Lead Analyst for DWP Services and Fraud Group

Service Enablement is a new Directorate set up to support the successful delivery of frontline operational services to customers across DWP.

Could you be the analytical leader who helps shape the future performance, productivity and service delivery of one of the UK's largest public service operations?

The Directorate directly supports the Child Maintenance Service, Retirement Services, Counter Fraud Compliance and Debt and Health-Related Benefits, as well as providing a number of cross-cutting functions which also support Working Age Services (Universal Credit and other working age benefits). This covers around 80,000 colleagues working in frontline roles across the Department across two DG areas, with an operating budget of around £5bn per annum, delivering around £250bn of welfare payments.

This role is also embedded within DWP’s Analytical Community (AC) which has over 900 analysts made up of Economists, Operational Researchers, Social Researchers, Statisticians and Data Analysts. Analysts are grouped into 20 Lead Analyst areas, embedded across the Department. Our services are in high demand from ministers, senior leaders and policy and operational stakeholders.

The Lead Analyst for Service Enablement has overall responsibility for leading the analytical teams underpinning one of the Department’s largest operational delivery groups, ensuring that performance, workforce and service delivery decisions are informed by robust evidence across services supporting millions of customers. As such, the Lead Analyst leads the delivery of robust analysis, MI and work study activity. This includes ensuring that there is an agreed prioritised work programme being delivered successfully by the teams, and that all key decisions being made across operations are supported by a robust evidence base.

The Lead Analyst is also responsible, through their teams, for providing independent analytical challenge and assurance to senior operational leaders, ensuring decisions are informed by robust evidence, transparent assumptions and a clear understanding of delivery risks and opportunities.

The primary focus of the role is to provide leadership for a large analytical division, DWP Services and Fraud performance, resourcing and analysis.

The role will support the Director for Service Enablement, sitting under the Director General for DWP Services and Fraud. The role plays a central part in shaping operational strategy and performance across DWP Services and Fraud, providing senior leaders with the evidence, challenge and assurance required to make informed decisions on workforce, performance, productivity and service outcomes.

The post holder will directly lead the following seven Grade 6 led areas of work:

• Performance insight: providing support on cross-cutting performance issues across all DWP services. This includes the provision of regular insight reports as well as ad hoc analysis to support the Director and other senior stakeholders
• Performance strategy and data delivery: Working closely with digital colleagues to ensure the provision of consistent, high-quality performance data
• Data and MI: Delivering a suit of Management Information reports to operational leaders and decision makers across the Department.
• Work Study: Producing a number of reports which are measuring the timing of specific activities taking place in service delivery used to inform the resource planning process
• Failure Demand, Complaints and Contact analysis: providing insights drawn from customer contact with to the Department to help in design and continuous improvement activity
• Supply Tracking, delivery and work study analysis: Monitoring and forecasting staffing levels across Service Delivery, and providing analytical support for the Work Study teams
• Service Specific Analysis: A number of smaller analytical teams providing direct analytical support into operational teams on themes such as performance, workloads, trials and evaluation

They will be directly responsible for leading a geographically dispersed team of c150 colleagues from all the analytical professions, and generalists who specialise in work study, data and management information. They will also be part of the Senior Analytical Leadership Team (SALT) made up of around 20 Lead analysts as well as the Chief Analyst/Chief Scientific Adviser.

Together they ensure ministers and senior leaders are provided the most robust data and evidence to support key decision making across the department, and support the creation and maintenance of a world class analytical community in DWP.

The Lead Analyst is accountable for delivery of fit for purpose analytical and research outputs for their area; these include performance data, analysis, forecasts, analytical publications, evaluation, evidence base and analytical advice relating to service delivery.

The Lead Analyst is also accountable for ensuring operational performance, workforce and service delivery decisions are underpinned by robust evidence, insight and challenge, enabling senior leaders to drive effective performance, productivity and continuous improvement across Services and Fraud.

Current key deliverables for the post are:

• Setting the strategic vision for a strong and robust programme of analytical work covering performance, workforce and operational analytics across Services and Fraud, ensuring evidence has maximum impact on operational strategy, investment decisions and service outcomes.
• Strong personal leadership, setting a clear vision and objectives for the division, building capability, pride and staff engagement whilst effectively managing performance, continuing to push the boundaries in building a collaborative culture and harnessing expertise from all professions and individuals.
• Influencing senior leaders across DWP and wider government to ensure evidence, insight and operational intelligence drive continuous improvement, productivity and delivery performance.
• Acting as Service Enablement’s senior analytical adviser on operational performance, productivity and service delivery, providing strategic challenge and evidence-based recommendations to Directors, and other Deputy Directors in Services and Fraud on service performance, resource investment and operational priorities.
• Providing analytical leadership for the performance, productivity and effectiveness of Services and Fraud operations, ensuring leaders are equipped to make timely, evidence-based decisions that improve customer outcomes, efficiency and value for money.
• Ensuring the appropriate quality assurance mechanisms are in place.
• Provide analytical advice at the highest levels through formal submission and presentations (e.g. Permanent Secretary, Ministers, Secretary of State, HMT) and also present analysis and evidence to governance boards and external organisations e.g. National Audit Office.
• As a member of the Senior Civil Service and Senior Analytical Leadership Team, the Lead Analyst has wider leadership responsibilities across the DWP and will be a role model within the Analytical community, visibly leading on activities that support improved diversity and inclusion, talent and capability growth.