About the job Job summary The Ministry of Defence employs over 55,000 Civil Servants. Within that, the Army Top Level Budget (TLB) employs around 7,200 MOD Civil Servants located at over 300 locations. Ours is a diverse workforce, with roles ranging from trainers, human resources, teachers, and psychologists to storekeepers, financiers, project and programme managers, and policy secretariat staff. There are many different functions and professions delivering key outputs for the Army. The Rapid Acquisition Team has developed quickly since its inception 2 years ago, delivering approx 400M of equipment to the Army each year. The multi functional team responds to and prioritises urgent requirements from a huge range of stakeholders, varying from Ministers to Corporals, to deliver outputs as quickly as possible, whilst taking risk against cost and performance measures. Successful acquisitions have ranged from wheeled artillery guns at 145M in 2.5 months, to mini diggers in 3 weeks. The team are looking to fill two roles, one will support the acquisition of Information Surveillance Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance Systems, such as unmanned ariel vehicles and thermal imagers. The other will support the acquisition of non-vehicle mounted fighting equipment such as weapon sights to mortar systems. Within the role you will be required to develop and deliver the capability to enable you to deliver the required outputs at extraordinary pace. You will also need to maintain equipment plans for upgrades and be required to build effective engagement and working relationships with our industry partners. These roles offer a unique opportunity to support the British Armys warfighting capabilities in a fast paced, diverse and whole force environment. The roles are advertised as 37 hrs per week and the team operate a hybrid working model with 80% of time spent in the office. These roles will probably deliver more war fighting capabilities per year, than any other person in the Army. Job description As a Rapid Acquisition Manager you will be a key component to how the Defence capability and acquisition processes can deliver at an extraordinary pace. The roles are ideal for ambitious individuals seeking to expand and refine their skills. We are looking for applications from innovative candidates, adept at problem solving who can use their knowledge and experience to circumnavigate blockers to delivery. The team is a supportive environment and encourages its staff to be comfortable with accepting risk to enable operational outputs. Job holders will need to have a proactive approach and be able to build a co-operative team from our military stakeholders, industry and Defence delivery partners. The post holder will be expected to complete a project management qualification within 6 months if not already held. Responsibilities include: Develop and deliver Rapid Acquisition Team (RAT) tasks as directed. Develop and carry out RAT deliverability assessments. Provide RAT subject matter expertise consultation to in flight equipment programmes as directed. Maintain a thorough understanding of in-service equipment, in flight equipment programmes, future capability plans and industry developments to identify upgrade and capability gap opportunities. Maintain Through-Life Platform Management Plans for in-service capabilities refreshing and implementing updates/upgrades when required. Develop Options through the procurement process to propose opportunities and deliver approved projects. Develop Urgent Capability Requirements proposals and deliver if directed. Carry out secondary tasks as directed by line manager. Person specification Essential Criteria: Adept problem solver, with experience using alternative and innovative solutions to deliver requirements. Demonstrable experience of assessing, managing and taking risk against demands. Proactive approach to work, experience of building teams from diverse industry partners. A good communicator, able to influence and inform stakeholders at all levels and from a wide variety of industries to deliver a common goal. A background in Project Management, ideally with knowledge of Agile as a Product Owner. Able to confidently use MS365 products, or similar products. Desirable Criteria: It would be advantageous for the role holder to hold a current recognised P3M qualification, or be willing to work towards a qualification within 6 months of appointment, such as: Agile Alliance Scrum Master or product owner Association for Project Management (APM) Project Management Qualification (PMQ) Managing Successful Programmes (MSP) Practitioner Qualification PRINCE2 Practitioner Qualification Knowledge of Defence procurement processes. Behaviours We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process: Making Effective Decisions Communicating and Influencing Working Together Delivering at Pace Benefits Alongside your salary of 44,590, Ministry of Defence contributes 12,917 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides. Learning and development tailored to your role An environment with flexible working options A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity A Civil Service pension with an employer contribution of 28.97% The post does not offer relocation expenses. External recruits who join the MOD who are new to the Civil Service will be subject to a six-month probation period. Please Note: Expenses incurred for travel to interviews will not be reimbursed. Please be advised that the Department is conducting a review of all pay related allowances which could impact on those allowances that the post currently being advertised attracts. Any move to MOD 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/. The Ministry of Defence is committed to providing a safe and healthy working environment for its staff which includes educating them on the benefits of not smoking, protecting them from the harmful effects of second-hand smoke and supporting those who want to give up smoking. Under the Smoke-Free Working Environment policy, Smoking and the use of all tobacco products (including combustible and chewing tobacco products) will not be permitted anywhere in the Defence working environment however some exemptions are in place, please refer to local guidance. The policy is Whole Force and includes all Defence personnel, contractors, visitors and other non-MOD personnel. All applicants seeking, considering, or accepting employment with the Ministry of Defence should be aware of this policy and that it is already in place at a number of Defence Establishments. MOD Recruitment Satisfaction Survey We may contact you regarding your experience to help us improve our customer satisfaction. The survey is voluntary and anonymous. You may however be given the opportunity to provide additional information to help us improve our service which includes the collection of some personal data as defined by the United Kingdom General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR). The MOD Privacy Policy Notice sets out how we will use your personal data and your rights. 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. 500 word personal statement outlining why you're suitable for the role and demonstrating how you meet the essential criteria At sift, you will be assessed against yourStatement of suitability and the following: Making Effective Decisions Communicating and Influencing Working Together Delivering at Pace At interview you will be assessed against the following behaviours: Making Effective Decisions Communicating and Influencing Working Together Delivering at Pace Interview dates are to be confirmed. These will be held in person. We endeavour to stick to these time frames, but these are subject to change around business needs When choosing your Behaviour examples, please make sure you use real life scenarios that relate to your own experiences. Whilst technology may help to enhance your written submission, presenting the ideas of others or those generated by technology, could result in your application being rejected. The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equality of opportunity. There is a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria. If you need to advise us that you need additional help or reasonable adjustments for the recruitment process, please contact: DBSCivPers-Resourcingteam3mod.gov.uk. As a result of the changes to the UK immigration rules which came in to effect on 1 January 2021, the Ministry of Defence will only offer sponsorship for a skilled worker visa under the points based system, where a role has been deemed to be business critical. This role does not meet that category and we will not sponsor a visa. It is therefore NOT open to applications from those who will require sponsorship under the points based system. Should you apply for this role and be found to require sponsorship, your application will be rejected and any provisional offer of employment withdrawn. 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 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. Diversity and Inclusion The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see theCivil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window). Apply and further information This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative. 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 : Edward Sutthery Email : edward.sutthery732mod.gov.uk Recruitment team Email : DBSCivPers-Resourcingteam3mod.gov.uk Further information Please ensure you read the attached candidate information document prior to completing your application. If you are dissatisfied with the service you have received from DBS, or believe that DBS has failed to follow the recruitment process in line with the Civil Service Commission principles of selection for appointment on merit on the basis of Fair and Open competition, you can raise a formal complaint by writing to DBS at the following address: Defence Business Services, Scanning Hub, Room 6124, Tomlinson House, Norcross Lane, Blackpool, FY5 3WP. If after raising your complaint with DBS you remain dissatisfied you can complain directly to the Civil Service Commission at the following address: Civil Service commission, Room G/8, 1 Horse Guards Road, London, SW1A 2HQ Or by email: infocsc.gov.uk.