Business and Strategy Support Officer
Department for Business and Trade
Apply before 11:55 pm on Sunday 20th October 2024
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Business Management and Improvement
Strategy
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About the job
Job summary
About the Job
Increasing private investment, foreign and domestic, is crucial to the UK’s economic growth and the future prosperity of its citizens. Leveraging this investment is fundamental to growing the economy, delivering energy transition and establishing international leadership as a science and technology driven nation.
The Office for Investment (OfI) was spun out of Downing Street in January 2021 and is now a joint unit between No.10 and the Department for Business and Trade (DBT). The OfI is an exciting, creative and dynamic place to work among a motivated and driven team with both commercial and public sector backgrounds. The Office works closely with Secretaries of State, Junior Ministers, and No.10 to deliver the highest-value, highest profile investment propositions.
The OfI’s missions are to improve the UK’s chances of landing large and impactful internationally contestable investment projects; increase the allocation of capital investment into the UK from the world’s most prolific and exciting financial investors; and give the world’s most important investors the best possible experience of investing in the UK.
The Office's Business and Strategy Support Officer is a new role and is intended to sit at the heart of the team's operating model. The Business and Strategy Support Officer role will lead and contribute to delivering the Office for Investment’s secretariat functions focusing on coordination and prioritisation of the team’s efforts. This role would be particularly appealing to people who are dynamic, confident, and credible individuals, those that can learn fast to give their stakeholders a professional high-quality service.
Job description
The Role
We are looking for someone who is highly organised and can work at pace. You will be proactive in coordination and prioritisation, have a good understanding of what’s important and why, use your own judgement to ensure priorities are given the attention they need at the right time by engaging with other offices and a wide range of stakeholders to deliver.
As the Business and Strategy Support Officer, you will be the first point of call for coordinating the team feed in to commissions, Freedom on Information requests and Write Rounds, finding ways to collate and triage information for efficiency and pace.
The role directly supports 2 senior civil servants and will line manage up to 2 Diary Managers. You will have the agility to deal with different types of tasks in a fast-paced and high-profile environment with plenty of opportunity to work independently and develop your own approach to tackling challenges.
Key Responsibilities
- Prioritisation Management: Support OfI’s senior leadership to identify, flag, and resolve urgent matters, while ensuring swift decision-making and prioritisation of key tasks across the team.
- Secretariat and Governance: Coordinate and perform secretariat duties for meetings, including preparing agendas, taking minutes, and ensuring actions are followed through, while also helping to develop and manage governance processes for the investment pipeline with Ministers and No10.
- Process Development: Developing and maintaining effective processes to deliver a first-class corporate service. Such as the ability to horizon scan and coordinate critical commissions and work with the relevant teams to understand what kind of support, briefing and preparation is needed from the OfI in advance, crucially, ensuring this is delivered.
- Strategy Relationships: Proactively considering where gaps in relationships lay and using own initiative to build professional working relationships that are ready to leverage when needed.
- Project and Strategic Support: Participate in transformational projects and live issues, such as investment cases and cross-cutting policy development.
- Management of operational and corporate functions: Providing leadership to business support staff in the department, including oversight and advice on logistics and diary management.
Person specification
Skills, knowledge and experience
Essential criteria
- Experience: Previous experience in diary management, business support, organisational strategy or a similar role.
- Skills: Exceptional organisational and time management skills, with the ability to prioritise tasks and meet deadlines.
- Communication: Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to interact professionally with individuals at all levels.
- Technology: Highly proficient in Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint) and diary management software.
- Attention to Detail: Strong attention to detail and accuracy in all tasks.
- Flexibility: Ability to adapt to changing priorities and work effectively under pressure.
- Professionalism: High level of professionalism and discretion in handling confidential information.
Desirable criteria
- Experience in a corporate or executive environment.
- Knowledge of travel booking systems and procedures and an awareness of transparency requirements.
- Strong problem-solving skills and the ability to think on your feet.
- Inquisitive, curious and keen to learn and share your knowledge and experience with others.
Behaviours
We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
- Delivering at Pace
- Working Together
- Communicating and Influencing
- Managing a Quality Service
Benefits
- 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 employer contribution of 28.97%
We recognise the challenges that people with (multiple) protected characteristics may experience on the job market and in their career progression. We are fully committed to being an inclusive employer and ensuring equal opportunities. We are keen to make our workforce as diverse as possible, and we hope to attract applications from underrepresented groups, including ethnic minorities, people with a disability, and people with gender diverse identities.
Please refer to the attached candidate pack for further information on our benefits.
Things you need to know
Selection process details
Interviews for this vacancy will be conducted virtually. We will, however, consider in-person interviews by exception.
Please ensure that you check your emails regularly as all updates from us will be sent to you this way.
To apply for this post, you will be asked to complete the following as part of the online application:
- A CV setting out your career history, with key responsibilities and achievements. Provide employment history that relates to the Essential criteria, and that any gaps in employment history within the last 2 years are explained. The CV should not exceed more than 2 x A4 pages.
- A Personal Statement of up to 500 words, explaining how you consider your personal skills, qualities and experience provide evidence of your suitability for the role in reference to the Essential criteria.
In the event of a large number of applicants, an initial short sift will be conducted on the Personal Statement.
Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift or progressed straight to assessment/interview.
It is likely that the sift will take place 1-2 weeks after the closing date and interviews 3-5 weeks after the closing date, though this is subject to change.
Reasonable Adjustments
We are committed to supporting candidates so they can perform at their best throughout the recruitment process. This includes making reasonable adjustments to our process. In order to request an adjustment:
Complete the ‘Assistance required’ section on the ‘Additional requirements’ page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process.
Alternatively contact the Government Recruitment Service at DBTrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.
If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section.
Candidate Support
You may want to join a virtual Candidate Support Session. These sessions include helpful tips and advice on the recruitment process, from application to interview.
Please see attached Candidate Pack for further information on: Diversity and Inclusion; Benefits; Learning and Development; Working Patterns and what we deliver as a department.
Further Information:
- A reserve list may be held for a period of 12 months from which further appointments can be made. Reserve Lists will be for each location and appointments made in merit order based on location preferences.
- Any move to the Department for Business and Trade from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments.
- The Department will not consider sponsoring a visa or issuing a Certificate of Sponsorship. We are unable to offer advice on any Visa and Immigration cases.
- New entrants are expected to join on the minimum of the pay band.
- 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. Any applicant who has 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.
- Terms and Conditions are attached. Please take time to read the document to determine how these may affect you.
- Please note – the successful candidate will be expected to remain in post for a minimum of 18 months before being released for another role.
- This role may be considered as a secondment opportunity. Please reach out to the hiring manager listed at the bottom of this advert to discuss.
In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service /Disclosure Scotland/Access NI 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 Pre-EmploymentChecks.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk stating the job reference number in the subject heading.
For further information on the Disclosure Scotland confidential checking service telephone: the Disclosure Scotland Helpline on 0870 609 6006 and ask to speak to the operations manager in confidence, or email Info@disclosurescotland.co.uk
For further information on the Access NI confidential checking service telephone: the Access NI Helpline on 0300 200 7888 and ask to speak to the operations manager in confidence, or email accessni@ani.x.gsi.gov.uk
Vetting
The requirement for SC clearance is to have been present in the UK for at least 3 of the last 5-years. Failure to meet the residency requirements will result in your security clearance application being rejected.
If you are unsure about the clearance level required for the role, please contact DBT Vetting with a copy of your job description - vetting@businessandtrade.gov.uk
For further information on National Security Vetting please visit the following page https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/demystifying-vetting
Feedback
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.
Security
Nationality requirements
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 : Leesha Gohil
- Email : Leesha.gohil@officeforinvestment.gov.uk
Recruitment team
- Email : dbtrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk
Further information
If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with these principles and you wish to make a complaint, you should in the first instance contact DBT by email: Resourcing@businessandtrade.gov.uk.
If you are not satisfied with the response you receive, you can contact the Civil Service Commission, which regulates all Civil Service recruitment.
For further information on bringing a complaint to the Civil Service Commission please visit their web pages: Click here to visit Civil Service Commission/Complaints
