Strategic Prioritisation & Insight Lead

About the job

Job summary

Discover what it's like to work in a compliance role that makes an impact. Could you help us shape a stronger, fairer future? Your next career move starts here.

Compliance Strategy Delivery (CSD) sits at the heart of HMRC's compliance system. We guide the whole department on tax gap and compliance priorities, shaping decisions that inform ministers and our Executive Committee. We set strategy in a live operational environment - this is practical, real-world work that directly influences how HMRC focuses effort and delivers results.

CSD's a multi-disciplinary directorate with varied, high-profile work across strategy, insight and delivery. We value curiosity, creativity and collaboration, and encourage people to connect ideas, challenge thinking and turn insight into action. If you want to shape priorities and make a tangible difference, now is the time to join us.

You'll join our newly formed Strategic Prioritisation and Insight (SPI) team, one of three Deputy Director-led teams in CSD. This is an exciting opportunity to help build a team from the ground up, working across Grade 6-led areas Tax Risk Analysis and Strategic Prioritisation to influence HMRC-wide decisions.

You'll lead a portfolio of projects that shape HMRC's strategic compliance priorities.
You'll bring together data, analysis and insight to answer critical questions such as:
- Where are the most significant compliance risks?
- What should HMRC prioritise to have the greatest impact?
- How can we improve the evidence that underpins these decisions?

Your work will directly influence senior leaders and help determine how HMRC tackles the tax gap. This includes:
- Analysing complex data and evidence, understanding both its strengths and limitations
- Translating analysis into clear, actionable insight for decision-makers
- Developing recommendations that shape strategy and priorities
- Developing the tools, methods and evidence we use to assess and mitigate risk
- Communicating complex issues in a clear and compelling way

You'll be comfortable working with ambiguity, applying judgement and collaborating to deliver high-quality outcomes.

Job description

The job requires individuals to operate at the interface of policy, strategy and evidence. SPI heads two G6-led programmes on 'Tax Risk Analysis' and 'Strategic Prioritisation'. Postholders will: (a) Lead a number of projects across these programmes, (b) Support colleagues on wider projects, (c) Contribute to programme planning, (d) Support more junior colleagues in their work, and (e) Contribute to wider corporate, business and people objectives.

You will work in a collaborative inter-disciplinary manner. You will be allocated work according to both the fit to your professional skillsets plus projects that will provide stretch - with support in place to promote your learning and development. Thus you will have opportunity to develop new skills by working across areas in a collegiate and supportive environment.

To illustrate our work, below a list of anticipated SPI projects. Successful candidates should expect to lead in one of these areas and support and develop experience across several others.

- Translate data and evidence produced by others into targeted business insight, prioritisation frameworks and options: For example: highlight developing strategic choices and recommendations to senior stakeholders to advance HMRC compliance strategy; shape future evidence needs; prioritise targets, activity and resources.

- Develop prioritisation pathways and support cross-HMRC adoption. For example: work with stakeholders to build a shared understanding of priorities; develop persuasive narratives and options for senior leaders (incl. ExCom) that enable cross-HMRC mobilisation; support continuous improvement of prioritisation approaches and products, including commissioning analysis.

- Develop SPI's data and evidence function to produce targeted tax risk assessments and recommendations of key HMRC priorities: For example: triangulate (existing) reviews of management information data, qualitative and quantitative evidence and opinion; lead targeted secondary analyses and support strategic target setting.

- Further develop a prototype model of residual tax risk to help ensure HMRC interventions are optimal in closing the tax gap: Design and deliver stakeholder workshops to refine the model; introduce more quantitative inputs; embed application to ensure the model is used to prioritise strategic direction and plans.

- Develop forward-looking macro-economic trends, foresight and application. For example: identify emerging risks across tax regimes, behaviours and customer groups; interpret external trends e.g. in technology, society and macro-economic futures. Develop applied business propositions and influence senior stakeholders' decision-making.

Roles will typically include line management of 1-2 colleagues, alongside leading priority projects. You'll work flexibly across different work areas, collaborating with colleagues from a range of disciplines to solve complex problems.

We are also currently recruiting a number of SO vacancies in the team - these vacancies align with the G7 posts. Candidates are welcome to apply for both G7 and SO roles, reference number 474133.

Person specification

We particularly encourage applications from groups currently underrepresented in our workforce and as a team we are committed to creating an inclusive working environment where everyone can thrive.

Key professional skillsets:

Our roles are designed to bring together people with different professional backgrounds. We welcome applications from candidates with experience in policy, strategy, analysis, operations or related fields, and we encourage multi-disciplinary working across the team.

However, you must have demonstrable knowledge, capability and experience across all, and/or depth experience in at least one, of the following three 'key professional skillsets':

1. Evidence into strategy and improvement - Experience collaborating with stakeholders to apply evidence and business insight to strategy, prioritisation and decision-making. For example: Responding to political, economic and organisational contexts; Applying judgment to complex decisions and uncertainty; Providing senior advice and recommendations including business recommendations from data and evidence; proposing recommendations when evidence is incomplete.

2. Applied quantitative data analysis and insight - Working with management information systems or large quantitative databases. Understanding approaches to and the strengths and limitations of using quantitative data in strategic decision-making - including knowing when and how to triangulate with qualitative evidence. Experience in appraisal and/or modelling techniques. Experience in analytical assurance.

3. Macro-economic trends and horizon scanning - Using structured futures and foresight techniques e.g. environmental scanning or scenario planning. Analysing and applying macro-economic trends to strategy contexts. Experience applying forward-looking insight into strategic decision-making that impacts policy, strategy, direction or decisions.

Essential Criteria

Successful candidates could come from any background - what is critical is that you can operate at the interface of policy, strategy and evidence. As such successful applicants will need to demonstrate evidence against the following 'essential criteria':

- Strong communication and influencing skills, including the ability to: Explain complex or technical issues clearly to non-specialist audiences; Develop clear recommendations on complex issues; Build support for proposals with both senior leaders and operational colleagues.

- Ability to work effectively across organisational boundaries, collaborating with policy, operational and analytical colleagues. This includes understanding different perspectives and adapting your approach to deliver shared outcomes.

- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to: Use or interpret both quantitative and qualitative evidence; Identify key issues, risks and insights; Develop strategic level recommendations.

- Sound judgement and decision-making, including the ability to form clear views even where evidence is incomplete or uncertain.

- Ability to deliver at pace, managing competing priorities in a high-profile or time-sensitive environment.

Desirable Criteria

- Experience working in a tax, economic or fiscal policy context, or in a strategy, prioritisation or investment decision-making function.

- Experience in policy, strategy or analytical roles. (For existing civil servants: membership of the Policy Profession and/or any Analytical Profession e.g. economist, statistician, social or operational research. For external candidates: equivalent professional credentials).

Further Location Information

Please ensure that you only apply for a location that you are willing and able to work from, as we will only make one offer of employment. Any additional notes included in a 'Further Location Preferences (optional)' field within the application form, will not be considered. Please be aware that you cannot change your location preference after submitting your application.

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