61845 - People Futures Activity Manager
We encourage applications from people from all backgrounds and aim to have a workforce that represents the wider society that we serve. We pride ourselves on being an employer of choice. We champion diversity, inclusion and wellbeing and aim to create a workplace where everyone feels valued and a sense of belonging. To find out more about how we do this visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice/about/equality-and-diversity.
The Department
The Ministry of Justice is one of the largest departments across Whitehall with a high profile, fast-paced and complex delivery and reform agenda. Our vision is to deliver a world-class justice system that works for everyone in society.
The role of the Ministry is to protect the public and reduce reoffending, and to provide a more effective, transparent, and responsive criminal justice system for victims and the public. We will achieve this by improving public safety, reforming prisons, probation, and youth justice to build a system that delivers swifter access to justice with increased certainty for all citizens whatever their background.
For more information on who we are and what we do, please visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice
People Group
The role of People Group is to support the organisation and its 85,000 people (across MoJ HQ, its Executive Agencies and Arm’s Length Bodies) by enabling our colleagues to work to their full potential.
We operate as a cluster of HR services working seamlessly to provide expert support, advice and delivery throughout the employee lifecycle. From the time people join the organisation, to the point at which they leave, we strive to make a positive contribution to their work experience. We want everyone who works for the Ministry of Justice to feel confident in their skills, ambitious for the future and fulfilled by their work and relationships with their colleagues.
Our aim is to develop a safe space, allowing you to be creative in a challenging and stretching environment which supports you to reach your full potential. As we as delivering against your delivery objectives, you will be encouraged to play an active role in cross-team and wider People Group corporate activities as well as taking time to concentrate on your continuing professional development.
The Role
There are 2 available roles sitting in the Our People, Our Future (OPOF) team. OPOF is a high profile, innovative and light touch structure set up to drive the department’s interdependent, futures-focused workstreams. These include Smarter Working, Places for Growth, and, most recently, the MoJ People Strategy.
The first role will initially support the fast-paced, high-profile work of Places for Growth where we are coordinating the delivery of new offices, ways of working and working cultures aligned to the broader government agenda on Levelling Up, Smarter Working in the Modern Civil Service and Government Reform.
The second role will focus initially on the MoJ People Strategy. This innovative piece of work will create long-term alignment across the department’s people initiatives. It will do this based on a common future focused ambition for our people offer developed to reflect trends shaping the future of work as well as our people’s experience of working in MoJ today.
By providing the opportunity to major initially on one project and then contribute to a wider range across the OPOF portfolio in time, this role provides the perfect balance between honing existing skills and developing new ones.
Responsibilities, Activities & Duties
The main activities and responsibilities of the roles are:
- Development - creating the case and strategic narrative for the futures projects you are working on, researching the evidence base and preparing key products.
- Problem Solving - finding solutions to complex and unclear situations where there is no known precedent or obvious policy or process solution, thinking strategically to consider how the team can best deliver the solutions, including delivering through others.
- Engagement - working with and through stakeholders across MoJ People Group, MoJ business areas, Staff Networks, Trade Unions and across government to build strong collaborative relationships, drive influence and momentum, gather different perspectives, deliver tailored engagement solutions, and achieve desired outcomes.
- Implementation - using business insight to inform the strategic delivery approach, design of interventions and development of products in collaboration with colleagues.
- Drafting - managing and responding to queries in the OPOF inbox, drafting briefings to senior leaders and Ministers, responding to parliamentary correspondence and Freedom of Information requests.
- Planning and Governance - working with the OPOF Project Management Office, scope and manage detailed projects plans, risks and issues and provide regular updates to the OPOF Board and other governance reporting mechanisms.
- Consultation - Consulting Trade Union representatives at a national level.
Please note, this is a general overview and is not intended to be exhaustive. There may be other activities expected of the job holder depending on priorities and resource within the team.
Travel may be required across regions with visits to operational sites and the MoJ’s national network of collaboration centres and satellite offices.
Essential Knowledge, Experience and Skills
The successful candidates must be able to evidence the essential criteria below:
- Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to build and maintain positive working relationships quickly and effectively with a wide range of stakeholders at varying levels of seniority.
- Proven experience of developing strategies to support project initiatives which are tailored to the needs of the business.
- Excellent written and oral communication skills, including the ability to draft high quality written briefings and submissions that clearly deliver key messages and advice to the appropriate audience.
- Data and insights driven with experience of evidence-based decision making to anticipate and shape the impact of implementation.
- Excellent organisational skills in order to meet deadlines on multiple pieces of high-quality work and confidently manage conflicting priorities.
- HR generalist knowledge.
Desirable Knowledge, Experience and Skills
- Private office or policy profession experience or in a role frequently interacting with senior officials and ministers.
- Experience developing people strategies or plans for large, complex organisations.
Selection process
This vacancy uses Success Profiles, and will assess your Behaviours, Strengths and Experience. Please refer to the Civil Service Success Profile guidance to find out more about each of the elements for the grade to which you are applying.
Application stage
At application stage, candidates are asked to provide:
- 250 word statements on your demonstration of the Seeing the Big Picture and Working Together behaviours.
- A supporting statement setting out how you meet the essential knowledge, experience and skills set out in the job advert (500 words max). Giving examples rather than just saying you're experienced with a certain requirement will strengthen your statement and enable the sift panel to understand more about your suitability for the role.
- A CV.
In the event of a high volume of applications, the initial sift will be undertaken using the evidence you supply in relation to the Seeing the Big Picture. Candidates who pass the initial sift will be progressed to a full sift against all the elements listed above.
Desirable criteria are only used in the event of a strong field of candidates, as a second stage after essential criteria have been considered and there is a need to distinguish between candidates who are close after the initial consideration of essential criteria, either at sift or interview.
Interview stage
Candidates successful at sift will be invited to an interview where you will be assessed on your demonstration of the behaviours set out below at SEO level, in addition to strengths relevant to the role (not shared in advance).
- Seeing the Big Picture
- Communicating and Influencing
- Working Together
- Making Effective Decisions
Interviews will be held via video utilising Microsoft Teams. Further details and instructions will be provided closer to the scheduled interview date.
Essential Knowledge, Experience and Skills:
The successful candidates must be able to evidence the essential criteria below:
· Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to build and maintain positive working relationships quickly and effectively with a wide range of stakeholders at varying levels of seniority.
· Proven experience of developing strategies to support project initiatives which are tailored to the needs of the business.
· Excellent written and oral communication skills, including the ability to draft high quality written briefings and submissions that clearly deliver key messages and advice to the appropriate audience.
· Data and insights driven with experience of evidence-based decision making to anticipate and shape the impact of implementation.
· Excellent organisational skills in order to meet deadlines on multiple pieces of high-quality work and confidently manage conflicting priorities.
· HR generalist knowledge.
Desirable Knowledge, Experience and Skills:
· Private office or policy profession experience or in a role frequently interacting with senior officials and ministers.
· Experience developing people strategies or plans for large, complex organisations.
Working Arrangements & Further Information
The MoJ offers Hybrid Working arrangements where business need allows. This is an informal, non-contractual form of flexible working that blends working from your base location, different MoJ sites and / or from home (please be aware that this role can only be worked in the UK and not overseas). Some roles will not be suitable for Hybrid Working. Similarly, Hybrid Working will not suit everyone’s circumstances. Arrangements will be discussed and agreed with the successful candidate(s) and subject to regular review.
For nationally advertised roles, the successful candidate(s) will be appointed to a MoJ office location, which may include their nearest Justice Collaboration Centre or Justice Satellite Office. This will be discussed and agreed on the completion of pre-employment checks.
Some of MoJ’s terms and conditions of service are changing as part of Civil Service reform. The changes will apply to staff joining MoJ who are new to the Civil Service. Staff joining MoJ from other civil service employers will transfer onto the new MoJ terms if they are already on 'modernised' terms in their current post or onto 'unmodernised' MoJ terms if they are on 'unmodernised' terms at their current post. Details will be available if an offer is made.
Flexible working hours
The Ministry of Justice offers a flexible working system in many offices.
Benefits
The MoJ offers a range of benefits:
Annual Leave
Annual leave is 25 days on appointment and will increase to 30 days after five years’ service.
There is also a scheme to allow qualifying staff to buy or sell up to three days leave each year. Additional paid time off for public holidays and 1 privilege day. Leave for part-time and job share posts will be calculated on a pro-rata basis.
Pension
The Civil Service offers a choice of pension schemes, giving you the flexibility to choose the pension that suits you best.
Training
The Ministry of Justice is committed to staff development and offers an extensive range of training and development opportunities.
Networks
The opportunity to join employee-run networks that have been established to provide advice and support and to enable the views of employees from minority groups to be expressed direct to senior management. There are currently networks for employees of minority ethnic origin, employees with disabilities, employees with caring responsibilities, women employees, and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees.
Support
- A range of ‘Family Friendly’ policies such as opportunities to work reduced hours or job share.
- Access to flexible benefits such as voluntary benefits, retail vouchers and discounts on a range of goods and services.
- For moves to or from another employer or moves across the Civil Service this can have implications on your eligibility to carry on claiming childcare vouchers. You may however be eligible for alternative government childcare support schemes, including Tax Free Childcare. More information can be found on UKor Childcare Choices. You can determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/.
- Paid paternity, adoption and maternity leave.
- Free annual sight tests for employees who use computer screens.
Working for the Civil Service
The Civil Service Code 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. Should you feel that the recruitment process has breached the recruitment principles you are able to raise a formal complaint in the following order
- To Shared Service Connected Ltd (0845 241 5358 (Monday to Friday 8am - 6pm) or e mail Moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@gov.sscl.com);
- To Ministry of Justice Resourcing team (resourcing-management-office@justice.gov.uk);
- To the Civil Service Commission (details available here)
The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As a Disability Confident employer, MoJ are committed to providing everyone with the opportunity to demonstrate their skills, talent and abilities, by making adjustments throughout all elements of the recruitment process and in the workplace. MoJ are able to offer an interview to disabled candidates who meet the minimum selection criteria, except in a limited number of campaigns.
You will be able to request reasonable adjustments to the recruitment process within the application form. If you need additional help completing the application form, please contact the SSCL Recruitment Enquiries Team.
We encourage applications from people from all backgrounds and aim to have a workforce that represents the wider society that we serve. We pride ourselves on being an employer of choice. We champion diversity, inclusion and wellbeing and aim to create a workplace where everyone feels valued and a sense of belonging. To find out more about how we do this visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice/about/equality-and-diversity.
12/08/2022, 23:55 hours.
To apply for roles in MOJ you will need to confirm your employment history for at least 3 years prior to the date of application so that pre-employment checks (BPSS) can be undertaken. If you have spent significant time abroad (a total of 6 months in the past 3 years) you would be required to give a reasonable account of the reasons why.
For some roles you will be required to successfully complete National Security Vetting at Counter Terrorism (CTC), Security Clearance (SC) or Developed Vetting (DV) level as a condition of appointment. To meet CTC/SC/DV requirements you will normally need to have been resident in the UK for at least 3/5/10 years prior to the date of application (The level of checks that are required are stated in the advert).
If you do not meet the above requirements, you may still be considered if, for example:
- You've been serving overseas with HM Forces or in some other official capacity as a representative of HM Government
- You were studying abroad
- You were living overseas with parents
In such cases you will need to be able to provide referee cover for the period(s) of residence overseas. The duration of overseas residence and the country of abode will also be taken into account.
Success Profiles will enable a fairer and more inclusive method of recruitment by enabling us to assess the range of experiences, abilities, strengths, behaviours and technical/professional skills required for different roles. This flexible approach to recruitment focuses more on finding the right candidate for the specific role. To find out more about Success Profiles to support your application please click here for further guidance.
We have provided detail of the assessment stages and areas being assessed to help you prepare for completing your application form, and to advise of what will be assessed following this, if you successfully pass the application stage.
Application form stage assessments
Interview stage assessments
A Great Place to Work for Veterans
The "Making the Civil Service a Great Place to work for veterans" initiative includes a guaranteed interview scheme to those who meet the minimum criteria to provide eligible former members of the Armed Forces with opportunities to secure rewarding jobs. Allowing veterans to continue to serve their country, and to bring highly skilled individuals with a broad range of experience into the Civil Service in an environment, which recognises and values your previous service in the Armed Forces.
For further details about the initiative and eligibility requirements visit : https://www.gov.uk/government/news/making-the-civil-service-a-great-place-to-work-for-veterans
Redeployment Interview Scheme
Civil Service departments are expected to explore redeployment opportunities before making an individual redundant. The MoJ are committed, as part of the Redeployment Interview Scheme, to providing opportunities to those who are 'at risk of redundancy'.
MoJ are able to offer an interview to eligible candidates who meet the minimum selection criteria, except in a limited number of campaigns. Candidate's will not be eligible for the Redeployment Interview Scheme if they are applying on promotion.
The Civil Service welcomes applications from people who have recently left prison or have an unspent conviction. Read more about prison leaver recruitment.
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) https://www.gov.uk/settled-status-eu-citizens-families
· 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) https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/nationality-rules
This Vacancy is closed to applications.