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G6 £62,122 - £74,091 per annum
Lead Architect
Welcome letter
The Technology and Innovation Directorate sets the strategic direction for the technology platforms that underpin DBS services. These services help make recruitment safer and play a critical role within the safeguarding sector, having issued over 33.5 million disclosure certificates to date whilst simultaneously maintaining the Adult and Child barred lists.
Having recently moved away from a full technology outsource model, DBS is on a pathway to disaggregate its technology services. This entails breaking services down into key components, building internal capability to deliver services in-house where appropriate and using specialist strategic partners where required. DBS has a clear and ambitious Technology Roadmap designed to execute this activity, modernising both the technology and ways of working in the process.
As a result of the change in direction and the development of a clear and ambitious technology roadmap, the directorate is changing and expanding. Investing in the modernisation of existing services through digital transformation means expanding the existing, award-winning Digital Team into a fully-fledged Digital, Data and Technology function, whilst also ensuring the supporting services are scaled accordingly.
The Directorate Teams Comprise:
Digital, Data and Technology Team
This team provides the technical delivery capability for new and existing digital services, alongside the delivery of key technology sustainment and transformation projects. Agile by default, this team thrives on delivering customer-facing services based on user-centric design principles.
Service Management Office
Incorporating elements of both IT Service Management and SIAM capabilities within the in-house Service Management Office has been key for DBS in the journey away from a single outsource model to a multi-vendor approach. The team interfaces with colleagues and suppliers alike, managing all levels of the ITIL process stack.
Information Governance & Cyber Security
Managing sensitive information in a digital environment demands a strong cyber capability coupled with a mature information governance regime. This team provides both capabilities to DBS through a mixture of technology, assurance and leadership roles within the team.
Enterprise Architecture
Having recently moved away from an outsourced technology model and now being firmly in control of its technology direction, the Enterprise Architecture function ensures that core technology principles are embedded into all technology activities. The team own the DBS 2025 Technology Roadmap and ensure the modernisation of DBS services and technology platforms is executed in a controlled, logical and strategic manner.
Innovation
A new capability within DBS, this function is designed to provide an organisation-wide innovation capability. The function focuses on innovation in general, rather than purely technology innovation, hence the organisation-wide span of operation.
Job description
Directorate Technology and Innovation
Location Flexible including fully remote
Reports to Executive Director Technology & Innovation
Line Management Yes
Security Clearance SC
About the department
DBS was established under the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 on 1 December 2012, operating from two sites, Liverpool and Darlington. We operate on behalf of government delivering Disclosure functions in England, Wales, Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man, and Barring functions for England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
We operate in the complex world of safeguarding alongside our multi agency partners. Safeguarding means protecting people’s health, wellbeing and human rights, and enabling them to live free from harm, abuse and neglect.
We provide a service that enables organisations in the public, private and voluntary sectors to make better informed, safer recruitment and other decisions. We do this by providing information to enable them to determine whether individuals are unsuitable or unable to undertake certain work, particularly with occupations involving regular contact with vulnerable groups, including children.
DBS has a number of strategic Priorities:
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Provide high quality, reliable, consistent, timely and accessible services for our customers.
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Embrace technology to drive improvements to the quality of our work.
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Develop a talented and diverse workforce that understands how their contributions help to achieve our objectives.
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Build a flexible, vibrant and contemporary workplace where our staff will be able to do their jobs using modern ways of working that are smart and which promote OneDBS.
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Raise awareness of the DBS and the services we offer, keeping people informed through our communications, to increase public understanding and confidence in our organisation.
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Be a respected and trusted organisation, working with our partners to play an influential role in the environment in which we operate.
Further information about the Disclosure & Barring Service can be found on the DBS website.
Job purpose
The Lead Architect will be responsible for leading and developing the architecture function within Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS), and providing overall technology leadership at the enterprise level.
DBS operates in a complex technical and commercial environment with the challenge of legacy systems, hybrid hosting and multiple suppliers. The Lead Architect will hold responsibility for the continued evolution of the architecture vision and ensuring that this vision aligns to and facilitates the delivery of the DBS Business Strategy, deploying all necessary tools and techniques accordingly, as well as identifying and articulating technology-led transformation opportunities.
The Lead Architect will be a primary driver of the design authority, assuring that delivery teams deliver solutions that align to the architecture vision and ensuring that the solution development lifecycles deployed are appropriate to the objectives. This means that the Lead Architect must operate within agile and waterfall methodologies.
Key responsibilities
The key responsibilities of the Lead Architect are to:
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Continue the development of the architecture and technical road maps.
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Lead on the identification of technology led opportunities, building business cases for the transformation of the DBS business.
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Lead on the translation of business requirements into IT solutions, investment and migration roadmaps.
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Oversee the implementation of architectural good-practice to define the as-is and to-be architectures and ensure realisable solution architectures.
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Develop architectural patterns and roadmaps
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Contribute to reference architecture models
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Develop a comprehensive and cost-effective architecture repository
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Provide architectural leadership to programs, projects and initiatives
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Ensure projects and programmes are compliant with strategy and architecture
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Assess and communicate the value of enterprise architecture governance
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Provide technical leadership to promote wider join of technology and data across the Home Office
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Build and manage a team of architects across different architecture and technology disciplines.
In delivering these responsibilities the Lead Architect will be expected to:
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Build effective relations and engagement with colleagues across the senior management team.
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Communicate and engage with a wide range of stakeholders, within DBS and the wider home office, to help shape and deliver IT change by understanding and the use of a variety of marketing and communication approaches.
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Articulate to a professional standard, complex technical ideas in clear, informative, and accessible language, tailored as necessary for the intended audience.
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Utilise appropriate methods, techniques and tools for planning, organising, resourcing, directing, co-ordinating and monitoring ongoing activities.
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Develop, communicate and deploy enterprise architecture governance processes
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Act as the focal point for enterprise architecture and IT standards
Rider clause
This is an outline of duties and responsibilities. It is not intended to be an exhaustive list and may change from time to time to meet the changing needs of the DBS.
Person specification
Essential Experience
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A proven track record of using IS and IT for commercial benefit.
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Strong experience of industry standard Enterprise Architecture frameworks.
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Experience in the development and usage of Enterprise Architectures to achieve business outcomes.
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Experience of operating architecture best practice across both agile and waterfall methodologies.
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Strong technical knowledge to provide technical authority to the architecture team and wider DBS:
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Demonstrable experience of producing architecture artefacts and documents.
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Demonstrable experience of documenting and modelling architectures.
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Experience with designing infrastructure for modern enterprise solutions
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Good understanding of security architecture
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Experience of delivering Commercial Off-The Shelf (COTS) solutions as well as open source and proprietary programming languages/frameworks
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Experience developing and using web services (especially REST-based APIs)
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Experience with open source solutions and community
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Experience using, deploying to and migrating to Cloud based platforms
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Experience sharing knowledge and working in a multi-disciplinary team
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Experience in facilitating architecture team career and skill development.
Desirable
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A good understanding of industry best practice in the use of IS/IT enabled business change
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A sound knowledge and application of architecture in a government or regulated environment.
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Strong background in agile development
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Demonstrable experience of building architectural repositories.
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Architecture certification e.g. Open Group Open Certified Architect (Open CA) certification
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Enterprise Architecture certification e.g. TOGAF v9.2 Certification
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Solution certification e.g. AWS Solutions Architect, Oracle Solution certification
Behaviours
The Civil Service has defined a set of behaviours that, when demonstrated, are associated with job success. For this role you should demonstrate the following Civil Service Behaviours:
Making Effective Decisions: Use evidence and knowledge to support accurate, expert decisions and advice. Carefully consider alternative options, implications and risks of decisions.
Communicating and Influencing: Communicate purpose and direction with clarity, integrity and enthusiasm. Respect the needs, responses and opinions of others.
Working Together: Form effective partnerships and relationships with people both internally and externally, from a range of diverse backgrounds, sharing information, resources and support.
Seeing the Bigger Picture: Understand how your role fits with and supports organisational objectives. Recognise the wider Civil Service priorities and ensure work is in the national interest.
Changing & Improving: Seek out opportunities to create effective change and suggest innovative ideas for improvement. Review ways of working, including seeking and providing feedback.
Developing Self & Others: Focus on continuous learning and development for self, others and the organisation as a whole.
Delivering at Pace: Take responsibility for delivering timely and quality results with focus and drive
Success profiles
During the application for this role, we will be using the new Civil Service Success Profiles.
You may find it helpful to read through Success Profiles online, where you can find various links which sets out the five elements of the Success profile: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/success-profiles
