Head of Operational and Corporate Assurance

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Job Description

Salary: Base salary: £79,300pa to c.£99,150pa depending on skills and experience. In addition, we offer flexible benefits fund of 20% which is paid on top base salary and is fully pensionable, as well as a range of competitive benefits - check them out in the Benefits section on our website.

HS2 Ltd endeavours to ensure everyone working for us and with us feels included, thrives and achieves their full potential. In practice, this means we are positive and inclusive about making adjustments, providing flexible working, encouraging our staff networks to flourish and providing personal and professional development opportunities.

As a Head of Operational and Corporate Assurance at HS2 you will lead the development and management of a risk based assurance programme of the HS2's corporate controls environment and leadership of operational assurance activity both business wide, and across the project, setting clear expectations for implementation and delivery across the organisation. To co-ordinate related LOD2 assurance delivery, and support planning of the Integrated Assurance and Approvals Plan. This role is to provide a holistic view of our control environment and an enterprise wide view of operational assurance activity, particularly in delivery, and ensure assurance activities are delivered in a timely manner to support business decision making and approvals.

About the role:

• About You:
  Support and maintain the development and management of a risk based and proportionate corporate and operational assurance regime that provides confidence, adds value to our stakeholders and ensures compliance with all regulatory requirements, mandated controls and contractual commitments.
• Support, structure, set and implement related policy, strategy, procedures and reporting formats for corporate and operational assurance across all aspects of HS2 the programme ensuring all assurance stages are understood and that improvement recommendations are implemented, as appropriate.
• Maintain the corporate assurance process to give confidence in our corporate controls environment and business processes, and provide leadership and coordination of all operational assurance activity to ensure the HS2 Railway will integrate, and be constructed and delivered into operation in line with our requirements and on time.
• Act as professional head of operational and corporate assurance, give advice to the company on related assurance matters, train and upskill the business in assurance practices.
• Act as lead for operational assurance across the business and project, and in particular work to ensure our contractors' self assurance regime, and our interactions with it, are appropriate, effective and deliver right first time outputs.
• Establish the HS2 approach to corporate and operational assurance using the three lines of defence model.
• Undertake the annual Management Assurance Statement (MAS), validate the business responses and compile the final return on behalf of the CEO as accounting officer.
• Manage the Operational and Corporate Assurance Team providing regular line management and direction, setting objectives and managing performance.
• Provide subject matter input to the Integrated Assurance and Approvals Plan (IAAP) and ensure related assurance activities are delivered in a timely manner to support business decision making and approvals.
• Liaise with and monitor the work of external audit and assurance teams to ensure HS2 receives value for money and agreed processes and procedures are adhered to.
• Actively promote and embed Equality Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) in all your work, and support and comply with all organisational initiatives, policies and procedures on EDI.

Skills:

• Skilled in distilling information from multiple sources and turning it into clear written materials
• Ability to influence and negotiate with senior colleagues
• Ability to engage with and manage stakeholders and Government on sensitive issues
• Management skills, working on multiple activities simultaneously and prioritise the most critical activities to agreed deadlines.

Knowledge:

• Educated to degree level or equivalent
• Understanding of project and programme management techniques and processes
• Knowledge of a range of assurance activities, tools and techniques
• Knowledge of best practice in project management
• Professional assurance qualifications (e.g. Audit) or equivalent
• Knowledge of matrix organisations and programme delivery
• Knowledge of relevant interfaces for similar infrastructure projects

Types of Experience

• Experience of integrating operational assurance activity across multiple delivery functions in the rail, transport, construction or infrastructure sectors would be advantageous
• Experience of managing teams within a matrix working environment
• Experience in developing and managing business processes
• Experience of implementing functional and/or programme assurance frameworks in major programmes, with multiple stakeholders.

The post-holder is expected to behave at all times in a manner consistent with the HS2 values of Safety, Leadership, Integrity and Respect

It is expected that you will actively promote and embed Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) in all your work and support and comply with all organisational initiatives, policies and procedures on EDI.

As HS2 Ltd do not hold a sponsorship license from the Home Office, we are not able to provide sponsorship to any applicant. Applicants must already have the Right to Work in the UK at the time of application and our process involves a Right to Work validation prior to the interview stage. Note, there are certain types of time-bound visas that we cannot accept.

Any offers made to applicants will be subject to satisfactory completion of pre-employment checks which include Nationality & Immigration Status, employment references, DBS, Financial and Education checks.

We ask for a variety of detail in your online application, however we perform the first assessment of suitability for a role based solely on the information in your CV. In a further development of our efforts to create a more diverse workforce, your CV will be anonymised and personal information will be removed during the first stage of the application review. This removes bias from the process and makes it even more important that you attach an updated word version of your CV for each new application ensuring you include evidence directly related to the criteria in the job advert. Watch this video on how we remove bias in the recruitment process: Removing bias in the recruitment process - YouTube

Any applications received after the closing date will not be considered.

About Us

High Speed 2 (HS2 Ltd) will be the UK's new high speed rail network. As well as improving capacity, the new scheme will shorten journey times between a number of Britain's major population centres, boost the economy and create thousands of jobs.

HS2 Ltd will create a skills legacy and develop a diverse range of talent. We aim to be a leader in EDI practice by creating a safe & inclusive working environment for all our staff - living our values of Safety, Respect, Integrity and Leadership.

In practice, this means we are positive and inclusive about making adjustments, providing flexible working, encouraging our staff networks to flourish and providing personal and professional development opportunities.

HS2 Ltd is also a safety-critical organisation. Employees are required to ensure reasonable care of their own and others' health and safety by taking personal responsibility for working to our 'Safe at Heart' programme principles and following safe working procedures at all times.

HS2 Ltd endeavours to ensure everyone working for us and with us feels included, thrives and achieves their full potential.