Executive Director – People and Culture

The Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service (SCTS) plays a vital and visible role at the heart of Scotland’s justice system. As an independent, national organisation, we are entrusted with supporting fair, efficient and accessible justice for the people of Scotland.

The Executive Director: People and Culture is a strategic Executive leader who role models our values and behaviours with responsibility for shaping and leading organisational strategy. They will work across organisational boundaries, driving change and efficiencies to translate our vision into clear common goals, building a kind and inclusive culture, where all employees can contribute and feel valued to enable sustainable delivery of justice, now and into the future.

As a core member of the Executive Team, the Executive Director: People and Culture is the principal adviser to the Chief Executive, Executive Team and People Committee on people, culture and organisational delivery and effectiveness.

This newly created role is an exciting opportunity as part of the Executive team to lead the people of SCTS through the next stages of reform, developing organisational design across SCTS, setting principles and governance for how the organisation is structured and led. The postholder will lead on building a clear and strong organisational culture. Through enhancing organisational development focused on empowered leadership and collaboration at all levels, you will build high performing teams working to the organisational values of service, excellence and respect.

The organisation is responding to rising user expectations, financial pressures, and the expanding role of digital technology. The Executive Director: People and Culture will partner with the Executive Team to lead our reform agenda to ensure that SCTS’s people, structures and systems are aligned to strategic priorities, resilient to ongoing reform, and capable of delivering modern, sustainable and high-quality services in a complex and demanding environment.

Reporting and Governance

• Reports directly to the Chief Executive
• Member of the SCTS Executive Team
• Primary Executive lead for the People Committee of the SCTS Board
• Accountable for effective partnership working with PCS, our recognised trade union
• Provides strategic leadership of the People and Culture functions, integrating Human Resources and Education & Learning to deliver a cohesive, organisation-wide approach to workforce capability, development and cultural transformation.

Responsibilities

• Lead and shape an inclusive, high-performing organisational culture, embedding SCTS values, accountability, collaboration, trust and leadership consistency across the organisation.
• Provide strategic leadership for people and workforce planning, ensuring people priorities align with business objectives, service delivery and financial planning.
• Direct organisational development and design, ensuring structures, roles and governance support effective decision-making, organisational effectiveness and future business needs.
• Oversee workforce capability and readiness, including workforce planning, succession planning, future skills development and digital capability to support reform and transformation.
• Lead organisational change and transformation programmes, ensuring the organisation is equipped to deliver continuous improvement, digital transformation and strategic reform.
• Provide executive oversight of the employee lifecycle, including recruitment, talent management, learning and development, performance, reward and succession planning.
• Champion equality, diversity, inclusion, wellbeing and employee engagement, ensuring SCTS remains a safe, respectful and inclusive workplace where employee voice informs decision-making.
• Maintain effective employee and stakeholder relations, leading engagement with recognised trade unions, public sector partners, Scottish Government and external stakeholders to support shared priorities.
• Ensure compliance and governance standards are met, overseeing adherence to employment legislation, public sector requirements and workforce-related risk management.
• Lead a high-performing People function and model values-driven leadership, fostering continuous improvement, accountability, professional excellence and the development of others across SCTS.

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 Behaviours and Experience.

Apply online before 23:55 on the 27th September 2026, providing a CV and Supporting Statement (of no more than 750 words) which provides evidence of how you meet the skills, experience and behaviours listed in the advert.

If invited for further assessment, this will consist of an interview with presentation, leadership assessments and staff engagement panel.

Assessments are scheduled for w/c 12 October and final panel interviews are scheduled for 30 October , however this may be subject to change.

Recruitment Principles

As a government organisation, we adhere to the Civil Service Commission Recruitment Principles and we investigate any complaints received in relation to recruitment cases.

We offer a supportive and inclusive working environment along with a wide range of employee benefits. Find out more about what we offer.

As part of the UK Civil Service, we uphold the Civil Service Nationality Rules.

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