Director, Internal Audit and Investigations   

This is a senior and critical role for the FCDO and essential for ensuring that we have best practice internal controls and risk management processes in place and working well. We need someone who can build good stakeholder and customer relationships, creating a culture of learning and continuous improvement. The successful candidate will bring strong experience of leading high-quality, Internal Audit programmes in a large, complex global organisation, and a strong knowledge and understanding of modern counter fraud practice. I’m also looking for a moderniser and innovator, who can successfully lead teams through transformational change programmes so that we can continue to learn and adapt as an organisation.

This is an exciting role, in a large, fascinating, culturally diverse international organisation, with plenty to get stuck into!

The Director of Internal Audit and Investigations has responsibility for providing an independent audit and assurance, counter fraud and safeguarding investigations service to FCDO in line in with international audit and investigations standards.

This is a stretching, high-profile and business critical SCS2 position. This is a key Leadership role in FCDO, where you will be responsible for delivering a world class audit function across a complex global diplomatic and programme portfolio that encompasses over 280 locations across the globe. You will be responsible for providing FCDO with an independent, robust whistleblowing process, and delivering professional, efficient and timely investigations into all allegations relating to fraud and safeguarding (sexual exploitation, abuse and harassment). You will support the FCDO to continuously improve its systems, policies and procedures, drawing on audit results and lessons learned through the investigations caseload. You will have strong leadership and communication skills, and you will work collaboratively across with senior colleagues across corporate, policy and geographic teams. 

This role currently reports to the DG Finance and Corporate in the FCDO with a reporting line also to the head of the Government Internal Audit function. There is a government policy for the function to move into the Government Internal Audit Agency by October 2024. 

Key Responsibilities

• Leading a world class independent internal audit assurance service within FCDO. Reporting to the Audit and Risk Assurance Committee, in full compliance with Public Sector Internal Audit Standards (PSIAS) mandated by HM Treasury; based on the International Professional Practices Framework (set by the Institute of Internal Auditors).
• Play an active role in developing the Internal Audit function and profession across central Government. Establish a close, trusted relationship with senior colleagues in the Government Internal Audit Agency (GIAA). Provide expert insight and support to help shape the future direction of internal audit in Government contributing on technical and people issues and playing an active role in the Internal Audit Leadership Group.  Work closely with the GIAA to ensure risks emerging elsewhere in government are understood in relation to FCDO and contributing from the FCDO to that wider risk picture. 
• Provide independent analysis and advice to the Permanent Secretary and Audit and Risk Assurance Committee (ARAC) on the remaining risks of merging with the GIAA, and assuming these have been addressed lead the team through the process by October 2024.
• Leading an independent function to provide objective risk-based assurance and advice to the Accounting Officer(s) and ARAC, through evaluation of effective risk management, control and governance processes.
• Establishing, promoting and supporting improvement and efficiency activities. Focus is wider than assurance and compliance of existing structures and processes. 
• Managing the FCDO’s whistleblowing and ‘reporting concerns’ hotline, ensuring all allegations received by the Department are effectively risk assessed, handled in confidence, and with due sensitivity, and where necessary professionally investigated. 
• Leading a centre of expertise on safeguarding investigations. Providing independent and objective investigations, quality assurance and oversight of allegations of sexual exploitation, abuse and harassment within FCDO and across the programme portfolio. 
• Internal Audit and Assurance – Delivering an annual programme of risk-based audits, management assurance and consultancy at home and overseas. Attending ARAC meetings. Providing an evidenced annual opinion on departmental risk management, governance and internal control and annual report to the Permanent Secretary. 
• Working with ALBs and Cross Government, including FCDO Services, Department for Business and Trade and the British Council. Delivered by providing advice through attendance at ARAC, undertaking audit requirements, assessment of internal service provision and assurance work. 
• Drive Internal Audit service excellence. Be innovative, galvanise commitment from senior managers and Internal Audit Department teams, improve service effectiveness and build capability across the team to improve our impact.  
• Improving the FCDO. As part of the Finance and Corporate senior leadership team we expect you to demonstrate personal and collective leadership to achieve the ambitions set out in the FCDO mission statement in our teams and across the FCDO.  
• Driving corporate excellence. To drive a one team culture and raise standards across your teams so that Internal Audit and the Finance and Corporate Directorate aspire to and deliver the highest standards in staff engagement, people management, financial management, inclusion, diversity, wellbeing and change management.

It is important that in your application you provide evidence and examples of proven experience of these selection criteria. These responses will be developed and discussed with candidates invited to interview. The successful candidate will be able to demonstrate the following:

Essential Criteria:

• Strong corporate and team leadership experience gained through experience as a senior executive in a delivery focused organisation.
• Successful track record of building relationships and influencing a diverse senior stakeholder community to adopt good practice internal controls and risk management processes.
• Experience of developing and implementing a responsive and customer-focused culture to create a climate of continuous improvement where people can develop their own potential.
• Experience of developing and delivering a high-quality, strategic risk-based Internal Audit programme in a large, complex organisation and managing relationships between departments and their sponsored bodies.
• A sound understanding of best and modern counter fraud practice in compliance with the Conference of International Investigators’ standards.
• Strong track record of working across counter fraud and internal audit issues, working with a complex set of stakeholders on a range of difficult issues.
• Leading transformation and change. Successfully leading teams through transformation change programmes and manage own and team resilience within a complex working environment.

Desirable Criteria:

• Experience of leading, directing and managing a large, geographically dispersed team.
• An awareness of the issues in conducting both international audit and safeguarding investigations.

We’ll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Leadership
• Managing a Quality Service
• Seeing the Big Picture
• Delivering at Pace

Whatever your role, we take your career and development seriously, and want to enable you to build a really successful career with the Department and wider Civil Service. It is crucial that our employees have the right skills to develop their careers and meet the challenges ahead. You’ll benefit from a wide range of training and development opportunities, regular performance and development reviews to ensure this development is ongoing. As a Civil Service employee, you’ll be entitled to a large range of benefits.

This includes:

• 25 days annual leave on entry, increasing on a sliding scale to 30 days after 5 years’ service. This is in addition to 9 public and privilege holidays per year;
• A competitive contributory pension scheme that you can enter as soon as you join where we will make a significant contribution to the cost of your pension; where your contributions come out of your salary before any tax is taken; and where your pension will continue to provide valuable benefits for you and your family if you are too ill to continue to work or die before you retire;
• Generous paid maternity and paternity leave which is notably more than the statutory minimum offered by many other employers;
• Interest-free loans allowing you to spread the cost of an annual travel season ticket or a new bicycle;
• The opportunity to use onsite facilities including fitness centres and staff canteens (where applicable); and
• Occupational sick pay.

As part of accepting this role you will be agreeing to the expected assignment duration set out above.
This will not result in a contractual change to your terms and conditions.
Please note this is an expectation only, it is not something which is written into your terms and
conditions or indeed which the employing organisation or you are bound by. It will depend on your
personal circumstances at a particular time and business needs, for example, would not preclude any
absence like family friendly leave. It is nonetheless an important expectation, which is why we ask you
to confirm you agree to the assignment duration set out above.

Job contact :

• Name : SCS Recruitment Team
• Email : scscandidate.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : scscandidate.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk