Head of Corporate Systems

publicjobs; Dublin; On-site; EUR 108,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

An Garda Síochána is seeking a Head of Corporate Systems to lead the Garda ICT Directorate's Corporate Systems portfolio, setting vision and directing enterprise-scale IT solutions to meet business needs.

You will oversee maintenance, security, governance, change programmes including a major HCM implementation, manage internal and external resources, and ensure delivery on time and budget while aligning with government guidelines.

Job description

Closing Date: 3pm, Thursday, 8 October 2026

Salary: Starting at €108,152

About the Employer

An Garda Síochána is the national police and security service of Ireland, comprised of approximately 14,300 Garda Members, 3,600 Garda Staff and 300 Garda Reserves. An Garda Síochána is a community focused organisation with a mission of ‘Keeping People Safe’. With a dual role and responsibility for the provision of policing services, and protecting the security of the State, An Garda Síochána is committed to delivering a responsive, effective and efficient service, that meet the needs of our communities.

The organisation was established over 100 years ago at the inception of the state and has a proud history of delivering community policing. In order to build upon this strong foundation, An Garda Síochána must continue to evolve, responding as a modern police and security service to the changing face of crime, vulnerability, population and citizen expectation.

An Garda Síochána is charged with delivering on the key commitments made within the Programme for Government. In support of such, the organisation is growing at scale, with the effective use of Garda resources and capabilities as a key focus area.

An Garda Síochána has delivered on a significant organisational transformation programme including the introduction of cutting-edge technology, new methods of working and the biggest change to its structure in its history.

The Garda ICT Directorate, as one of the three Directorates (ICT, Data & Cyber Security) in the wider Data & Technology Function under the Chief Information Officer, is responsible for the effective deployment and maintenance of ICT systems, services and solutions that support the delivery of strategic business goals and priorities in An Garda Síochána. Corporate Systems supports the IT requirements of key enabling functions in the organisation including HR, Finance, Procurement and Legal.

About the Role:

The Head of Corporate Systems will report directly to the Director of Digital & ICT and will participate in and contribute to the ICT Steering Group which comprises of all ICT Heads of Functions along with the Director.

The successful candidate will have overall responsibility for Corporate Systems in An Garda Síochána, setting the vision and future direction for this important portfolio of systems and ensuring that these systems operate efficiently and reliably to required standards and timelines to meet internal and external customer expectations.

The Head of Corporate Systems will ensure that the systems under their remit support the delivery of corporate functions’ strategic plans, and align with data, technology and security standards set for all digital solutions. A key area of responsibility for this role will be to ensure the highest levels of availability and security are maintained across all systems within their remit, working closely with colleagues in IT Operations, Infrastructure and Cyber Security to achieve and maintain the necessary standards.

The role holder will lead a team responsible for enterprise level application support, maintenance and development and to ensure benefits from digital toolsets and applications are fully realised to enhance the delivery of corporate business requirements.

The Head of Corporate Systems will be highly customer-focused and expected to manage projects and teams to deliver technology services and solutions to high standards. The appointee will be responsible for ensuring that all ICT activities under their remit are delivered on time, and on budget, using an appropriate mix of internal and external resources to achieve best value-for-money. In particular, the successful candidate will lead the technical implementation of a new Human Capital Management (HCM) System; they will work closely with business stakeholders and an external service integrator to deliver a robust and effective enterprise scale solution to meet business needs, ensuring the project delivery adheres to strong governance standards aligned to government guidelines.

The successful candidate will be expected to remain informed of advances in relevant technology and emerging industry trends and will be responsible for recommending changes in services, products, protocols and standards as appropriate. They will also be responsible for assessing and managing risk within ICT and with ensuring that appropriate business continuity strategies are in place.

The Principal Duties and Responsibilities of the Role may include some or all of the following:

• Overall responsibility for the maintenance, support (level 3) and enhancement of the portfolio of corporate IT systems.
• Implementation and oversight of the programme of change for new and enhanced corporate digital solutions, including overall responsibility for the technical implementation of a new enterprise-scale HCM solution for An Garda Síochána.
• Overseeing and continuously improving the delivery of services to ensure service levels for all corporate IT systems are met and where possible exceeded.
• Ensuring cyber security is imbedded by design into all corporate IT systems.
• Liaising with stakeholders in corporate functions to identify and manage the delivery of new and enhanced digital solutions for the business units.
• Supporting business colleagues in process re-engineering to generate benefits and efficiencies from digital solutions.
• Streamlining all digital systems to ensure all corporate data have a master ‘single source of truth’ across applications and services.
• Ensuring that the delivery of all services, projects and activities are underpinned with strong governance procedures, ensuring compliance with relevant organisation and government circulars, guidelines and advice notes.
• Leading a blended team of internal and external resources, ensuring all activities are delivered on time and on budget to achieve best value-for-money.
• Managing third-party vendors to ensure delivery of services and solutions adhere to An Garda Síochána standards and agreed SLAs.
• Closely managing all expenditure and procurement activities for corporate IT Systems, ensuring that financial responsibilities are managed to a high standard and in line with government standard procedures.
• Assisting in the development of overall ICT strategy and policy.
• Leading a multi-disciplinary team, including the mentoring, coaching and development of staff.
• Working collaboratively with the Digital & ICT senior management team to contribute to the overall success of the Garda ICT function, planning and implementing initiatives that contribute to long-term improvements.
• Representing Digital & ICT at various governance fora, steering groups and working committees as required.
• Performing other duties as directed or required.

A full list of essential requirements is available in the Information Booklet.

The closing date for receipt of completed applications is 3pm on Thursday, 8 October 2026.

We are committed to a policy of equal opportunity and encourage applications under all nine grounds of the Employment Equality Act.