applicants
Private Secretary to the Director
at Department for Science, Innovation & Technology London in London (Published at 26-10-2023)
Details
Reference number
322594
Salary
£37,470 - £45,565
National: £37,470 - £41,925 London: £41,055 - £45,565
Job grade
Senior Executive Officer
Contract type
Fixed Term
Loan
Length of employment
2 years
Business area
DSIT - Digital, Technologies and Telecoms - Digital Infrastructure
Type of role
Administration / Corporate Support
Business Management and Improvement
Secretarial
Working pattern
Flexible working, Full-time, Job share, Part-time
Number of jobs available
1
Contents
Location
About the job
Benefits
Things you need to know
Apply and further information
Location
Birmingham, Cardiff, Darlington, Edinburgh, London, Manchester
About the job
Job summary
The responsibilities for the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology for 2023 are as follows:
- Positioning the UK at the forefront of global scientific and technological advancement
- Driving innovations that change lives and sustain economic growth
- Delivering talent programmes, physical and digital infrastructure and regulation to support our economy, security and public services
- R&D funding
For 2023, our priorities are:
- Optimise public R&D investment to support areas of relative UK strength and increase the level of private R&D to make our economy the most innovative in the world.
- Promote a diverse research and innovation system that connects discovery to new companies, growth and jobs – including by delivering world-class physical and digital infrastructure (such as gigabit broadband), making the UK the best place to start and grow a technology business and developing and attracting top talent.
- Put our public services – including the NHS and schools – at the forefront of innovation, championing new ways of working and the development of in-house STEM capability to improve outcomes for people.
- Strengthen international collaboration on science and technology in line with the Integrated Review, and ensure our researchers are able to continue to work with leading scientists in Europe and around the world.
- Deliver key legislative and regulatory reforms to drive competition and promote innovation, including the Data Protection and Digital Information Bill, the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumer Bill and our pro-innovation approach to regulating AI.
- Pass the remaining stages of the reformed Online Safety Bill to keep British people, especially children, safe online.
Our Inclusive Environment
We are building an inclusive culture to make the Department a brilliant place to work where our people feel valued, have a voice and can be their authentic selves.
We value difference and diversity, not only because we believe it is the right thing to do, but because it will help us be more innovative and make better decisions.
We offer first-class flexible working benefits, excellent employee well-being support and a great pension. We are fortunate to have a range of excellent staff networks and are proud to be a Disability Confident Leader employer. We will support talented people from all backgrounds to build a career and thrive.
We actively welcome applications from anyone who shares our commitment to inclusion. We will fully support candidates with a disability or long-term condition who require adjustments in our recruitment process.
Find Out More
We regularly run events where you can find out more about the department and tips for the application process. You can sign up for upcoming events here: https://www.tickettailor.com/events/departmentforsciencetechnologyandinnovation?
You can also follow our LinkedIn Careers Page: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/dsitcareers/
Job description
The Romans built roads, the Victorians canals and Railways. Putting in place the right digital infrastructure across the country is an equally big challenge for our time, and a top priority for the Prime Minister. The Digital Infrastructure directorate leads on making this happen - setting policies to promote investment and protect national security, whilst running innovative pilot programmes for the next generation of technology. We play a leading role across government, delivering new commercial deals, policy and legislation, and work closely with No.10, Cabinet Office, HM Treasury and key Whitehall delivery departments as well as industry, Ofcom and international partners to achieve our goals.
This is a unique opportunity to perform a role at the heart of the Digital Infrastructure (DI) directorate where you will have sight of the entire spectrum of the DI agenda. As a Private Secretary, you will provide a high-quality private office service to the Director, working closely with the Head of Office and the Diary Manager to drive forward the Director’s priorities. You will also work closely with the DI Senior Leadership Team (SLT) to support various corporate initiatives and have daily contact with seniors' and ministers' offices in DSIT. You will empower the Director to focus on the leadership responsibilities of their role and get more done by processing information flow to surface priorities, ensuring the Director is briefed for meetings, taking meetings on the Director's behalf as appropriate, and ensuring proper follow-up on decisions. Among other things this will include:
- Managing the Director’s inbox and filtering the incoming information to prioritise, delegate, or dismiss as appropriate.
- Working with the Diary Manager to ensure the Director's diary is well organised and correctly prioritised.
- Commissioning briefings from the directorate and ensuring that the Director is appropriately briefed for all meetings, clear next steps are agreed during meetings, and effective follow-up is done after meetings.
- Leading / contributing input at meetings on the Director’s behalf as required.
You will support the smooth running of the directorate. You will coordinate input into various business processes and work with the Head of Office, Business Manager, and DI SLT on special projects to make the directorate a great place to work. Among other things this will include:
- Building strong relationships with the DI SLT and other senior teams and private offices across the department, working closely to progress joint priorities.
- Acting as the first point of contact for internal and external stakeholders and following up on various requests & commissions.
- Following up on decisions made by the SLT and coordinating actions across the directorate.
- Communicating priorities to the directorate and feeding back insight from the directorate to the SLT.
- Leading / supporting directorate corporate initiatives.
- Looking for opportunities for continuous improvement and bringing them to fruition.
You will contribute to running a happy and high performing Director's Office team. You will act as a line manager to one or more Diary Managers / Executive Assistants and empower them to succeed in their roles. Among other things this will include:
- Modelling good performance by upholding high quality standards in everything you do, pursuing continuous improvement and smart ways of working, and promoting well-being.
- Setting clear objectives for your direct reports and effectively managing performance against them through effective feedback.
- Coaching direct reports to find solutions to problems and supporting their professional development.
- Supporting the Head of Office in leading the team.
Person specification
We would love to hear from you if you are:
- Naturally proactive and thoughtful in your approach to task at hand.
- Able to work effectively at pace, make decisions in the face of competing priorities, and remain calm and resilient under pressure.
- Keen to look for better ways of doing things in every aspect of your role and take initiative to make it happen.
- Able to form effective working relationships with colleagues and stakeholders at all levels of the organisation.
- Able to communicate effectively with different audiences.
- Organised and naturally prone to paying attention to detail; able to process a large flow of information and synthesise key insights.
Behaviours
We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
- Delivering at Pace
- Communicating and Influencing
- Working Together
- Changing and Improving
Benefits
The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology offers a competitive mix of benefits including:
- A culture of flexible working, such as job sharing, homeworking and compressed hours.
- Automatic enrolment into the Civil Service Pension Scheme, with an average employer contribution of 27%.
- A minimum of 25 days of paid annual leave, increasing by 1 day per year up to a maximum of 30.
- An extensive range of learning & professional development opportunities, which all staff are actively encouraged to pursue.
- Access to a range of retail, travel and lifestyle employee discounts.
- A hybrid office/home based working model where staff will spend a norm of 40-60% of their time in the office (minimum of 40%) over a month with flex dependent on balancing business and individual need.
Things you need to know
Selection process details
This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Strengths and Experience.
As part of the application process you will be asked to complete a CV and a number of behavioural statements.
Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.
Please note - the CV incorporated into the application form is for information purposes only and will not be scored.
Applications will be sifted on behavioural statements.
In the event of a large number of applicants, applications will be sifted on the lead behavioural statement (Delivering at Pace).
Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift, or progressed straight to assessment/interview.
The interview will consist of behaviour and strength based questions.
Sift and interview dates
Expected Timeline subject to change
Sift dates: w/c 13/11/2023
Interview dates: w/c 27/11/2023
Interview Location: MS Teams.
Candidates are asked to note the above timetable, exercising flexibility through the recruitment and selection process.
Further Information
Existing Civil Servants and applicants from accredited NDPBs are eligible to apply, but will only be considered on loan basis (Civil Servants) or secondment (accredited NDPBs). Prior agreement to be released on a loan basis must be obtained before commencing the application process. In the case of Civil Servants, the terms of the loan will be agreed between the home and host department and the Civil Servant. This includes grade on return.
Reasonable Adjustment
We are proud to be a disability confident leader and we welcome applications from disabled candidates and candidates with long-term conditions.
We fully support adjustments throughout our recruitment process and we encourage candidates to discuss their adjustment needs by emailing the job contact which can be found under the contact point for applicants section.
We do not have an exhaustive list of adjustments that we support but just some examples include additional time to complete your application form, behaviour questions up to 72 hours prior to interview and having extra time at interview.
If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section.
If successful and transferring from another Government Department a criminal record check may be carried out.
New entrants are expected to join on the minimum of the pay band.
A location based reserve list of successful candidates will be kept for 12 months. Should another role become available within that period you may be offered this position.
Please note terms and conditions are attached. Please take time to read the document to determine how these may affect you.
Any move to the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology 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 https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk
DSIT does not normally offer full home working (i.e. working at home); but we do offer a variety of flexible working options (including occasionally working from home).
DSIT does not currently hold a sponsorship licence and cannot offer Visa Sponsorship to candidates through this campaign.
In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service /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.
Feedback
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.
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 security check (opens in a new window).
See our vetting charter (opens in a new window).
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
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.
Apply and further information
This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) 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 :
Monika Rudzeviciute
Email :
monika.rudzeviciute@dsit.gov.uk
Recruitment team
Email :
dsitresourcing.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk
Further information
Appointment to the Civil Service is governed by the Civil Service Commission’s Recruitment Principles. If you feel that your application has not been treated in accordance with the recruitment principles, and wish to make a complaint, then you should contact in the first instance dsitresourcing.GRS@cabinetoffice.gov.uk. If you are not satisfied with the response that you receive, then you can contact the Civil Service Commission. For further information on bringing a complaint to the Civil Service Commission please visit their web pages at: https://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk/contact-us/