Ministry of Defence looking to appoint technology figurehead
The CIO will report to perm sec Stephen Lovegrove and commander of Joint Forces Command Chris Deverell
The Ministry of Defence is offering an annual pay packet of up to £180,000 for a new technology leader to oversee some 3,000 staff and an annual budget in excess of £2bn.
The MoD has a vacancy for a director general chief information officer. The role comes with a remit of cultivating and implementing the department’s overall IT strategy, “including cybersecurity and resilience”. It also involves overseeing delivery of all the ministry’s IT and related services.
The successful candidate will also be required to serve as the main advisor to the MoD’s Defence Board – chaired by defence secretary Michael Fallon – on all matters digital.
The CIO will report to two people: the ministry’s permanent secretary Stephen Lovegrove; and commander of the Joint Forces Command Chris Deverell.
Related content
- MoD offers £130,000 for CIO of Defence Equipment and Support
- MoD launches £6m fund to improve data use in defence decision-making
- “Active cyber defence”: UK’s first National Cyber Security Centre chief sets out strategy
In a joint message in the candidate information pack, the two men said: “There is much work to be done. We must exploit digital technology to enhance defence’s operational capability, as well as to realise significant efficiencies. We must make the most of our information at the same time as managing information-related risks. The complexity and scale of these tasks is high. So is the opportunity to make a big difference.”
They added: “This role is one of the most challenging and exciting technology roles in the civil service. We have a stretching agenda to deliver, and we need an exceptional leader to help us do so.”
The MoD is offering a salary of up to £180,000 for the CIO post. The successful applicant will have overall line-management responsibility for a total of 3,000 employees in the ministry’s Information Systems and Services unit. The new technology leader will also oversee an annual operating budget for ICT and digital of £223m, in addition to a capital-spending pot of £1.8bn.
Interested candidates have until midday on 11 September to submit their applications. After which the hiring process will include a longlist meeting, preliminary interviews, a shortlist meeting, assessments, pre-interview discussions, and, finally, interviews, scheduled for the week commencing 30 October.
