Head of Cloud

Job description

Job responsibilities

As the Head of Cloud, you will be expected to:

• Oversee the design and implementation of solutions within cloud platforms/services. Using your leadership skills, technical knowledge and initiative to ensure the availability and stability of UKHSA services to clinicians, NHS bodies and citizens.
• Create and execute a comprehensive cloud strategy that aligns with the organisations goals and other strategies
• Carry out advanced impact analysis to understand how change will affect different components and produce estimates for planned changes to cloud platforms and services.
• Oversee the governance and maintenance of cloud platforms and services, ensuring security measures are implemented to grant appropriate access and maintain system integrity in accordance to UKHSAs security principles and processes.
• Drive the development and implementation of standards of best practice in the cloud platforms within the organisation. Make recommendations and challenge and persuade others when standards are not followed or opinions differ.
• Lead and expand teams of cloud, platform and DevOps engineers, fostering an inclusive culture of technical excellence and continuous improvement. Promoting ongoing professional development of team members in the latest cloud technologies and practices.
• Drive innovation through continuous horizon scanning for emerging technologies and innovate processes that could enhance the organisations cloud platforms and services. Driving forward thinking adoption that ensures the organisation remains ahead of the technological curve.
• Oversee the UKHSAs cloud financial operations, ensuring effective management of cloud spend across multiple cloud providers. Collaborate with internal stakeholders to implement cost-optimisation strategies and financial accountability, driving cost efficiency.

In addition you will:

• Maintain a detailed understanding and be aware of developments in the use of cloud technologies in delivering business objectives by researching changes, tools and solutions.
• Work within UKHSAs policies, standing orders, financial regulations and legislative requirements.
• Oversee the creation and maintenance of technical documentation for all cloud platforms and services. Ensuring documentation meets set standards of accuracy and usability, facilitating seamless knowledge transfer within the organisation.
• Complete own assigned tasks to a high quality and within agreed timelines. Pro-actively proposing improvements to enhance own and business areas. Escalating issues at appropriate times.
• Actively identify your development and training needs within this specialism to develop your skills in Cloud Technologies to meet the requirements of the business.

In addition to the above accountabilities, as post holder you are expected to:

• Undertake additional duties and responsibilities in line with the overall purpose of your role and as agreed by your line manager.
• Demonstrate UKHSA values and core capabilities in all aspects of your work.
• Foster an environment where your own and colleagues safety and well-being is promoted. Contribute to a culture which values diversity and inclusion.
• Comply with UKHSA policies, procedures and protocols as they apply to your role.

Internal

• Senior Civil Servants/Head level members of the UKHSA
• Technology and Data teams
• Product owners across UKHSA
• Users within UKHSA including key business sponsors

External

• Software suppliers and design agency representatives
• Representatives of other bodies with NHS and Department of Health
• Government Digital Service

Essential criteria

• Proficiency with Unix/Linux/Windows operating systems.
• Advanced understanding of DevOps concepts:
  • Version control and GitOps.
  • Test automation.
  • Continuous integration and continuous deployment (CI/CD).
  • Infrastructure as code (IaC).
  • Observability.
  • Containerisation.
  • Microservice architecture
• A strong focus on collaboration and communication, particularly in managing relationships with a range of stakeholders (suppliers and customers)
• Experience of at least one of UKHSAs strategic platforms (AWS and Azure ) and relevant tooling
• Experience in the design (translating business need into functional and non-functional requirements.), implementation and operation of platforms (backup and recovery, monitoring, capacity planning, performance tuning, security, audit).
• Significant advanced and recent experience as an engineer managing cloud platforms including:
  • proactive and reactive support
  • security conscious decision making.
  • Technical versatility.
  • Automation oriented approach to problem solving.
• Practical experience of a variety of platform hosting models (on-premise, private/public/ hybrid cloud) and suppliers.Experience of cloud platform services and provisioning. E.g. IaaS, PaaS, XaaS.
• Experience of building solutions following microservice architecture.
• Practical experience / in-depth knowledge of a variety of platform hosting models (on-premise, private/public/ hybrid cloud), cloud platforms and multiple cloud technologies:
  • Suppliers and platforms (e.g AWS, Azure, Google Cloud)
  • Infrastructure as Code (e.g Terraform, Pulumi, Crossplane, Ansible)
  • Container building (e.g Docker, podman, buildah)
  • Container orchestration (e.g Kubernetes, AWS ECS, OpenShift, Azure Container Apps)
  • CI/CD (GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, ArgoCD, Flux)
  • Observability (e.g OpenTelemetry, Grafana, Prometheus, Fluentd, Jaeger, Elasticsearch, Kibana, Logstash)
  • Security and compliance (Checkov, Snyk, ZAP, SonarCloud, OPA)

Selection Process Details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles and will assess your Behaviours and Experience.

Stage 1: Application & Sift

You will be required to complete an application form. You will be assessed on the above listed 9 essential criteria, and this will be in the form of a:

• Application form (Employer/ Activity history section on the application)
• 1250 word Statement of Suitability.

This should outline how your skills, experience, and knowledge, provide evidence of your suitability for the role, with reference to the essential criteria.

The Application form and Statement of Suitability will be marked together.

Please be aware that you will be assessed on the above listed 9 essential criteria, rather than the full list on the job description document.

If you are successful at this stage, you will progress to interview and assessment.

Please do not exceed 1250 words. We will not consider any words over and above this number.

Please note you will not be able to upload your CV. You must complete the application form in as much detail as possible. Please do not email us your CV.

Stage 2: Interview (Success Profiles)

You will be invited to a face to face interview. In exceptional circumstances, we may be able to offer a remote interview.

Behaviours and experience will be tested at interview.

There will be a presentation as part of the process.

The Behaviours tested during the interview stage will be:

• Leadership
• Making effective decisions
• Communicating and Influencing
• Delivering at Pace

Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Feedback will not be provided at this stage.

Eligibility Criteria

Open to all external applicants (anyone) from outside the Civil Service (including by definition internal applicants).

Location

This role is being offered as hybrid working based at our Canary Wharf offices. We offer great flexible working opportunities at UKHSA and operate using a hybrid working model where business needs allow. This provides us with greater flexibility about how and where we work, to get the best from our workforce. As a hybrid worker, you will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of your contractual working hours (approximately 3 days a week pro rata, (averaged over a month).

Our core HQ offices are modern and newly refurbished with excellent city centre transport link and benefit from benefit from co-location with other government departments such as the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC).

Security Clearance Level Requirement

Successful candidates must pass a disclosure and barring security check.

Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is Basic Personnel Security Standard.

Person Specification

Application Form & Statement of Suitability

• Application Form & Statement of Suitability

Behaviours

• Making Effective Decisions
• Leadership
• Communicating and Influencing
• Delivering at Pace

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website.

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants.

Employer details

Employer name

UK Health Security Agency

Address

Canary Wharf

10 South Colonnade

London

E14 4PU

https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/uk-health-security-agency