Associate Director for Digital

Job summary

DBS was established under the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 on 1 December 2012, working
from two sites, which are Liverpool and Darlington. We operate on behalf of government
delivering Disclosure functions in England, Wales, Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man, and
Barring functions for England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. We function within a framework of
legal and regulatory requirements and that includes work with a range of external organisations
including other government departments, regulators, and trade bodies.

We provide a service that enables organisations in the public, private and voluntary sectors to
make better informed, safer recruitment and other decisions. We do this by providing information
to enable them to determine whether individuals are unsuitable or unable to undertake certain
work, particularly with occupations involving regular contact with vulnerable groups, including
children.

Our Strategy
Our current Strategy sets out our purpose, vision, and the impacts we want to achieve. Our
strategy was co-created with our staff and has been supported by insight from our various
partners, and throughout, you will find our ambitions to be achieved. Everything that we do within
DBS, from developing our strategic intent, to the day-to-day operational delivery of our services,
is underpinned by constant considerations of safeguarding, quality, sustainability, value for
money, and diversity and inclusion. Our strategic objectives aim to enhance our effectiveness,
influence, and customer satisfaction while fostering a supportive environment for everyone.

Equality, Diversion, and Inclusion at DBS

DBS is committed to fostering an environment that values individual differences and ensures fair
treatment to unlock the full potential of staff and better support customers. Equality, diversity,
and inclusion (EDI) are core to driving organisational success and we have developed specific
equality objectives for DBS.

Every decision and activity will be considered through an EDI lens, aiming to build an inclusive
culture, improve policies and practices, gain external assurances, and become a leading voice of
good practice in EDI.

Read More
For further information, please see below for a collection of DBS strategies and business plans:
• DBS strategies - GOV.UK
• DBS business plans - GOV.UK

Job description

Job Purpose:
The Associate Director of Digital will provide senior leadership for digital services across DBS,
ensuring services are designed around user needs, delivered to the Digital by Default Service
Standard, and continuously improved through evidence, data and user insight.
The role will act as the organisational lead for digital by design, user-centred design and user
experience, building the capability, culture and governance required to ensure DBS services
are simple, inclusive, accessible, reliable and outcome-focused.
Working closely with operational, policy, technology, commercial and transformation leaders,
the postholder will hold end-to-end accountability for the strategy, design, delivery, live
operation and continuous improvement of digital services, ensuring priorities align to
organisational strategy, operational need and the future Target Operating Model.
As a senior leader within Technology and Innovation, the postholder will shape digital maturity
across DBS, lead multidisciplinary teams, influence executive decision-making, and ensure
digital services deliver value for money, public trust and measurable benefits for users, staff
and partners.
Key responsibilities include:
• Lead digital by design across DBS, ensuring services, products, policies and processes
are shaped around user needs, accessibility, inclusion, evidence and measurable
outcomes.
• Lead and mature the User-Centred Design function, strengthening user research,
service design, interaction design, content design and accessibility capability.
• Set and communicate a clear digital service vision, securing alignment across senior
stakeholders on priorities, trade-offs, risks, opportunities and outcomes.
• Take accountability for service performance, resilience, compliance and continuous
improvement across the full service lifecycle, from discovery through to live service.
• Use performance data, user research, operational insight and delivery evidence to
improve services and realise measurable benefits.
• Embed governance and assurance that require user insight, accessibility, testing, value
for money and continuous improvement as standard.
• Lead high-performing multidisciplinary teams, creating a culture of accountability,
collaboration, agility and continuous learning.
• Influence at executive level, ensuring user needs and digital service outcomes shape
strategic decisions, investment choices and transformation roadmaps.

Corporate Duties:
• Play an active part as a member of the directorate management team (DMT), leading
the organisation and undertaking corporate duties on behalf of DMT.
• As an Associate Director of Digital within the DBS Corporate Leadership Team (CLT)),
take a lead role in developing the organisation, ensuring a continued focus on VFM.
• Fully engage and participate in the change programme.
• Support the DBS Board and its committees as required.
• Work as part of a wider directorate management, bringing together skills
and expertise into a single, coherent and enabling directorate.
• Demonstrable experience in creating the vision for large-scale cultural change.
• Strong communication, influencing and leadership skills to translate technical concepts
and issues into easy-to-understand propositions and secure buy-in
• Demonstrable evidence of thought leadership in transformation.
• Represent the Directorate, Group and Department as a leader in creating an innovative
place of work to both internal and external audiences and driving forward the positive
public image to all.

Operational Delivery Duties

Digital
• Deliver services which meet and maintain the Digital by Default Service Standard.
• Interpret user insight and performance data to drive service design and iterative
operational improvements for digital and assisted digital service channels.
• Clarify and articulate the diverse requirements of users and delivery partners to support
effective delivery of a service.
• Translate complex aims and needs into clear and manageable plans
and determining resource requirements to support service design and maintenance.
• Support the Director in creating joined up service delivery plans that have positive
impact and are aligned to the DBS’s overarching digital strategy.
• Build and sustain the DBS’s capability to design, build and operate high quality digital
services, bringing in a range of technical, analytical and design skills.
• Identify step changes that quickly transform the flexibility, responsiveness, and quality of
a service, taking quick, confident decisions at a strategic level to move things forward.
• Act as an advocate for the digital transformation of services, promoting the DBS’s
progress and publicising learning; influencing culture change and digital adoption
throughout the organisation.
• Manage the relationship with both the Sponsor Unit and Home Office to ensure
economies of scale are realised; synergies between digital service providers
are exploited; DBS interests and requirements are appropriately understood and
considered.
• Proactively create and maintain a strong network of connections with colleagues across
the department and Digital Service Managers