HR Director for Business Partnering
Department for Work and Pensions
Apply before 5:00 pm on Friday 18th October 2024
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About the job
Job summary
Are you a confident leader who is passionate about providing high quality user-focused partnering services?
If so, come join us as the new HR Director for Business Partnering.
In DWP, we care about making a real difference. This is a fantastic opportunity to work in the largest Civil Service Department that touches the lives of citizens the length and breadth of the UK. What we do matters. We serve over 22 million customers a year - we keep children out of poverty; we help people without jobs to find work so that they can support themselves and their families; we ensure the most vulnerable in society are protected. Now more than ever, the role that DWP plays in supporting society is vital.
There’s never been a more important time to work in People and Capability in DWP. We are a critical function as DWP delivers both scaling up and transformation to support the biggest welfare reform in a generation.
This Director leads a team of 225 people to provide partnering and casework services in support of our 85,000 colleagues. This is a critical role and provides a challenge with both scale and scope. The challenges are unprecedented, and teams have been delivering at pace across our Group. You will be ambitious - and share our ambition – to build a reputation as an organisation where colleagues thrive.
Job description
You will lead and work with multiple senior stakeholders to design people strategies and implement people related change in business areas engaging across the whole system and the full multi-disciplinary expertise of the Department. You will also have a partnering relationship with a member of the DWP Executive Team.
You will be required to advise and influence across the Government People Group and as such, you will be required to sit on several cross-Government and Departmental decision making and assurance groups and be accountable for ensuring future design and delivery plans are fit for purpose.
You will lead the HR Business Partner and HR Advice Guidance Community (HR Casework) of over 225 colleagues within DWP and ensure they have the skills and capabilities to deliver timely, high-quality, user-focussed services across the Department.
The Director for HR Business Partnering has responsibility for driving, developing, and delivering of local people strategies and plans, and end-to-end HR services to enable the transformation of the Department. This includes aspects such as strategic workforce planning, TUPE, building capability, diversity, inclusion, talent management and reward. Given the remit of this role there is also an emphasis on SCS resourcing and talent across 15 professions.
You and your teams will partner Business Groups to influence and deliver the following requirements in respect of:
- Workforce plans, resourcing and HR Transformation
- Pay, reward and employee relations
- Operational delivery and change management
- Localised learning and transformation
- Equality Diversity Inclusion and Wellbeing
- Localised leadership, talent and Senior Civil Service
Key Accountabilities:
- Ensure effective service and user design is embedded in the continuous improvement and professionalisation of HR Partnering and HR Advice and Guidance Services
- Set vision and direction for a highly effective team of HR Business Partners and HR Advisors providing, motivation, and leadership to ensure they reach their maximum potential and deliver timely, high-quality, user-focussed services
- Set direction and provide consultancy around organisational problem solving, providing an objective view and challenge to shape and steer business direction, performance and outcomes
- Build relationships and form meaningful alliances with stakeholders, both internal and external, using these networks to scan for emerging demands, trends and innovations
- Work with senior leaders to assess the impact of business change, identifying impacts such as capability, role design, culture, and communications and, embed the DWP Values creating an inclusive culture and a focus on colleagues achieving their full potential through leadership, engagement, People Performance, talent management, recruitment, and learning & development
- Ensure clear business adoption plans to adopt new processes, technology, and services
- Utilise business insight and robust people analytics to steer and direct organisational workforce strategies
- Deliver workforce plans across business areas that reflect agreed priorities and affordability across business areas and underpin future capability needs.
- Act as an intelligent customer into the wider People and Capability Function on behalf the business.
Person specification
Essential Criteria for the role which will be used to assess your application:
You will need to give evidence and examples of proven experience of each of the following essential selection criteria:
- Deep understanding, professional HR knowledge and curiosity about current best practice people issues, This will include, experience of driving the people aspects of technology led, business transformation in an organisation of scale and complexity
- Strong understanding of the data and analytics that underpin effective decision-making and risk management in people-related matters and communicate complex issues clearly
- Experience of developing and driving people and business strategy in an organisation at the apex of change and transformation
- Experience working at a whole system level to develop approaches based on a deep understanding of customers, and the levers to effect positive outcomes
- Strong evidence of successfully influencing and managing complex senior stakeholder relationships, including at the most senior levels, in a large, multi-divisional, multi-site organisation of appropriate scale, where there are dependencies across different business areas
- Extensive experience of providing visible and collaborative leadership within a complex organisation with a proven ability to build high performing teams – particularly teams that operate across organisational boundaries, growing confidence and capability, employee engagement, and an inclusive culture.
Qualifications:
- Chartered Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) or prepared to work towards this.
Benefits
Alongside your salary, the Department for Work and Pensions contributes 28.97% towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.
We also 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 23 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 finance 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.
Things you need to know
Selection process details
To apply for this post please submit the following information no later than Friday 18th October 2024 at 17:00
All applications must be submitted by email to DWP@allenlane.co.uk
- A CV setting out your career history, with key responsibilities and achievements. Please ensure you have provided reasons for any gaps within the last two years;
- A supporting statement (maximum 1,250 words) explaining why you want to work for DWP in this role; how you consider your personal skills, qualities, and experience providing evidence of your suitability for the role, with particular reference to the essential criteria in the person specification.
Please note that when you submit your application, you will be asked to complete diversity monitoring information. All monitoring data will be treated in the strictest confidence and will not affect your application in any way.
A complete application must include a CV, supporting statement and complete diversity monitoring form.
This gives us the best possible chance of finding the right person for the job, drives up performance and improves diversity and inclusivity. If applying under the Guaranteed Interview Scheme (GIS) Allen Lane will provide the required form for completion.
Your application will be acknowledged by Allen Lane.
To find our more about this role and the application process, please see the candidate pack at the bottom of this advert.
The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan and the Civil Service D&I Strategy.
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.
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.
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Working for the Civil Service
We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).
Diversity and Inclusion
Apply and further information
Contact point for applicants
Job contact :
- Name : Ed Stroud
- Email : DWP@allenlane.co.uk
Recruitment team
- Email : senior.recruitment@dwp.gov.uk
Further information
If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Department, you can contact the Civil Service Commission. https://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk/