Lead Technologist, i.AI.

The Incubator for Automation and Innovation (i.AI) is a software development team using rapid prototyping to catalyse change in the Civil Service through automation and innovation. For us, that means experimenting with new ways of working while delivering high quality digital products. We’re a team of open-minded people who are enthusiastic about innovation and experimentation, are passionate about technology, and who want to create positive change.

The team is part of the Prime Minister’s Delivery Group, building minimum viable products and alpha products to significantly improve delivery of the Prime Minister’s priorities. Working closely with No10’s Data Science team (10DS), the Evaluation Taskforce, and other teams within the Delivery Group, they will share best practice across the Cabinet Office and beyond.

Recent projects include building a citizen facing eligibility checker for a Prime ministerial priority policy with a data sharing portal built with another government department, designing and developing the Evaluation Registry, and small proof of concept apps to improve efficiency for civil servants built in weeks.

To see some of our work check out: https://github.com/i-dot-ai

i.AI are a hybrid team based across the country, with a variety of working patterns. We have office space in 70 Whitehall (London) where some of us work regularly alongside the rest of the Delivery Group. 

To find out more about the role and the team you can come along and hear from Laura Gilbert, the recruiting director, on 20 July at 12 noon. If you would like to be invited please email: i-dot-ai-recruitment@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

You will be leading a small team of lead and senior developers. You will be working closely with the Head of Delivery to set direction for the team
and ensure delivery. This is a hands-on technical role, and you are expected to be a technical expert.

The Head of Delivery leads on stakeholder management and the effective running of the team. You will be expected to provide technical
leadership, and will spend much of your time writing code. We work in a genuinely agile manner, rapidly building working prototypes in code, and iterating these based on feedback. We also work closely with our sibling team, No10’s Data Science team (10DS), on machine learning and AI
projects, and integrating AI into our products.

We are a Python-based team. Our current projects predominantly use Django, but we are not restricted to this. Where possible, we code in the
open, and our code repository can be found here: https://github.com/i-dot-ai

Examples of recent projects include: working on a 3 month project with another department to build a digital solution for a new priority policy; a long-term project building an app for the Evaluation Task Force to improve the use of analysis and evidence across government; rapidly responding to a PM priority and building an app in a matter of days.

Key responsibilities include:
• proactively seeking opportunities for digital transformation in the Cabinet Office, No.10 and more widely across government,
• supporting the team in finding and using best practice and emerging technologies,
• championing the adoption of emerging technologies across government,
• inspiring others and enabling them to deliver the goals of the organisation,
• developing capability by facilitating internal mobility, shaping career paths and recruiting talent,
• networking and communicating with senior stakeholders across organisations,
• being responsible for governance, solving complex and high risk issues or delivering architecture design.

You are required to be an expert in many technical areas or a specialist with very deep knowledge in a particular technical area. A wide range of technical skills will be considered; you can build the team to complement your skills.

Essential Criteria:

• Agile working. You can focus the team and stakeholders on minimum viable product delivery. You can determine the right approach for the team to take and evaluate this through the life of a project. You can think of new and innovative ways of working to achieve the right outcomes.
• Prototype focus. You can recognise the appropriate deliverables. You can plan and engage with the appropriate stakeholders at a particular stage in the project.
• Programming and build (software engineering). You can advise on the right way to apply standards and methods to ensure compliance. You can maintain technical responsibility for all the stages and iterations of a software development project. You can provide technical advice to stakeholders and set the team-based standards for programming tools and techniques.
• Turning business problems into technical solutions. You can design and deliver systems characterised by high levels of risk, impact, and business or technical complexity.
• Understanding the whole context. You can understand trends and practices outside your organisation and how these will impact your work. You can anticipate changing policy.
• Modern standards approach. You can demonstrate a strong understanding of the most appropriate modern standards and practices, and how they are applied. You can coach and guide others in these standards.
• Information security. You can understand information security. You can design solutions and services with security controls embedded, specifically engineered with mitigation of security threats as a core feature.
• Technical expert. You are required to be an expert in many technical areas or a specialist with very deep knowledge in a particular technical area. A wide range of technical skills will be considered. 
• Team working. You can build a team to complement your skills and adapt your approach to meet the needs of the team and the project.

Desirable skills & experience:

• User focus. You can collaborate with user researchers and can represent users internally. You can explain the difference between user needs and the desires of the user. You can champion user research to focus on all users. You can prioritise and define approaches to understand the user story, guiding others in doing so. You can offer recommendations on the best tools and methods to use.
• Systems integration. You can define the integration build. You can co-ordinate build activities across systems. You can understand how to undertake and support integration testing activities.
• Communicating between the technical and non-technical. You can mediate between people and mend relationships, communicating with stakeholders at all levels

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

• Leadership
• Delivering at Pace
• Developing Self and Others

Whatever your role, we take your career  and development seriously, and want to  enable you to build a really successful career within 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, and you’ll benefit from 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.
  • This will be complimented by one further  day paid privilege entitlement 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;
  • Generous paid maternity and paternity leave which is notably more than the statutory minimum offered by many other employers;
  • Childcare benefits (policy for new employees as of 5 April 2018): The government has introduced the Tax- Free Childcare (TFC) scheme. Working parents can open an online childcare account and for every £8 they pay in, the government adds £2, up to a maximum of £2000 a year for each child or £4000 for a  disabled child. Parents then use the funds to pay for registered childcare. Existing  employees may be able to continue to claim childcare vouchers, so please check how the policy would work for you here;
  • 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