Senior Talent Partner, i.AI

Job summary

The Incubator for Artificial Intelligence (i.AI) is the UK government’s engine room for building products that shape national outcomes. We will be building tools used daily by thousands of civil servants, directly impacting millions of citizens. We take on the hardest problems in government, backed directly by No10, and solve them with a small, high-performing team. Our work is shaping how government adopts AI in practice; through what we build, who we hire, and the standards we set.

We operate under three core principles:

• Talent: We bring together the UK’s best AI talent across a range of functions. You will work alongside exceptional researchers and top government leaders, staying at the cutting edge of technology.
• Innovation: We set precedents for what is possible in government. We combine the pace of a start-up with the influence of being at the digital centre of government. You will test new ideas, expand what is possible, and leverage unique government data to create novel solutions.
• Impact: We are dedicated to using AI as a tool for public good - this can mean improving outcomes in schools, boosting housebuilding or providing more personalised support for those in need. With the backing of the Prime Minister, you will turn technical breakthroughs into real-world applications that affect millions of citizens.

Job description

The Incubator for AI (i.AI) exists to pioneer transformative applications of AI to build a better Britain — backed by the Prime Minister and operating at the digital centre of government. We move at start-up pace, work with exceptional technical talent, and take on problems that matter. The Talent team is at the heart of that mission. Without the right people, none of it is possible.

This is not a typical government recruitment role. You will be hiring world-class researchers, engineers, policy experts and operational leaders into one of the most ambitious and fast-moving technical teams in UK government — often in a highly competitive market where speed, quality and candidate experience can make the difference between landing exceptional talent and losing them to a frontier AI lab or a well-funded start-up. You will need to be sharp, proactive and genuinely passionate about the work we do.

As a Senior Talent Partner you will work shoulder to shoulder with hiring teams across i.AI, acting as a trusted advisor on attraction strategy, assessment design and candidate experience. You will run end-to-end campaigns, often at pace and across competing priorities, and be the person candidates and hiring managers turn to when they need expert guidance and reassurance that the process is in safe hands.

The role carries real responsibility and genuine stretch. If you are looking for a role where you can make a tangible impact on an organisation doing important work — and where your contribution will be visible and valued — this is it.

• Full cycle recruitment and onboarding: You will own roles from first conversation with a hiring manager through to a candidate’s first day — scoping roles, designing assessments, managing the candidate journey and ensuring the experience is exceptional throughout. Candidates who join i.AI should feel it was the best process they have ever been through.
• Expert coordination: Owning multiple live vacancies and supporting several candidates through recruitment and onboarding at the same time. You will need to manage competing demands, coordinate across different stakeholders and keep activity moving smoothly and efficiently.
• Process improvement and escalation: i.AI is always looking for better ways to do things. You will spot opportunities to sharpen processes, improve how we attract and assess talent, and make the service work better for candidates and hiring teams. When things get complex or contentious, you will be a confident point of escalation with the judgement to navigate it.

Person specification

Who we are looking for

• A proactive, solutions-focused operator: you don’t wait to be told what to do. You spot problems, find practical ways forward and improve how things work, all while navigating ambiguity with sound judgement and a genuine curiosity about how to do things better. In a high-agency environment like i.AI, this is essential.
• Excellent communication skills: you will be engaging and credible with a wide range of people, from researchers and engineers to senior leaders and candidates who have never worked in government before. You adapt your style instinctively, explain things clearly and build confidence in the people you work with.
• Exceptionally organised under pressure: you will be running multiple live campaigns simultaneously, often across very different role types and seniority levels, in a team that moves fast. You keep everything on track, communicate proactively and never let things fall through the cracks, even when the volume is high.
• Sharp prioritisation and composure under pressure: i.AI moves fast and priorities shift. You make good calls in real time, stay calm when things pile up and always know where your time adds most value. You don’t get flustered; you get focused.
• A genuine interest in doing things better: you are curious about what works, honest about what doesn’t, and motivated to improve, not just your own practice but the team’s and the wider service. Ideally you care about AI and what i.AI is trying to achieve, because that makes everything more purposeful.

A team player who makes others better: you build strong relationships quickly, are generous with your time and knowledge, and care about collective success as much as individual delivery. The best Talent Partners at i.AI make the whole team and the people around them better.

Behaviours

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

• Delivering at Pace
• Communicating and Influencing
• Managing a Quality Service

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £47,355, Department for Science, Innovation & Technology contributes £13,718 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides (opens in a new window).

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology offers a competitive mix of benefits including:

• A culture of flexible working, such as job sharing, homeworking and compressed hours.
• Automatic enrolment into the Civil Service Pension Scheme, with an employer contribution of 28.97%.
• A minimum of 25 days of paid annual leave, increasing by 1 day per year up to a maximum of 30.
• An extensive range of learning & professional development opportunities, which all staff are actively encouraged to pursue.
• Access to a range of retail, travel and lifestyle employee discounts.
• A hybrid office/home based working model where staff will spend a norm of 40-60% of their time in the office (minimum of 40%) over a month with flex dependent on balancing business and individual need.

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 Experience.

Sift: Applications will be assessed on CV and personal statement questions outlined. Candidates should demonstrate their experience against the essential criteria. Should the team receive a significant amount of applications we reserve the right to sift applicants on CV alone.

Stage 1 : Preliminary Conversation- 25- 30 minutes experience based interview

Stage 2 — Structured Interview: Shortlisted candidates will be invited to a structured interview assessing experience and behaviours against the person specification. The interview will include a short exercise or presentation element — details to be confirmed at shortlisting stage.

Stage 3 – SCS Leadership Panel

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 (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 : Sian McGrowder
• Email : Sian.McGrowder@dsit.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : Farah.chowdhury@dsit.gov.uk

Further information

Appointment to the Civil Service is governed by the Civil Service Commission’s Recruitment Principles. If you feel that your application has not been treated in accordance with the recruitment principles, and wish to make a complaint, then you should contact in the first instance dsitresourcing.GRS@cabinetoffice.gov.uk. If you are not satisfied with the response that you receive, then you can contact the Civil Service Commission. For further information on bringing a complaint to the Civil Service Commission please visit their web pages at: https://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk/contact-us/

Attachments

DSIT T&Cs v1.2 Opens in new window (docx, 179kB)