Assistant Director

House of Commons

The House of Commons a unique and exciting place to work right at the heart of the UK's thriving democratic system.

Behind the scenes, the House of Commons Service is made up of more than 3,000 employees who support and facilitate the smooth day to day running of the House. They provide professional services to Members of Parliament, their staff, and the wider parliamentary community.

Staff Benefits

In addition to your salary, we offer an attractive range of benefits including:

• 30 days' annual leave (increasing to 35 days after first full leave year).
• Civil Service pension with an average employer contribution of 27%.
• Access to training and development.
• Flexible working.
• Interest free season ticket loan and bicycle loan.

Introduction

Maintaining a thriving parliamentary democracy requires the contribution of a dedicated, politically impartial and diverse workforce (currently circa 2,500 in the House of Commons alone) one that takes great pride in supporting the democratic process. Every single individual and team proactively adding value, working collaboratively and committed to securing Parliament's future in a fast-changing digital world.

The Project Delivery Team, within the Strategic Estates Directorate in Parliament, takes great pride in looking after and improving the buildings of Parliament itself, as custodians of the Estate.

The Project Delivery Team is accountable for the delivery of all the current major projects across the Parliamentary Estate. Having recently undergone a reorganisation, the team will focus on a portfolio management approach, alongside an enhanced focus on construction quality, cost scrutiny and consistency of approach whilst strengthening opportunities for professional development and career progression across the team.

The Role

The successful candidate will consult and build relationships with the heads of a variety of in-house departments and Clerks of Domestic Committees of both Houses to translate new requests into practical, value-for-money projects. They will work with other Assistant Directors to keep an up-to-date and live database of cross cutting project lessons learned, typical project risks and post project evaluations. As an Assistant Director, the successful candidate will also be expected to be responsible for the good management and welfare of their team, ensuring that all human resources practices and procedures comply with the staff handbook and 'Good Manager' guide. They will promote proactive communication and teamwork through regular departmental meetings/briefings, and ensure that all staff understand the department and Directorate's objectives, and their own role in achieving them.

Some of the responsibilities for this role include:

• Annual capital budget and forecasting responsibility of approximately £30m per annum.
• Oversee the regular financial reporting and budgetary control of projects within the post holder's control, ensuring the timely and accurate submission of monthly team forecasts and reporting any exceptions and suggested mitigations as soon as they arise.
• Preparation of reports to Committees of either House or to Boards of the authorities of either House, and attend these as required by the Director of Capital Projects.
• At handover, ensure that the completed works and documentation are in accordance with the approved design and specifications and meets with the agreed standards.
• Management responsibility will vary and will be dependent on the size and nature of workload, but will include one or more Senior Project Leaders, Project Leaders, Assistant Project Leaders, Graduates and Project Support Officers.

Skills and Experience

Essential qualifications, knowledge, skills, experience and behaviours:

• Relevant professional membership of a construction or property related body such as the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), Royal Institute of British Architects, (RIBA) Chartered Institute of Services Engineers (CIBSE), Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB).

To be successful in this role you will demonstrate:

• Experience of:
  • Running 'in-house' teams of project professionals who in turn are responsible for appointing and overseeing external consultants and contractors to ensure complex projects are delivered on time, to budget, and agreed quality standards.
  • Personally managing complex technical projects in environments with multiple stakeholders.
  • Understanding of procurement practices in general and particularly two stage contractor procurement.

• Develops sophisticated strategies for influencing the behaviours of others at all levels to achieve an objective, without damaging relationships.
• Ability to build and maintain effective relationships between staff, managers, contractors and stakeholders ensuring that everyone is, at all times, treated with dignity, courtesy and respect.
• Strong written and oral communication skills including the ability to simply explain complex technical issues to a lay audience.
• Analyses information from a range of sources and uses creative problem-solving techniques to draw appropriate conclusions and drive through continuous improvement and value for money in ambiguous and uncertain situations, in order to achieve organisational objectives.
• (Desirable) Knowledge of NEC3 form of contract and EU works/services procurement, contract types and contract management.

Next Steps and Additional Information

If you would like to apply for this role, please submit your anonymous CV and covering letter with a 750 word limit.

More information on the role and the full criteria can be found in the Job Description.

Please note that most job offers will be made at the minimum of the salary range, other than in exceptional circumstances.