Job Description
Portfolio Lead
Location: National (some travel may be required)
Closing Date: 18th March
Interviews (subject to change): w/c 31st March
Grade: 7
(MoJ candidates who are on a specialist grade, will be able to retain this grade on lateral transfer)
Salary (for more information, please refer to the T&Cs at the bottom):
London: £63,343 - £70,725 (which may include an allowance of £332)
National: £58,511 - £65,329
Working pattern: full-time, part-time, flexible working
Contract Type: Perm
Vacancy number: 15436
*We offer a hybrid working model, allowing for a balance between remote work and time spent in your local office. Office locations can be found ON THIS MAP
The Role
We’re recruiting a Portfolio Lead to join our warm and collaborative team at Justice Digital.
This role aligns against Senior Digital Portfolio Manager from the Government Digital and Data Framework.
As a Portfolio Lead, you will provide strategic leadership and oversight of a defined digital portfolio area within Justice Digital.
- You will ensure transparency of delivery performance, effective governance and proactive management of risks and dependencies. Through authoritative insight and engagement with senior stakeholders, you will support informed decision-making and drive portfolio maturity.
- You will lead a team of Portfolio Managers and Analysts, fostering a high-performing, inclusive and continuously improving portfolio function.
To help picture your life at Justice Digital take a look at our blog.
Key Responsibilities
Strategic Portfolio Leadership
- Lead oversight of a portfolio area, ensuring alignment to Justice Digital strategy and organisational priorities.
- Maintain a forward-looking view of delivery confidence, systemic risks and cross-cutting dependencies.
- Act as the escalation point for significant portfolio risks and issues.
Governance & Assurance
- Implement and continuously improve portfolio governance and assurance mechanisms within your area.
- Ensure standards, controls and reporting frameworks are applied consistently and proportionately.
- Present portfolio updates and analysis to senior governance forums and boards.
Portfolio Insight & Decision Support
- Provide clear, structured and evidence-based insight to senior leaders.
- Identify patterns and systemic delivery challenges across initiatives.
- Recommend corrective actions to strengthen portfolio health and maturity.
Leadership & Capability
- Lead and develop Portfolio Managers and Analysts.
- Foster a culture of transparency, professionalism and continuous improvement.
- Support capability development across the portfolio management community.
Cross-Organisational Collaboration
- Build strong, credible relationships with senior stakeholders and delivery leaders.
- Provide evidence-based insight to inform prioritisation discussions.
- Support alignment between portfolio delivery and wider departmental strategy.
If this feels like an exciting opportunity, something you are enthusiastic about, and want to join our team please read on and apply!
Benefits
- 37 hours per week and flexible working options including working from home, working part-time, job sharing, or working compressed hours.
- A £1k per person learning budget is in place to support all our people, with access to best in class conferences and seminars, accreditation with professional bodies, fully funded vocational programmes and e-learning platforms.
- Staff have 10% time to dedicate to develop & grow.
- Generous civil service pension based on defined benefit scheme, with employer contributions of 28.97% from April 1st 2024 (Contribution Rates).
- 25 days leave (plus bank holidays) and 1 privilege day usually taken around the King’s birthday. 5 additional days of leave once you have reached 5 years of service.
- Compassionate maternity, adoption, and shared parental leave policies, with up to 26 weeks leave at full pay, 13 weeks with partial pay, and 13 weeks further leave. And maternity support/paternity leave at full pay for 2 weeks, too!
- Wellbeing support including access to the Calm app.
- Nurturing professional and interpersonal networks including those for Carers & Childcare, Gender Equality, PROUD and SPIRIT.
- Bike loans up to £2500 and secure bike parking (subject to availability and location).
- Season ticket loans, childcare vouchers and eye-care vouchers.
- 5 days volunteering paid leave.
- Some offices may have a subsidised onsite Gym.
Person Specification
Essential:
- Demonstrable experience leading portfolios of change within complex digital or technology environments.
- Experience applying and improving governance and assurance frameworks.
- Strong analytical capability with experience identifying systemic risks and performance trends.
- Confident stakeholder engagement and influencing skills at senior levels.
- Experience leading, managing or developing teams.
Willingness to be assessed against the requirements for BPSS clearance.
We welcome the unique contribution diverse applicants bring and do not discriminate based on culture, ethnicity, race, nationality or national origin, age, sex, gender identity or expression, religion or belief, disability status, sexual orientation, educational or social background or any other factor.
Our values are Purpose, Humanity Openness and Together. Find out more here about how we celebrate diversity and an inclusive culture in our workplace.
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.
How to Apply
- Candidates must submit a CV and Personal Statement of no more than 750 words setting out why you are interested in the role and which describes how you meet the requirements from the essential criteria, set out below:
- Demonstrable experience leading portfolios of change within complex digital or technology environments.
- Experience applying and improving governance and assurance frameworks.
- Confident stakeholder engagement and influencing skills at senior levels.
Please note, failure to provide the documents as requested for the specific role, will result in a rejection of your application.
- A diverse panel will review your application against the Person Specification above.
- Successful candidates who meet the required standard will then be invited to a 1-hour panel interview held via video conference.
In Justice Digital, we recruit using a combination of the Government Digital and Data Profession Capability and Success Profiles Frameworks. We will assess your Experience and the following Behaviours during the assessment process:
- Seeing the Big Picture
- Changing & Improving
- Making Effective Decisions
- Communicating & Influencing
- Leadership
Should we receive a high volume of applications, a pre-sift based on whether you “demonstrable experience leading portfolios of change within complex digital or technology environments” will be conducted prior to the sift.
Should you be unsuccessful in the role that you have applied for but demonstrate the capability for a role at a lower level, we reserve the right to discuss this opportunity with you and offer you the position without needing a further application.
A reserve list may be held for up to 12 months, from which further appointments may be made.
Application Guidance
Please access the following link for guidance on how to apply and how to complete a Personal Statement
Use of Artificial Intelligence
Artificial Intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.
Terms & Conditions
Please review our Terms and Conditions which set out how we recruit and provide further information related to the role and salary arrangements.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact digitalanddatarecruitment@justice.gov.uk
