Deputy Director Enterprise Live Service - HMRC - SCS1

Location

Belfast, Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Croydon, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Nottingham, Portsmouth, Stratford, Telford

About the job

Job summary

The SCS1 Deputy Director - Enterprise Live Service is a critical leadership role responsible for the entire live service operation of HMRC's IT estate. You will be a central figure in a once-in-a-generation transformation, balancing the need to build a modern, digital tax system with the imperative to maintain a stable, secure, and available service for millions of users. This role requires a leader who can define and implement an enterprise-wide live service strategy, drive a step change in operational processes and governance, and champion a reliability-focused culture. You will direct a large team, own key technologies like ServiceNow, and act as a strategic advisor to the highest levels of leadership, ensuring that every decision supports an 'always on, always working' digital experience.

Job description

• Develop & Manage Live Service Strategy: Accountable for defining, communicating, and managing the strategic vision for HMRC's entire live IT service estate. This includes setting the direction for operational processes, governance, and controls to ensure the availability and performance of critical digital infrastructure.
• Drive Operational Excellence: Lead the Enterprise Live Service (ELS) function, a team of ~200 FTE, to ensure high standards of live service. You will use and create metrics to hold directors, service, and platform owners accountable for operational performance, balancing traditional approaches for legacy systems with modern practices like Site Reliability Engineering (SRE) for digital platforms.
• Champion Modern Practices: Drive agile principles and an outcome-driven culture within ELS. The role requires an understanding of modern change practices (e.g., canary deploys, feature flagging) to increase speed while managing risk. You will also own and direct the ServiceNow platform roadmap, promoting 'citizen development' and effective IT Asset Management (ITAM).
• Influence and Advise Senior Leadership: Advise the CDIO Senior Leadership Team (SLT) and the CIO Director General on investment decisions to balance project delivery with the need for a stable and effective live service. You will engage with senior stakeholders across HMRC and the Cabinet Office to manage enterprise-level risk and secure funding for improvements.

Person specification

• Strategic & Operational Leadership: A leader with the ability to balance strategic thinking with hands-on operational management. You should have a proven track record of developing and delivering a vision for live services, and managing a large, diverse function to achieve key operational outcomes and performance targets. 
• Expert in Modern Service Management: Possess a deep understanding of industry-leading IT Service Management concepts, moving beyond traditional ITIL to embrace principles of Site Reliability Engineering (SRE), modern change management, and a focus on observability and cultural change.
• Influence and Stakeholder Management: An expert-level ability to engage, influence, and build relationships with senior stakeholders, including Director Generals, senior directors, and external government departments. You must be able to hold peers accountable while providing support to drive high standards of reliability.
• Change Management and Cultural Drive: The capacity to drive a step change in how live services are managed within a large, transforming organisation. This includes a proven ability to promote positive behaviours, foster a culture of reliability, and implement agile principles to focus on outcomes and deliver value frequently.