SDA Human Resources Deputy Directors

Job summary

The Defence Nuclear Enterprise (DNE) is the partnership of organisations that operate, maintain, renew and sustain the UK’s nuclear deterrent.

Our Enterprise is central to the UK Government’s £242 billion equipment plan for the British Armed Forces, and is responsible for the design, build, in-service support and decommissioning of all UK submarines, meaning we are responsible for Defence’s number one priority – Continuous At Sea Deterrent (CASD).

The Deputy HR Director roles provide strategic leadership for the DNE People and HR profession, supporting the creation of a unified People approach. These roles ensure depth, resilience, and strategic coverage across internal and external interfaces, enabling Defence to shape and respond to evolving HR demands. The split of accountabilities and responsibilities will be for discussion once successful candidates have been identified.

The role will support the strategic oversight and effective delivery of the people and human resources profession for the DNE, working closely with me to deliver our priorities and ensure operational excellence. Acting as a key adviser and partner, the Deputy Directors will shape and deliver high-quality people strategies that enable the DNE to meet its strategic objectives and our overarching mission. These positions play a critical role in ensuring the organisation is supported by seamless, client‑focused delivery of people‑centred products, services, policies and processes. As HR DD, you will provide leadership and guidance to teams, champion best practice, and constructively challenge to deliver measurable value by achieving a high‑performance culture in a safe and inclusive environment. You will drive agility and continuous improvement across all areas of delivery. Success will depend on your ability to think strategically, influence outcomes, and engage effectively with senior stakeholders across Government, Defence, the DNE, industry, and international partners, while supporting me to deliver organisational priorities.

The Human Resource Deputy Directors will be pivotal to enabling DNE to meet its commitment to the needs of the Royal Navy.

Both positions are advertised at 37 hours per week. Requests to work flexibly and/or part time will be considered, taking into account business needs. Please note the salary will be pro-rata where part time hours are undertaken.

The two available positions can either be predominantly located in Bristol or London. However there will be a requirement for regular travel to other DNE sites and occasionally internationally, including regular overnight absences.

Please note, due to the level of security, these roles are reserved for UK nationals only.

Job description

The Deputy HR Director roles provide strategic leadership for the Defence Nuclear Enterprise (DNE) People and HR profession, supporting the creation of a unified People approach. These roles ensure depth, resilience, and strategic coverage across internal and external interfaces, enabling Defence to shape and respond to evolving HR demands. The split of accountabilities and responsibilities will be for discussion once successful candidates have been identified.

The Deputy HR Directors lead the design and delivery of People and HR services for the DNE, covering civil servants, military personnel, contractors, and civilians. This includes driving a customer centric approach and aligning services to clear metrics and Enterprise priorities while ensuring consistency with wider Defence and Civil Service objectives. The roles provide strategic direction and oversight of People and HR outputs, build and manage relationships at senior levels (2* and 3*), and influence decision-making to deliver agreed strategic outcomes.

A key aspect of the roles is working collaboratively across the wider Defence Nuclear Enterprise, including regular engagement with industry partners. This ensures alignment of people strategies, coherent workforce planning, and a shared approach to capability and skills development across MOD and industry. The Deputy HR Directors shape the People Strategy and drive evidence‑based insights and compliant HR practice. They champion people and change initiatives across HR service lines, working closely with Centres of Expertise and shared services. Together they provide specialist HR leadership across organisation design, employee relations, culture, data and insights, diversity and inclusion, resourcing, learning and development, talent, performance and reward. They coach senior leaders through complex people challenges, drive the people agenda, and support effective business delivery. Strategic action plans are developed and monitored to address organisational priorities.

The Deputy HR Directors play a critical role in shaping the future People and HR profession within the DNE. The roles ensure simplification of policy and process, remove duplication, and deliver customer-focused HR solutions. Acting as trusted advisors to senior leaders, the HR Deputy Directors lead key HR projects and initiatives that directly impact organisational outcomes. You will work as a team, in an agile way that plays to everyone’s strengths and will be asked to cover across as well as up the HR portfolio.

It is important that you read the attached candidate pack prior to applying to fully understand all the duties required by a Deputy HR Director within DNE.

If you need to contact Defence Business Services (DBS) regarding this vacancy, please indicate that your vacancy is being handled by the SDA Recruitment Team. If you experience any technical difficulties with the CS Jobs system, please contact the Support Team at candidate@support.oleeo.com.

Person specification

Essential Criteria:

1. The successful candidate will be required to hold in date Chartered Fellow of the CIPD.

2.Proven track record of successful leadership experience at Senior HR level and ability to lead strategic HR initiatives and transformational change programmes.

3.Ability to interpret and use complex workforce data to inform strategic decisions.

4.Proven ability to influence and build credible relationships with colleagues, external partners, and senior stakeholders with ability to influence at executive level.

5.Evidence of delivering continuous improvement and digital transformation in HR services.

Desirable Criteria:

1.Experience of working within Defence or wider Civil Service environment (this may include within an Arms Length Body or Agency).

2.Knowledge of Defence HR systems and frameworks.

3.Understanding of organisational development and behavioural insight techniques.

4.Experience in managing HR services across multiple policy frameworks and pay freedoms.

Memberships

The successful candidates will hold the following membership of Chartered Fellow of the CIPD.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £81,000, Ministry of Defence 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.

• Learning and development tailored to your role
• An environment with flexible working options
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
• A Civil Service pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%

Discover My Benefits: Please follow the link to visit the Discover My Benefits site which showcases the benefits and discounts offered when working as a civilian for the MOD: https://discovermybenefits.mod.gov.uk/civilian/

This post does not offer any assistance with Relocation Allowances.

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

Shortlisting

At application stage you will be assessed against the following:

• CV: Please ensure you demonstrate that you have the required skills, knowledge, experience, qualifications and memberships in the CV section of the application form. This will be outlined under categories: Job History, Full qualification details, Previous and Desirable skills/experience. Please ensure you have provided reasons for any gaps within the last two years. Your CV should not exceed 1250 words.

• Experience: Candidate will be required to provide a Personal Statement (word count: 1250). This supporting Supporting Statement should provide clear evidence of how you meet the Essential Criteria laid out in the Person Specification, and should not exceed the 1250 word limit.

Please see the candidate pack attached for further details of the job roles.

As part of the application process, you are asked to complete a Diversity Monitoring questionnaire provided. If you do not wish to provide a declaration on any of the characteristics, you have the option to select 'prefer not to say' but completion of the form is a mandatory part of the process, and your application will not be considered complete without it.

Any data collected in this section will be reported in an anonymous and aggregate format and will not be seen by anyone assessing your application.

All applications will be reviewed by the selection panel who will consider the evidence provided by the candidates against the essential criteria to determine a shortlist. Applications will be longlisted and then shortlisted.

Assessment

• Candidates shortlisted will be invited to an interview which will include the requirement to prepare a presentation for which they will normally be given at least one week’s notice of the subject.

Full details of the assessment process will be made available to shortlisted candidates.

The sift will be completed within 10 working days of the vacancy closing date. Interviews will be held on a date to be confirmed.

Requests to work flexibly and/or part time will be considered, taking into account business needs. Please note the salary will be pro-rata where part time hours are undertaken.

All employees joining Ministry of Defence who are new to the Civil Service will be subject to a 6-month probation period (unless otherwise advised) effective from the employment start date.

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

To be considered for this role, the membership detailed must be held in full, prior to submitting your application.

As a result of the changes to the UK immigration rules which came into effect on 1 January 2021, the Ministry of Defence will only offer sponsorship for a skilled worker visa under the points-based system, where a role has been deemed to be business critical. This role does not meet that category, and we will not sponsor a visa. It is therefore NOT open to applications from those who will require sponsorship under the points-based system.

Should you apply for this role and be found to require sponsorship, your application will be rejected, and any provisional offer of employment withdrawn.

This vacancy is part of the A Great Place to Work for Veterans initiative. Making the Civil Service a Great Place to Work for Veterans - GOV.UK

The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equality of opportunity. There is a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

If you need to advise us that you need additional help or reasonable adjustments for the recruitment process, please contact DBSFPCP-SRMResourcingSDA@mod.gov.uk

The Ministry of Defence requires all candidates who are successful at interview to declare any outside interests. These declarations will be discussed with successful candidates following the interview process and before a formal offer of employment is made, as some outside interests may not be compatible with MOD civilian roles. This will not, in the majority of cases, prevent employment in MOD, but it is a measure that must be taken to ensure that appropriate mitigations can be put in place to manage any potential, perceived or actual conflicts of interest from the first day of employment.

The Ministry of Defence adopts a zero tolerance approach to unacceptable behaviours, which includes bullying, harassment, sexual harassment, discrimination, and victimisation. You will not be eligible and will not be considered for this post if you have been dismissed from a role for such unacceptable behaviours within the last five years. This will also apply if you resign or otherwise leave a role but, because of an adverse decision, would have been dismissed for gross misconduct had you continued in that employment. Pre-employment checks will be carried out.

The Ministry of Defence is committed to providing a safe and healthy working environment for its staff which includes educating them on the benefits of not smoking, protecting them from the harmful effects of second-hand smoke and supporting those who want to give up smoking. Under the Smoke-Free Working Environment policy, Smoking and the use of all tobacco products (including combustible and chewing tobacco products) will not be permitted anywhere in the Defence working environment. The policy is Whole Force and includes all Defence personnel, contractors, visitors and other non-MOD personnel. All applicants seeking, considering, or accepting employment with the Ministry of Defence should be aware of this policy and that it is already in place at a number of Defence Establishments.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.This role has a minimum assignment duration of 4 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

Open to UK nationals only.

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 : Holly Steele
• Email : holly.steele100@mod.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : DBSFPCP-SRMResourcingSDA@mod.gov.uk

Further information

Please see Further Information document.

Attachments

Defence Civil Service Offer Opens in new window (pdf, 1562kB)20241009 - Further Information - External Opens in new window (docx, 34kB)20260122-DNE HR DD Candidate Pack-O Opens in new window (pdf, 2066kB)