IT ProfessionNorthern Ireland Civil Service

Candidate Information Booklet

Software Developer(ICT Level 3)IRC250315

Completed Application Forms must be returned to HRConnect no later than 12 noon (UK Time) on Friday 09 July 2021

IT ProfessionNorthern Ireland Civil Service

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Contents34 5

151719

ForewordDeveloper Information Things you need to know Terms and Conditions Eligibility Criteria Assessment Process Guidance for applicants 21

IT ProfessionNorthern Ireland Civil Service

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Foreword

www.nicsrecruitment.gov.uk

The NICS IT Profession is committed to the delivery of a wide range of quality IT services driven by diverse business needs. In constant pursuit of the digital agenda, we are looking for people who will help make a difference.

On behalf of all the Digital Leaders across the Northern Ireland Civil Service (NICS), I am delighted to advise we are recruiting now for Developers.

Can you help us respond to new business opportunities and help the NICS enable and support digital transformation?

Our IT Professionals work in partnership with numerous stakeholders and I hope that this booklet will inspire you to take the time to complete and submit an application form.

Ignatius O’Doherty

Director of Digital Shared Services and NICS ICT Head of Profession

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Developer Information

Career ProgressionAs a Software Developer you will have the opportunity to progress to Senior Developer and Lead Developer. This progression will bring with it increased responsibility for your specialist area including managing and developing more junior colleagues.

The NICS ICT grading structure below will give you an idea of the potential of developing and progressing as an ICT Professional in the NICS.

The grading structure of the NICS ICT Profession utilises industry standards but remains aligned to the General Service grading structure, as follows:

NICS ICT Grades Analogous General Service Grades

ICT level 8 Grade 6ICT level 7 Grade 7ICT level 6 Deputy Principal (DP)ICT level 5 Staff Officer (SO)ICT level 4 Executive Officer 1 (EO1)

ICT level 3 Executive Officer 2 (EO2)

ICT level 2 Administrative Officer (AO)ICT level 1 Students Administrative Assistant (AA)ICT level 1 Apprentices Administrative Assistant (AA)

The Role Working in an IT role in the Northern Ireland Civil Service you will develop citizen-facing applications, digital products and services for our customers (NICS departments, non-departmental public bodies and Arm’s length bodies). These products and services promote and facilitate real business transformation and aim to meet and exceed expectations for quality and cost.

You’ll share responsibility for the digital transformation of Government. You’ll ensure high quality code is delivered in line with project goals and delivery cycles. You’ll thrive using agile methods and enjoy working openly, collaboratively and as part of a multi-disciplinary team focused on one or more projects. Above all, you’ll want to make Government better, which may sometimes involve challenging the status quo.

Main responsibilities• Build engaging user interfaces that meet customers’

requirements that adhere to good User Experience (UX)principles and meet security standards.

• Build RESTful web services to serve a variety of citizen andGovernment needs, taking responsibility for the quality ofcode you produce.

• Implement toolkits and APIs for purposes such asintegration, performance optimization, security andscalability.

• Build automated tests to support our continuousdeployment environment.

• Share knowledge of tools and techniques with your widerteam, both developers and non-developers.

• Have the opportunity to participate in our in-house (2ndline) support, and potentially out-of-hours support on aweekly rota basis (evenings and weekends) – for which youwill be paid an allowance and a further hourly payment forany duties you perform.

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Things you need to know

The nature of our work

What we doWe deliver a diverse and challenging range of digital services through the following activities:

• Bespoke application development

• Design, build and support of multi-tenant (reusable)applications

• Development and support of the NI Direct website(https://www.nidirect.gov.uk)

• Development and support of nine Departmental websitesand more than thirty other public sector websites

• Development and support of the NICS Intranet

• Website design and information architecture consultancy

• User Experience (UX) and User-Centred Design consultancy

• Graphic Design

How we do itWe build systems and services using the Agile approach. This approach reduces the risks associated with ‘requirements first’ based delivery methods. It breaks a project into a number of more manageable phases with more decision points along the way involving the customer at all stages.

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Technology and StandardsWe currently employ two completely different software development technology stacks in order to provide the best possible technical solutions to business problems:

1. Application Development

• Microsoft stack based on ASP.NET

• Windows Server, IIS, SQL Server

• Microsoft Visual Studio IDE

• C#, SQL, JavaScript, HTML5, CSS, JQuery

2. Content Management Platform

• Open source stack built for Drupal

• Linux, Apache, MySQL and PHP

• Open Source IDE

We use the Scrum Process to deliver customer outputs within the phases.

A ‘scrum’ team consists of a number of roles and the team works together in a self-organising way to deliver working parts of the solution in short two week periods known as sprints.

Design Phases

Finding out what the users need, what to measure and what the constraints are

Discovery

Building a prototype, testing it with users and learning from it

Alpha

Building a working version of the solution that will function at scale

Beta

Supporting andimproving the service

Live

Environment ArchitectureDevelopment IntegrationSource Control

Dev Machine 1 Dev Machine 2

Dev Machine 3Prd-dfp-knget prd-dfp-kn101

(Jenkins)

Prd-IMA-Git

Project Management

DeploymentDevelopment

Private Cloud

Testing

Production

DeV-DT-LOB-IIS1

DV-DD-NICSIIS1

TeS-DT-LOB-IIS1

TeS-DT-NICS-IIS1

Pro-LOB-IIS1

Pro-DT-NICS-IIS1

DeV-DOF-DEVSQL\DEV1

TeS-DOF-DEVSQL\DEV1

DT16-LIST

\\Pro-Clust-DFP08 \DFPApps

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Review Product Backlog

Estimate Sprint Backlog

Commit work for the Sprint

Sprint Planning Meeting

Team answers 3 questions:

What has been accomplished sincelast meeting?

Are there any impediment?

What am I planningto accomplish beforenext meeting?

Daily Scrum Meeting

Inspect and Adaptthe Product:

The work the team committed to delivering

The work the team completed DEMO ofthe work

Priority review for thenext iteration

Sprint Review Meetings

Inspect and Adaptthe Process:

What went well during the last Sprint?

What could be improved on the next Sprint?

Sprint Retrospective Meeting

Sprint Sprint

DailyScrum | 24 hours

Sprint Retrospective

Product Backlog

Potentially Shippable Product Increment

1SprintPlanning

SprintBacklog

Scrum Process Overview

Sprint Review

Scrum Process OverviewA scrum team typically involves the following roles:

• Scrum Master

• Business Analyst

• Technical Lead

• Developer

• Test Analyst

As a developer you will be part of one of these teams, responsible for the design, build and test of component parts of an overall solution. You will work very closely with your team members to deliver high quality, highly efficient, secure and robust software applications that meet the needs of our customers.

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ToolsWe follow industry best practice throughout the software development lifecycle and use a number of tools to support this. We develop our software in discrete environments that afford freedom and protection at the same time.

A list of the tools used in the application development is shown on the next page, a similar approach is used in developing content management solutions on the open source Drupel platform.

Dev Tools

Visual StudioVisual Studio CodeMS SQL Server DBMSPowershellPhotoshopJiraCitLabSource TreeGitBashMS Office 2013Sandcastle*DocFXPostmanSonarQubeSwaggerNuget/NPMZAP/Burp/WhiteSource

Languages

C#SQLJavaScriptTypeScriptJSONXMLJQueryHTML5CSSXAMLYAMLBASH

* Legacy Support** Planned

Presentation

ASP.NET MVC 5Bootstrap 4.0WPF*WinForms*ASP.NET WebForms*AngularJS**

Services

ASP.NET Web APIWCF

Data Access

Entity FrameworkEF Core**

Testing

nUnitxUnit**mSpec**

Storage

SQL ServerAzure Data Services**Oracle DBMS

Source Control

Git (GitLab)TFS*Azure DevOps Server

CI/CO

JenkinsAzure DevOps Build/Release pipelinesOctopus

Authentication

Windows AuthenticationADFSForms Based AuthenticationAzure AD**

Collaboration

SharepointHP Records ManagerCisco JabberWebExMS TeamsSlackMS WhiteboardOffice 365 (pilot starting soon)

Hosting

Windows Server 2012 R2 (IT Assist)Azure**Docker**Windows 2016Linux (CentOS, Redhat Enterprise Linux)

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Our CultureAll team members, regardless of their technical role, will be expected to develop and adopt a culture of continuous improvement in terms of their own skills, the team’s capabilities and the services delivered.

Working in this environment means there is always learning and as this is a rapidly changing and developing landscape, we are required to monitor and respond to in an agile manner in order to keep up with the latest and most desirable productivity trends.

When highly specialist external ICT resources are required to assist us we will ensure that there is a transfer of knowledge and skills to internal staff as part of the engagement with us; in fact this will be a measurable deliverable in all contracts with external suppliers.

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Our People

Developers work across the NICS, here is just a few who have shared their own unique career experiences to date:

Ciaran works in Land and Property Services (LPS) in Department of Finance“After completing my degree in ICT, I joined the civil service as an ICT 3 programmer. At 23 I was initially afraid of having “a real life job”, but everyone was very welcoming and supportive in my role in the team. I was able to learn the business processes and get up to speed with what was expected in my job. I was also able to continue my learning through courses and further accreditations, which help me stay focused and improve my overall skills in numerous areas such as working in a team, collaborating with others, leadership and my ICT knowledge.

I have worked on a number of different projects for the Department of Finance, both internal and public facing. These projects have consisted of building SQL databases and scripts, C# front end websites, migrating from old legacy technologies to new software, and learning new tools such a

Power BI to create reports. This has allowed me to grow and keep learning all different aspects of the ICT profession.

I have been lucky enough to work in great teams that have both helped and pushed me when I needed it. I have also learnt to work in an agile working environment, which I believe is a great way to stay focused, build team moral, and achieve great results for our projects. This has since enabled me to move through the ICT grades from ICT3 to my current role as an ICT5 systems analyst. There are various opportunities within the NICS to grow and have career progression and a career in ICT will make a difference to the public, have enjoyable career progression and have a great work-life-balance.”

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Meghan is based in Ballykelly House, Limavady“I was very excited when I started as an ICT Level 3 at the new DAERA headquarters located in Ballykelly. Within the first week I was able to get involved in developing a new UI for an existing application. This meant I could hit the ground running and start learning on a number of new technologies. Coming from a Java development background I was very interested in learning more about Microsoft development, how the Continuous development pipelines worked and adapting to working in an agile environment.

I work on the Environmental Farming Scheme, developing and maintaining both internal and external web applications. It’s rewarding to know that the work you are doing is helping to create an environmental benefit. I also worked on an application that holds all the information relating to any communication DAERA staff has had with external bodies/organisations. This has been a great project to work with lots of business and technology learning involved. This has allowed me to set up builds and releases, as well as getting to know the business processes around security testing, performance testing, change requests and handover documents. With this project I got to work closely with the business gathering the requirements and making enhancements.

One thing that I really like about NICS, is the opportunities for training. I have completed a number of training courses with more planned. This is not only important for me to be an effective and valuable member of the team, but also means that I am always keeping up to date with new technologies.

I have been lucky enough to be involved in a number of Women in IT events, and this has been a great opportunity to meet fellow IT staff outside of the department I work in. What amazes me is the wide range of work that is completed within NICS, all of which are providing a benefit to the public.”

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Edward works as a software developer within the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA).

Edward took up software development as part of a career change.

“I wanted to do something which would allow me to make a difference to people in local communities and as the environment is very important to me I wanted to work on projects that would have a real impact on the environment in Northern Ireland.”

Edward has worked on projects that are providing tangible benefits to farming communities and the environment, such as the Environmental Farming Scheme, which incentivises farmers to take measures to improve biodiversity and environmental sustainability of their farms. He has also worked on internal systems to improve automation of communications with service users/businesses.

“I have had the opportunity to contribute to projects aimed at streamlining communications and knowledge sharing within different business areas, including the International Activity application, which allows at a glance information sharing on networking contacts with international government departments and institutions. I also helped another department to automate their auditing of freedom of information requests from the public.”

“One of the main things I have been impressed with within DAERA has been the opportunity for personal development. There are always opportunities for training and widening my skillset, and the use of new technologies and methodologies is encouraged where gains in efficiency are possible. Sometimes this involves stepping out of my comfort zone, but that challenge can be very rewarding. I am currently part of a team to introduce a cloud based service for an older application. This will bring better performance, cost savings and resilience. This is very much a learning experience for me and seeing how much importance and consideration has been given to data security and integrity have really increased my own knowledge.

There is a great atmosphere within the department and people are always willing to help me if I need it. There is a friendly atmosphere with a strong emphasis as working as a team and we discuss our projects and challenges daily to ensure that any roadblocks to progress are removed. Overall I would say that DAERA has a great culture of innovation and openness that compares with anything in the private sector.”

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Northern Ireland Civil Service

There are currently nine Government Departments in Northern Ireland, all with specific remits.

The Northern Ireland Departments are:

• The Executive Office

• Department of Agriculture, Environment& Rural Affairs

• Department for Communities

• Department of Education

• Department for the Economy

• Department of Finance

• Department for Infrastructure

• Department of Health

• Department of Justice

Further information on the Northern Ireland Departments can be obtained on the NI Direct website: http://www.nidirect.gov.uk/northern-ireland-government-departments

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Professionals are employed to help make the best use of technology where possible. By virtue of the role of government, our work affects life for the people who live and do business in Northern Ireland.

Examples of the areas our developers work include:

Enterprise Shared Services The primary function of Enterprise Shared Services (ESS), within the Department of Finance, is to deliver efficient and effective customer focused services to the Northern Ireland Civil Service (NICS). Digital Shared Services (DSS) with ESS provides IT infrastructure services for the NI Civil Service and some wider public sector organisations. It has responsibility for the NI Government citizen portal www.nidirect.gov.uk including nidirect contact centre services) and delivering the NI Digital Transformation Programme.

As part of the transformation of ICT Services across the NICS, software development activity is concentrated within Enterprise Digital Development (EDD) which is a part of ESS.

The purpose of the EDD is to provide digital solutions to customers that promote and facilitate real business transformation that meet and exceed expectations for quality and cost. Services provided include:

• Ongoing development and support of the nidirect citizenwebsite;

• Ongoing development and support of the NICS Intranet

• Website design and information architecture consultancy

• User Experience(UX) and User Centred Design consultancy

• Bespoke application development and shared softwaredevelopment services using an Agile approach

• Graphic Design

Land and Property Services (LPS) Land and Property Services (LPS) is a division within the Department of Finance (DoF) and plays an important role in supporting economic development in Northern Ireland. This is achieved through the provision of a diverse range of land and property related functions and the collection of some £1.3 billion in rate revenue, which helps fund vital public services and delivers a significant income stream to the 11 Councils.

The LPS 2020 Strategy has targets to transform how it services are delivered. These targets are to create a more customer focused integrated, agile and efficient organisation using technology as a key enabler.

The Information Systems Unit (ISU) within LPS develops and supports a portfolio of business information systems covering a wide range of areas:

• Rate Collection Services

• Rate Relief Services

• Valuation Services

• Registration Services

• OSNI Mapping Services

The post holder’s role will be to design, develop, implement, and support key line of business systems help with the delivery of the LPS ICT Strategy.

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Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) has responsibility for food, farming, environmental, fisheries, forestry and sustainability policy and the development of the rural sector in Northern Ireland.

The DAERA vision is “sustainability at the heart of a living, working, active landscape valued by everyone.

The strategic outcomes of the department are:

1. Sustainable agri-food, fisheries, forestry and industrial sectors.

2. A clean, healthy environment, benefiting people, nature and the economy.

3. A thriving rural economy, contributing to prosperity and wellbeing.

4. A well led, high performing organisation focused on outcomes.

The department has embarked on an ambitious 3 year digital transformation programme supported by the departmental Digital, Data and Geo-spatial Information System (GIS) strategies.

DAERA’s Digital Services Division which supports ICT across the department, comprises of the Information systems unit (ISU), and Digital Programme Governance Branch.

The ISU is responsible for a portfolio of 100 plus line of business information systems covering areas such as EU Grant and Subsidies, animal traceability and environmental protection. The ISU comprises of 4 branches:

• Veterinary Services Digital Systems Branch

• Food, Farming and Forestry Digital Systems Branch

• Digital Enterprise Service Branch

• Environment, Marine and Fisheries Digital Systems Branch.

The post holders will be responsible for the design, integration, development and implementation of key line of business information systems within the Department.

Our directionThe strategic direction in relation to digital service provision and the ICT infrastructure and services that support it is set out in two papers:

• Northern Ireland Government: Making Lives Better -A Strategy for Digital Transformation of Public Services2017-2021

• Northern Ireland Civil Service ICT Strategy 2017-2021

The implementation of these strategies presents exciting opportunities for us to explore how new technologies can change people’s lives for the better and ensure value for money in the delivery of Government services.

Your future We are looking for Developers, who can work across a range of projects, integrate into our existing teams and help us deliver the next generation of digital services to our customers.

As we continue to explore technologies such voice recognition we will be looking to you to help us make a difference when you join our team!

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Number of Positions It is anticipated that there will be a number of posts to be filled from this competition.

Salary Salary will be within the range £25,759 - £26,312, within which pay progression will be performance related.

Starting salary will be at the minimum of the scale. If the successful candidate is an existing civil servant, normal pay on promotion/re-grading arrangements will apply.

AllowancesIn addition, the post will attract an annual ICT allowance of £3,713 immediately.

PensionThe NICS offers all employees an attractive pension package. Further details can be found on the Principal Civil Service Pensions Scheme (Northern Ireland) website at www.finance-ni.gov.uk/civilservicepensions-ni

Hours of WorkNormal hours of work are full-time, 37 hours per week, excluding meal breaks, Monday to Friday. A flexi-time system in operation which allows employees flexibility over when they start and end their working day, subject to certain mandatory core periods.

On occasions there may be a requirement to work some evenings and weekends at payable overtime rates.

Depending upon your role you may be required to provide out of hours support on a weekly rota basis (evenings and weekends).

Terms and Conditions

Location The majority of the posts are based in:

- The Belfast area (including the Stormont Estate);

AND

- Ballykelly House, Limavady, County Derry/Londonderry

The majority of ICT staff are currently working from home due toCOVID restrictions. There may be some scope for this tocontinue once the restrictions are lifted, but this will depend onthe business area and business needs.

Successful candidates may be required to work as a member ofa delivery team in other NICS business sites, as required.

In the application form, please select the area or areas whereyou are prepared to work.

Please note applicants are not required to select all areasand that in selecting areas you should ensure that you canand are willing to travel to the location. If successful you willonly be offered a post in one of your selected area(s) and yourname will be removed from the list of successful applicants forother area(s).

Successful candidates will only be offered a post in theirselected area input in the application form.

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HolidaysIn addition to the 12 public and privilege holidays each year, there is an annual leave allowance of 25 days rising to 30 days after 5 years’ service.

Travel Access to a form of transport will be required in order to fulfil the responsibilities of this post.

Probation Confirmation of your appointment will be dependent upon the satisfactory completion of a probationary period of 1 year. If your performance, conduct or attendance during this period is not satisfactory your appointment may be terminated. All appointees will be expected to demonstrate a track record of effective service within this period.

Conflict of InterestIt is a basic requirement of all Civil Servants that their private activities should not bring them in to conflict with their official duties.

Conflict of Interest is not limited to the individual’s own private, financial or other interests, as family, friends and associates may also have dealings which affect the Department’s business directly or indirectly. Therefore to avoid any conflict or potential conflict and to demonstrate impartiality to the public at all times, an officer must not, without prior approval, engage in any activity which could be considered to be in conflict with official business.

Further information Applicants wishing to learn more about the posts before deciding to apply may contact the NICS IT Profession Support Team on email NICSITProfession@finance-ni.gov.uk

If you have any questions about the competition process, you should contact HRConnect on 0800 1 300 330 or email recruitment@hrconnect.nigov.net

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Applicants must, by the closing date for applications:

1) Be in possession of at least a level 4 technology focusedqualification, such as:

- Bachelor’s degree (level 6)

- Higher National Diplomas (HND) (level 5)

- Higher National Certificate (HNC) (level 4)

Examples of qualification include Computing, Computer Science or other discipline relevant to Information Systems / Information Technology

(Only those courses with a computing content of 50% or more will be considered relevant).

OR

2) Expect to be in possession of at least a level 4 technologyfocused qualification by 31st August 2021 such as:

- Bachelor’s degree (level 6)

- Higher National Diplomas (HND) (level 5)

- Higher National Certificate (HNC) (level 4

Examples of qualification include Computing, Computer Science or other discipline relevant to Information Systems / Information Technology

(Only those courses with a computing content of 50% or more will be considered relevant).

OR

3) Have 3 year’s relevant experience in software development, gained within the last 7 years**.

Relevant or equivalent qualifications: give the type of qualification and date awarded (the date awarded is the date on which you were notified of your result by the official awarding body). If you believe your qualification is equivalent to the one required, the onus is on you to provide the panel with details of modules studied etc. so that a well-informed decision can be made.

The appointment is subject to proof of the attainment of any qualifications deemed essential to the post.

* Only those courses with a computing content of 50% ormore will be considered relevant.

Candidates must provide documentary evidence of their qualifications in their application.

The onus is on the applicant to clearly illustrate that their qualification meets the 50% criteria.

All applicants should list all of the modules studied (including those with no computing content), and also briefly set out details of each of the relevant core modules detailed above and show that they add up to at least 50% of the total number of modules studied.

Eligibility CriteriaRelevant Experience

** Software development includes the design, coding and testing of programs and program modification from supplied specifications using recognised industry standards development approaches and tools. This also covers the area of web design and development which includes user interface design, coding and writing mark-up.

You can include work-based placements as evidence of meeting the required relevant experience.

Please also include evidence of any professional certification, for example Chartered IT Professional status (CITP) via British Computer Society (BCS) / Irish Computer Society (ICS) or Microsoft Certified Solutions Developer (MCSD), Microsoft Certified Professional Developer (MCPD) or equivalent etc.

The following are provided as examples and are not an exhaustive list:

Software Development

• Languages and frameworks such as ASP.NET, C#, C++, C,Visual Basic, Python, Java, JavaScript and its associatedframeworks, MS Entity Framework

• Web page development using HTML, CSS3, Sass or Less,Bootstrap or similar

• CI/CD tools such as Jira, Git, Jenkins and MS TeamFoundation Server

• Relational database technologies such as MS SQL Serverand Oracle.

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Web Design & Development

• LAMP (Linux, Apache, MySQL, PHP) Stack

• Web page development using HTML, CSS3, Sass or Less,Bootstrap or similar

• Content management platforms such as Drupal orWordpress

• Languages and frameworks such as PHP, YAML, Javascriptand associated frameworks (particularly JQuery and Node)

• CI/CD tools such as Jira, Git and Jenkins

• Databases such as MySQL and postgresSQL.

Please note:

You should ensure that you provide evidence of your experience in your application form, giving length of experience, examples and dates as required.

• It is not sufficient to simply list your duties andresponsibilities.

• The Department will not make assumptions from the title ofthe applicant’s post or the nature of the organisation as tothe skills and experience gained.

• If you do not provide sufficient detail, including theappropriate dates needed to meet the eligibility criteria, theselection panel will reject your application.

• ONLY the details provided by you in your applicationform (the employment history and eligibility criteria) willbe provided to the selection panel for the purpose ofdetermining your eligibility for the post.

• The Department may decide to interview only thoseapplicants who appear, from the information available, tobe most suitable in terms of relevant experience and ability.

Further information on the Core Competences for this grade can be accessed through www.nicsrecruitment.gov.uk

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Stage 1:

Eligibility Sift Candidates will have their application forms assessed, to confirm they meet the eligibility requirements for these posts. Candidates who meet the minimum eligibility requirements will proceed to the next stage.

Further information regarding the eligibility requirements for these posts are detailed on page 17.

Stage 2:

Competence Based InterviewAll applicants who meet the requirements of the previous stage will be required to attend a competence based interview.

The following competencies will be assessed during the assessment:

• Making Effective Decisions

• Changing and Improving

• Collaborating and Partnering

• Managing a Quality Service

• Building Capability for All

Selection panels will design questions to test the applicant’s knowledge and experience in each of the above areas and award marks accordingly.

No notes or personal documentation may be brought into the interview room.

It is intended that interviews will take place via Video Conferencing (WebEx) week commencing 16 August 2021

Please note it will not be possible to arrange dates for assessment outside of this time period.

Assessment ProcessThe selection process will comprise of the following key elements for candidates:

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2 - Changing and Improving

People who are effective in this area take initiative, are innovative and seek out opportunities to create effective change.

• Learning and improving: this means being able to own your skills and those of people in your team, keeping individuals upskilled with best practice.

• Flexibility: this means being able to change your approach and having a willingness to change. You should be suggesting continuous improvements.

Marks Available: 20

3 - Collaborating and Partnering

People skilled in this area are team players. It requires working collaboratively, sharing information appropriately and building supportive, trusting and professional relationships with colleagues and a wide range of people within and outside the Civil Service.

1 - Making Effective Decisions

Effectiveness in this area is about being objective, using sound judgement, evidence and knowledge to provide accurate, expert and professional advice.

• For all staff it means showing clarity of thought, setting priorities, analysing and using evident to evaluate options before arriving at well reasoned, justifiable decisions

Marks Available: 20

• This is done through pairing and working with your team members and members of other professions.

• Understand the benefits of working with others on complex tasks.

Marks Available: 20

4 - Managing a Quality Service

People who are effective in this area, plan, organise and manage their time and activities to deliver a high quality, secure, reliable and efficient service.

• Write and maintain clean code which is production ready, maintainable and documented.

•• Work under pressure to deadlines without compromising on

quality.•• Understand how coding can affect service performance and

security.

Marks Available: 20

5 – Building Capability for all

Effectiveness in this area is having a strong focus on continuous learning for oneself, others and the organisation. For all staff, it is about being open to learning and keeping their knowledge and skill set current and evolving. Marks Available: 20

Total Marks Available: 100

Guidance on how to prepare for interview is provided on page 22 of this booklet.

Interview The interview will be used to assess your knowledge and experience in relation to the following three competencies for this role:

Order of Merit

The overall pass mark is 60

Those candidates who meet the required standard(s) and pass mark will be deemed suitable for appointment.

NICS Competency Framework

It is important that all candidates familiarise themselves with the competency framework as this forms the basis of selection process.

The selection process will assess candidates against the NICS competency framework at level 2.

The NICS competency framework sets out how all NICS employees should work. It puts the Civil Service values of integrity, honesty, objectivity and impartiality at the heart of everything they do, and it aligns to the three high-level leadership behaviours that every civil servant needs to model as appropriate to their role and level of responsibility: Set Direction; Engage People and Deliver Results.

Competencies are the skills, knowledge and behaviours that lead to successful performance. The framework outlines ten competencies, which are grouped into three clusters. The competencies are intended to be discrete and cumulative, with each level building on the levels below i.e. a person demonstrating a competency at level 3 should be demonstrating levels 1 and 2 as a matter of course.

The Northern Ireland Civil Service competency framework can be accessed via www.nicsrecruitment.org.uk

Should you require assistance in accessing the competency framework please contact HRConnect.

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Application FormPlease refer to the Candidate Information Booklet before making your application and retain a copy for your reference. The application form is designed to ensure that applicants provide the necessary information to determine how they meet the competition requirements and the eligibility/shortlisting criteria. All parts of the application form must be completed by the applicant before this application can be considered. Failure to do so may result in disqualification.

Please note:

• Applicants are encouraged to submit online applicationswherever possible. However, hard copy application packsare available on request. All applications will be treatedequally regardless of whether they are hard copy or online.

• The space available on the application form is the same forall applicants and must not be altered.

• We will not accept CVs, letters, additional pages or anyother supplementary material in place of or in additionto completed application forms, unless it is specificallyrequested in the application form and candidateinformation booklet.

• All applications must be received by the advertised closingdate and time.

• Information in support of your application will not beaccepted after the closing date for receipt of applications.

• HRConnect will not examine applications until after theclosing deadline;

• Do not use acronyms, complex technical detail etc. Writefor the reader who may not know your employer, yourbranch or your job.

• Only the employment history, eligibility and shortlistingsections will be made available to the panel.

• When completing the online application, your informationis saved as you move through the pages. You may leave theapplication at any time, providing you have clicked on the‘Save & Continue’ button. Once your application has beensubmitted the option to edit will no longer be available.

• The session timeout for the online application is 40 minutes, if you do not save or change page within this timeyou will automatically be logged out and any unsaved workwill be lost.

• You must click SUBMIT once you have finished youronline application. You will receive an acknowledgementemail. Please contact HRConnect if you do not receive anacknowledgment email within 24 hrs.

Help with making your applicationYou can get advice or assistance with making an application from your local Jobs and Benefits Office - contact details are available on NIDirect: https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/contacts/jobs-benefits-offices-jobcentres-and-social-security-offices

You can also get advice or assistance from local disability employment organisations. To find out more about local disability employment organisations contact Northern Ireland Union of Supported Employment (NIUSE), an umbrella group for individuals and organisations promoting opportunities for people with disabilities to access and maintain employment, email info@niuse.org.uk, tel. 0044 (0) 28 71 377709, text phone 0044 (0) 28 71 372077

Guidance for Applicants

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Interview PreparationIf this is your first experience of a competence-based interview, bear in mind that it does not require you to:

• Talk through previous jobs or appointments from start to finish;

• Provide generalised information as to your background and experience; or

• Provide information that is not specifically relevant to the competence thequestion is designed to test.

A competence-based interview does however require you to:

• Focus exclusively, in your responses, on your ability to fulfill the competencesrequired for effective performance in the role; and

• Provide specific examples of your experience in relation to the requiredcompetence areas.

In preparation for the interview you may wish to think about having a clear structure for each of your examples, such as:

• Situation – briefly outline the situation;

• Task – what was your objective, what were you trying to achieve;

• Action – what did you actually do, what was your unique contribution;

• Result – what happened, what was the outcome, what did you learn.

The panel will ask you to provide specific examples from your past experience to demonstrate the range of behaviours associated with the competences being assessed. You should therefore come to the interview prepared to discuss in detail a range of examples which best illustrate your skills and abilities in each competence area. You may draw examples from any area of your work / life experiences.

For professional and technical posts, questions may be framed in the context of professional elements of the post.

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General InformationThe Merit PrincipleIn accordance with the Office of the Civil Service Commissioners’ Recruitment Code, appointments to the NICS are made under the ‘merit principle’, where the best person for any given post is selected in fair and open competition. Further information on the Civil Service Commissioners can be found at www.nicscommissioners.org.

NICSHR Privacy NoticeNICSHR are committed to protecting your privacy. HRConnect manage job applications on behalf of NICSHR, in line with the NICSHR privacy notice available via www.nicsrecruitment.org.uk

Offers of EmploymentCandidates will only receive one offer of appointment which, if not accepted, will generally result in withdrawal from the competition.

Changes in personal circumstances and contact detailsPlease ensure HRConnect are informed immediately of any changes in personal circumstances. It is important that HRConnect have up to date contact details.

Transgender RequirementsShould you currently be going through a phase of transition in respect of gender and wish this to be taken into consideration, in confidence, to enable you to attend any part of the assessment process please contact HRConnect. Details of this will only be used for this purpose and do not form any part of the selection process.

Merit List HRConnect will allocate a candidate (or candidates) to a vacancy (or vacancies) in the order listed. It is presently intended that the merit list for this competition should remain extant for a period of one year. However you should be aware that circumstances may arise in the future where it will be necessary to extend the currency of the merit list for a further period. The merit list will only be extended where cogent practical reasons for doing so arise.

Disability RequirementsWe will ask on the application form if you require any reasonable adjustments, due to disability, to enable you to attend any part of the assessment process. Details of any disability are only used for this purpose and do not form any part of the selection process. If you have indicated on your application that you have a disability and are successful in the selection process and are being considered for appointment, you may be required to outline any adjustments you consider necessary in order for you to take up an appointment. If you wish to discuss your disability requirements further, please contact HRConnect.

Documentation Identification documents to satisfy the Nationality and Security requirements of the post will be required. Further details regarding acceptable documentation will be issued with an invitation to attend for assessment.

You will be required to bring documentary evidence of your qualifications / professional membership to assessment.

You should ensure that the required documents are readily available.

Right to Work and Nationality RequirementsHRConnect must ensure that you are legally entitled to work in the United Kingdom and satisfy the Nationality requirements for appointment to the NICS. Applicants must be either:

a) UK national; or b) National of a Commonwealth country; orc) National of the Republic of Ireland; ord) EEA nationals with (or eligible for) status under the EU Settlement Scheme; ore) Relevant EEA or Turkish nationals working in the Civil Service; orf) Relevant EEA or Turkish nationals who have built up the right to work in the Civil Service; or g) Certain family members of the relevant EEA & Turkish nationals

Further guidance on Nationality requirements is available via www.nicsrecruitment.org.uk.

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Security1. Baseline Personnel Security Standard

For this post in the NICS the level of vetting is a Baseline Standard. For this check you will be required to provide the following:

a) Your passport OR

b) A document verifying your permanent National Insurancenumber (e.g. P45, P60 or National Insurance card) ANDyour birth certificate which includes the names of yourparents (long version).

c) A specimen signature at any assessment event and havethis validated against passport, driving licence, applicationform etc.

Further information regarding the Baseline Personnel Security Standard, including other acceptable documents is available via www.gov.uk.

We will organise a Criminal Record Check on all applicants to be carried out by AccessNI. The category of AccessNI check required for this post is;

Basic Disclosure Certificate

You should not put off applying for a post because you have a conviction. We deal with all criminal record information in a confidential manner, and information relating to convictions is destroyed after a decision is made.

Some posts may require CTC clearance.

The AccessNI code of practice can be accessed via www.nidirect.gov.uk/accessni.

Those applicants who are being considered for appointment will be contacted by HRConnect, normally after interview/test, and will be asked to complete the AccessNI application form. Please note that a request to complete this form should not be seen as a guarantee of an offer of appointment.

Failure to complete the application form and return it within the specified time will be regarded as ‘no longer interested in the position’ and your application will be withdrawn.

Equal Opportunity Monitoring Form

Please note the Equal Opportunities monitoring section of the application form is mandatory in order to submit an application.

For guidance on completing the Monitoring Form and to read the NICS Equal Opportunities Policy Statement please refer to the DoF website www.finance-ni.gov.uk.

As women are currently known to be under represented in this occupation across Northern Ireland, applications from women would be particularly welcome

The Northern Ireland Civil Service is an Equal Opportunities Employer. All applications for employment are considered strictly on the basis of merit

FeedbackThe Northern Ireland Civil Service is committed to ensuring that the processes used to recruit and select staff are fair and in accordance with the principles of the Civil Service Commissioners Code. We are consequently committed to providing feedback in respect of decisions taken in determining eligibility/shortlisting as well as at interview. Feedback in respect of eligibility/shortlisting will be communicated automatically to those candidates who fail to satisfy any criteria. All requests for feedback are welcome.

THIS INFORMATION PACK DOES NOT FORM PART OF CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT