The NCA is looking for exceptional leaders to fill a number of Deputy Director (DD) vacancies across our Senior Leadership Team. These are high profile roles at the heart of the NCA’s Senior Leadership Team which provide unequalled opportunity to shape the strategic direction of the agency.

Job description

The NCA Chief Science & Innovation Officer (CSIO) and Head of TRACER is a senior leadership role working across the National Security landscape to ensure that operational performance is enhanced through the timely application of science, technology and data (ST&D) to achieve mission impact.

You will be responsible for the strategy, implementation and operation of a science and innovation eco-system that drives operational advantage in tackling serious crimes and criminal behaviour. This includes the regulatory, policy and societal drivers on the use of science, technology and data that pose threats to current operational capabilities and to exploit the opportunities that can drive improved operational outcomes.

You will oversee effective horizon scanning services, analysis and impact assessments on relevant threats and opportunities, identify and demonstrate solutions and/or new ways of working through the articulation of benefits and risks leading to policy/operational changes and/or investment decisions in new capabilities.

You will work with Law Enforcement and National Security partners to create a coherent approach to science and innovation by sharing our ST&D activities and challenges with government, industry and academic bodies to leverage existing work of relevance and re-use knowledge and technology.

You will support operational partners to use ST&D to innovate, demonstrating how organisational performance improvements can be realised, supporting wider transformational activities to drive efficiencies and productivity gains.

You will build the cross government relationships and be an active participant in the HMG Chief Scientific Advisors and S&T networks.

*Threat Response, Analysis, Capability Exploration and Research (TRACER) forms part of the CDLI Service Partnership.
 

Responsibilities

Main Responsibilities for the role;

• Working to the Director of Digital, Data and Technology you will lead the TRACER capability providing a multi-mission, multi-agency response to the criminal use of technology.
• Enhance the performance of TRACER, working closely with the Home Office as the sponsoring department and multi-agency CDLI Service Partners to maintain and enhance Investigatory Powers Act capabilities as part of an Executive Leadership Group.
• Build on the TRACER business model to establish an innovation ecosystem within the NCA, embedding the use of science, technology and data to drive operational performance while achieving productivity improvements across the SOC system.
• Ensure high quality ST&D is used to build a strong evidence base to support policy and operational interventions and investment decisions.
• Be accountable for the development of the UK threat picture for Investigatory Powers Act capabilities (CD, TI and TEI) on behalf of UK Law Enforcement Agencies and UK Intelligence Community.
• Working with partners on the development of digital investment propositions on behalf of UK Law Enforcement and the UK Intelligence Community.
• Responsible for sustaining effective governance to oversee the TRACER portfolio and then being accountable for its activities and financial reporting to NCA and Home Office led Governance Boards.
• Responsible for the de-confliction of strategic digital capability requirements with other Government agencies/departments and international partners.
• Monitor research and development activities of other organisations to enable new ideas and innovative strategies to solve mission problems, recognising promising ideas and ways to introduce them into the organisation.
• Be an active member of the cross-Government community of CSAs, representing the science and research being undertaken in the NCA.
• Engage with external stakeholders on key issues and become actively involved with other bodies and forums both domestically and internationally.

Main Responsibilities (Corporate Leadership);

• Deliver effective business management to support the delivery of Agency transformation.
• Lead and develop agency process and procedure to drive operational outcomes.
• Act as a role model who leads, inspires, motivates, empowers and develops officers within own Command and across the Agency and achieves high standards for both self and others.
• Inspire confidence at the highest level. Regularly steps outside own Command and actively influences peers, senior leaders and key stakeholders to further NCA aims.
• Create and build constructive and positive partnerships and actively seek to build collaborative working arrangements within the Agency, Home Office, wider Government and the law Enforcement community in the UK and abroad.


*** DV/STRAP are essential for these roles. The posts are only open to UK nationals. ***

Qualifications

The following qualifications/skills are essential to the role and proof will be required at interview:

• The post-holder is expected to be of graduate calibre hold an equivalent professional qualification in science/technology with project delivery or change leadership experience

Please ensure the dates of any accreditations you are relying on, are entered on to the CV.

Should you progress to the assessment stage of the process, you will be required to provide a copy of the original certificate.

Failure to provide evidence at interview may result in your application not progressing to the next stage.

Behaviours

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

• Leadership
• Communicating and Influencing
• Seeing the Big Picture
• Changing and Improving

Security

Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is Developed Vetting (DV)

Medical

Successful candidates will be expected to have a medical.