Contents Location About the job Benefits Things you need to know Apply and further information Location Defence Academy Headquarters, Shrivenham Station SN6 8LA About the job Job summary The Defence Academy Business Management Team is at the heart of all Business activities within the Defence Academy (DefAc) and Royal College of Defence Studies (RCDS). As Assistant Head Business Management, the candidate will manage the Business Management (Finance) Team who are responsible for supporting the Headquarters, 2 colleges and 3 groups budget forecasts and associated tasks including providing subject matter advice to the senior leadership team (SLT) within each area and overall at Defence Academy Level and for the SLT at the Royal College of Defence Studies. This position is advertised at 37 hours per week. Strategic Command is going through a significant transformation programme which aims to improve the way the Command conducts its business and delivers for Defence and the nation. As a consequence of this, all posts within Strategic Command Headquarters and in time the wider organisation, are/will be subject to review and potential changes as we continuously improve across the period of the transformation programme. These changes may be minor or could be more substantive and will generate new opportunities. Throughout, the Commands transformation programme is committed to following the MODs framework on managing and supporting people through the change process and places an emphasis on early and open consultation and engagement with the Commands personnel and Trade Unions. Job description This role covers the Co-ordination and oversight of operational forecasting and budgeting across the DefAc and RCDS, with responsibility for the effective financial management of the Defence Academies 4 main contracts. Assist in leading the Defence Academy Business Management Team, improving the accuracy of financial management information to support effective planning and senior decision making. Travel to RCDS in London on a weekly basis is required. Strategic delivery of: · Operating proactively and collaboratively with the Intelligent Client Function (ICF), commercial colleagues and other relevant stakeholders to lead on the development, implementation and delivery of coherent Government processes to effectively manage Defence Academy 4 main contracts. Attend and guide contract business review and forecast meetings. · Operating proactively and collaboratively with the HQ Higher Level Budget personnel delivery branch lead on the development of a coherent and effective workforce forecasting model and associated holistic workforce management information. · Lead on the preparation and consolidation of Defence Academy and RCDS financial plan (ABC) and IYM forecasts with specific responsibility for 4 main contracts and workforce. · Challenge and scrutinise key ABC and mid-year FOO submissions. Provide advice and guidance to Unit Heads and Business Managers. Identify and drive opportunities for substantial cost reductions. Development and provision of effective and accurate financial management information with particular emphasis on the 4 main contracts and workforce. · In conjunction with the Finance Business Manager, develop and maintain a common and systematic approach to the finance business management functions bringing congruence and efficiency to the process. Provision of clear information and advice to the Senior Leadership team based on detailed analysis and modelling of costs and plans Relationship Management · Work collaboratively and proactively with internal and external stakeholders to ensure coherent and efficient delivery of the transformation and IG agenda, moving them from the planning space into day-to-day routine activity. Establish and maintain effective and collaborative working relationships with Colleges, Business Units and other support functions across the Academy and RCDS, setting the standard and benchmark to achieve consistency, coherence, resource efficiency and situational awareness in the embedded Business Manager community. Undertake line management, mentoring and countersigning tasks as required by the role. This role has 1 direct report and 4 countersigning roles. Undertake learning and development and upskilling as required. Person specification The candidate must be qualified with a minimum of a level 4 accountancy qualifications and be willing to work towards their level 7. If they are already qualified to level 7 then an accountancy allowance will be available. It is vital that the candidate has a minimum of 3 years financial management experience in a Managerial position experience of managing budgets across remote sites would be an advantage, that they have excellent financial and analytical skills to interpret the accounts and explain them to non-financiers. Previous experience of Financial planning and reporting in the Public Sector plus Commercial acumen including a good working knowledge of PFI contracts. Qualifications Recognised Accountancy Qualification at Level 4 (essential) or level 7 (desirable). If level 4 qualified there will be the opportunity to work towards their level 7 qualification Behaviours We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process: Leadership Delivering at Pace Making Effective Decisions Communicating and Influencing Seeing the Big Picture We only ask for evidence of these behaviours on your application form: Leadership Delivering at Pace Making Effective Decisions Benefits Alongside your salary of £59,690, Ministry of Defence contributes £17,292 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides. Some of the many benefits you will receive: Highly competitive Civil Service pension scheme with an employer contribution of 28.97%. A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity. Flexi-time scheme upon completion of 6 months service or the Line Manager has the ability to adopt flexible working sooner than the 6 month period. With Line Manager agreement move to an alternative Working Patterns (there are 9). 25 days paid annual leave rising (1 day per year) to 30 days upon completion of 5 years service. If by chance you have previously completed service in the Public Sector in the past 5 years, you may be eligible to request 30 days leave immediately. (Evidence will be required). In addition to annual leave you will be entitled to 8 Public Bank Holidays per year. Learning and development tailored to your role. Professional and Personal Development of skills with the opportunity to undergo an Apprenticeship in Human Resources. Opportunity to join more than one of our many networks (Race, LGBT, Gender, Disability and Faith & Belief). Minimum of 18 Days Special Paid Leave in a rolling 12-month period for Public Duties commitments (such as a Magistrate). Special Paid Leave for community volunteering up to 12 days a year for Special Constables and 6 days a year for other volunteering. Enhanced maternity, paternity and adoption leave. Shrivenham has good travel links with free car parking. Other facilities are a Sports & Social facilities, a Gym complex, a Stables, a Golf Course and a swimming pool, as well as onsite Mess & Retail shops. 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: Interview travel expenses will not be reimbursed for the interview. 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/. Please be advised that the Department (MOD) is conducting a review of all pay related allowances which could impact on those allowances that the post currently being advertised attracts. 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 Notice sets out how we will use your personal data and your rights. Where business needs allow, some roles may be suitable for a combination of office and home-based working. This is a non-contractual arrangement where all office-based employees will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of their working time in office, subject to capacity and any required workplace adjustments. Requirements to attend other locations for official business, or work in another MOD office, will also count towards this level of attendance. Applicants can request further information regarding how this may work in their team from the Vacancy Holder (see advert for contact details). Defence Business Services cannot respond to any questions about working arrangements. 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. This recruitment process will consist of two parts: 1. A written application containing your experience (a CV and a Statement of Suitability (Personal Statement)) and 3 Behaviours drawn from the Civil Service Success Profiles. 2. If your written application is successful, you will be invited to a face-to-face and or virtual via MS Teams interview where you will be requested to deliver a 10 minute presentation (subject to be advised when invited to interview) and tested against 5 Behaviours (the 3 from your application, plus 2 more at interview). 3. If a large number of applications are received, they will be assessed initially against the Leadership behaviour and your CV and Statement of Suitability (Personal Statement). You will then be assessed against the other criteria if you have met the minimum scores. 4. Behaviours are assessed individually with a 250-word statement. The application form will indicate which behaviour is being assessed. We are looking for evidence using the Situation, Task, Action, Result (STAR) methodology. 5. It is highly recommended you focus by providing one example for each behaviour. We would also advise you to use examples that best meet the criteria, even if they are a few years old, using the STAR methodology. Situation : Briefly describe the background of the situation in which you found yourself. Task : What you were required to do/chose to do. Action: What actions you undertook to achieve the tasks. Make sure to use I, not we to explain how your actions led to results. Result : Use facts and evidence to demonstrate the results that your actions produced. Explain whether it was a successful outcome, and if not, what you learned from the experience. 6. Please make sure you have consulted the HM Government Success Profiles - Civil Service Behaviours document (available on Gov.uk) to ensure you have understood the relevant Behaviours at Level Grade 6 for the appropriate grade. 7. Your experience will be assessed individually through your CV and a 500 word Statement of Suitability (Personal Statement). PLEASE NOTE: Sift & Interview: Provide some expectation of a timeline: Sift to take place within 2 weeks of Advert closing. Interviews likely to take place within 2 weeks of Sift At Application Candidates will be assessed against the following Behaviours- Leadership Delivering at Pace Making Effective Decisions At Interview Candidates will be assessed against the following Behaviours- Leadership Delivering at Pace Making Effective Decisions Communicating and Influencing 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 into 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. Seeing the Big Picture 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 the Civil 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 : Clare Macklin Email : clare.macklin850mod.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. Attachments Candidate Information june 2024 Opens in new window (docx, 31kB) MOD Candidate Pack 2024 Opens in new window (pdf, 1562kB) StratCom candidate pack Opens in new window (pdf, 534kB) Share this page Print Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn GMail