Department for Transport

Contents

• Location
• About the job
• Benefits
• Things you need to know
• Apply and further information

London. Travel to other sites may be required.

As a member of the SCS you will be leading teams working on a hybrid basis. The expectation is that you will spend over the 60% workplace attendance requirement of your time in the workplace.

Some travel to other DfT workplaces may be required

About the job

Job summary

This role is one of seven Market Leads who are accountable for the delivery of passenger rail services within the Markets (North) and (South) Directorates. You will be one of three Deputy Directors within the Markets (South) Directorate supporting the Director in delivering the strategic, commercial and operational requirements for passenger services within this geographical market, but with the expectation of a particular focus on the Great Western operator. 

Great Western 

The role demands robust oversight and management of the Great Western National Rail Contract (NRC).

The contract operates in a challenging environment including but not limited to a sustained period of poor performance for passengers, industrial relations challenges, the pressing need for more modern rolling stock, revenue growth ambitions and long term strategic operational planning with the construction of the Old Oak Common station for HS2. The full introduction of the Elizabeth Line since May 2023 and the interaction with Heathrow Express operations have created additional pressures on capacity and performance.

There is an ongoing focus on the affordability and value for money of the railway which creates an environment where strong commercial and stakeholder management will be particularly important in this high value market.

Additionally, with the enactment of the Public Ownership Bill, the transfer of the GWR NRC to public ownership in due course will require careful management and engagement with internal and external stakeholders. 

Job description

Key responsibilities of the role include:

• Be accountable for the commercial and contractual in-life management of the Great Western Market team; also, for the delivery of the market objectives, Annual Business Plans, and implementation of progress towards rail reform;
• Laser-like focus on the improvement of performance on the rail network and reducing the net subsidy;
• Take responsibility for all submissions and business cases regarding the Great Western market to the governance boards within Rail Services Group, e.g. Strategic Investment Advisory Panel (SIAP), Strategic Operational Advisory Panel (SOAP) and to other Approvals Boards, e.g. Rail Tier 2 Investment Board (RT2IB) and Investment Project and Delivery Committee (IPDC);
• Promote the delivery of the Department’s broader transport policies and strategic priorities through the NRC agreements, enabling any changes of policies through negotiation and/or influence;
• Apply contract management policies to facilitate the identification and application of best practice within the Directorate and collaboratively across Rail Services Group;
• Lead a ‘joined-up’ approach, championing cross-team working with colleagues elsewhere in Rail Services Group, in Public Transport and Local Group (PTLG), in Major Rail Projects Group (MRPG) and across DfT;
• Develop and foster collaborative relationships with relevant Network Rail Routes and Region;
• Be accountable for the development and management of industry and stakeholder relationships including, but not limited to, board level relationships with train operating companies and rail owning groups operating within the market, the routes and regions of Network Rail that are covered by your operator(s), and with other industry participants including Transport for London; and,
• Be accountable for including requirements for corporate social responsibility and ethical procurement; inclusion of, and support for community rail projects and other such initiatives.
• Flexibility to take on additional TOC leadership functions and/or support other initiatives as required to deliver requirements of Rail Services Group

Management responsibilities of the role include:

• Lead a diverse team of approx. 10-15 people, ensuring the recruitment, retention and development of high calibre individuals across a hybrid working, multiple site environment.
• Act as a role model in demonstrating collaborative and partnership working with the operator, Network Rail and other stakeholders in robustly delivering our commercial and contractual responsibilities.
• Provide collaborative leadership alongside other parts of the Department especially colleagues within Rail Services Group, Public Transport and Local Group, and Major Rail Projects Group. 
• Be a senior member of the Markets (South) and wider Market Leaders community, playing a key role in building and improving the Department’s capabilities and capacity to successfully deliver the wider rail agenda including the industry changes associated with the implementation of rail reform.

Key challenges

• Deliver ongoing value to passengers and taxpayers through high quality in-life commercial and contract management; 
• Ensuring operational performance improves to address current poor levels, and to drive a reduction in net subsidy to meet the fiscal challenges of the railway;
• Working closely across the rail industry at a senior level to evaluate and develop operator markets, and to support the evolution of National Rail Contracts; 
• Maintain and develop the resources within your team, especially in light of the contract changes and capability/ skill requirements, and the evolution of the sector operating model as part of the implementation of rail reform. 

Person specification

You will need to be able to show, through your application, that you have the professional skills, breadth of experience and personal qualities for this post, as well as the leadership skills to succeed at Deputy Director level in the Senior Civil Service.

The industry is undergoing a period of intense change with the transition to new contractual arrangements, the implementation of rail reform and the consequential impacts on the work and staff management of our teams across Rail Services Group.

The Market Lead role requires an individual with the breadth of experience who is confident in being able to make informed, well-balanced and clear decisions in a fast-changing environment and will need to evidence the following experience in their application: 

• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills with the ability to influence senior stakeholders particularly in sensitive, high-profile situations along with the political acumen to impact across Government and the rail industry.
• Knowledge and understanding of commercial and contractual management, financial control and confidence in stakeholder engagement to support decision making and effective communication of complex and/or sensitive issues. 
• Confidence, authority and resilience to lead colleagues to support the resource requirements of the team during this period of change, both in terms of the development aspirations of those already in post but also the recruitment and capability needs for the successful delivery of the remit. 
• Knowledge of the structure and workings of the rail industry OR evidence to show the ability and skills to obtain this very quickly.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £85,000, Department for Transport contributes £24,624 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

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, 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.

Equality, Diversity & Inclusion

The Civil Service values and supports all its employees.

We have strong and pro-active staff networks, special leave policies for hospital appointments, reasonable adjustments put in place for those who need them, and diversity talent programmes to help everyone irrespective of background, to achieve their potential.

Pension

Your pension is a valuable part of your total reward package.

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. Visit Civil Service Pension Scheme for more details. >

Generous Annual Leave and Bank Holiday Allowance

25 days annual leave on entry, increasing on a sliding scale to 30 days after 5 years’ service (allowance is pro rata for part-time employees). 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.

(Leave is Pro rata basis for part time/job share)

Staff Wellbeing

• Flexible working including part-time or term-time 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.
• 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. Any move to the DfT from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. 
• Onsite facilities Opportunity to use onsite facilities including fitness centres and staff canteens (where applicable).

Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants

Job contact :

• Name : SCS Recruitment Team
• Email : scscandidate.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : scscandidate.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Further information

If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles and you wish to make a complaint you should contact scscandidate.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk in the first instance.

If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Department, you can contact the Civil Service Commission: Visit the Civil Service Commission website Here

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