Deputy Director – Growth Strategy Unit

Locations

Locations: This post can be based in London (1 Horse Guards Road) or Darlington (Feethams House).

Advertised working pattern

Advertised working pattern: Flexible working, Full-time, Part-time

Job summary

Working at HM Treasury puts you at the heart of government, making a difference to the UK economy and ultimately to people’s lives right across the UK.

Jobs at the Treasury are fast-paced, fun and can offer unparalleled perspective – not least the opportunity to advise Ministers on the decisions which directly determine the UK’s prosperity. Deep in our DNA is a commitment to empowering our people: maximising individual and collective impact, with interesting work no matter your role or seniority.

Day-to-day you could be supporting Ministers to decide the right level of a specific tax or line of government spending; helping maintain the stability of financial markets; analysing the long-term trends impacting the future of the economy; or enabling this work as part of our vital corporate functions.

We are a high-performing department and proud to have outstanding staff from a wide range of backgrounds. We are also a friendly, inclusive and sociable workplace that prides itself on fostering great team spirit. Our two largest offices are 1 Horse Guards Road in London, opposite St James’ Park, and the Darlington Economic Campus, which also contains eight other departments. We work seamlessly across all our sites, including Norwich, Birmingham and Leeds, as one Treasury.

We are both a 1,000-year-old institution and dynamic, forward-looking economics and finance ministry, with a strong direction set by our organisational strategy, the Future Treasury Vision. The 21st century offers huge opportunities and poses new challenges for the UK. Working at the Treasury is your chance to help the country chart the right course.

Job description

The Growth Strategy Unit is a new team in EGU, established earlier this year, tasked with leading HMT’s work on growth in support of the Chancellor, in partnership with No 10 including No 10 North.

It does this by developing the overall approach to boosting growth and living standards through supply side reform. It advises the Chancellor, Exchequer Secretary, EMB, as well as the PM, No10 including No 10 North, and the Cabinet Secretary on the drivers of the UK's economic performance, the sufficiency of our existing strategy, and opportunities to go further – including navigating fiscal and wider trade-offs.

It works in close partnership with teams across HMT, No 10 including No10 North and beyond, with responsibility for specific growth policies. GSU seeks to ensure strategic and narrative coherence; and provides constructive challenge to wider policy development injecting creativity and alternative ideas.

It leads external engagement on growth, including with economic commentators, think tanks and academics. This engagement is strategic, and two-way: hearing stakeholders’ views, whilst also proactively and confidently setting out the Government’s strategy and responding to challenges.

It undertakes strategic growth projects on specific priority areas – for example, where these are crosscutting, or require a new perspective. This currently includes work on economic dynamism.

It leads work on growth economics and analysis for HMT, working across a large, expert analytical community in EGU, Economics Group and beyond.

As head of the Growth Strategy Unit, you will shape and drive the UK’s growth agenda and economic strategy. You will work in partnership with No 10 including No 10 North, and the Cabinet Office, to deliver the PM and Chancellor’s growth agenda. You will also build and use key relationships across businesses, think tanks, academia, departments and the policy community, and drive ambitious policies that will shift the dial on this country’s economic future.

The role involves

• Advising the Chancellor and other Treasury Ministers on the government’s overall growth and economic strategy, developed in partnership with No 10 including No 10 North. The role involves shaping and synthesising work from teams across HMT, such that the growth strategy is greater than the sum of its parts; and encouraging ambition and innovation. The role also involves bringing this work together at set piece events – the Chancellor has committed to two growth updates a year.
• Building, maintaining and deploying positive relationships with No 10, including No 10 North, and a wide range of partners, across the centre of government and key growth departments to shape the agenda and ensure alignment and buy-in.
• Proactively shaping and engaging in external research and the debate on growth, working closely with colleagues leading on communications, business engagement and inward investment.
• Embedding economic analysis in strategic policy-making: leading the Growth Economics Branch, and working in partnership with the HMT Economics Group, the AI Economy Institute, and key Chief Analysts in other departments, to steer and support a creative and collaborative analytical work programme that underpins strategic prioritisation and ensures that growth policy development is informed by rigorous, evidence-based analysis.
• Leading the project function within the Growth Strategy Unit comprising cross-functional teams to develop strategic thinking on specific policy challenges. This will include partnering with Direct Ministerial Appointments, external analysts and thought leaders to commission and drive studies that inform strategic policy.
• Displaying strong leadership and people management skills with the ability to build and develop a diverse, inclusive and supportive team. This includes strong economic/analytical skills to be able to lead the analytical function.
• Showing a clear commitment to promoting diversity, inclusion and belonging, role-modeling excellent behaviours at all times.

Candidate drop-in session

We will be running a candidate drop-in session for this role to give you greater insight about the role as well as the chance to learn more about HM Treasury and the recruitment process.

Visa sponsorship

Visa sponsorship is not available for this role.

Person specification

While in post, the successful candidate will be expected to perform well across the full range of Senior Civil Service behaviours set out in the Success Profile framework and demonstrate commitment to Civil Service values.

The essential criteria for the purpose of selection are

• Outstanding people leadership skills, with experience of setting strategic direction and leading high-performing teams to deliver at pace and in an inclusive way
• Sound judgement and strong strategic vision, with good knowledge of the various tenets of the Economic Strategy, and a track record of leading in uncertain and complex policy and political environments.
• Excellent influencing and interpersonal skills with a proven ability to gain the confidence and trust of and work effectively with a broad range of senior stakeholders and Ministers, and in proactively driving an agenda
• Ability to absorb and interrogate data, communicate it clearly and credibly to support decision-making, and build an evidence and analysis-led strategy