Lead Interaction Designer - Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom - Department for Work and Pensions

Description

This lead role will be joining the Strategic Reference Architecture (SRA) Orchestration and Enablement Team. Consisting of several digital roles, this multidisciplinary team spans the department supporting other teams; building reusable components and the digital services which consume them.

With experience of large-scale and complex projects you will use research, data, and evidence-based decisions to ensure user needs are met in the design of coherent end-to-end services which are aligned to departmental goals.

You will be an advocate for best practice in user-centred design, providing strategic direction to help teams design effective services, which simplify the journey for users, eliminating errors, and unnecessary duplication.

Roles and responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

Providing leadership at a strategic level to understand users' behaviour and use evidence to help improve new and existing services.

Advocating for user-centred design, demonstrating best practice within the department and beyond.

Providing expert advice and guidance to develop prototypes and design patterns.

Leading on the creation and maintenance of a positive and collaborative working environment.

Leading on the growth of the interaction design community in DWP and across government.

Working with the head of interaction design to set the hiring strategy, manage less experienced colleagues, and lead on recruitment campaigns.

Representing DWP Digital at external events.

Person specification

When giving details in your employment history and personal statement you should highlight your experience in line withessential criteriabelow:

Provide guidance on tool selection and method appropriateness, establishing standards and procedures.

Support multidisciplinary teams with user-centered design processes and clear explanations of design concepts.

Advocate for design thinking to senior stakeholders, policy colleagues, and multidisciplinary teams.

Apply strategic thinking to optimise user services, focusing on end-to-end design.

Deliver strategic-level recommendations, presenting clear analyses and visualisations to communicate complex messages.

Foster inclusive working environments, building strong interpersonal relationships and valuing diverse opinions and challenges.

If you would like to learn more about the role, please contact

Benefits

An employer pension contribution of up to 27%
Annual leave rising up to 30 days, (based on your working pattern).
Family friendly flexible working arrangements, such as hybrid working, job sharing, term-time working, flexi-time and compressed hours.
Learning and development tailored to your role this could include industry recognised qualifications, coaching and mentoring.
An inclusive and diverse environment with opportunities to join staff networks including: Womens Network, National Race Network, National Disability Network (THRIVE) and many more.

This job role may be suitable for hybrid working, which is where an employee works part of the week in their DWP office and part of the week from home. This is a voluntary, non-contractual arrangement and your office will be your contractual place of work. The number of days that anyone will be able to work at home will be determined primarily by business need but personal circumstances and other relevant circumstances will also be taken into account. If you are successful, any opportunities for hybrid working, including whether a hybrid working arrangement is suitable for you, will be discussed with you prior to you taking up your post.

Salary Information

Pay for this role is from 66,869 to 77,740.

Our offer to successful candidates will be based on an assessment of your skills and experience as demonstrated at interview.

Existing Civil Servants who secure a new role on lateral transfer should maintain their current salary.

Existing Civil Servants who gain promotion may move to the bottom of the next grade pay scale or 10% increase in salary whichever would be the greater.

Location

Applicants should apply for suitable posts where they can travel to and from their home office location daily within a reasonable time.

Please be aware that this role can only be worked in the UK and not overseas. Relocation costs will not be reimbursed

Hybrid Working

This job role may be suitable for hybrid working, which is where an employee works part of the week in their DWP office and part of the week from home. This is a voluntary, non-contractual arrangement and your office will be your contractual place of work. The number of days that anyone will be able to work at home will be determined primarily by business need but personal circumstances and other relevant circumstances will also be taken into account. If you are successful, any opportunities for hybrid working, including whether a hybrid working arrangement is suitable for you, will be discussed with you prior to you taking up your post.

HASSRA

DWP colleagues will have the opportunity to join HASSRA, a vibrant and successful organisation that provides a first-class programme of competitions, activities and benefits for its members (subscription payable monthly). It also has an important part to play in helping us achieve a healthy work-life balance and wellbeing in the workplace.

Things you need to know

Selection process details

Stage 1: Application

Your application will consist of three parts:

1. A Personal Details application form.

2. Your employment history detailing your responsibilities, skills, accomplishments, plus your qualifications and relevant training. Please copy this information into the box field provided.

3. Personal statement up to 750 words. Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.

When giving details in your employment history and personal statement you should highlight your experience in line withessential criterialisted inthe Person Specification.

The sift panel will use the information in your employment history and personal statement to assess your experience, skills and knowledge against the essential criteria above.

For Hints and Tips on completing your application visit Applying for jobs at DWP Digital.

Important Information

You will be asked to complete your employment history any information that you would customarily share on a CV should therefore be entered onto the application form.
Personal details that could be used to identify you including your name, contact details and address must be removed for your application to be considered.
If your employment history/personal statement contains any personal details your application will be withdrawn.

Stage 2: Interview

If youre successful at sift stage you will be invited to a video interview via Microsoft Teams. There, you will be assessed against the experiences listed in the essential criteria.

You will be asked to do a (10 minutes) presentation on a specific topic. Further details will be provided to candidates invited to interview.

Interviews will take place from early-June 2024. Interview dates to be confirmed.

To help you prepare and settle into the interview you will be sent the questions in advance of the interview, at least 5 days prior to your interview. These questions should be treated as confidential and should not be shared. The interview panel may ask you other questions which will not be shared in advance, including follow-up questions, and those about your experience and abilities. Candidates will be asked further probing questions if their response is deemed to require further information to determine suitability for the role.

Further information:

Find out more about Working for DWP

A reserve list may be held for a period of 6 months from which further appointments can be made.

Reserve list candidates will be posted in merit order by location.

Reasonable Adjustment

At DWP we value diversity and inclusion and actively encourage and welcome applications from everyone, including those that are underrepresented in our workforce.

We consider visible and non-visible disabilities, neurodiversity or learning differences, chronic medical conditions, or mental ill health. Examples include dyslexia, epilepsy, autism, chronic fatigue, or schizophrenia.

If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should: Contact Government Recruitment Service via as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.

Complete the Reasonable Adjustments section in the Additional requirements page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if youre deaf, a Language Service Professional.

For further information on reasonable adjustments, terms and conditions and how we recruit visit the How we recruit page.

The Civil Service values honesty and integrity and expects all candidates to abide by these principles. Please ensure that all examples provided in your application are taken directly from your own experience and that you describe the examples in your own words. Applications will be screened and if evidence of plagiarism or copying examples/answers from other sources is found, your application will be withdrawn. Internal DWP candidates may also face disciplinary action.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.

People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window) .

The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Diversity and Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window) .