.

Your application will be reviewed by a panel and should you be successful at sift we will invite you to attend a Virtual commercial Assessment and Development Centre (VADC). The panel will review results of the VADC and determine which candidates will go through to a subsequent final panel interview.

Please be advised that the Virtual ADC is taking place on the 11th July and will require a full day's attendance.

If you are invited to attend a virtual ADC, but for any reason are unable to meet the date outlined then please get in touch with the team on as soon as possible. The ADC is booked and paid for in advance by departments, therefore it is only in certain circumstances we are able to accommodate alternative dates.

For full details of our process, and a likely timeline, please read the attached candidate pack.

Throughout our selection process, we will make decisions about your capability to do the job, based on evidence you provide against the Technical Skills (essential criteria) and your Job History (CV) that you will be asked to provide during the application process. Further help and advice on our application and selection process can be found at this web address https://www.civil-service-careers.gov.uk/gcf-how-to-apply/

IMPORTANT: If you do not receive an acknowledgement of your application within 2 working days please contact:

If you are successful, you will be invited to attend the final panel interview. You will be advised of the format and it is likely to include a short presentation which you will have time to prepare in advance.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment. This role has a minimum assignment duration of 3 years. An assignment duration is the period of time a Senior Civil Servant is expected to remain in the same post to enable them to deliver on the agreed key business outcomes. The assignment duration also supports your career through building your depth of expertise.

As part of accepting this role you will be agreeing to the expected assignment duration set out above. This will not result in a contractual change to your terms and conditions. Please note this is an expectation only, it is not something which is written into your terms and conditions or indeed which the employing organisation or you are bound by. It will depend on your personal circumstances at a particular time and business needs, for example, would not preclude any absence like family friendly leave. It is nonetheless an important expectation, which is why we ask you to confirm you agree to the assignment duration set out above. Security Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is counter-terrorist check .

See our vetting charter . 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)
• 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 Working for the Civil Service The Civil Service Code sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

Requirements

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles . 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. Diversity and Inclusion The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy . Apply and further information This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans initiative. The Civil Service welcomes applications from people who have recently left prison or have an unspent conviction. Read more about prison leaver recruitment (opens in new window). Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records. Contact point for applicants Job contact :

• Name : Lynsey Munro
• Email :
  
  

Recruitment team

• Email :
  
  

Further information If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles, and you wish to make a complaint, you should direct this to the Head of Commercial Resourcing Hub at the following email quoting the vacancy reference number (if applicable) and the details of your complaint. If you are not satisfied with the response you receive, you can contact the Civil Service Commission via the following web page: http://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk/civil-service-recruitment/complaints/