Deputy Director for Commercial Operations (Strategy, Architecture, Standards and Data)

As the Deputy Director for Commercial Operations (Strategy, Architecture, Standards and Data), you will be the strategic anchor for the central Commercial Strategy, Standards, and Data team. You will support the Director for the Strategy, Assurance and Standards directorate (SAS) to lead the vision for the Strategy, Assurance, and Standards directorate, acting as an ambassador for the centre during a period of significant organisational change.

You will be responsible for driving the agreed operating model, ensuring that our approach to continuous improvement is systemic rather than transactional.

By providing high-level direction (acting as the intelligent client function) and owning critical decisions, you empower your Grade 6 leads to focus on deep-level delivery within their respective portfolios. You will provide a key ‘filteration’ role, in doing so you will protect the team, provide clarity, manage pressure, and foster trust.

The DD for Commercial Strategy, Standards and Data will report directly to the Director for the Strategy, Assurance and Standards team (SCS2/Senior Commercial Specialist) and will be a member of the Senior Leadership Team.

The Commercial Strategy, Standards and Data team comprises 11 FTE.

You will act as the vital conduit between the G6 portfolio leads and the SAS Director, ensuring that our work on Commercial Standards, Strategy and Governance, and Digital and Data innovation is cohesive, aligned with ministerial priorities, and effectively integrated with the evolving Government Commercial Agency (GCA) and Government Commercial and Grants (GC&G) Group landscape.

Furthermore, you will provide strategic leadership and support to the devolved nations, ensuring our commercial standards and frameworks remain robust within the context of HMT RESET, evolving commercial controls, increased delegations, and the implementation of revised controls testing and assurance processes.

You will be responsible for defining and driving the strategic direction of the Government Commercial Function Strategy (2026-29) ensuring its alignment with the vision to ‘Create Value for the Nation’

The role will provide senior leadership in the governance of the function, translating the functional business plan into tangible outcomes across People, Digital, and Growth and ensuring that the Function is working in tandem with the other professions and functions across HMG.

A core requirement of the role is to act as the senior owner of commercial standards (GovS 008) and the Commercial Continuous Improvement Assessment Framework (CCIAF), driving their adoption across Central Government and Arms Length Bodies.

This ownership integrates the principles of these standards into the Controls reform work, ensuring the commercial function can effectively: build capability, challenge best practice, and rigorously assess organisational performance and functional maturity.

Furthermore, you serve as the ‘Intelligent Client Function’ for commercial data, overseeing the performance metrics and analytical systems that provide a ‘source of truth.’ This enables you to provide authoritative advice to the Government Chief Commercial Officer (GCCO) and hold departments to account for value for money and continuous performance improvement working in conjunction with the GCA on delivery/prioritisation and business case development.

Locations:

The successful candidate(s) will be able to agree a contractual workplace from those locations listed in this advert. When selecting your location listed in this job advert please be aware that this will be your contractual base location with a requirement to spend a minimum of 60% of your working time in this organisational workplace.

Your time spent on official duties at workplace locations other than your contractual office such as supplier, customer or partner locations required to perform your role is included in the 60% attendance.

This requirement will however take into consideration any reasonable adjustments agreed upon appointment for people with a disability, flexibilities agreed for those with specific caring responsibilities, or other similar temporary flexibilities.

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)

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Experience and Technical skills.

Your application will be reviewed by a panel and should you be successful at sift we will invite you to attend a Virtual commercial Assessment and Development Centre (VADC). The panel will review results of the VADC and determine which candidates will go through to a subsequent final panel interview. Please note: Only candidates that achieve an A grade at ADC will be invited to interview for this role.

Please be advised that the Virtual ADC is taking place on the 24th of September 2026 and will require a full day's attendance.

If you are invited to attend a virtual ADC, but for any reason are unable to meet the date outlined then please get in touch with the team on commercialresourcinghub@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible. The ADC is booked and paid for in advance by departments, therefore it is only in certain circumstances we are able to accommodate alternative dates.

For full details of our process, and a likely timeline, please read the attached candidate pack.

Throughout our selection process, we will make decisions about your capability to do the job, based on evidence you provide against the Technical Skills (essential criteria) and your Job History (CV) that you will be asked to provide during the application process. Further help and advice on our application and selection process can be found at this web address https://www.civil-service-careers.gov.uk/gcf-how-to-apply/

IMPORTANT: If you do not receive an acknowledgement of your application within 2 working days please contact: commercialresourcinghub@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.