Lead Business Analyst

Can you lead complex business analysis activity that supports high-profile digital and business change?

Do you have the confidence to build strong relationships with senior stakeholders, suppliers and delivery teams?

Have you developed business analysis approaches that improve services, processes and outcomes?

If so, we’d love to hear from you!

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) is seeking a Lead Business Analyst to join the IT Delivery Management function, based at HQ Southampton. The function enables the organisation to deliver world class services by managing IT portfolios, programmes and projects in line with government policy, value for money and organisational objectives. The Business Analysis team plays a key role in supporting project decision-making by understanding business needs, analysing requirements and helping shape effective change. This is an opportunity to lead complex and high-profile business analysis activity, strengthen the business analysis community across the MCA and work closely with stakeholders across the MCA, wider Civil Service, Department for Transport and suppliers.

Joining our department comes with many benefits, including:

• Employer pension contribution of 28.97% of your salary. Read more about Civil Service Pensions here
• 25 days annual leave, increasing by 1 day each year of service (up to a maximum of 30 days annual leave), plus 8 bank holidays and a privilege day for the King’s birthday
• Flexible working options where we encourage a great work-life balance.

Read more in the Benefits section below!

Find out more about what it's like working at: Maritime and Coastguard Agency - Department for Transport Careers

As a Lead Business Analyst, you will be responsible for leading complex and high-profile business analysis activity to support effective problem solving, service improvement and quality business delivery. You will provide expert challenge, develop strong stakeholder relationships and help embed consistent business analysis standards, methods and practice across the MCA.

Your responsibilities will include, but aren’t limited to:

• Managing strategic stakeholder relationships across the MCA, wider DfT/Civil Service and suppliers.
• Leading and developing the business analysis community by sharing best practice, mentoring others and promoting consistent standards.
• Articulating complex business problems clearly to support effective delivery and commercial outcomes.
• Undertaking complex research and analysis across people, processes, policy, data, technology, risk and organisational priorities.
• Providing expert challenge to business areas on proposed problems and solutions, considering value for money, sustainability and strategic alignment.
• Identifying improvement opportunities, explore feasible options, assess the impact of change and define success measures.
• Identifying and elaborating user and business needs to support service design, development, testing and business change.
• Ensuring requirement traceability for new and adapted services, working closely with suppliers, IT Operations, project managers and senior leaders.

Great line management is important to us as an organisation, and we will equip and support line managers to develop the skills they need. We aim to empower line managers to create teams where people can flourish and deliver excellent outcomes for the public.

For further information on the role, please read the role profile. Please note that the role profile is for information purposes only - whilst all elements are relevant to the role, they may not all be assessed during the recruitment process. This job advert will detail exactly what will be assessed during the recruitment process.

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, Experience and Technical skills.

Our selection process ensures a comprehensive assessment of each applicant's skills, and potential fit within our organisation.

The selection process for this role will be:

Stage 1: Sift of CV and personal statement

Stage 2: Interview (on Teams)

Stage 3: Interview (In person)

You must be successful at each stage to progress to the next stage.

Stage 1: Sift

At sift, you will be assessed against the following Success Profile elements:

Experience – you will be asked to provide a CV (unlimited wordcount) and personal statement (750-word count). Please provide evidence of your Experience of the following:

• Able to dissect complex business processes and data, suggesting actionable improvements.
• Skilled in extracting, documenting, and prioritizing business needs efficiently.

Should a large number of applications be received, an initial sift may be conducted using the lead Success Profile element, Experience, Able to dissect complex business processes and data, suggesting actionable improvements. Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift or progressed straight to assessment/interview.

Should we receive a high volume of quality applications, we may invite a shortlist of the highest scoring candidates to interview. This means that some applications that meet the required standard could be placed ‘on hold’ after the sift and invited to interview if the vacant position(s) remain unfilled. You will be notified if your application is being put ‘on hold’ once the sift has been completed. Following interviews, any applicants remaining on hold will be notified by the panel of the next steps regarding their application.

The sift will take place on 23/09/2026

Stage 2: Interview (on Teams)

At interview stage, you will be assessed against the following Success Profile elements:

• Behaviours – Changing and Improving
• Experience

The interviews will take place 01/10/2026.

This interview will be conducted online via Microsoft Teams. Further details will be provided to you should you be selected for interview.

Stage 3: Interview (In person)

At interview stage, you will be assessed against the following Success Profile elements:

Behaviours:

• Working Together
• Communicating and Influencing
• Seeing the Big Picture
• Leadership

Technical based on the Business analyst - Government Digital and Data Profession Capability Framework (ddat-capability-framework.service.gov.uk)

• Defining and managing business needs, user needs and requirements. Level: Expert
• Business modelling. Level: Expert

You will also be required to create and deliver a presentation to assess the Behaviour Communicating and Influencing. Guidance will be provided if you are invited to interview.

The interviews will take place 09/10/2026.

This interview will be conducted in person at our Southampton office (Spring Place, 105 Commercial Road, Southampton, SO15 1EG). Further details will be provided to you should you be selected for interview.

You can find out more about our hiring process, how to apply, and application and interview guidance on our careers site (opens in a new window).

Please note that we will try to meet the dates set out in the advert. There may be occasions when these dates will change.

Further information on the selection process

Adverts with a reserve list

We will also hold a 12 month reserve list for this role, which may lead to potential opportunities beyond the role you applied for.

Appointments for this position will be made in order of merit. If you are successful in the selection process but there are no further available posts for the advertised role, you may be contacted to discuss an offer for a lower graded role (with similar experience and responsibility requirements).

If you are unsuccessful in the selection process, your application may be considered for a lower graded position if your demonstrated skills and experience meet the requirements of the alternative position. Candidates will be considered in order of merit.

Reasonable Adjustments

As a Disability Confident Leader employer, we are committed to ensuring that the recruitment process is fair, accessible and allows all candidates to perform at their best. If a person with a visible or non-visible disability is substantially disadvantaged, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.

Complete the “Assistance required” section in the “Additional requirements” page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need during the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at an interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional.

If you need a reasonable adjustment so that you can complete your application, you should contact Government Recruitment Service via dftrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.

Document Accessibility

This job advert contains links to the DfT Careers website. Our website provides useful guidance and information that can support you during the application process. If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert or the information on our website, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section.

Further Information

For more information about how we hire, and for useful tips on submitting your application for this role, visit the How We Hire page of our DfT Careers website. You can find detailed information about the recruitment process and what to expect when applying for a role.

For further information on National Security Vetting please visit the Demystifying Vetting website.

Pre-employment Checking

If your application is successful but you have been dismissed from the Civil Service, your application could be removed at the pre-employment checking stage depending on the nature of the dismissal.

Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty had their employment continued. Any applicant’s details held on the IFD will be refused employment. A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5-year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government.

All External applicants and current employees of accredited non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) will be required to undergo a Social Media Check. A Social Media Check is a review of your publicly available online activity, typically across platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, and others. The purpose is to identify any public posts or content that could raise concerns for employers, such as:

Hate speech or discriminatory behaviour

Threats or acts of violence

Illegal activity or substance misuse

Sexually explicit material

Extremist views or affiliations

Importantly, this check does not involve hacking into your accounts or accessing private messages. It only considers content you have chosen to make public. Employers use this kind of screening to help ensure their workplace remains safe, inclusive, and aligned with company values. It’s not about judging your personality or lifestyle—it’s about checking for potential red flags that might affect the role or company culture. If you have questions or concerns about the social media check, we would be happy to explain in more detail what’s being looked at and how your data is handled securely and fairly.

Feedback

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