Lead Release & Deployment Manager

Home Office Digital designs, builds and develops services for the rest of the department and for government. Every year our systems support up to 3 million visa applications, checks on 100 million border crossings, up to 8 million passport applications and deliver 140 million police checks on people, vehicles and property.

As a member of the Service Operations Release Management team, you will work within a close-knit group to design and implement robust release management processes for Networks and Infrastructure (N&I), enabling IT changes to be delivered with minimal risk. The Lead Release & Deployment Manager role involves close collaboration with the Change Enablement team to apply ITIL-based controls to critical IT changes that could significantly impact departmental and public services.

You will build strong working relationships with N&I colleagues, the Change Enablement team, internal and external suppliers, and key stakeholders across DDaT portfolios. Leveraging your solid technical background, you will partner with N&I Subject Matter Experts to assess risks and prioritise change activities, contributing to the development of a forward schedule of change and release.

You will lead N&I SMEs in rigorously applying ITIL-aligned change control processes to ensure changes are designed, built, tested, and deployed with effective stakeholder engagement and minimal risk of failure. Three positions are available—one of which will have a primary focus on team leadership, setting strategic direction and overseeing team performance, while all roles will retain operational responsibilities.

Where business needs allow some roles may be suitable for a combination of office and home-based working. Where this is the case, employees will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of their working time in the office.

Watch this short video to hear from members of Home Office Digital talking about the projects they work on and their experience of working here: Working for Home Office Digital., As a Lead Release & Deployment Manager, your day-to-day responsibilities will be:

• Managing Releases and Deployments for the N&I Release Management team through the Change process, allocating workload and acting as first escalation if there are any issues.
• Providing specialist advice and being responsible for the approval, prioritisation and escalation of major Release and Deployment Requests to the responsible authority, ensuring all authorised releases maintain the integrity of the IT architecture and are within budget and resource constraints.
• Overseeing teams to ensure that services are delivered by the team and suppliers within defined timescales and are well documented.
• Developing policies, processes and procedures in line with best practice to deliver quality services, seeking ways to automate and draw on efficiencies from other Service Management areas where possible.
• Providing reporting to senior IT Operations and wider DDaT management, representing the function on various boards and forms of governance.
• Driving continual service improvements through the measurement and challenge of services and processes, using tools and capability to automate where appropriate, and reflecting on outputs from Post Implementation reviews., Change and Transformation:
• Change Analysis

• Business Situation Analysis (BUSA) – level 3

Delivery and Operation

• Service Management

• Service Acceptance (SEAC) – level 4
• Change Control (CHMG) – level 4 ·

• Technology Management

• Technology Service Management (ITMG) – level 3
• Release and Deployment (RELM) – level 5

Relationships and Engagement

• Stakeholder Management

• Stakeholder Relationship Management (RLMT) – level 3, The allowance values are set by the Home Office, subject to remaining in a qualifying role. This allowance is non-contractual, subject to an annual review and could be withdrawn at any time.

For both new entrants and existing civil servants, the total compensation offer is a combination of base salary and, if applicable, a capability-based allowance. The pay ranges for this role are National: £62,109 - £68,320 and London £66,229 - £72,852. New entrants to the Civil Service will start on the pay range minimum. For existing civil servants, our policies on level transfer and promotion will apply.

In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service on your behalf. However, we recognise in exceptional circumstances some candidates will want to send their completed forms direct.

If you will be doing this, please advise Government Recruitment Service of your intention by emailing Pre-EmploymentChecks.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk stating the job reference number in the subject heading.

Reasonable Adjustments

If a person with disabilities is at a substantial disadvantage compared to a non-disabled person, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.

If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should:

• Contact Government Recruitment Service via HOrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs
• Complete the “Assistance Required” 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 you're deaf, a language service professional

If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the ‘Contact point for applicants’ section.

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

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check .

See our vetting charter . People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks., * 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)
• 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

Do you have experience in Software deployment?, * Developing, implementing and adhering to ITIL v3 / v4 management processes and procedures.

• Technical experience, ideally within a Networks and Infrastructure role.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with a proven ability to communicate effectively and professionally.
• Have the ability and confidence to present in front of leadership teams, with a proactive mindset to drive action resolution in critical areas.
• Proven ability to build and manage relationships with suppliers and senior stakeholders.
• Strong focus on customer outcomes and protecting organisational integrity and reputation.

SFIA capability framework

Skills for the Information Age (SFIA) is the technical framework that sets the standard capability and development of all IT Operations levels in the Home Office. This is a link to the capability framework: All skills A - Z English (sfia-online.org)

We use set SFIA technical skills to form our interview questions and we will assess you against these technical skills during the selection process.

The essential skills listed above are reflective of the Home Office Government Digital and Data Profession Career Framework (based on the industry standard SFIA framework). Use the SFIA levels of responsibility to understand what would be expected for each technical skills listed below.

SFIA Technical skills

The essential technical skills required for this role are listed below and are reflective of the Home Office Government Digital and Data Profession Career Framework., * Changing and Improving

• Seeing the Big Picture
• Delivering at Pace

Technical skills

We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:

• Business Situation Analysis (BUSA) – level 3
• Service Acceptance (SEAC) – level 4
• Change Control (CHMG) – level 4
• Technology Service Management (ITMG) – level 3
• Release and Deployment (RELM) – level 5
• Stakeholder Relationship Management (RLMT) – level 3, This vacancy is using Success Profiles , and will assess your Behaviours, Experience and Technical skills., For meaningful security checks to be carried out, individuals need to have lived in the UK for a sufficient period of time. Learn more on our website. Security Checks - Home Office Careers.

Please note that this role requires Security Check (SC) clearance, which would normally need 5 years’ UK residency in the past 5 years.

However, in exceptional circumstances security clearance applications for candidates who have been present in the UK for at least 3 of last 5 years may be considered. Failure to meet this residency requirement will result in your security clearance application being rejected., We are unable to sponsor any individuals via Skilled Worker Sponsorship / Tier 2 (General) work visas as we do not hold a UK Visa & Immigration (UKVI) Skilled Worker License.

£62,109 New entrants to the Civil Service will start their role on the salary band minimum: £62,109 for National roles or £66,229 for London roles.

You may be eligible for an additional Recruitment and Retention allowance, pending a Capability and Skills Assessment, with a value of up to £11,300. A Civil Service Pension with an employer contribution of 28.97% GBP, Alongside your salary of £62,109, Home Office contributes £17,992 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Find out more information at: Benefits - Home Office Careers, but some of the primary ones are:

A competitive starting salary.

• A Civil Service Pension with employer contribution rates of at least 28.97%.
• In-year reward scheme for one-off or sustained exceptional personal or team achievements.
• The ability to potentially adopt flexible working options that suit your work/life balance, plus the opportunity in future to take a career break.
• 25 days annual leave on appointment, rising with service.
• Eight days public holidays, plus one additional privilege day.
• 26 weeks maternity, adoption or shared parental leave at full pay, followed by 13 weeks statutory pay and a further 13 weeks unpaid, after qualifying service.
• Maternity and adoption support leave (also known as paternity leave) of two weeks full pay, after qualifying service.
• Paid leave for fostering approval processes, support when a child is substantively placed with you plus a foster to adopt policy.
• Support for Guardians and Kinship carers.
• Corporate membership of ‘Employers for Carers’ providing additional information and advice for carers, plus a ‘Carer’s Passport’ to discuss workplace needs and underpin supportive conversations.
• Time off to deal with emergencies and certain other unplanned special circumstances., If you feel that your application has not been treated in accordance with the Civil Service recruitment principles and you wish to make a complaint, then contact the Government Recruitment Service via HOrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk. If you are not satisfied with the response that you receive, then you can contact the Civil Service Commission.