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HM Revenue and Customs is recruiting for a chief data officer, a position it describes as “one of the biggest roles in the UK”.

The post comes with a remit to deliver “data-centric cultural change across HMRC”. This will include setting a department-wide data plan that encompasses “strategic vision, technology and process roadmap, direction and budget, [and] ensuring that execution of the strategy is aligned with organisational objectives”.

The CDO will be tasked with ensuring compliance with GDPR and other data-protection laws, as well as creating and implementing data standards. This should be done “in a way that is agile and risk-informed”.

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Sitting at the head of a team of 90 people, the data leader will be expected to “strengthen HMRC’s data analytics and insight capability, recognising the benefits from open-source, data science-led approaches”.

Reporting to chief digital and information officer Daljit Rehal, the chosen candidate will also be expected to work closely with the tax agency’s wider tech organisation. Of particular importance will be building “alignment between the data and enterprise architectures, thus ensuring that information management requirements are implicit in these architectures”.

The role comes with a salary of £149,000 and will be based at one or more of HMRC’s locations in Bristol, Edinburgh, Leeds, London, Telford, and Worthing. 

Shortlisted candidates will be asked to undertake psychometric tests and an engagement exercise, followed by a panel interview, during which they will be asked to give a five-minute presentation.

The panel will include Rehal alongside HMRC’s HR director for its CDIO Group Breda O’Connor, as well as Juliette Scott – a former eBay senior executive and one of the department’s non-executive directors. It will be chaired by civil service commissioner Rosie Glazebrook.

Applications are open until 11.55pm on 18 April.