Navy Command – 1710 Naval Air Squadron Quality Assurance Manager

Leading the Quality Assurance team at 1710 Naval Air Squadron is a post with meaningful responsibility. You will help assure innovative aircraft repairs and modifications, while supporting scientific and engineering advice that directly contributes to the safety, readiness and effectiveness of UK military aviation. Working alongside experienced military, engineering and scientific specialists, you will build valuable leadership, quality management and professional skills in a unique Defence environment.

This position is advertised at 37 hours per week.

Do you have a background in quality assurance and a passion for continuous improvement? Could you bring your quality assurance expertise to our diverse team to support the UK Armed Forces? If so, 1710 Naval Air Squadron (NAS) wants to hear from you!

With a heritage dating back to the 1930’s and based in Portsmouth Dockyard, 1710 NAS is a mixed Civil Service and Military team of technical specialists from multi-disciplinary backgrounds, that uses scientific and engineering reasoning to overcome UK MOD aircraft operational issues to recover, sustain and enhance aviation and general military capability.

We are looking for an individual with a sound understanding of the principles of quality assurance and continuous improvement This is an excellent opportunity to develop your leadership and quality management career in a distinctive Defence environment. You will lead a small, supportive team of military and Civil Service colleagues and take ownership of a Quality Management System covering activities ranging from engineering standards and innovative aircraft repairs to specialist materials testing.

You will have genuine influence, providing trusted quality advice to the 1710 NAS Management Board and helping ensure that our work consistently meets the high standards required across UK Defence. This will include planning the annual audit schedule, writing and reviewing audits, and engaging with the relevant external authorities necessary to maintain 1710 NAS’ Military Aviation Authority (MAA) Design Approved Organisation Scheme (DAOS) accreditation.

The role also offers variety beyond the office, with occasional travel to UK locations and opportunities to attend conferences and visit external partners. These experiences can support your continuing professional development, broaden your professional network and help you build valuable leadership, auditing and stakeholder-management skills.

Travel to satellite locations within the UK are occasionally necessary. Attendance at conferences and on visits to external partners could also be a part of your role if desired for your continuing professional development.

Responsibilities

As the Quality Assurance Manager within our team, you will be responsible for:

• Managing a small team (2 Civil Servants and one Royal Navy), to ensure that the 1710 NAS QMS meets the requirements of the ISO 9001, ISO 17025 (test laboratories), MAA DAOS and BRd 763 (Naval Aviation Quality Manual) quality standards.
• Act as a Lead Auditor, managing the internal audit programme, carrying out internal audits (as required – the Squadron has a number of trained auditors) and coordinating improvement activities.
• Analysing and presenting quality management data.
• Advise the Management Board on matters affecting quality.

You'll report directly to the Quality System Owner who will support and guide you in your training and professional development within the team.

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.

Applications will be assessed following the closing date and if successful at the sift stage, you will be invited to interview.

At Sift, you will be assessed against the following;

• Candidates will be required to provide CV details to include job history, qualification details and previous skills and experience.
• Candidates will be asked to provide a personal statement (750 words) that sets out how you would apply your skills and experience to meet the essential requirements for the role."

Interviews will be a blend of Behaviour, Technical Skills and Experience type questions. Interviews will take place at 1710 Naval Air Squadron, HM Naval Base, Portsmouth. Candidates will be assessed against the following behaviours and technical skills.

• Changing and Improving
• Managing a Quality Service
• Working Together

Technical Skills (From MOD Managing Quality Framework)

• MQ 2.2 - Quality Thinking. Looks across business functions and hierarchies to promote a holistic view of the organisation and its Quality requirements. Promotes a culture of decision-making based on factual evidence and the measurement of performance.
• MQ 5.2 - Evaluation of Measures and Results. Facilitates the development and use of appropriate measures of operational performance and product/service quality across the organisation to ensure fact-based decision making. Helps establish priorities for change.

The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

There may be occasions where it is not practicable or appropriate to interview all DCS candidates that meet the minimum criteria for the job. For example, in certain recruitment situations such as a high volume of applications, seasonal demand, or peak periods, the employer may wish to limit the overall number of interviews offered to both DCS and non-DCS applicants.

As a result of the changes to the UK immigration rules which came into effect on 1 January 2021, the Ministry of Defence will only offer sponsorship for a skilled worker visa under the points-based system, where a role has been deemed to be business critical. This role does not meet that category, and we will not sponsor a visa. It is therefore NOT open to applications from those who will require sponsorship under the points-based system.

Should you apply for this role and be found to require sponsorship, your application will be rejected and any provisional offer of employment withdrawn.

The Ministry of Defence requires all candidates who are successful at interview to declare any outside interests. These declarations will be discussed with successful candidates following the interview process and before a formal offer of employment is made, as some outside interests may not be compatible with MOD civilian roles. This will not, in the majority of cases, prevent employment in MOD, but it is a measure that must be taken to ensure that appropriate mitigations can be put in place to manage any potential, perceived or actual conflicts of interest from the first day of employment.

The Ministry of Defence adopts a zero-tolerance approach to unacceptable behaviours, which includes bullying, harassment, sexual harassment, discrimination, and victimisation. You will not be eligible and will not be considered for this post if you have been dismissed from a role for such unacceptable behaviours within the last five years. This will also apply if you resign or otherwise leave a role but, because of an adverse decision, would have been dismissed for gross misconduct had you continued in that employment. Pre-employment checks will be carried out.

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