Length of employment:
Job Summary:
DWP helps people lift themselves out of poverty and to stay out of poverty, through work, saving and support. This is a hugely important public service, and our challenge is bigger than ever. As part of Counter Fraud and Compliance Directorate (CFCD) you will be at the heart of DWP's front line operations, helping to change people lives and supporting CFCD purpose of fighting fraud in the welfare system.
As Senior Operational Leader, you will role model excellent senior management leadership, taking responsibility for the flexible, effective, personalised delivery of customer service, quality, and performance.You will provide transformational leadership to a geographically diverse team - leading through others, driving people engagement, and inspiring colleagues to deliver objectives.
CFCD is a great place to work where the leadership team are passionate about attracting the best talent whilst nurturing and valuing new and existing colleagues to be the best they can be. We are looking for people who can demonstrate our values and commitment to leadership which are based around Collaboration, Resilience and Inclusivity. We look for emotionally aware leaders who enable teams to be innovative, adaptable and flexible. We want you to be comfortable challenging the norm and finding daring and dynamic solutions that support our values and enable colleagues to shine in whatever role they do.
Job Description:
As a Senior Operational Leader, you will:
* Lead a large, potentially geographically diverse team of Higher Executive Officers (HEOs), setting strategic business priorities and driving performance.
* Make sound, complex decisions at pace and instil technical knowledge in your team.
* Use initiative to seek solutions to problems; making interpretative judgements where circumstances fall outside of available guidance.
* Oversee business change, lead performance reviews, and drive continuous improvement.
* Build strong, collaborative relationships with senior representatives from other government departments and external bodies.
* Provide visible, effective leadership through regular site visits and clear communication.
* Motivate teams to operate flexibly, seek feedback, and personalise services for customers.
* Encourage creative thinking and collaborative working to drive innovation and service improvements.
* Ensure compliance with DWP policies and procedures, managing risk exposure.
* Be aware of HR policy and procedures carrying out the decision maker role on sensitive staff related issues.
DWP have a broad benefits package built around your work-life balance which includes:
* Working patterns to support work/life balance such as job sharing, term-time working, flexi-time and compressed hours.
* Generous annual leave - at least 25 days on entry, increasing up to 30 days over time (pro-rata for part time employees), plus 9 days public and privilege leave.
* Support for financial wellbeing, including interest-free season ticket loans for travel, a cycle to work scheme and an employee discount scheme.
* Health and wellbeing support including our Employee Assistance Programme for specialist advice and counselling and the opportunity to join HASSRA a first-class programme of competitions, activities and benefits for its members (subscription payable monthly).
* Family friendly policies including enhanced maternity and shared parental leave pay after 1 year's continuous service.
* Funded learning and development to support progress in your role and career. This includes industry recognised qualifications and accreditations, coaching, mentoring and talent development programmes.
* An inclusive and diverse environment with opportunities to join professional and interpersonal networks including Women's Network, National Race Network, National Disability Network (THRIVE) and many more.
* Strong leadership experience with the ability to lead through others and make sound business decisions at pace.
* Can communicate with clarity, conviction and enthusiasm with colleagues, partners and stakeholders to drive positive outcomes.
* Many of our teams are spread over a wide geography and you will therefore need to be skilled in leading, motivating and remaining visible to those teams.
* Experience in leading diverse teams through coaching and mentoring to improve service delivery.
* Ability to drive performance improvement and ensure compliance with performance management policies.
* Make quality outcomes a priority in everything we do.
* Have a flexible, agile outlook, able to innovate and display creative thinking.
* Proactive, resilient, and able to overcome difficulties.
* Ability to inspire and obtain buy-in from colleagues by encouraging discussion and initiative.
* Strong analytical skills and the ability to use management information to deliver against performance objectives.
* Empower and encourage a diverse workforce, providing opportunities for development and innovation.
* Have strong interpersonal skills, with a high level of emotional intelligence.
* Are honest, with integrity and probity, and have a personal demeanour that inspires confidence and loyalty.
* Hold a solid understanding of equality and diversity, and how it impacts upon service delivery.
* Have excellent, planning, delegation, and organisational skills, as well as strong negotiating and influencing skills.
Key Criteria
* Demonstrate strong leadership by communicating clearly and enthusiastically with colleagues, partners and stakeholders to drive positive outcomes (Lead Criteria).
* Lead diverse teams through effective coaching and mentoring to improve service delivery (Second Lead Criteria).
* Monitor performance effectively, use sound analytical skills, and interpret management information to deliver against performance objectives while maintaining quality.
* Understand and engage with change, inspire colleagues, and obtain buy-in by encouraging discussion, initiative, and ideas in support of the long-term DWP vision.
* Have knowledge of risk assessment processes, business continuity planning, and diversity impact assessments.
* Empower and encourage your diverse workforce, providing real opportunities for people to develop their strengths and innovate.
Webinar event
We will be holding a webinar event to let you know more about these roles.This will take place on the following date:
* Wednesday 04/06/25 at 1pm to 2pm.
Webinar Senior Operational Leader Wednesday 4th June 2025
Please follow the link to register for the session. Those who attend may be contacted following the event for evaluation purposes to improve our service.
Stage 1 - Application Form
Please complete the first stage short application form.
Stage 2 - Test
After submitting your application, you will be sent an invitation to complete a Civil Service Management Judgement Test. If you successfully pass the test, you will be invited to complete the final stage of the application. Please complete the online tests as soon as possible (within 24 - 48 hours is recommended), the closing date for the tests is 23:55 on 10th June 2025 .If you fail to complete the test before the deadline, your application will be withdrawn. Guidance will be available when you are invited to take the test. The tests are administered online and accessed via the Civil Service Jobs website.
Online tests - Our online test supplier will be performing scheduled maintenance between4:00pm and 7:00pm on Saturday 31 May andSunday 1 June - early evening. There will be up to 1 hour during this time where candidates will not be able to access tests. All online tests will be affected.
Impact for candidates - Candidates who are taking a test when the downtime starts will have their test paused. They will be able to pick up where they left off after the downtime. They can do this by accessing the test again from their application centre. Candidates will not be able to launch new tests during the downtime.
**IMPORTANT :After the test deadline, we will look at all applicant scores to decide what the job's pass mark will be. We will consider the impact on protected groups and the number of invitations to the next stage. We may decide to raise the pass mark for the job - if so, you will be informed, and you will be told if you have passed or failed at the raised standard. Meeting the minimum test requirements for a job level is no guarantee of an invite to continue the selection process.
Stage 3 - Written Application and Sift
As part of the application process, you will be asked to complete a personal statement in no more than 1250 words detailing the relevant skills and experience you can bring to the role, based on the key criteria listed. Please pay particular attention to the lead criteria and second lead criteria as if you do not demonstrate these on your application, you will not progress to the interview stage.
When completing your personal statement,please read and understand the key criteria thoroughly, as this is what your written evidence will be assessed against. Your layout is entirely your preference; you may choose narrative, bullets, etc. You may choose to address each criteria separately, however, one narrative example may cover and evidence several key criteria. You may not be able to meet all the key criteria, but please ensure you evidence the key personal requirements, what have you done that's relatable to the requirements. Youdon'thave to explain the whole process, just whatyouhavedone and the skills and experienceyou haveused.Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.
If you do not have work-based examples then please give examples from school/college, clubs, volunteering or other activities you have been involved in.
We recognise that AI may be helpful when applying for this role, but it is important to use it in the right way. Read our DWP AI Candidate Guide on how to make the best use of GenAI while ensuring your application remains authentic and effective.
You will also be asked to complete a CV with details of your education, professional qualifications and full employment history. Your CV will not be formally assessed so please put the main evidence of your skills into your personal statement.Your CV will be used to add context to your personal statement.
Should a large number of applications be received, an initial sift may be conducted using the lead criteria or lead and second lead criteria. If so, we will sift on:
* Demonstrate strong leadership by communicating clearly and enthusiastically with colleagues, partners and stakeholders to drive positive outcomes (Lead Criteria).
* Lead diverse teams through effective coaching and mentoring to improve service delivery (Second Lead Criteria).
Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift or progressed straight to an interview.
If high application volumes are received, the benchmark for candidates to proceed to the next stage may be raised. In line with our commitment to the Disability Confident Scheme (DCS), we aim to advance all candidates applying under the DCS who meet the minimum standard. However, we may only progress those candidates who best meet the required standards.
**Please note the closing date for your full application is 23:55 on 10th June 2025**
The sift is scheduled to be held from 11th June 2025 to 7th July 2025. These dates may be subject to change.
Stage 4 - Interview
If you pass the test and written application sift with the required score you will be invited to a blended interview and will receive an electronic notification to your Civil Service Jobs account.
The interviews will be conducted face to face. Where possible the interviews will take place at the locations listed in the Candidate Pack (slide 2), however candidates may be expected to travel to an alternative location as required.
If you require any reasonable adjustments to attend a face-to-face interview, please ensure you state those on your application form when asked to do so.
Interviews are scheduled to take place from 28th July 2025, please note that these dates are only indicative at this stage and could be subject to change. Interviews will be scheduled Monday to Friday, between 09:00 to 17:00.
Communications will be electronic and/or by telephone therefore it is important that you check your Civil Service Jobs account regularly, as well as your spam/junk email folder. Telephone calls may show as a withheld number, it is important that you answer so that your interview can be confirmed.
Preparing for the Interview
The interview will take approximately 45 minutes and will consist of behaviour and strength-based questions. A blended interview aims to be more of a conversation offering a more inclusive approach.The behaviour and strength-based questioning explores what you, the candidate, can and have done, but also your potential.
Behaviours
You will be assessed against the Civil Service Behaviours listed at level 3. An example of a behavioural question would be "How did you lead by example to inspire and motivate your teams?". It may help to use one or more examples of a piece of work you have completed or a situation you have been in and use the WHO or STAR model to explain:
* WHO - Whatit was?Howyou approached the work/situation? What theOutcomeswere, what did youachieve? or
* STAR - What was theSituation? What were theTasks? WhatActiondid you take? What were the Results of your actions?
Strengths
It is difficult to prepare for strength type questions. However, you can think through your answers, focus on your achievements and aspects you enjoy and decide how these can be applied in the organisation and role.While strengths questions are shorter and we do not expect a full STAR response, the panel is interested in your first reaction to the question and information or reasoning to support this.
If you do not have work-based examples then please give examples from school/college, clubs, volunteering or other activities you have been involved in.
If you withdraw your application at any stage, it will not be progressed any further.
Stage 5 - Offer
Once all interviews have been completed, you will be notified of the outcome by email. Offers will be made in strict merit order to the highest scoring candidate first based on your location preferences and the geographical requirements of the business.Dependent on your position on the merit list, if none of your location preferences remain at the point we make a job offer, we may offer you a role at an alternative advertised location. If we are unable to offer you a role in any of your preferred locations, and you are unable to accept a role at an alternative advertised location, we will add you to the reserve list if one is being held.
The successful candidates will be notified of a start date following successful pre-employment checks, which is likely to be during October 2025.
Please note:
* If you are offered the role you applied for, in a location you have expressed a preference for, and you decline the offer or are unable to take up post within a reasonable timeframe you will be withdrawn from the campaign and removed from the reserve list, other than in exceptional circumstances*.
* If we make an offer of an alternative role or location to that which you originally applied for, and you decline that offer, you will be able to remain on the reserve list.
*Note: exceptional circumstances could be when a candidate has requested a contractual part time working pattern and this pattern cannot be accommodated in the initial role offered, or in cases of serious ill health.
Important information
Candidate pack
It is important that you take time to read the candidate pack which can be found at the bottom of this job advert.This provides further information about the role and working in DWP.
Location
Please see slide 2 in the candidate pack for list of possible locations.You should only apply for suitable posts where you can travel to and from your home office location daily within a reasonable time. Please be aware that this role can only be worked in the UK and not overseas. Relocation costs will not be reimbursed.
Hybrid working
This job role may be suitable for hybrid working, which is where an employee works part of the week in their DWP office and part of the week from home. This is a voluntary, non-contractual arrangement and your office will be your contractual place of work. The number of days that anyone will be able to work at home will be determined primarily by business need but personal circumstances and other relevant circumstances will also be taken into account. If you are successful, any opportunities for hybrid working, including whether a hybrid working arrangement is suitable for you, will be discussed with you prior to you taking up your post.Hybrid working will not commence until any training and consolidation period has been successfully completed.
Working pattern
Part-time, part-year, term-time compressed hours and job-sharing working patterns within working hours will be considered but must meet business needs. Wewill do our best to let people with existing part time contracts retain their contracted hours provided they are in line withcurrent business needs. Please note that successful candidates with agreed alternative working patterns may/will be required to work full timefor specific periods to complete all training and consolidation.
Hours of work
The full-time working week in DWP is 37 hours. You may be required to work at any time between the hours of:
* 7:45am and 8:00pm on any day between Monday to Friday, and
* 8:45am to 5:00pm on Saturday.
Managers will agree working patterns with successful applicants within these business hours and review these asappropriate. You will be given advance notice of your personal schedule.
Further Information
Find out more about Working for DWP
A reserve list may be held for a period of 3 months from which further appointments can be made.
Any move to DWP from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax Free Childcare; for further information visit the Childcare Choices website .
Before applying for this vacancy, current employees of DWP should check whether a successful application would result in changes to their terms and conditions of employment, for example mobility, pay and allowances. Civil Servants who transfer into DWP from other government organisations, following successful application, will assume DWP's terms and conditions of employment current on the day they are posted, unless DWP has stated otherwise in writing.
Salary
New entrants are expected to join on the minimum of the pay band.
Pre-employment Checks
If successful and transferring from another Government Department a criminal record check may be carried out.
In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service on your behalf.
However, we recognise in exceptional circumstances some candidates will want to send their completed forms direct. If you will be doing this, please advise Government Recruitment Service of your intention by emailing stating the job reference number in the subject heading.
Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty had their employment continued. Any applicant's details held on the IFD will be refused employment.
A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5-year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government.
Plagiarism
The Civil Service values honesty and integrity and expects all candidates to abide by these principles. Please ensure that all examples provided in your application are taken directly from your own experience and that you describe the examples in your own words. Applications will be screened and if evidence of plagiarism or copying examples/answers from other sources is found, your application will be withdrawn. Internal DWP candidates may also face disciplinary action.
The evidence you provide must relate to your own experiences. If evidence of plagiarism, or sharing of questions, information or answers throughout any part of the selection process is found, your application will be withdrawn. Examples of plagiarism can include:
* Presenting the work, ideas and experience of others as your own.
* Copying content from an online/published source.
* Using forms of Artificial Intelligence to produce application content which you present as your own.
Reasonable Adjustments
At DWP we value diversity and inclusion and actively encourage and welcome applications from everyone, including those that are underrepresented in our workforce. We consider visible and non-visible disabilities, neurodiversity or learning differences, chronic medical conditions, or mental ill health. Examples include dyslexia, epilepsy, autism, chronic fatigue, or schizophrenia. If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should:
Contact Government Recruitment Service via as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.
Complete the "Reasonable Adjustments" section in the "Additional requirements" page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if you are deaf, a Language Service Professional.
If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert,please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section.
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