Head of Corporate Operations G7 Corporate Services Team

The Law Commission is recruiting permanently for the Grade 7 Head of Corporate Operations role. This vacancy is being advertised through an Across Government recruitment campaign and is open to civil servants from any government department who consider themselves suitable for the role and meet the eligibility criteria set out in the Civil Service Jobs advert.

Location:

Successful candidates will be based at:

      102 Petty France, London

In order for Law Commission to meet its evolving business needs all Law Commission staff are expected to attend their base location (102 Petty France) at least 2 days a week.  This hybrid working arrangement is not contractual and as a result staff could be asked to attend their base location more frequently.

Ways of Working

At the Law Commission we believe and promote alternative ways of working, these roles are available as:

·        Full-time, part-time or the option to job share

• Flexible working patterns
• Flexible working arrangements between base locations, MoJ Hubs and home.

If we receive applications from more suitable candidates than we have vacancies for at this time, we may hold suitable applicants on a reserve list for 12 months, and future vacancies requiring the same skills and experience could be offered to candidates on the reserve list without a new competition.

We welcome and encourage applications from everyone, including groups currently underrepresented in our workforce and pride ourselves as being an employer of choice. To find out more about how we champion diversity and inclusion in the workplace, visit: Diversity and inclusion – Law Commission

Salary Grade 7

Existing Civil Servants will have their salary calculated in accordance with the Department’s pay on transfer / pay on promotion rules.  

About The Law Commission

The Law Commission is the statutory body set up under the Law Commissions Act 1965 to keep the law of England and Wales under review and to recommend reform where it is needed. It operates as an independent non-departmental body sponsored by the Ministry of Justice.

The Commission’s aims are:

In addition to four law reform teams staffed by Law Reform Lawyers, Law Reform Assistant Lawyer, and Law Reform Assistants, the Commission has a Corporate Services Team that leads on organisational strategy, finance, HR, communications, and other corporate functions.

Further information can be found at For more information about each role, and how to apply, please visit our website at: Current vacancies - Law Commission

Head of Corporate Operations - the role

This is a pivotal Grade 7 role, providing dedicated leadership for the day-to-day delivery and future development of the Commission’s corporate, people and business support functions.

Reporting to the Head of Corporate Strategy and Operations, the postholder will oversee the delivery of high-quality corporate services including HR, finance, business continuity, annual reporting, and executive and Commissioner support. The role will ensure these services are coordinated, resilient, customer-focused and aligned to the Commission’s strategic objectives.

The role is suited to someone who can operate confidently in a complex expert professional environment, with a commitment to resolving issues at pace, maintaining attention to detail, and providing a high-quality corporate service. The postholder will work closely with CEOs, SMT, Commissioners, operational leads, Ministry of Justice partners and external stakeholders.

·       Lead the day-to-day management and future development of CST corporate operations, ensuring services are coordinated, resilient, high-quality and aligned to the Commission’s law reform objectives.

·       Oversee effective day-to-day HR services such as recruitment, performance management and other related HR functions including the annual staff engagement survey

·       Provide leadership and line management to staff across multi-disciplinary corporate functions, ensuring effective prioritisation, performance, development and wellbeing, and building an inclusive, delivery-focused and high-performing team culture.

·       Oversee corporate financial administration and reporting processes, working with finance colleagues and budget holders to support accurate monthly, quarterly and annual reporting, invoice management, business planning and resource oversight.

·       Provide a service to demanding customers, managing high-volume problem solving and demonstrating superb operational judgement.

·       Supporting and reporting to a senior management team, including our CEOs, Chair, and the Board.

·       Lead and maintain the Commission’s business continuity, contingency planning and organisational resilience arrangements, ensuring plans, reviews, exercises and assurance processes are kept under review and embedded across the organisation.

·       Strategic oversight and management of complaints, freedom of information and litigation processes.

·       Act as the designated Senior Information Risk Owner (SIRO) with responsibility for ensuring compliance with data protection responsibilities and the maintenance of security standards and policies.

·       Support others in team responsible for FOI, data protection and risk management.

·       Act as the operational lead for accommodation and health and safety matters, liaising with Ministry of Justice partners to ensure risk assessments, hybrid-working arrangements, office requirements and staff needs are appropriately managed, and support others in the team responsible for the organisation’s accommodation move.

·       Manage delivery of executive and PA support services to the Commissioners and senior leadership.

·       Lead delivery of key annual corporate products and processes, including the Business Plan, Annual Report, corporate assurance returns and other cross-Commission planning and reporting products.

·       Represent the Head of Corporate Strategy and Operations and CST in internal and external fora as required, maintaining effective relationships with CEOs, SMT, Commissioners, Ministry of Justice partners and other stakeholders.

·       As a senior leader within CST, visibly demonstrate the Commission’s values and behaviours, acting as a role model for integrity, collaboration, delivery-focus, resilience and outstanding customer service.

·       Identify opportunities to improve efficiency, consistency and service quality across corporate operations, including better use of systems, data, process improvement and new technology where appropriate.

The duties listed above describe the post as currently envisaged and are not intended to be exhaustive.

·       Experience of delivering outstanding corporate services, business operations or an equivalent multi-functional support function in a complex or expert professional organisation

·       Proven ability to lead multi-disciplinary teams and deliver results through others, including effective delegation, prioritisation, performance management and staff development.

·       Exceptional communication and interpersonal skills, using clear, pragmatic advice to build effective relationships and influencing stakeholders at all levels, inside the organization and externally.

·       Highly organised, resilient and delivery focused.

·       Ability to act as a visible role model, demonstrating integrity, collaboration and sound judgement across the team, wider organisation and with other organisations.

·       Direct experience of HR, finance or wider corporate functions, with the ability to provide credible operational leadership across more than one corporate area.

·       Experience using digital tools, data, AI or innovative technology to improve business delivery, service quality or corporate resilience.

Application process

You will be assessed against the Civil service success profiles framework.

In the event of a large number of applications, an initial sift may be conducted on the CV or Statement of Suitability before a full assessment of both.

Experience

You will be asked to provide a CV during the application process in order to assess any demonstrable experience, career history and achievements that are relevant to the role.

At application stage you will be asked to provide a statement of suitability of 750 words focused on evidence against the essential criteria, particularly corporate services leadership, operational delivery, stakeholder management and experience managing HR and other core functions.

Candidates invited to Interview

Please note that interviews will be carried out in person.

During the panel interview, you will be asked behaviour-based questions to explore in detail what you are capable of, and to also explore what you enjoy, and your motivations relevant to the job role.

We will assess you against these behaviours during the application process and/or at interview:

·                 Seeing the Big Picture

·                 Leadership

·                 Working Together

·                 Managing a Quality Service

·                 Communicating and Influencing

Please also refer to the CS Behaviours framework for more details at this grade:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/717275/CS_Behaviours_2018.pdf

Interviews are expected to take place Late September/Early October.

Contact information  

Please do get in touch if you would like to know more about the role or what it is like working in our team recruitment@lawcommission.gov.uk

Annex A - The STAR method

Using the STAR method can help you give examples of relevant experience that you have. It allows you to set the scene, show what you did, and how you did it, and explain the overall outcome.

Situation - Describe the situation you found yourself in. You must describe a specific event or situation. Be sure to give enough detail for the job holder to understand.

·             Where are you?

·             Who was there with you?

·             What had happened?

Task - The job holder will want to understand what you tried to achieve from the situation you found yourself in.

·             What was the task that you had to complete and why?

·             What did you have to achieve?

Actions - What did you do? The job holder will be looking for information on what you did, how you did it and why. Keep the focus on you. What specific steps did you take and what was your contribution? Remember to include how you did it, and the behaviours you used. Try to use “I” rather than “we” to explain your actions that lead to the result. Be careful not to take credit for something that you did not do.

Results - Don’t be shy about taking credit for your behaviour. Quote specific facts and figures. Explain how the outcome benefitted the organisation or your area. Make the outcomes easily understandable.

·             What results did the actions produce?

·             What did you achieve through your actions and did you meet your goals?

·             Was it a successful outcome? If not, what did you learn from the experience?

Keep the situation and task parts brief. Concentrate on the action and the result. If the result was not entirely successful describe what you learned from this and what you would do differently next time. Make sure you focus on your strengths.