Executive Manager Corporate Affairs

The Sea Fisheries Protection Authority seeks an Executive Manager, Corporate Affairs (Assistant Principal Officer). This senior leadership role is rewarding and challenging, requiring the ability to lead and manage the Corporate Governance arrangements of the Authority and the Corporate Affairs unit.

Key Responsibilities

• Act as the Data Protection Officer (DPO) and support the organization in managing its data protection framework.
• Proactively manage compliance with the Code of Practice for the Governance of State Bodies and other relevant legislative and statutory requirements.
• Lead on the execution, oversight and reporting on the SFPA Strategy.
• Provide leadership to all staff within the area of responsibility to ensure delivery of targets and objectives set out in the Business Plan and SFPA Strategy, promoting teamwork and developing team capability through mentoring and coaching.
• Support the work of the SFPA Audit & Risk Committee.
• Provide the Authority and the Management Board with information and reports on corporate affairs related areas, as appropriate, and any other reports as required from time to time to facilitate executive decision making.

Essential Requirements

• Possess a Business, Legal, or Corporate Governance related Third Level qualification (minimum level 8).
• Possess post qualification professional experience in a Data Protection or related field role.
• Possess at least five years of post qualification professional experience in a Corporate Affairs, Corporate Governance, Communications or related field role.
• Knowledge of the 2016 Code of Practice for the Governance of State Bodies, Data Protection Legislation, Freedom of Information Act, AIE Regulations, Official Languages Act, Ethics Acts, and the Protected Disclosures Act.
• Supervisory management and people management capability.
• The ability to deliver projects, utilizing all available resources and securing the best outcomes based on strategic objectives.
• Proven leadership and motivation skills together with the ability to allocate work to team members, set performance standards, evaluate work outputs from the team, foster accountability and address any issues of underperformance arising in relation to staff.

Desirable Requirements

• Possess at least two years of post qualification professional experience in a Data Protection or related field role.
• Possess knowledge of the operational work of the Sea Fisheries Protection Authority.
• Possess a good working knowledge of the public service.
• Experience of managing Parliamentary Questions.
• Good knowledge of corporate governance best practice in the context of public sector organisations.
• Experience of advising an Executive Team on matters of governance, compliance and best practice.
• Knowledge and an interest in Parliamentary and Government Affairs.
• Basic user competence in the Irish language would be desirable.