Director, Advanced Manufacturing and Director, Industrial Strategy

We are looking for two fantastic people to join DBIST. These are both very high-profile roles leading on issues which matter to the UK economy. We are looking for people who lead with excellence across a system, work brilliantly with business and deliver results. We also expect all our teams to work collaboratively and with kindness while delivering.​

Director, Industrial Strategy

The Government’s modern Industrial Strategy was published in June 2025. It sets out our 10-year plan to significantly increase business investment in eight growth-driving sectors, by making it quicker and easier for businesses to invest and providing them with the certainty and stability needed for long-term investment decisions.

The Industrial Strategy is designed to help the UK seize the most significant opportunities and create the most favourable conditions in key sectors for companies of the future to emerge – those that have a transformative role to play in the clean energy transition, the tech revolution, the fundamental impact of AI on every sector, and the new geopolitics.

The Strategy will play a vital role in realising the Prime Minister’s vision for reindustrialisation. It has made positive choices: backing eight sectors (IS-8) with the highest growth potential, and the frontier industries at their leading edge – and targeting the places and clusters across the UK that support those sectors, to increase national productivity, strengthen our economic security and resilience, and support our net zero transition. We will enable investment and growth in city regions and clusters across the UK where the IS-8 and foundational industries are based, with a coherent offer across nations.

Director – Advanced Manufacturing

The role covers advanced manufacturing as a whole but focuses on key manufacturing sectors - automotive, aerospace and batteries. It also has a watching brief on wider manufacturing and ​a role to support other advanced manufacturing frontier sectors.​

These industries are often dominated by overseas-owned companies that can choose from competing offers and opportunities across multiple jurisdictions. The Government’s challenge in open and highly competitive markets is not only to retain manufacturing in the UK but also to help it to grow, including by encouraging greater Foreign Direct Investment.​

Candidate Information Call

The hiring manager Jaee Samant will be hosting a call for any interested applicants. This will be held via Microsoft Teams on 25th November at 1:30pm, click here to attend.

Director, Advanced Manufacturing.

This is a significant role leading a Directorate of approximately 90 staff and with direct responsibility for the largest programme budgets in BIST other than those handled by Arm’s Length Bodies and oversight of related investments. They will work closely with No.10, No.10 North, HMT, DfT, the Office for Investment and others in a high-profile, politically ambitious ​space.​

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The role covers advanced manufacturing as a whole but focuses on key manufacturing sectors - automotive, aerospace and batteries. It also has a watching brief on wider manufacturing and a role to support other advanced manufacturing frontier sectors.​

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These industries are often dominated by overseas-owned companies that can choose from competing offers and opportunities across multiple jurisdictions. The Government’s challenge in open and highly competitive markets is not only to retain manufacturing in the UK but also to help it to grow, including by encouraging greater Foreign Direct Investment.​

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Key responsibilities include:​

• Acting as Senior Responsible Owner (SRO) for the £4bn DRIVE35 programme and overseeing the delivery and coherence of the overall set of advanced manufacturing programmes – the £2.3bn Aerospace Technology Institute programme, £450m Battery Innovation Programme and the Made Smarter programmes.​
• Owning the delivery of the Advanced Manufacturing Sector Plan, which is part of the Industrial Strategy. It names the Advanced Manufacturing Director as personally accountable for delivery of many of its individual commitments.​
• Ensuring that HMG’s relationships with key companies, trade bodies and fora remain productive – e.g. JLR, Nissan, Rolls-Royce, Airbus, the SMMT (automotive); ADS (aerospace) and MakeUK.​
• Leading work to attract or retain key foreign investors in the AM sector (notably in automotive and batteries) to/in the UK.​
• Influence wider HMG policy on trade, procurement, access to finance, regulation, tech adoption, innovation, energy and skills to the benefit of the advanced manufacturing sector.​
• Ensure the implementation of the AM Jobs Plan and AI adoption plan for AM.​
• Make a wider contribution to Business Group, BIST and the Civil Service as a whole.​

Director, Industrial Strategy.

This is a significant leadership role, overseeing the department's signature policy with high profile engagement across CO, No.10, HMT and the wider Civil Service. The individual will be responsible for delivering the policy commitments set out in the Industrial Strategy and sector plans, holding government departments to account, and developing policy to continue support for high-growth sectors in partnership with business and local leaders across the UK..​

Key responsibilities include: ​

• Lead the strategic direction and delivery of the Industrial Strategy and sector plans, ensuring alignment with ministerial priorities. ​
• Represent the Industrial Strategy across government, working in collaboration with responsible teams on cross-cutting policy levers and sectors and navigating conflicting interests. ​
• Build partnerships with business, academia and trade unions to understand and address key barriers to business growth and investment. ​
• Lead the policy development of energy interventions to improve UK competitiveness, including delivery of the AI Growth Zones Energy Support Scheme, working closely with HMT and DESNZ to meet legislative timescales and manage commercial risk.​
• Oversee the sponsorship of the Industrial Strategy Advisory Council (ISAC), working closely with the Director of the ISAC secretariat, including any legislative programme and mandate setting. ​
• Chair the Industrial Strategy Programme Board, bringing together responsible SROs (at director level) for Industrial Strategy priorities to drive delivery.​
• Play a strong corporate leadership role within BIST and as the leader of the Industrial Strategy Directorate - a multidisciplinary team of around 80 staff, including policy officials, programme delivery professionals and analysts. ​

This role will report to the Director General and is supported by the Industrial Strategy senior leadership team of five SCS. ​

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)

How to Apply

Hays, an Executive Search firm, have been appointed to assist with this recruitment campaign. Follow this link, to apply with Hays by no later than 23:55 on 29/11/26.

You will be asked to upload the two documents outlined below. It is essential you add your full name to both documents:​

• A CV, maximum of two pages setting out your career history, highlighting specific responsibilities and achievements that are relevant for this role. Please provide reasons for any gaps within the last two years.​​​
• A Supporting Statement, maximum of two pages, which sets out your interest in the role and explains how your experience meets the criteria listed in the Person Specification.

Failure to submit both documents will mean the panel only have limited information on which to assess your application against the criteria in the person specification. ​​​ If you have any issues accessing the link or questions regarding the documentation, please contact:​​​

• Andrew.timlin@hays.com / 07887777735 ​​​
• Laura.bennallack@hays.com / 03330105299

Your Supporting Statement

This is your opportunity to give examples and show how your skills and experience fit the job requirements.​ When writing a supporting statement, it is important that you:​

• Read the job specification carefully to understand the role and its requirements.​
• Structure your statement around the essential criteria listed in the advert.​
• Provide evidence for each criterion, for example, if the advert says “experienced in leading high-performing and diverse teams and promoting inclusivity”, explain when have you led a team, how large, what did you do to promote inclusivity, how did you handle diversity.

Please show the impact of your actions and use measurable outcomes or statistics where relevant.

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