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SalaryWe are looking to recruit an enthusiastic SEO Strategic Finance and HR lead in the Environmental Quality Directorate’s Chemicals Pesticides and Hazardous Waste (CPHW) Division. The Division delivers policies which ensure the effective management of chemicals throughout their life cycle, for everyone, the environment, and the economy. We work closely with a number of delivery partners to achieve our goals, including other Government Departments, as well as Government Agencies, Regulators, academia and international organisations.
The role is in CPHW’s Business Management Team and is focused on managing and delivering key financial activities for the wider Division as well as taking forward other project management work as required. The team is currently made up of 0.3 G6, 1 x G7, 1 x SEO, 1 x HEO, 1 x AO. The post will report to the G7 Team Leader. We are looking for a confident professional who is accustomed to handling data at pace and information from a range of sources and translating it into comprehensive and informative outputs. We are looking for a candidate who can pro-actively drive forward deliverables, while understanding the bigger picture and building effective relationships with a range of staff across Defra, its agencies, and external parties. The role is pivotal to the functioning of the Division and offers the opportunity to work on a variety of exciting delivery workstreams.
An overview of responsibilities is set out below:
1) Lead on Divisional day to day budgets and support on future finance bids:
- Responsible for managing CPHW’s finances: budget spend and forecasts and associated processes and reporting standards. This includes:
- Supporting the Deputy Directors and G6s on resource forecasting, cost estimations and financial management reporting
- Working to track the actual and forecast Programme and Capital spend across the year for each of CPHW’s budgets
- Attending monthly EQ finance leads meetings to develop and share best practice
- Work with Defra Finance Business Partners to ensure current staffing structure and funding arrangements are reflected in workforce planning systems at DEFRA
- Complete detailed monthly checks against our actual transactions
- Manage discussions with CPHW’s delivery bodies (e.g. Health and Safety Executive, Environment Agency, Natural England) in regard to their actual and forecast budget and support the development of delivery agreements and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for each body
- Facilitate training as necessary for CPHW, overseeing the processes
- Manage the end-to-end payment process within CPHW – from contract to final closure of the purchase orders (including the end of year process) including working closely with evidence teams on contract milestones
- Working with various teams to support CPHW’s strategic financial bids into Government Budgets and Spending Reviews alongside the G7 and G6 in team, providing quality assurance across any proposed budgetary items.
2) Support the HEO in leading on Divisional strategic workforce planning and other cross-cutting HR matters:
- Develop CPHW’s HR and People Plan
- Own the process for starters and leavers and run recruitment campaigns for the Division as required
- Support the development of CPHW’s performance management process
- Manage the process for CPHW’s performance management
- Manage CPHW’s workforce planner and organogram
- Support the tracking of our overall FTE and ensure that we are keeping within both budgetary and financial limits
- Resolve complex recruitment and HR issues as these arise
- Line manage 1 x HEO and oversee their finance and HR responsibilities
This is not an exhaustive list and the post holder need to be flexible and adapt their responsibilities to meet business demands. In return we can offer a variety of on the job learning and shadowing opportunities as well as access to training courses and events to help develop their career as well as their contribution to the Division.
