Defence Business Services (DBS) - HR ACS Casework Assistant Head

UK Ministry of Defence; Bristol; Hybrid; GBP 59,000 - 70,000; Full time

Job summary

Join a dynamic team within an established public sector organization, dedicated to improving HR services for the Ministry of Defence. This role offers the opportunity to lead a team of HR professionals, providing expert advice on complex casework while fostering a culture of continuous improvement. With a focus on employee engagement and leadership development, you will play a key role in shaping HR practices that support the wider defence community. Enjoy a flexible working environment and a comprehensive benefits package, including a generous pension contribution. This is a chance to make a meaningful impact in a vital sector.

Benefits

Civil Service Pension

Flexible Working Options

25 Days Annual Leave

Professional Development Opportunities

Family-Friendly Policies

Special Leave for Volunteer Commitments

Reward and Recognition Programs

Qualifications

• CIPD Membership and understanding of employment law required.
• Experience in HR casework and employee support is beneficial.

Responsibilities

• Deliver expert casework support for complex HR cases.
• Lead HR advice teams and manage casework policies.
• Engage in continuous improvement and change activities.

Skills

HR Case Management

Coaching Skills

Customer Service

Employment Law Understanding

Education

CIPD Level 5 Qualification

Job description

Bristol, Abbey Wood North BS34 8JH

Job Summary

Are you a dedicated person who is passionate about making a difference?

Would you like to work for the Ministry of Defence?

Defence Business Services (DBS) is one of the largest shared service organisations in Europe that provides a wide range of corporate services, to over 1.2 million end users, including serving and past military and families, as well as MoD civil servants and industry. DBS delivers large scale administration and smaller specialist services to enable the wider MOD to focus on its core aims, maintaining the UK’s Defence and Security. Services include Human Resources, Pay, Veterans, Finance and Procurement.

• Our Vision - To support UK defence customers with outstanding service every time.
• Our Mission – Together we will proudly support Defence, continuously improving and delivering flexible, timely, sustainable and value for money services that underpin the whole force and enhance operational capability.
  
  

DBS is committed to creating a great place to work for all our colleagues. We are building an inclusive culture and respectful environment that reflects the diversity of the society.

We want to maximise the potential of everyone who chooses to work for us through opportunities to develop your skills and experience. We also offer a range of flexible working patterns and support to make a fulfilling career accessible to you and offer a Civil Service pension with an average employer contribution of 28.97%. Where your role permits, we support a blended working approach alternatively known as hybrid working.

Where business needs allow, some roles may be suitable for a combination of office and home-based working. This is a non-contractual arrangement where all office-based employees will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of their working time in office, subject to capacity and any required workplace adjustments. Requirements to attend other locations for official business, or work in another MOD office, will also count towards this level of attendance. Applicants can request further information regarding how this may work in their team from the Vacancy Holder (see advert for contact details). Defence Business Services cannot respond to any questions about working arrangements.

Come and join the DBS community today!

Job Description

This position sits within Finance, Procurement and Civilian People (FPCP) function within DBS; FPCP provides a wide range of HR expertise and service delivery, including pay, recruitment and leaving services across MOD and its armed length bodies.

We are looking for a self-driven, highly motivated HR Casework Assistant Head to join our fast-paced HR Advice and Casework Service leadership team.

The MoD is one of four main suppliers of HR casework across the Civil Service through Civil Service HR.

Our Teams of HR Caseworkers provide specialist HR advice to support Employees, Line Managers and other responsible managers and stakeholders across the organisation on a full range of issues in accordance with HR policies and guidance.

The ACS Team is fast paced, busy and a demand lead environment. You will need to be resilient and motivated and have excellent Customer Service skills. You will predominantly be supporting customers over digital channels, therefore the ability to build rapport and trust quickly is essential however, we remain committed to travelling for business need where and when required.

You Will Provide Expert Knowledge Of The Department’s HR Policies And Procedures And Their Practical Application, To Include But Not Limited To:

• Attendance Management
• Conduct and Discipline
• Grievance
• Bullying, Harassment, Discrimination, and Victimisation
• Performance
• Capability
• Probation
• Employment Tribunals.
  
  

You will actively engage in continuous improvement and change activities.

There is also a requirement for regular business travel nationally, including overnight stays.

DBS supports Flexible Working; hybrid working is adopted within the service; the weekly departmental office attendance standard is 60% in office and 40% homeworking. During initial training periods this may be increased slightly.

Responsibilities

Your duties will include:

• Successful delivery of expert casework support and guidance for complex HR cases to mitigate and help manage MOD’s exposure to risk and improve employees’ experience in the workplace through management coaching in line with agreed service levels.
• Senior leadership and accountability for HR advice teams.
• Direct line management responsibility for SEO Senior Casework Leaders and countersigning officer responsibility for HEO HR Caseworkers.
• Support developing policy interventions; ways of working; MI development; operational practices and standard setting; professional development; business strategy.
• Technical expert advice and direction to ensure MOD deals with complex HR cases effectively both individually and collectively in line with the expectations of the modern workplace.
• KPI reporting assurance.
• Enabling continuous improvement activity that is multi-faceted.
• Developing the workforce, we need to provide expert support to managers and senior leaders; and Improve people engagement and leadership capability, including development of fitness to practice assessments and CIPD professional qualification model.
• Leading on dispute resolution initiatives.
• Providing technical support and development to front-line caseworkers and advice in complex situations to senior leaders and other HR professionals.
• Providing expert casework support to senior leaders and other key stakeholders handling complex cases and workplace challenges.
• Support the development of casework policies by engaging directly with CivHR, promote DBS involvement whilst protecting the integrity of the casework service.
• Support the development of MI using existing IT systems and exploring opportunities for further IT exploitation.
  
  

This position sits within Finance, Procurement and Civilian People (FPCP) function within DBS; FPCP provides a wide range of HR expertise and service delivery, including pay, recruitment and leaving services across MOD and its armed length bodies.

We are looking for a self-driven, highly motivated HR Casework Assistant Head to join our fast-paced HR Advice and Casework Service leadership team.

The MoD is one of four main suppliers of HR casework across the Civil Service through Civil Service HR.

Our Teams of HR Caseworkers provide specialist HR advice to support Employees, Line Managers and other responsible managers and stakeholders across the organisation on a full range of issues in accordance with HR policies and guidance.

The ACS Team is fast paced, busy and a demand lead environment. You will need to be resilient and motivated and have excellent Customer Service skills. You will predominantly be supporting customers over digital channels, therefore the ability to build rapport and trust quickly is essential however, we remain committed to travelling for business need where and when required.

Your Duties Will Include:

• Successful delivery of expert casework support and guidance for complex HR cases to mitigate and help manage MOD’s exposure to risk and improve employees’ experience in the workplace through management coaching in line with agreed service levels.
• Senior leadership and accountability for HR advice teams.
• Direct line management responsibility for SEO Senior Casework Leaders and countersigning officer responsibility for HEO HR Caseworkers.
• Support developing policy interventions; ways of working; MI development; operational practices and standard setting; professional development; business strategy.
• Technical expert advice and direction to ensure MOD deals with complex HR cases effectively both individually and collectively in line with the expectations of the modern workplace.
• KPI reporting assurance.
• Enabling continuous improvement activity that is multi-faceted.
• Developing the workforce, we need to provide expert support to managers and senior leaders; and Improve people engagement and leadership capability, including development of fitness to practice assessments and CIPD professional qualification model.
• Leading on dispute resolution initiatives.
• Providing technical support and development to front-line caseworkers and advice in complex situations to senior leaders and other HR professionals.
• Providing expert casework support to senior leaders and other key stakeholders handling complex cases and workplace challenges.
• Support the development of casework policies by engaging directly with CivHR, promote DBS involvement whilst protecting the integrity of the casework service.
• Support the development of MI using existing IT systems and exploring opportunities for further IT exploitation.
  
  

Person specification

Essential Criteria

• CIPD Membership and a Minimum of Level 5 Qualification or to be achieved within 2 years of taking up the post.
• An understanding of employment law.
• Coaching skills.
  
  

Desirable Criteria:

• An experienced HR professional with casework experience.
• Experience within employee support or well-being.
• Line management experience.
  
  

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Leadership
• Communicating and Influencing
• Managing a Quality Service
• Making Effective Decisions
  
  

We only ask for evidence of these behaviours on your application form:

• Leadership
• Communicating and Influencing
  
  

Alongside your salary of £59,690, Ministry of Defence contributes £17,292 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

• An environment with flexible working options Monday-Friday
• 25 days paid annual leave rising (1 day per year) to 30 days upon completion of 5 years’ service (pro rata). In addition to 8 public holidays per year, you will also receive leave for HM The Sovereign's birthday
• Hybrid working where role permits
• An opportunity to be considered for Reward and Recognition
• Family-friendly policies including - parental leave and adoption leave
• Learning and development tailored to your role
• Professional and personal development of skills
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
• Minimum of 15 days special leave in a rolling 12 month period for volunteer reserve commitments
• Special paid leave to volunteer up to 6 days per year
• A Civil Service pension with an average employer contribution of 28.97%
• An opportunity to be considered for Reward and Recognition - £250-£5000 per year
  
  

Allowances

The post does not offer relocation expenses.

Please be advised that the Department is conducting a review of all pay related allowances which could impact on those allowances that the post currently being advertised attracts.

External recruits who join the MOD who are new to the Civil Service will be subject to a six-month probation period.

Employment Hours

This position is advertised at 37 hours per week.

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours and Experience.

Please ensure that at the application and interview stages of the campaign you review the Success Profiles Framework to assist you in the demonstration of your skills and experience.

Your suitability for the role will be assessed using the Success Profile elements that have been chosen for this campaign. Each element will be scored accordingly, and the successful candidate will be appointed on merit.

Applications Will Be Sifted On All Success Profile Elements, But In The Event Of a High Number Of Applications, An Initial Sift Will Be Conducted On The Folowing Success Profile Elements:

Primary: Behaviour - Leadership

Secondary: Career - Personal Statement

At application stage you will be assessed against the following:

Behaviours:

• Leadership
• Commumicating and Influencing
  
  

When choosing your Behaviour examples, please make sure you use real life scenarios that relate to your own experiences. Whilst technology may help to enhance your written submission, presenting the ideas of others or those generated by technology, could result in your application being rejected.

Experience:

• Candidates will be required to provide CV details to include job history; qualification details and previous skills and experience.
• Candidates will be required to provide a Personal Statement in no more than 750 words, detailing the following:
  
  

Please provide information of how you meet the criteria set out in the job description. You may wish to further include examples of how you have tackled similar tasks or demonstrated the skills outlined in the job advert.

Behaviours:

At interview, you will be assessed against the following:

• Leadership
• Communicating and Influencing
• Managing a Quality Service
• Making Effective Decisions
  
  

In The Rare Case Where Individuals Have Exact Matching Scores, The Order Of Merit Will Be Determined Based On The Behaviour Scores At Interview In The Following Order:

• Behaviour - Leadership
• Behaviour - Communicating and Influencing
• Behaviour - Managing a Quality Service
• Behaviour - Making Effective Decisions
  
  

If Candidate Scores Are Still Exact, The Merit Order Will Then Be Determined On The Sift Score In The Following Order:

• Behaviour - Leadership
• Behaviour - Communicating and Influencing
• Career - Personal Statement
• Career - Previous Skills
• Career - Job History
• Career - Qualification Details
  
  

We want to offer opportunities to all who are successful at interview for our roles, but this isn’t always possible, so we do hold candidates on an active reserve list for 12 months.

Application sifting to take place mid to late April

Interviews are currently taking place Face to Face and will be conducted late April to early June

A minimum of 2 full working days’ notice will be provided for interviews. We endeavour to stick to these dates, but these are subject to change around business needs. The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equality of opportunity. There is a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria. If you need to advise us that you need additional help or reasonable adjustments for the recruitment process, please contact: [e-mail]

MOD Recruitment Satisfaction Survey – we may contact you regarding your experience to help us improve our customer satisfaction. The survey is voluntary and anonymous. You may however be given the opportunity to provide additional information to help us improve our service which includes the collection of some personal data as defined by the United Kingdom General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR). The MOD Privacy Notice sets out how we will use your personal data and your rights.

As a result of the changes to the UK immigration rules which came into effect on 1 January 2021, the Ministry of Defence will only offer sponsorship for a skilled worker visa under the points-based system, where a role has been deemed to be business critical.

The role currently being advertised has not been assessed as business critical and is therefore NOT open to applications from those who will require sponsorship under the points-based system. Should you apply for this role and be found to require sponsorship, your application will be rejected, and any provisional offer of employment withdrawn.

To assist with your application please find attached -

DBS Candidate Information Guide - Working for Defence Business Services - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

(26) UK Ministry of Defence: Life , LinkedIn

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours and Experience.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.

Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check (opens in a new window).See our vetting charter (opens in a new window).

People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.

Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check (opens in a new window).See our vetting charter (opens in a new window).

People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This Job Is Broadly Open To The Following Groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service
  
  

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

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).

The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

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).

The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Diversity and Inclusion

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 (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative.

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 : Rosalyn Barlow
• Email : [e-mail]
  
  

Recruitment team

• Email : [e-mail]
  
  

Further information

Appointment to the Civil Service is governed by the Civil Service Commission’s Recruitment Principles. If you feel a department has breached the requirement of the Recruitment Principles and would like to raise this, please contact [e-mail] in the first instance. If the role has been advertised externally (outside of the Civil Service) and you are not satisfied with the response, you may bring your complaint to the Commission. For further information on bringing a complaint to the Civil Service Commission please visit their web pages: http://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk/civil-service-recruitment/complaints/