Team/Directorate: People Function HRBP HMPPS
Overview of the role:
The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) is responsible for everything that goes into running the UKs criminal and civil justice systems, creating the foundations for a safe, fair and prosperous society. We are one of the largest government departments with over 88,000 staff based across England and Wales. We are responsible for 500 courts and tribunals, 122 prisons, the policies underpinning the system and much more.
People Function supports the organisation by enabling its people to be the best that they can be. We are continuously reviewing and enhancing the services we provide to ensure the delivery of high-quality services for our customers. MoJ People Function has over 1,400 committed and capable professionals delivering people services across the Justice family. At the heart of delivering these services are our people.
This role sits within the HMPPS HR Business Partner Team and will provide direct partnering support to Executive Directors within HMPPS.
The role includes oversight and management of an HRBP team and you will report to a Deputy Director of the HMPPS HRBP Team. Your team will be deployed to partner Directors and Deputy Directors within HQ, Prison Probation and Specialist Sites, and alongside Governors and Heads of Probation Delivery Units and Functions to partner in the implementation of people strategies within your business area.
You will be responsible for forging productive relationships with senior leadership teams, enabling translation of business priorities and strategy into a coherent people agenda with targeted interventions. Working alongside Executive Directors and their Senior Leadership Teams to design and deliver tailored HR interventions to drive improvements in effective leadership, people management, organisational design and development, change management and workforce strategy.
Key to this role is the need to be a credible HR professional with the ability to establish quality relationships. Working across the HMPPS HRBP team, this role is the primary link between the top two tiers of senior leadership within HMPPS and their success is reliant upon the strength and support of the rest of the HMPPS HR and People Function via Expert Services.
Summary
Leading the strategic business conversation on people priorities at an Executive Director level
Coaching leaders on the implementation and timely and efficient delivery of planned and unplanned Human Resources programmes.
Partnering the business to manage the people impacts of reform and change across HMPPS and the wider Civil Service, continuously evaluating the impact of internal and external influences on the workforce.
Representing the HRBP function and/or the People Function across key programmes and national portfolios, ensuring business insights and operational considerations are represented.
Leading and developing an HR Business Partner Team, managing the implementation of a new operating model and ensuring they have the capability and capacity to deliver an ambitious people agenda.
Sharing learning and evidence-based practice from across the Ministry of Justice, the wider Civil Service function and wider public and private sectors comparators.
Managing the impact of large-scale HR interventions from HR Centres of Expertise, ensuring there is appropriate join up and collaboration to deliver an effective service
Playing a key role in driving up the standard of leadership and people management, with a particular focus on building line manage capability facilitating access to learning.
Responsibilities, Activities & Duties:
The post holder will be required to bring together the people priorities for both prison and probation at an Area Executive Director and Executive Director level. Partnering between one and two Executive Directors and their senior leadership teams dependent on the complexity of the customer group.
The role will be critical as a change agent to support the change programme that is One HMPPS, with a need to have complete oversight of the region or business supporting senior leaders. The postholder will work collaboratively with Executive Directors and their teams to develop effective strategies in terms of delivery and approach that delivers against the MoJ and HMPPS People Strategy through:
1. Strategic partnering: Contributing to the business conversation by supporting leaders to drive people strategies that enable the business to deliver their objectives.
Activities include:
Working closely with the Executive Director and their Senior Leadership Team on developing People Strategies by effective use of data, analysis skills, and challenge.
Oversight of the workforce plan and resourcing strategy at a regional level, to establish existing and future workforce numbers, skills requirements and organisation structures.
Constructively challenging the status quo in organisational processes and workforce approaches where appropriate.
Supporting the implementation of change within the business area, by advising on effective change management.
2. Solving: Provide strategic input on HR topics and help leaders develop effective people solutions.
Activities include:
Engaging Senior Leadership Teams to ensure people issues and risks are considered at the appropriate time.
Advising on talent management and succession planning - supporting building capability through talent reviews, performance validation and capability plans.
Supporting identification of employee engagement interventions, using Civil Service People Survey data, that will drive increased capability and performance.
Oversight of casework data and supporting the business to access the right interventions to address underlying causes and to drive action to manage cases effectively
3. Connecting: Help the organisation draw on appropriate People Function services and shared service support.
Activities include:
Ensuring client groups understand and appropriately draw upon the total departmental People Function work (including shared services and employee assistance programmes).
Working with HR colleagues to deliver a consistent and quality HR service, ensuring joined-up delivery and policy development/implementation.
Holding relationships beyond the HR function such as with Finance Business Partners and Trade Unions.
4. Coaching: Coach leaders on how to manage people issues and drive the people agenda effectively.
Activities include:
Supporting leaders through regular coaching style conversations.
Act as the trusted adviser to support the Executive Director to lead an SLT which role models exemplary leadership behaviour
Key Delivery Strands:
Business & Culture Change
Working alongside the Executive Director to support business change under the One HMPPS programme.
Oversight of the people impacts arising from significant change programmes across the business, supporting the Executive Director to ensure that HMPPS has the right structure, climate and capability to manage change and transition.
Advise on the people implications arising from significant change initiatives and provide technical HR/employment oversight
Resourcing & Retention
Ensure effective workforce planning at a regional level that aligns to budget allocations, and meets capacity and capability requirements, and deploys appropriate attraction, talent and development strategies.
Ensuring where there is a critical resourcing and retention need, this moves through the appropriate urgent response channels with access to expert services facilitated and co-ordinated
To partner the business to execute appropriate resourcing strategies to include understanding the talent pipeline to SCS2 through succession planning and addressing appropriate development needs to develop credible successors
Leadership & Management Capability
Understand the leadership capability needs at a Director level and develop and grow leadership capability and effectiveness through coaching, challenging and mentoring Executive Directors on business and people issues.
Facilitate access to organisational design and development expertise to build effective leadership teams and equip leadership teams to role model leading effective change.
Drive management capability through ensuring understanding the current management capability skills gaps and ensuring the appropriate learning and development strategy is in place to build capability.
Employee Relations
Oversight of complex casework for the region or business area, supporting Executive Directors and their SLTs to access the right casework and legal advice.
Using casework intel to identify where further interventions may be appropriate to address cultural or individual behaviour change and management capability
Employee Engagement
Partnering the SLT through the analysis and insights of the People Survey results at a regional level or business area level. Ensuring appropriate response plans and action plans are happening at all levels and facilitating access to advice and services to support interventions.
Support the Executive Director to ensure their leaders are being held to account on employee engagement activity.
Attendance & Wellbeing
Oversight of AWDL at a regional and business area level to enable the AED/ED to hold SLTs to account on attendance across their business area
Partner leaders to drive the right interventions, facilitating access to appropriate services to drive down AWDL. Advise and lead on appropriate strategies to address causes of high AWDL and ensure these are implemented across prison and probation
Enable the Executive Director team to understand the current health of their workforce across all business and support the business to access wellbeing services
Equality Diversity & Inclusion
Driving the agenda on the Civil Service wide D&I Strategy through TUBU and other key networks and forums
Ensure equality impacts are understood and considered in the execution of all people initiatives
This will be achieved through:
Operating as the technical HR expert for the business, providing oversight for all people related matters and working to facilitate access to all People Group services to ensure consistent and high-quality HR delivery.
Influencing Senior Leaders to drive forward engagement of our workforce and to enable cultural change and to meet HMPPS aims.
Working closely with HR colleagues, delivery partners, senior managers and HR teams across the Civil Service to drive continuous improvement in the delivery of HR services, policies and practices.
Identification and dissemination of HR best practice, advising portfolio leads for change initiatives/projects.
Tactical use and analysis of people data and customer insight to inform and drive strategic changes, to improve business performance and deliver excellence.
Essential Knowledge, Experience and Skills:
Essential
Excellent communication and networking skills with the ability to persuade and influence others, establishing collaborative relationships with a wide range of stakeholders including permanent secretary and ministers.
Excellent organisational and prioritisation skills, with the ability to work effectively across a range of tasks and under pressure.
Sound judgement and the ability to think strategically and creatively, recognising where improvements can be made and implementing them.
Ability to think and act strategically under pressure and having the confidence to provide advice, guidance and constructive challenge when necessary, and provide regular reporting up to board level.
Ability to find solutions to complex and often sensitive issues.
Qualifications
You must have completed and achieved your Chartered MCIPD (or have an equivalent HR qualification), and actively demonstrate Continuous Professional Development
Personal Attributes & Skills
Strong experience of leadership in a HR team, with experience of leading on HR strategy or previous experience as a HR Business Partner
The ability to demonstrate creative thinking to provide valuable solutions.
The ability to deliver at pace and under pressure and whilst multitasking and delivering to short deadlines.
Proven ability of operating with confidentiality, integrity, reliability and role model leadership principals;
You will have a high level of attention to detail and drive yourself to deliver work to a high standard.
Security clearance required: Baseline
Location/Travel:
London
There is a requirement for the successful applicants work base to be within the region. They will be appointed to the office/hub in the London region, which is closest to their home address. The base location will be discussed with the successful candidate.
As an MoJ employee based in an MoJ building, our minimum expectation is that you will attend a workplace at least 40% of the time. Arrangements will vary depending on the space available at your base location and where it is possible, 60% in-office working is expected. Travelling to see your team alongside any other travel to different sites will be classed as a days office attendance.
Application process:
You will be assessed against the Civil service success profiles framework.
Sift
Behaviours: Please provide examples of how you have met each one of the behaviours listed below:
Seeing the Big Picture (lead)
Communicating and Influencing
Leadership
Managing a Quality Service
Experience:
Please provide a CV
Statement of Suitability - Please outline the skills and experience you hold which demonstrate your suitability for this role (please refer to the essential criteria in the job description).
Technical Skills: You must have completed and achieved your Chartered MCIPD (or have an equivalent HR qualification), and actively demonstrate Continuous Professional Development. Please confirm you hold this or equivalent.
Please also refer to the CS Behaviours framework for more details at this grade:
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/717275/CS_Behaviours_2018.pdf
Should we receive a large number of applications, we will sift primarily on the lead behaviour of Seeing the Big Picture. Successful applicants will then be invited to an interview, testing both behaviours and strengths.
Interview:
Please note that interviews will be held remotely.
During the interview, we will be assessing you on the Behaviours below and Strengths from the Success Profiles framework. You will also deliver a presentation (details will be provided to candidates invited to interview).
Seeing the Big Picture (lead)
Communicating and Influencing
Leadership
Managing a Quality Service
Working Together
