84508 - Diary Secretary to the Permanent Secretary

DEPARTMENT    NORTHERN IRELAND OFFICE
POST VACANT    EO/Band D - Diary Secretary to the Permanent Secretary  
LOCATION    Erskine House, Chichester Street, Belfast, BT1 4GF   
DURATION     Permanent
APPLICATIONS INVITED FROM    External candidates and existing as well as existing Home Civil Service staff at Band D/EO grade on level transfer.

PAY    £27,223- £28,613 
A Private Office allowance applies for this role.
CLOSING DATE     29th February 2024

Who we are

Passionate about Northern Ireland: flexible, empowering, inclusive

Inclusion and diversity

The Northern Ireland Office is committed to being an inclusive employer with a diverse workforce. We encourage applications from people from the widest possible diversity of backgrounds, cultures and experiences.

We particularly welcome applications from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) candidates, as they are under-represented within the NIO at this level.

The Northern Ireland Office strives to be an inclusive employer and is recognised by its staff and externally as being an employer where Diversity and Inclusion are valued.

We hold a Diversity & Inclusion Charter Mark and are an accredited Disability Confident Leader organisation.

In March 2018 we won the award for Best Employer for Diversity & Equality in Northern Ireland (small employer category) in a Gala Award ceremony hosted by Legal-Island, a multi-award winning workplace compliance company based in Northern Ireland.

We have an active D&I network supporting colleagues through D&I Advocates, championed by our Directors.

We want all our people to feel valued for who they are and we are confident that you will find the NIO a warm, welcoming and inclusive place to work.

WHAT WE DO

The Northern Ireland Office represents Northern Ireland interests at a UK Government level and UK Government interests in Northern Ireland.  We have a wide range of responsibilities, including: underpinning political stability in Northern Ireland; overseeing the Northern Ireland devolution settlement; leading on national security policy in Northern Ireland; addressing the legacy of Northern Ireland’s past; delivering elections and constitutional reform in Northern Ireland; playing a key role in rebalancing the NI economy; representing NI interests, including on the border with Ireland, as the UK exits the EU.  Our small size and diverse portfolio create a stimulating, fast-paced and challenging working environment, with regular engagement with a range of Ministers and senior officials.  We support flexible working and have a modern, flexible IT system which helps enable this.

ABOUT THE ROLE:

This is an exciting, varied role at the very heart of the Northern Ireland Office. You will join a friendly, high achieving private office team, where no two days are the same. We are looking for someone with a positive, can-do attitude who is ready to get stuck in to support the Permanent Secretary and wider Senior Leadership Team (SLT). This is a role that is stretching and will give you a high level of exposure to the inner workings of Private Office.

As the Permanent Secretary’s dedicated Diary Secretary, you will have overall responsibility for their diary management. You will be working across the wider team to coordinate their diary, manage invitations, and organise all logistics for visits. You will also be responsible for supporting the Executive Support Team (EST) functions, including supporting SLT with diary management and the wider Private Office group. You will also support EST with the correspondence process, including proactively managing incoming and outgoing correspondence for the Department.

This is a role that will be suited to someone organised, communicative, and attentive to detail. Things can change at the last minute so you should be adaptable and patient. The team can be very busy so you will also need to be able to make informed decisions independently and with confidence. That said, you will be supported by two private secretaries and colleagues in EST, all of whom are working together to deliver the best possible service to SLT and the Department. Your attitude will be much more important than direct experience in being successful in the role.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

The main responsibilities of the role include:

●    Leading on the diary of the Permanent Secretary, with overall responsibility for all logistics, and invites. 
●    Working with private secretaries to prioritise meetings and events, and scheduling meetings to ensure there are no conflicts;
●    Arranging travel; communicating and working with partners across Government and beyond, to support the Permanent Secretary;
●    Building strong working relationships with the Permanent Secretary, Private Office and officials across the Northern Ireland Office, as well as across government;
●    Providing support to the Executive Support Team in their role as diary and administrative support to the SLT and wider department;
●    Supporting EST with the correspondence process;
●    Supporting a range of office processes and other ad hoc items. 
Essential Criteria:
●    Excellent organisational skills and attention to detail, with the ability to work effectively across a range of tasks.
●    The ability to manage competing demands and priorities, remaining calm under pressure. An excellent work ethic and positivity, with a can-do, problem-solving mentality; 
●    The ability to build strong relationships with a range of stakeholders internal and external to Government, including Senior Civil Servants and colleagues in other departments;
●    The ability to deliver messages that can be difficult at times, especially when plans change at the last minute, with a range of senior stakeholders.
Desirable Criteria:
●    An understanding of the Northern Ireland political system and the work of the Northern Ireland Executive would be advantageous, but is not essential;
●    Previous experience of diary management.

SELECTION PROCESS:

The selection and interview process will consist of two stages:

SIFT 

You will be required to submit a statement of suitability no longer than 500 words. This should outline how you meet the essential and desirable criteria, as well as demonstrate what skills you will bring to the role and why it interests you. 

You will be sifted on the following behaviours:
●    Communicating and Influencing
●    Seeing the Bigger Picture
●    Working Together
●    Making Effective Decisions

More information on behaviours and success profiles can be found here.

INTERVIEW

The next stage will be an interview based on the four behaviours stated above, as well as strength based questions. 

SECURITY CLEARANCE    Security clearance to (xx) level will be required for this post.
ELIGIBILITY SIFT    An eligibility sift will be carried out on the basis of the information contained in the application form.  It is therefore important that all applicants demonstrate in their application how and to what extent their behaviours are relevant to the above criteria.  Those candidates who do not clearly demonstrate that they meet the experience and behaviours will not be invited to interview.
PAY AND ALLOWANCES    The successful candidate will adopt the terms and conditions of the NIO for the length of their appointment. 
Neither Detached Duty terms nor relocation costs will apply to this post.
FURTHER INFORMATION    Further information about the post may be obtained from the Senior Private Secretary, Claire Shanks (claire.shanks@nio.gov.uk).
APPLICATIONS    You can apply for this post through the Civil Service website at: civilservice.gov.uk.  Once logged onto the site go to the civil service jobs page and then search for jobs in the Northern Ireland Office where the application form can be found.

Additional information received after the closing date will not be considered.  Failure to provide sufficient information in support of an application prior to the closing date will not be considered as grounds for an appeal if an applicant is not shortlisted for interview.

Home Civil Service applicants who, because of disability, need assistance in completing the application form should contact MoJ Shared Services on 0845 010 3512.

All applications for employment are considered strictly on the basis of merit.

This job description should not be taken as constituting conditions of employment.

Please note that due to the high interest in NIO opportunities, feedback cannot be given if you are unsuccessful at sift stage. Feedback is available on request if unsuccessful following interview.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Further information about us
We are a small and friendly department of approximately 175 staff.  Due to our size we are able to offer staff more exposure to ministers and the opportunity to work on a far wider portfolio of responsibilities than might be the case in a larger department.  This creates an interesting, though often challenging, work environment.

Other Benefits
The NIO offers a pleasant, modern work environment which allows consideration of a range of flexible working arrangements which support a good work/ life balance. These include flexible/ alternative working patterns, part-time and job-share options.
 
Benefits include:
-    25 days annual leave on appointment increasing to 30 days after 5 years service; 
-    A competitive contributory pension scheme; 
-    Flexible working patterns allowing you to vary your working day as long as you work your total hours and still meet the needs of your role. and still meet the needs of your role;
-    Generous paid maternity, adoption and shared parental leave above the statutory minimum; 
-    Tax-Free Childcare voucher scheme;
-    Interest-free season ticket and bicycle loans;
-    Quarterly Reward & Recognition scheme.

Guaranteed Interview Scheme
The Northern Ireland Office operates the Guaranteed Interview Scheme, details of which are attached to the application form for this post.

In the event that we identify more appointable candidates than we currently have posts available, we will hold applicant details on a reserve list for a period of 12 months from which further appointments can be made. This may include roles at a lower grade. Candidates placed on a reserve list will be informed of this. Those candidates who do not wish to remain on the reserve list should contact MoJ-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@gov.sscl.com to be removed from the reserve list.  

Further information on civil service careers can be found at  www.civil-service-careers.gov.uk
The Civil Service Code sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.  

Appointment to the Civil Service is governed by the Civil Service Commission’s Recruitment Principles. You have the right to complain if you feel a department has breached the requirement of the Recruitment Principles.  

Please contact SSCL (Moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@sscl.gse.gov.uk) in the first instance.
If you are not satisfied with the response, you may bring your complaint to the Commission. For further information on bringing a complaint to the Civil Service Commission please visit their web pages: 
http://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk/civil-service-recruitment/complaints/