Deputy Director, Strategic Finance & Corporate

This is an excellent opportunity to support the delivery of the National Security agenda across the National Security Secretariat (NSS) and the civil service as well as drive the culture of the NSS. The role sits across the Strategy Directorate and Intelligence and Security team in the National Security Secretariat, working directly with the National Security Adviser (NSA), Deputy National Security Advisers (DNSAs) and Directors to ensure that NSS and the Agencies have the resources and people needed to deliver and are prepared for the next Spending Round.

The Deputy Director will lead a team of around 12 people working with the NSA and DNSAs to provide corporate and financial oversight of NSS, support the strategic development of the Secretariat, and lead the Corporate Governance of NSS. The role will also lead the NSS Spending Review bid and oversee a Strategic Finance approach to the Spending Review across national security departments in line with the Integrated Review refresh. This will include building strong relationships across Cabinet Office, No10, HMT and other Government Departments, including at the most senior levels. 

The role will dual report into the Director of Intelligence and Security to lead and support the Cabinet Office’s sponsorship and oversight function for the UK Intelligence Community (UKIC), a team of around 7 people. This includes enabling the Cabinet Secretary to effectively fulfil his role as Accounting Officer for the Single Intelligence Account on UKIC’s performance and sound financial management.

The postholder will require a strong track record on strategic finance and policy, with formal financial qualifications to provide SCS financial expertise within the National Security Secretariat. They will also require strong stakeholder management and communication skills, both written and verbal, to build good relationships with stakeholders, manage potentially challenging discussions, and convey sensitive messages and complex policy issues clearly.  The successful candidate should have an interest in working in a fast-paced, sometimes ambiguous environment with the ability to foresee wider implications of decisions on other areas of policy.

The postholder will lead a team of 12 to:

• Deliver a corporate change programme across NSS: enhancing the culture and turning NSS into the best place to work in CO; raising standards of strategic financial and resource planning across NSS; and advising National Security Adviser (NSA) and Deputy National Security Advisers (DNSAs) on how to deliver priorities within resourcing pressures.
• Working with senior stakeholders across CO and government to deliver resourcing for NSS to meet business requirements
• Deliver the next spending review for NSS.
• Deliver a strategic finance project across the National Security Community to consider what resourcing should be put in place through the next Spending Review to deliver the Integrated Review and then designing an approach to deliver.
• Deliver an excellent corporate service across NSS and across above official tier IT. 
• Ensure NSS is in compliance with all its corporate requirements, becoming a source of trusted and expert advice on all aspects of business management and corporate processes.

The postholder will also provide professional oversight and lead a team of 7 to:

• Lead financial management of the Single Intelligence Account (SIA) including laying the SIA consolidated Annual Accounts, scrutiny of UKIC business cases to support timely investment, reviewing financial and strategic risks and issues.
• Ensure UK Intelligence Community’s (UKIC) effective delivery of Priority Outcomes and Spending Review commitments, with accountability to the Principal Accounting Officer for the Single Intelligence Account.
• Assure strategic delivery of UKIC capability and performance including maintaining effective governance and oversight structures
• Lead co-ordination of SIA Spending Review and engagement with His Majesty’s Treasury (HMT).

Key responsibilities will include:

• Leadership of Corporate Policy and Support Team, UKIC finance and oversight team, and wider NSS, including on culture, diversity and inclusion.
• Providing the NSA with clear, strategic financial advice across all areas of National Security including, but not limited to, working with HMT on Spending Review priorities linked to the Integrated Review, liaising with Other Government Departments to review resource constraints against Integrated Review priorities, and ensuring that NSS and the wider community has sufficient resources to function.
• Lead and drive delivery of a significant NSS corporate change programme, delivering a step change in NSS culture and enhancing employee experience and NSS delivery.
• Provide leadership on financial management, strategic workforce planning, above official IT, estates and information management, including working closely with HR and Finance Partners and other central Cabinet Office stakeholders.  
• Enhance the partnership between the central corporate team and Directors in NSS, improve financial and resource management, ensure NSS is in compliance with all its corporate requirements, and become a source of trusted and expert advice on all aspects of business management and corporate processes. Raise standards of financial and resource planning across NSS and report to NSS ExCo on a quarterly basis.
• Leading work to support the Cabinet Secretary in his role as Principal Accounting Officer for the Single Intelligence Account, building the capability, governance, processes and relationships necessary to ensure that UKIC has the resources it needs and is using them effectively to meet strategic national security priorities.

It is important that, through your CV and supporting statement, that you provide evidence of the professional skills, breadth of experience and personal qualities for this post.

Essential Criteria:

• Inspiring leadership, including the ability to build, motivate and develop high-performing, inclusive and supportive teams across a diverse range of issues and a commitment to playing an active role in the corporate life of both Strategy Directorate and broader NSS.
• An ability to lead long-term change: setting a clear vision, translating this into action, and building a broad network of load-bearing relationships that enable you to bring others with you.
• Clear evidence of excellent leadership of corporate management, strategic finance management and strategic business planning.
• Ability to translate complex information into clear options and next steps and to influence others.
• Excellent communication skills, able to present complex information clearly and concisely to senior audiences building credibility quickly, and using influencing skills to negotiate and build coalitions across organisational boundaries. 

Desirable Criteria:

• Experience and evidence of operating in a security environment whilst engaging with a broad network of stakeholders would be desirable.

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

• Leadership
• Seeing the Big Picture
• Changing and Improving
• Making Effective Decisions

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 8 public holidays and one privilege day to mark the King’s birthday. 
• 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;
• Flexible working patterns including part-time or time-term working and access to Flexible Working Schemes allowing you to vary your working day as long as you work your total hours;
• 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