Head of Technical Projects

Job summary

The Technical Project Team was previously formed part of the Technology function, and it is now forming its own separate entity within DDaT.

The 2nd Head of Technical Projects plays a pivotal leadership role within the Digital, Data and Technology (DDaT) function, responsible for the end-to-end delivery of technical projects that enable organisational transformation and improved service outcomes. This role involves the planning, execution and governance of the DDaT technical project portfolio, ensuring all initiatives are delivered on time, within scope, and to agreed quality and budget standards.

As a senior leader, the postholder will deliver projects which provides clear project controls, strong oversight, and effective stakeholder engagement across business areas, suppliers and technical teams. They will establish delivery frameworks, integrate change management activities, and ensure risks, issues and dependencies are well-managed and transparently reported. This includes maintaining accurate portfolio reporting and leading the communication channels between DDaT and the wider organisation at both tactical and strategic levels.

The postholder will also oversee team leadership, supporting Technical Project Managers to deliver high-quality outcomes aligned to organisational priorities.

They will drive continuous improvement in delivery practice, champion customer-focused project design, and ensure robust processes underpin all project and change activity. The postholder team will most likely grow.

Operating as a key member of the DDaT leadership community, the Head of Technical Projects contributes to shaping the technical delivery roadmap, supports organisational digital strategy execution, and ensures that DDaT projects deliver measurable value, operational improvements, and sustainable long-term capability.

The Directorate

The Acas Digital Data and Technology (DDaT) team are committed to continuously improving the digital and technology experience of everyone using Acas IT services. The Acas DDaT team is in place to work professionally with all stakeholders (ICT suppliers, employers, employees and Other Government Departments).

Core roles include ongoing improvement of the existing systems, software and hardware, transitioning to new digital technology services and assuring performance.

Increasingly Acas DDaT’s remit involves working with multiple interdependent suppliers and adopting new digital capabilities whilst retiring older ones. Our work is fast paced to address the new challenges Acas faces and emerging digital opportunities. Acas DDaT seeks to maximise these opportunities, working alongside the streamlined Government Digital Service governance system.

Job description

Role Purpose

• Lead the successful delivery of DDaT technical projects, ensuring there are documented delivery and stakeholder engagement plans.
• Ensures all project plans adhere to timeline, budget and scope.
• Provide and implement effective leadership and management controls. Set overarching project controls and ensure adherence. Ensure project status is effectively communicated to key stakeholders.
• Lead a team to focus on customer priorities for new or changed products and services, in alignment with desired business outcomes.

Main Accountabilities

• Technical Project Management – Responsible for the delivery of technical projects.
• Project Management – Accountable for creating actionable deliverables, including relevant project documentation and plans.
• Project Plan Delivery – Accountable for integrating change management activities into programme, project and change plans.
• Stakeholder Relationships – Accountable for managing all stakeholders effectively, including the relationships between business and support units.
• Portfolio Reporting – Accountable for timely tracking and reporting on DDaT technical projects, risks and changes, including risks and issues as they arise.
• Change metrics – Accountable for defining and measure success metrics and monitor change progress.
• Managing Change – Accountable for managing programme, project and change
• Communication – Accountable for managing the communication conduit between DDaT and the business at a tactical and strategic level.
• Financial management – Accountable for preparing cost-analyses for programmes, projects and changes, to assist with the prioritisation of projects submitted for approval
• Risk Management – Accountable for identification, analysis and preparation of risk mitigation tactics within projects and programmes.
• Change Implementation – Accountable for identifying and managing anticipated resistance to change initiatives.
• Team Leadership and Performance – Accountable for demonstrating authentic leadership, supporting and coaching team members to improve performance productivity and to continuously motivate and challenge the team.
• Business Relationships – Accountable for ensuring business units understand the technology solutions, the delivery and compliance to DDaT governance processes, architecture and standards.
• Manages and grows the capability of the Business Relationship Managers.

Who we are

Acas exists to make working life better for everyone in Britain. We are the experts in workplace matters, we’re impartial, so we’re not on anyone’s side. That means we’re working for everyone to help prevent, manage and resolve workplace issues.

Acas helps employers and employees by providing information, advice, training, conciliation and other services that prevent, manage or resolve workplace problems.

Acas: Britain’s Workplace Experts

Acas has been recognised for its Diversity and Inclusion in the workplace from the Employers Network for Equality and Inclusion awards – Disability Confident Highly Commended; Pay Gap award winner and Overall winner for public sector organisations. Acas is committed to providing services and developing policies which embrace diversity, promote equality of opportunity and eliminate unlawful discrimination.

Person specification

Technical

Essential Criteria:

Ability to manage technical projects, including:

• Planning and forecasting.
• Tracking and monitoring.
• Risk Management.
• Stakeholder management.
• Managing a project team.

Experience

Essential Criteria

• Experience delivering projects (Lead).
• Be experienced, confident and credible in engaging with a broad and complex range of stakeholders (Lead).
• You will be adaptable when applying your knowledge of project management tools and methodologies, capable of designing a project structure and organisation to meet the requirements of the programme, project or change according to its point in the lifecycle.
• You will be tuned in to the needs of the business, ready to flex structures to ensure that your team's projects remain aligned with agreed delivery goals and wider organisational strategies.
• Have managed a project through the key stages in its lifecycle, from agreeing vision to project closure.

Qualifications

Essential Criteria:

• A recognised accreditation in professional project management: AgilePM APMG, Prince2 or equivalent.

Desirable Criteria:

• Membership to Project Management Networking Groups (eg within BCS), Membership to BRM Institute, BRM Professional Accreditation, ITIL4 foundation or Managing Professional qualification.
• A recognised accreditation in professional Change Management Practitioner APMG, Agile Change Agent APMG or equivalent.

Qualifications

A recognised accreditation in professional project management: AgilePM APMG, Prince2 or equivalent.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £59,870, Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service contributes £17,344 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

We’re big believers in rewarding people for the amazing work they do, take a look at some of the fantastic benefits we offer:

• Learning and Development
• Health and wellbeing
• Pension scheme
• Cycle to work scheme
• Interest free season ticket loans
• Volunteering opportunities

Could you ask for any more?

You’ll have access to a Life style website, were you’ll be able to grab savings over a wide range of products from holidays to your weekly shop.

To find out more please check out

Working for Acas

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

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Strengths and Experience.

How to apply

Please click on the 'Apply now' button.

As part of the application process, you will be asked to complete:

• An evidence-based Personal Statement and CV reflecting select Essential Criteria requirements as listed below. Your Personal Statement should be no longer than 1,000 words. It should avoid generalised assertions, instead including specific examples of achievements, explaining the degree of challenge, what you did and the outcomes.
• A separate 250-word statement reflecting the desirable criteria. Desirable criteria will only be assessed in the event of a tiebreak scenario at interview.

Only the Essential Technical Criteria and the following Essential Experience Criteria should be addressed in your application:

• Experience delivering projects.
• Be experienced, confident and credible in engaging with a broad and complex range of stakeholders.
• You will be adaptable when applying your knowledge of project management tools and methodologies, capable of designing a project structure and organisation to meet the requirements of the programme, project or change according to its point in the lifecycle.

Should a large number of applications be received, an initial sift may be conducted using the:

Lead Criteria:

• Experience delivering projects, and
• Be experienced, confident and credible in engaging with a broad and complex range of stakeholders.

Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift of all the above requirements or progressed straight to assessment/interview.

If a large number of applications meet the minimum standard an interview wait list may be created for this position. This means that if you have met the minimum requirements at sift you may be placed at a ‘Hold’ status for up to 12 months and if we are able to invite you to an interview we will be in touch.

Interview Details

If you have successfully passed sift, you will be invited to an interview via MS Teams likely to take place the week commencing 13 April 2026. The interview will be an Experience, Technical and Strength interview.

All essential Experience and Technical Criteria will be assessed at interview.

A reserve list will be created for this position, this means that if you have passed the interview, but we couldn’t offer you this position, you’ll be on a reserve list for 12 months and may be considered for similar positions.

Reasonable Adjustments

As a Disability Confident Leader, Acas is committed to creating an inclusive recruitment process. If you have a disability and feel that any part of the recruitment process puts you at a disadvantage, we will work with you to make Reasonable Adjustments that support your needs. If you require any changes to help you apply:

• Please contact the Acas Recruitment Team via HRrecruitment@acas.org.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.
• Please complete the “Assistance Required” section on the “Additional Requirements” page of your application form to let us know about any adjustments or support you may need during the recruitment process. For example, this might include accessibility arrangements for entering a building or interview room, communication support, modifications to assessment methods, etc.
• You can find out more about the Disability Confident Scheme and Reasonable Adjustments by clicking these links.

Want to learn more about Civil Service recruitment? You can find out more on Civil Service Careers, including information on Success Profiles, writing a Personal Statement, acceptable use of Artificial Intelligence, and what to expect at Interview.

For applicants requiring an eVisa to work in the UK

Please be advised that Acas does not hold a UKVI Sponsorship Licence so cannot consider sponsoring a visa applicant or issuing a Certificate of Sponsorship.

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.

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

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 : HR Recruitment
• Email : HRRecruitment@acas.org.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : HRRecruitment@acas.org.uk

Further information

If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the Code and you wish to make a complaint, you should contact us on HRRecruitment@acas.org.uk in the first instance. If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from us, you can contact the Civil Service Commission.

Attachments

Job Description - Head of Technical Projects Opens in new window (docx, 43kB)