About us
Are you interested in developing a career with a real purpose?
We are looking for individuals who are committed to public service and to make a difference in people’s lives to deliver justice. If this sounds like you, please apply.
HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) is responsible for the administration of criminal, civil and family courts and tribunals in England and Wales. Joining us is a chance to play a pivotal role in the smooth running of our courts, which give people and businesses access to potentially life-changing justice. Not only will your work be of crucial importance for those who use our services, you’ll be able to build a varied, challenging and rewarding career.
Your role
As a key part of the Wales Support Unit (WSU), the role will lead on regional performance monitoring and analysis for the region. The role will work closely with the Regional Delivery Director (RDD), the Head of Service Performance Improvement (HoSPI), Heads of Operations, and other senior managers across the region to identify and understand operational performance variances and provide recommendations and support to address these.
The Performance Lead will also provide expert performance advice and analytic support to help to shape future approaches to the delivery of operational services across the Region. This work will support the Regional Delivery Director in improving performance and the delivery of appropriate level of service to HMCTS users.
Reporting directly to the Head of WSU, the Performance Lead will lead the performance analysis work programmes, ensuring they are aligned with other areas of HMCTS work activity, and work collaboratively with others across the organisation to deliver business plan objectives. They will work with other managers in the WSU to matrix manage staff providing a variety of support functions for the region.
Key Accountabilities
Ensuring relevant support is provided to the Senior Leadership Team (SLT), including the Regional Delivery Director (RDD), the Head of Service Performance Improvement (HoSPI), Heads of Operations and the wider RSU ensuring that senior leaders have the information required to deliver business performance effectively.
Provide performance reports, data analysis/interpretation and advice to assist the RDD, Heads of Operations and SIP in understanding regional performance and identifying appropriate interventions or corrective action and performance improvement strategies for services.
Develop and manage an aggregated view of delivery performance, resources and costs across the region including contributing to the effective delegation of sitting day allocations for the region.
Signpost to existing reports, and where necessary, coaching users, including the judiciary, in self-service of performance information.
Triaging report requests and liaising with the Operational Performance function in the National Support Unit (NSU) to escalate the need for changes or additions to performance reporting tools/reports and commissioning improvements.
Provide ad hoc ad hoc analysis and reports for senior management often in time sensitive circumstances, ensuring senior managers have the information and insight they need to make effective decisions about the delivery or improvement of operational services.
Lead on data stewardship for the region, quality assuring data provided and coaching managers/staff so they understand where and why improvements are required to ensure it can be used and relied upon to make strategic decisions about the operation. Where necessary, escalating issues to the Head of Operations, Head of RSU or the NSU.
Manage and support the team of Operational Support Managers, working in a matrix management arrangement with other RSU senior leaders, to assign and delegate responsibilities, ensure the team is supported, guided, and developed and the performance of individuals and the team is managed effectively.
Contribute to regional business planning process by providing performance insight and regional context and data to enable SLT to develop plans to deliver against national and regional objectives.
To work in a flexible way and undertake any other ad-hoc duties reasonably requested that are commensurate with a role at this level.
Your knowledge, skills and experience
Problem solving skills to analyse, identify, understand, and report on all aspects of regional service delivery and performance, helping to support the creation of action plans to deliver against priority areas.
Leadership and management skills to lead and motivate teams through periods of change and uncertainty.
Experience or knowledge of regional operations including the business planning process to understand how performance issues can impact on delivery against national and regional objectives and to be able to provide organisational and regional context to performance variations.
Ability to plan effectively to ensure all regional performance priorities are delivered, whilst ensuring that plans are developed to meet changing or emerging operational priorities
Excellent communication skills to be able to convey potentially complex performance data in easily understandable and engaging way.
Knowledge of HR policies and procedures and to manage RSU staff in a matrix management context, supporting and developing people to their potential.
Problem Solving and Decision Making
The Performance Lead will need to investigate and analyse performance issues and understand the wider organisational context or regional circumstances that might cause or contribute to these, providing full performance analysis and expert advice to senior leaders to help them make the right decisions. This advice is likely to be persuasive.
The role will also provide options and solution-based recommendations based on their detailed analysis of performance issues and their recommendations will carry weight with senior managers.
In their data stewardship work, the role will actively encourage solutions to problems across the region, providing advice and guidance whilst allowing our people the autonomy to solve problems.
Management of Resources
Work with Head of RSU and other RSU leaders to ensure that team resources are deployed appropriately enabling the delivery of consistent standards and achievement of regional and HMCTS business objectives, providing options for the flexible deployment of the team to meet changing business priorities.
The role will operate in a matrix management context in managing the support teams in the RSU, with joint line management responsibility for the operational support teams.
Autonomy
The role has a wide remit covering performance related issues for the region and will use judgement and discretion to set priorities for their work, their team, and the region taking the initiative and only escalating as agreed with the SLT or Head of RSU.
The role will be expected to develop new and creative ways to engage and communicate with staff about data quality and performance issues but there are wider organisational protocols and guidelines that it will operate within to deliver against these.
In developing solutions to issues the role will be expected to take independent action that will not usually require input from more senior staff. The role will have the support and guidance of the Head of RSU, Operational Performance Team in NSU, the HQ Analysis & Performance function and regional SLT when considering options, and more serious issues are likely to be escalated to more senior managers for resolution.
Key Relationships and Contacts
The Performance Lead will engage regularly with the RDD, the Head of Service Performance Improvement (HoSPI), Head of RSU and Heads of Operations to provide accurate and informative performance data, as well as insight and advice to help them make strategic decisions affecting operational service delivery.
The role will proactively support the building of strong working relationships across the RSU function, encouraging cross team working and capability building across all the RSU strands of work.
The role will also provide performance reports, information, and insight to the judiciary, explaining complex information to help their audience understand the reports and make effective decisions using the data.
The role will liaise regularly with Operational Performance Team in the NSU and the HQ Analysis & Performance team to share information and best practice as well as understand new developments or improvements in performance reporting.
The role will create and maintain its own networks to support managers, other staff and stakeholders including the judiciary to self-serve performance information, guiding a non-expert audience through the processes.
For a full job description, please read supporting document 1 included below before applying.
Further details
Standard full time working hours are 37 hours per week. HMCTS welcomes part-time, flexible and job-sharing working patterns, where they meet the demands of the role and business needs and are agreed prior to appointment. All applications for part-time, flexible and job-sharing working patterns will be considered in accordance with the MoJ’s Flexible Working policy.
Part time hours would be considered, minimum of 30 hours per week over 4 or 5 days.
Base location - Wales Support Unit - Cardiff Magistrates Court
The Wales Support Unit is based on the second floor of Cardiff Magistrates Court. It provides daily support not only to all sites in the Wales region but also the senior management team.