Senior Strategy Adviser

Scottish Government; City of Edinburgh; On-site; GBP 80,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

A government department in Edinburgh is seeking a capable individual to take on a pivotal role in leading the shadow Bill team related to wellbeing and sustainable development. The successful candidate will manage policy considerations and support communication efforts within the Government and Parliament, ensuring stakeholder engagement. This is an excellent opportunity to work closely with Ministers while driving the National Performance Framework's reform and implementation processes.

Qualifications

• Experience in leading policy considerations and managing legislative processes.
• Strong leadership and project management skills.
• Ability to work collaboratively across teams and with stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Lead as deputy of shadow Bill team focusing on wellbeing and sustainable development.
• Manage Ministerial handling and advise on policy matters.
• Prepare and present briefing papers and project governance documents.

Skills

Policy analysis

Project management

Communication skills

Stakeholder engagement

Line management

Job description

Overview

Are you interested in delivering high-impact long-term initiatives in the strategic centre of Scottish Government?

Strategy Division connects Scotland’s Ministers and decision makers with strategic expertise, and positions national outcomes at the heart of Government. Current priorities include shaping the future of the National Performance Framework (NPF), and steering the response to a Members’ Bill.

Our work aims to support Government and public sector leaders with practical, evidence-led proposals and advice, co-designed with our expert partners, for better strategic decision making - now and for the future.

The Deputy First Minister announced to the Scottish Parliament in early 2025 that “we now have a great opportunity to rethink and reform the National Performance Framework”. You will join, in collaboration with the Central Analytical Division, the project team established to lead NPF reform and implementation across Scottish Government and the public sector. This will include stakeholder engagement, consultation, communications, cross‑party engagement, implementation, website creation and much more.

The role will also focus on shadowing the Wellbeing and Sustainable Development (WSD) Members’ Bill introduced by Sarah Boyack MSP. You will lead on policy input and planning our response in line with the parliamentary timetable (at stage 1 at time of writing), ensuring that the Government’s interests are protected. A core objective of this role will be to successfully support the Government’s response to the Bill, which relates closely to the NPF. This is a great opportunity to develop skills and experience around working with Ministers and Parliament.

Responsibilities

• Work as deputy leader of shadow Bill team, including leading on policy considerations relating to wellbeing and sustainable development with a view to protecting Government interests in Parliament.
• Oversee close collaboration with Scottish Government Legal Directorate and other key colleagues including PLU.
• Lead on Ministerial handling and advice, including via written submissions and oral briefings as required.
• Lead on all regular briefings for the shadow Bill team, including responsibility for the FMQs brief, core brief and public lines.
• Lead on planning and project management for the shadow Bill team.
• Lead as required to the project’s workstreams, in particular the design and delivery of an implementation action plan for the refreshed NPF – taking a lead role on specific areas and associated stakeholder engagement.
• Support project governance including preparing and presenting board papers, Ministerial submissions etc.
• Line management responsibility. Provide leadership and guidance to support development.
• Provide support to wider unit and divisional strategy projects, with flexible work across the division.