Deputy Director Digital Performance and Capability

Job summary

This is an exciting time to join the Digital, Information, and Security Directorate within the Department for Transport as we embed a new Operating Model and restructure the directorate to meet future challenges. We are building a more sustainable, skilled, and predominantly in-house capability to respond effectively to the growing and evolving cyber security threat, while leading digital transformation to deliver the ambitions set out in the Blueprint for a Modern Digital Government.The new Operating Model will require significant change in how we work, ensuring we deliver clear outcomes for customers while continuing to learn and improve. As part of the senior leadership team, this role will be pivotal in shaping and embedding the cultural change needed. Through strong leadership and role modelling, the postholder will reinforce the directorate’s cultural goals.The directorate manages an annual budget of around £45m, with approximately 180 staff and 60 contracts valued at £124m. This role is critical in providing central oversight to ensure the directorate, and the wider digital function across DfTc, operates in a coordinated way to minimise duplication and maximise efficiencies. This will support delivery of the Government’s Productive and Agile State agenda.The role is key to operationalising the new DfTc Digital Strategy, ensuring benefits are realised and progress is effectively monitored. Strategic priorities include supporting the department to close the digital and data skills gap across the workforce, embedding the capabilities required for transformation, and coordinating digital investment to maximise efficiency and security of spend.In a challenging fiscal environment, the Deputy Director will play an important role in maintaining high performance and operational efficiency. This includes implementing effective performance monitoring systems to track delivery, workforce development, and compliance across functions.In addition, we are establishing a shared view of digital delivery across the DfT Civil Service Group. This includes pooling capability development and increasing market leverage through joint procurement with external suppliers. The Deputy Director Digital Performance and Capability will act as the central hub for reporting and assurance to Government Digital Service (GDS), as well as coordinating cross-group procurement activity.

Job description

Responsibilities of the role include:

• Accountable for the performance of the Digital Performance and Capability team to enable the directorate and the digital function across DfTc to work effectively: finance and contracts, talent and workforce development, strategy, governance, secretariat, change management, and communications.
• Leading transformation for the directorate, including the implementation and embedding of the directorate’s new Operating Model. You will ensure that change is managed well and the directorate is fit for the future.
• Establishing a commercial framework and ways of working across the DfTc digital function and DfT Group to enable coordinated investment of digital investment and gain value for money.
• Strategic approach to resource allocation and delivery of in year demands with the development and implementation of future focused strategic financial and people plans.
• Liaison with DSIT and GDS to influence performance management frameworks for the Government’s Blueprint for a Modern Digital Government and ensuring the KPIs are met.
• Working closely with the senior leadership team to ensure the effective delivery of commissions and KPIs.
• Working closely with DIS senior leaders and stakeholders, lead on the development, design and operationalisation of the new DfTc Digital Strategy tracking benefits to bring about digital transformation for the department.
• Oversee work to improve the Department’s digital and data skills as part of work to enable DfTc to work smarter
• Identify and influence collaboration and joint working across the DfT Group digital function, leveraging efficiencies and best practice.
• Provide clear and strategic people capability building plans – including talent pipelines; succession plans; and ensuring all staff have clear and structured development plans.

Person specification

You will need to be able to show, through your application, that you have the professional skills, breadth of experience, and personal qualities for this post, as well as the leadership skills to succeed at Deputy Director level in the Senior Civil Service.

Person Specification

• Proven senior leadership experience delivering large, complex transformation programmes and designing and implementing organisational strategy.
• Strong track record of managing competing priorities, budgets, and performance frameworks, supported by robust systems and processes that ensure effective operational delivery and continuous improvement.
• Demonstrable success in transforming services, driving performance improvement, and enhancing the customer experience through the effective use of data and insight.
• Ability to operate confidently through ambiguity, finding creative solutions to resource challenges and balancing short‑ and long‑term efficiency and performance.
• Highly effective at engaging internal and external stakeholders and briefing senior leaders clearly on complex resourcing, performance and delivery issues.
• Experienced people leader, with a strong record of leading multidisciplinary teams and developing future‑focused workforce and financial plans, including talent development and succession planning.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £81,000, Department for Transport contributes £23,465 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Whatever your role, we take your career and development seriously, and want to enable you to build a really successful career with the Department and wider Civil Service.

It is crucial that our employees have the right skills to develop their careers and meet the challenges ahead, and you’ll benefit from regular performance and development reviews to ensure this development is ongoing. As a Civil Service employee, you’ll be entitled to a large range of benefits.

Equality, Diversity & Inclusion

The Civil Service values and supports all its employees.

We have strong and pro-active staff networks, special leave policies for hospital appointments, reasonable adjustments put in place for those who need them, and diversity talent programmes to help everyone irrespective of background, to achieve their potential.

Pension

Your pension is a valuable part of your total reward package.

A competitive contributory pension scheme that you can enter as soon as you join where we will make a significant contribution to the cost of your pension; where your contributions come out of your salary before any tax is taken; and where your pension will continue to provide valuable benefits for you and your family if you are too ill to continue to work or die before you retire. Visit Civil Service Pension Scheme for more details.

Generous Annual Leave and Bank Holiday Allowance

25 days annual leave on entry, increasing on a sliding scale to 30 days after 5 years’ service (allowance is pro rata for part-time employees). This is in addition to 8 public holidays.

This will be complimented by one further day paid privilege entitlement to mark the King’s Birthday.
(Leave is Pro rata basis for part time/job share)

Staff Wellbeing

Flexible working including part-time or term-time working and access to Flexible Working Schemes allowing you to vary your working day as long as you work your total hours.

Generous paid maternity and paternity leave which is notably more than the statutory minimum offered by many other employers.

Childcare benefits (policy for new employees as of 5 April 2018): The government has introduced the Tax-Free Childcare (TFC) scheme. Working parents can open an online childcare account and for every £8 they pay in, the government adds £2, up to a maximum of £2000 a year for each child or £4000 for a disabled child. Parents then use the funds to pay for registered childcare. Existing employees may be able to continue to claim childcare vouchers, so please check how the policy would work for you here. Any move to the DfT from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments.

Onsite facilities Opportunity to use onsite facilities including fitness centres and staff canteens (where applicable).

Things you need to know

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details

Application

The Hiring Manager will be holding a Q&A session on Friday 5th June from 1–2pm. If you would like to book a slot to discuss the role in more detail, please contact SCS.Recruitment@dft.gov.uk

To apply for this post, you will need to complete the online form. This should be completed no later than 23:55 on Sunday 14th June 2026.

The application will include:

• A CV setting out your career history, with key responsibilities and achievements. Please ensure you have provided reasons for any gaps within the last two years.
• A Statement of Suitability (no longer than 1,250 words) explaining how you consider your personal skills, qualities and experience provide evidence of your suitability for the role, with particular reference to the criteria in the person specification.

Failure to submit both documents will mean the panel only have limited information on which to assess your application against the criteria in the person specification.

As part of the online application process, you will be asked a number of diversity-related questions. If you do not wish to provide a declaration on any of the particular characteristics, you will have the option to select 'prefer not to say’.

All monitoring data will be treated in the strictest confidence and will not be provided to the selection panel.

Should you encounter any issues with your online application please get in touch with us via scscandidate.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Shortlist

Your application will be acknowledged when it is received.

The panel will select a shortlist of candidates whose applications best demonstrate suitability for the role, by considering the evidence provided against the essential criteria set out in the Person Specification.

Candidates applying under the Disability Confident Scheme who meet the minimum selection criteria in the job specification are guaranteed an interview.

Assessment

Candidates will be required to complete a Numerical and Verbal Reasoning test plus, a Work Strength test.

These must be completed by Monday 8th June at 23:55.

Only candidates who successfully pass these tests will be able to proceed with submitting their application.

Please note there is scheduled maintenance for the online testing platform on the following dates:

• Sunday 31st May: 4:00pm – 12:00am
• Sunday 7th June: 4:00pm – 7:00pm

Informal discussion

Shortlisted candidates will have the opportunity to meet with the other Deputy Directors within the Digital Directorate to learn more about the role and ask any questions. This is not part of the assessment process and will take place on Tuesday 30th June via Microsoft Teams.

Interview

You will be asked to attend a panel interview in order to have a more in-depth discussion of your previous experience and professional competence in relation to the criteria set out in the Person Specification.

Interviews are expected to take place in our London office. As part of the interview, candidates will be given a topic which they will be asked to talk through their approach. This will be given 30 minutes before the interview to allow time to prepare.

The Success Profile Framework will be used to assess and recruit the most suitable candidate. As well as Experience, we will also be using the following four behaviours at the interview stage:

• Leadership
• Seeing the Big Picture
• Making Effective Decisions
• Communicating and Influencing

Further information about Success Profiles can be found here:

Offer and Feedback

Unfortunately, due to the anticipated number of applicants for this role, we are unable to provide feedback to those not successful at shortlist stage. Candidates who are shortlisted and attend an interview will be offered verbal feedback from a member of the interview panel.

The timeline later in this pack indicates the date by which decisions are expected to be made, all candidates will be advised of the outcome as soon as possible thereafter, and we will advise on any delays.

Expected Timeline

We will try and offer as much flexibility as we can, but it may not be possible to offer alternative dates for assessments or interviews. You are therefore asked to note the below timetable, exercising flexibility through the recruitment and selection process, in order to meet the dates given. Please note that these dates may be subject to change.

The anticipated timetable is as follows:

Online Tests 23:55 Monday 8th June 2026

Advert Closing Date 23:55 Sunday 14th June 2026

Q&A Session Friday 5th June 2026 1pm – 2pm

Shortlist Monday 22ndJune 2026

Informal Discussion Tuesday 30th June 2026

Panel Interviews Tuesday 7th July 2026

Reasonable Adjustment

If a person with disabilities is put 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 at: scscandidate.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.
• Complete the ‘assistance required’ section in the ‘personal information’ page of your application form to provide information we should be aware of that will enable us to support you further on in the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional.

Further Information

If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact: scscandidate.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Should candidates like to discuss the role in more detail before submitting an application, please contact: SCS.Recruitment@dft.gov.uk

If your application is successful but you have been dismissed from the Civil Service, your application could be removed at the pre-employment checking stage depending on the nature of the dismissal.

Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty had their employment continued. Any applicant’s details held on the IFD will be refused employment. A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5-year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government.

All external applicants and current employees of accredited non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) will be required to undergo a Social Media Check. A Social Media Check is a review of your publicly available online activity, typically across platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, and others. The purpose is to identify any public posts or content that could raise concerns for employers, such as:

• Hate speech or discriminatory behaviour
• Threats or acts of violence
• Illegal activity or substance misuse
• Sexually explicit material
• Extremist views or affiliations

Importantly, this check does not involve hacking into your accounts or accessing private messages. It only considers content you have chosen to make public. Employers use this kind of screening to help ensure their workplace remains safe, inclusive, and aligned with company values. It’s not about judging your personality or lifestyle - it’s about checking for potential red flags that might affect the role or company culture. If you have questions or concerns about the social media check, we would be happy to explain in more detail what’s being looked at and how your data is handled securely and fairly.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.This role has a minimum assignment duration of 3 years. An assignment duration is the period of time a Senior Civil Servant is expected to remain in the same post to enable them to deliver on the agreed key business outcomes. The assignment duration also supports your career through building your depth of expertise.

As part of accepting this role you will be agreeing to the expected assignment duration set out above. This will not result in a contractual change to your terms and conditions. Please note this is an expectation only, it is not something which is written into your terms and conditions or indeed which the employing organisation or you are bound by. It will depend on your personal circumstances at a particular time and business needs, for example, would not preclude any absence like family friendly leave. It is nonetheless an important expectation, which is why we ask you to confirm you agree to the assignment duration set out above.

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 (opens in a new window).

See our vetting charter (opens in a new window).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 theCivil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

Apply and further information

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative.Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants

Job contact :

• Name : SCS Recruitment Team
• Email : scscandidate.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : scscandidate.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Further information

Civil Service Commission Selection for appointment to the Civil Service is on merit, on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission’s Recruitment Principles.
In accordance with the Civil Service Commissioners’ Recruitment Principles, our recruitment and selection processes are underpinned by the requirement of appointment on the basis of merit by fair and open competition. If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles and you wish to make a complaint, in the first instance you should contact; scscandidate.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk
If you are not satisfied with the response you receive you can contact the Civil Service Commission at info@csc.gov.uk and more information can be found at www.civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk

Attachments

SCS1 Candidate Pack Opens in new window (pdf, 6779kB)464037 Deputy Director Digital Performance and Capability Accessibility Pack (1) Opens in new window (docx, 34kB)