Chief Executive Forestry and Land Scotland

Inverness or Edinburgh

Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS) is an agency of the Scottish Government established in April 2019. We are seeking an outstanding individual for the role of Chief Executive. If you have the leadership ability to shape this important organisation, delivering economic, environmental and social outcomes for the people of Scotland, we very much hope you will apply.

As Chief Executive you will be responsible for circa 1200 staff and the effective management of Scotland’s National Forest Estate (circa 640,000 ha)-which makes up 9% of Scotland’s Land area. The Estate generates nearly £500m of gross value added every year for the Scottish economy and supports 11,000 jobs. Each year the Estate produces around 3 million m3 of timber as well as providing diverse habitats for wildlife, helping mitigate climate change, and creating some of Scotland’s most beautiful landscapes. The agency has an annual turnover of £150m, including commercial trading income of £90m.

Scotland’s woods and forests are of enormous importance to Scotland’s communities, economy and environment. Forestry is a vibrant and important sector, worth nearly £1 billion annually to the Scottish economy and supporting 25,000 jobs. Forestry also delivers a range of environmental outcomes, in particular climate change mitigation, and  enriches the health and well-being of those who live in and visit Scotland. Scottish Ministers are ambitious for the sustainable growth of forestry and wish to make the most of opportunities for expansion and innovation.

As Chief Executive of FLS you will provide strong leadership to the agency, maintaining and developing a positive culture to deliver Scottish Ministers’ objectives.

You will ensure that the Estate is managed in a way which optimises the value of the assets, the income achieved for the public purse and the public benefits delivered. The successful candidate will be a strategic leader and manager, able to engage others to deliver Scottish Ministers’ objectives for realising the full potential of the contribution of the National Forest Estate to Scotland’s natural capital, people and wider economy.

You will also need to play a proactive and positive role in influencing others to help FLS realise the full potential  of the  contribution of the National Forest Estate to Scotland’s natural capital. Ministers will look to the postholder to  be a role model of excellence in land management in Scotland and influential in encouraging other landowners to aspire to the highest standards.

As Chief Executive you will line manage and be supported by four Directors, and be advised by five Non-Executive Directors in respect of strategy and auditing purposes. You will be accountable to the Cabinet Secretary and work closely with the Director for Environment and Forestry in the Scottish Government for management and finance purposes.

POST-SPECIFIC CRITERIA

The successful candidate must be able to demonstrate evidence of:

• A track record of successful leadership and management at senior executive or CEO level within a large and complex organisation, including experience of leading significant organisational change, of innovation and of developing and engaging high performing teams.
• Good working understanding and experience of sustainable land management.
• Strong commercial awareness, with experience of responsibility for income generation and delivery within a commercial or public sector environment.

LEADERSHIP CRITERIA

Leading collectively

• Taking an effective whole system approach to complex, dynamic issues; actively developing wide networks internally and externally, breaking down and collaborating across barriers to deliver outcomes.
• You will have a track record of delivering successful outcomes with significant and successful experience of working with Ministers and managing senior stakeholder relationships, including dealing with commercial issues and public-private partnerships.
• Being a visible corporate leader, influencing and supporting corporate activities and goals as a member of a senior team.

Leading others

• Setting and communicating clear strategic direction and making high quality decisions which balance risk and stakeholder interests to deliver outcomes.
• Operating with a high degree of autonomy within a complex, fast moving and changing environment with a high level of personal resilience, determination and adaptability.
• Creating a sense of collective purpose through open and inclusive dialogue, debate and engagement.

Developing others

• Embedding an inclusive, learning culture in your teams, trusting and empowering others and enabling high performance and innovation.
• Championing diversity and inclusion both within a team setting and in the delivery of policy and services; creating an environment where diversity of thinking and perspective is both valued and nurtured.
• Actively managing talent across their teams, including diverse talent; supports others to identify and develop their potential. 

Understanding, managing and developing self

• You will demonstrate a strong understanding of yourself as a leader as well as a passion for your work and your own continuous personal development. This includes acting as a role model for inclusive leadership by clearly articulating, with courage and humility, how your personal life experiences and background impact on your thinking and behaviour.

Please see the Candidate Pack for further details on the role and person specification.

 

Alongside your salary of £103,231, Scottish Government contributes
£27,872 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 average employer contribution of 27%

This role has a minimum assignment duration of 3 years. An assignment duration
is the period of time a Senior Civil Servant is expected to remain in the same post to enable them
to deliver on the agreed key business outcomes. The assignment duration also supports your career through
building your depth of expertise.

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.

Successful candidates will be expected to have a medical.

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative.

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Job contact :

• Name : Carolyn Murdoch, Senior Resourcing & Staffing, Scottish Government
• Email : Carolyn.Murdoch@gov.scot

Recruitment team

• Email : SCSHR@gov.scot