GCS Water Delivery Senior Support Officer

Water is vital for life - clean, freshwater for drinking and sanitation, providing for farms and industry, creating and sustaining the ecosystems on which all life depends. The Independent Water Commission made recommendations for reform of the water system and White Paper commitments to this reform include an integrated and empowered new single regulator, a significant machinery of Government change, resetting regulation for the water system, and reforming the water system planning.

Defra Groups Corporate Services (GCS) operates as a unique shared services model underpinning delivery of the departments priorities. Working through five functions (Human Resources; Finance; Commercial; Digital, Data, Technology and Security (DDTS); and Property), GCS supports over 30,000 people in the Defra group- managing one of the most complex and far-reaching corporate services portfolios in government. As a key enabler, GCS and its functions will work collaboratively with colleagues to support the establishment of a single water regulator.

We are seeking a GCS Delivery Hub (Single Water Regulator) Senior Support officer (SEO) for our GCS Delivery Hub (Single Water Regulator) PMO.

Reporting to the G7, GCS Delivery Hub (Single Water Regulator) PMO Manager, this is an exciting opportunity to help shape the successful delivery of a major transformation programme. In this role, you will drive planning, governance, reporting and business coordination across multiple GCS workstreams, providing the insight and structure needed to support effective decision-making and project delivery.

Working at the heart of GCS Delivery (Single Water Regulator), you will help bring people, processes and priorities together, ensuring GCS workstreams remain on track and delivery objectives are achieved successfully.

This role is aligned to the Project Delivery Capability Framework (PDCF). Further information on the PDCF can be found on the gov.uk homepage (search "Project Delivery Capability Framework").

Detailed Description and Main Responsibilities

• Implement and maintain systems to enable effective planning and scheduling for GCS workstream delivery.
• Implement and manage project controls, reporting the project status to the DD, GCS Delivery Hub (Single Water Regulator) by producing project performance reports.
• Manage and monitor compliance of the project in line with Defra guidelines and legislation, including Health & Safety, Equality & Diversity, Security.
• Support the G7, GCS Delivery (Single Water Regulator) PMO Manager with workforce planning.
• Manage the procurement of supplies and services within Delegated Financial Authority limits.
• Build and maintain strong professional relationships with a wide range of internal and external stakeholders.
• Draft and sign off correspondence.
• Manage and monitor GCS Delivery (Single Water Regulator) spend, compile budgets, and support the development of business cases.
• Lead potential risk areas, working with risk managers to resolve issues and escalating where appropriate.
• An active member of the Defra Project Delivery Profession Community

• Significant experience of risk and issue management, governance, assurance scheduling, and change control in a project or programme environment.
• Working knowledge of planning in a project or programme environment, or appropriate skills that have been gained in a non-project environment.
• Working knowledge of project methodologies and frameworks.
• Ability to work independently in a fast-paced environment, managing complex and involved pieces of work that have lots of dependencies and moving parts.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to influence, challenge effectively and collaborate across boundaries.
• Strong interpersonal skills, and the ability to develop effective relationships with a wide range of stakeholders.
• Experience using Microsoft Office applications, including Excel, Word, and PowerPoint.
• Knowledge and experience of Project Management Methodology supported by professional qualifications such as: PRINCE2 Practitioner, APM Project Management Qualification, Managing Successful Programmes Practitioner or PMI Project Management Professional