Head of User Centred Design
Job summary
Ready to deliver digital transformation with a national impact? Crown Commercial Service (CCS) is the UK's largest public procurement organisation. In 2023/24, we delivered £4.9 billion in commercial benefits for the taxpayer. Join our Digital and Data Services team to lead on high-impact digital products, implement our Data Strategy, and influence the adoption of new technologies like AI. We are a Top 50 Inclusive Employer with significant opportunities for career growth. Make your mark on public services. Apply today
Job Summary
As Head of UCD, you will be crucial in leading CCS’s shift to being a customer-focused organisation. You will recruit, inspire and develop a team of UCD professionals, set best practices, influence organisational priorities, and collaborate across CCS and wider government to deliver for our customers.
Directorate Overview
The Digital & Data Services (DDS) directorate is at the heart of CCS's digital transformation journey, responsible for delivering modern, efficient, and user-centred digital services that support over £30bn of public sector procurement annually. We're building a world-class digital capability that will revolutionise how the public sector buys common goods and services.
Team Summary
You will be heading up an expanding User Centred Design team that, when fully resourced, will include service designers, user researchers, interaction designers and accessibility specialists. We are building a culture that values user-centricity, experimentation and agility where team members will work closely with Digital and Commercial colleagues.
Job description
Key Accountabilities
Visionary Leadership: Provide strategic direction to the UCD community, fostering a culture of excellence in product and service development while championing uncompromising standards for inclusivity and accessibility.
Strategic Governance: Establish and lead robust design assurance frameworks and cross-portfolio governance, clarifying accountabilities and streamlining workflows to ensure all products align with unified standards and organisational goals.
Stakeholder Influence: Build high-impact partnerships with senior leaders and stakeholders, positioning UCD as a strategic driver to ensure all activities are directly aligned with broader organisational objectives.
Talent & Capability Building: Oversee the full talent lifecycle for the UCD profession—including recruitment, performance management, and career progression—while providing high-level coaching and mentorship to empower practitioners at all levels.
Community & Advocacy: Cultivate a culture of continuous learning and innovation; collaborate with government and industry peers to advocate for UCD standards and ensure a relentless focus on customer-centricity across the organisation.
Performance & Standards: Set and elevate the benchmark for UCD excellence by implementing policies, frameworks, and performance metrics that ensure the consistent delivery of high-quality work that meets both user needs and business outcomes.
Person specification
Essential Criteria (to be assessed at application stage):
Strategic Influence: Proven experience in shaping both design and organisational strategy, with the ability to navigate complex environments to align user-centered priorities with overarching business goals.
Professional Leadership & People Management: A track record of coaching and mentoring UCD professionals at all levels, with expert ability to manage the full talent lifecycle—from recruitment and performance management to career progression.
Excellence in UCD Standards: Deep expertise in translating user insights into inclusive, accessible products, with a demonstrated mastery of applying government digital standards and the GOV.UK Service Standard at scale.
Senior Stakeholder Engagement: Highly skilled in building and sustaining influential relationships with senior leaders and diverse professional communities to advocate for UCD interests and secure buy-in for design-led initiatives.
Governance & Quality Assurance: Substantial experience in establishing organisational frameworks, governance structures, and performance metrics that raise design standards and guarantee the delivery of quality, outcome-driven services.
Behaviours
We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
- Leadership
- Communicating and Influencing
- Developing Self and Others
Technical skills
We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:
- Designing strategically
- Applying user centred insights
- Stakeholder relationship management
- Agile research practices
Benefits
Alongside your salary of £72,771, Crown Commercial Service contributes £21,081 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.What we will offer you, here are some of the benefits you can expect:
Competitive salary
Generous pension scheme
A discretionary non-contractual performance related bonus
Working remotely in addition to working in advertised office location
Flexi time scheme (available for B1-B6)
Minimum 25 days annual leave to a maximum service related 30 days excluding bank holidays
Explore fully how we will rewardyour work.
Want to make a difference? Find out more about the rewarding work that we do in our candidate pack.
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 and the Civil ServiceD&I Strategy.
We want to make our recruitment process accessible to everyone, so if there is any way that we can support you, please contact recruitment@crowncommercial.gov.uk
Working flexibly, delivering outcomes
CCS is a flexible business with a smarter working model where our colleagues benefit from a mix of home and office working. Successful candidates are expected to work from one of the office locations listed. Our current office attendance approach requires a minimum of 26 days per quarter (approx 2 days per week, which may be subject to change) in CCS office locations or off site meetings with suppliers, customers, partners, networking / industry events. This is pro rata for those who work part time. Our smarter working principles mean that our people have the advantage of both office and offsite based collaboration and learning, as well as working from home. This way of working allows us to honour our commitment to being a responsible business, offer flexibility and better work life balance as well as ensuring we deliver our business with confidence and in accordance with our CCS values.
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 Behaviours and Technical skills.Assessment
If you are shortlisted, you will be asked to take part in an alternative leadership assessment. These assessments will not result in a pass or fail decision. Rather, they are designed to support the panel's decision making and highlight areas for the panel to explore further at interview.
Please note that as part of this recruitment process, if you are unsuccessful at interview stage but are close to the benchmark score you may be considered for and offered a role at a lower pay band within the same job family.
Selection Process
Candidates who are successful at sift will be contacted as soon as possible following the closing date and advised of the interview process in more detail. The sift will commence WC 26th January and interviews will be held WC 23rd February either at one of our offices or via video with interview times and dates to be confirmed. (Subject to change)
To find out more about our recruitment process please click here
Please note: 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 for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.
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 counter-terrorist 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
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
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 : The Recruitment Team
- Email : recruitment@crowncommercial.gov.uk
Recruitment team
Further information
Our recruitment processes are underpinned by the principle of selection for appointment on merit on the basis of fair and open competition as outlined in the Civil Service Commissioners’ Recruitment Principles details of which can be found at http://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.ukIf you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles, and you wish to make a complaint, you should contact recruitment@crowncommercial.gov.uk in the first instance.
If you remain unsatisfied with the response you receive you can then contact the Civil Service Commission at info@csc.gov.uk
https://www.crowncommercial.gov.uk/careers-with-ccs
Salary range
- £72,771 - £80,776 per year