NCSC Senior Events Officer Ref. 3244

About us

GCHQ is an intelligence, cyber and security agency with a mission to keep the UK safe.  We use cutting-edge technology, ingenuity and partnerships to identify, analyse and disrupt threats.  Working with our intelligence partners MI5 and MI6, we protect the UK from terrorism, cyber-attacks and espionage.  At GCHQ you’ll do varied and fascinating work in a supportive and inclusive environment that puts the emphasis on teamwork.
 
The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), part of GCHQ, is the UK Government’s lead authority on cyber security. The organisation is at the heart of the Government’s cyber security strategy and has the aim of making the UK the safest place to live and work online.    

The NCSC Events team is responsible for delivering high-profile stakeholder events which have a reputation for quality of delivery, professionalism, inclusivity and strong promotion of the NCSC brand.

Job Description

We are recruiting for a 12-18 month maternity cover for one of our central London-based Senior Event Officers to join our fast-paced, busy and collaborative team. 

Working to the Head of Events, you will be the primary lead on London-based events and have oversight of the event space and Audio Visual (AV) suite at our central London office. Additionally, you will also work on the annual ‘all staff’ event; our annual flagship conference; CYBERUK 2025 and other key stakeholder events that take place throughout the year. 

You will also provide strategic input on events strategy, technology, marketing, branding, team developments, as well as into some budgetary decisions.

You will be highly organised with a keen eye for detail, sound customer service and interpersonal skills. You will be able to communicate and work with key stakeholders at all levels, including Board-level seniors and at cross-government level. Competent decision-making skills and sense of initiative serve this role well. The role is highly varied, so you must be able to prioritise autonomously and flex according to business needs.

What will the successful candidate be doing?

Some of the key responsibilities include:

•    Lead the end-to-end delivery of high-profile events, including coordinating with other NCSC business areas and managing key external and internal stakeholders – for example, the NCSC All Staff Conference, Annual Review launch, CYBERUK 2025 launch event.
•    Co-manage the 200-person events space and AV studio, and associated business services required to deliver a programme of events involving different formats and audiences.
•    Manage key components of CYBERUK 2025 project delivery – for example: delegate management, comms planning, sponsors & exhibitors. 
•    Champion event software tools, Swoogo and Dynamics; manage software licenses.
•    Ensure events are designed and delivered as inclusively as possible, in line with NCSC’s EDI objectives. 
•    Manage event data in GDPR compliant way; complete some data analysis and visualisation to help with events evaluation. 
•    Review/ draft event branding and communications, including creating graphic design briefs for external event partners.
•    Act as an ‘POC’ source of event delivery knowledge; providing training, tools and frameworks to help colleagues across the business deliver successful events.
•    Informing and overseeing events budgetary expenditure and raising associated requisitions.
•    Task management of support staff.
•    Raise finance requisitions for events related expenditure (training provided).
•    Undertake training and attend relevant conferences to continue professional and personal development e.g., Events best practice, events tech, cyber security, government comms skills etc.

Person Specification

The successful applicant will need to have:

•    Experience of events delivery or comparable complex project management.  
•    Evidence of stakeholder and customer relationship management.
•    Evidence of time-management skills and the ability to work under pressure.
•    Flexibility to work varied hours and to travel to events or other office locations with occasional nights away from home.
•    Experience of digital marketing (videos, emails, social media) would be beneficial. 
•    Experience of using event technology, including event management platforms and CRMs would be beneficial.
•    Experience of branding, digital marketing and content creation would be beneficial.

GCHQ Competencies

The NCSC will assess you against competencies used by the UK Intelligence Community. These competencies are based closely on the Civil Service Behaviours. The level 3 competencies you’ll be assessed for are:
 
•    Delivering Outcomes (Civil Service Behaviour Equivalent: Delivering at Pace)
•    Communicating and Influencing (Civil Service Behaviour Equivalent: Communicating and Influencing)
•    Making Effective Decisions (Civil Service Behaviour Equivalent: Making Effective Decisions)
•    Driving Innovation and Change (Civil Service Behaviour Equivalent: Changing and Improving)
•    Providing Customer Value (Civil Service Behaviour Equivalent: Managing a Quality Service)

Further information on Civil Service Behaviours

Benefits and Rewards

At NCSC and GCHQ, we are proud of our inclusive and supportive working environment that’s designed to encourage open minds and attitudes. As an organisation that values and nurtures talent, we are committed to helping you fulfil your potential. With comprehensive training and development opportunities, tailored to your needs and the requirements of your work, we will enable you to flourish in your role and perform to the very best of your abilities.

You’ll remain on your Home Departments Salary (GC09 equivalent), Terms and Conditions plus other benefits including:

•    An environment with flexible working options
•    Facilities such as a gym, restaurant and on-site coffee bars (at some locations)

Equal Opportunities

At GCHQ diversity and inclusion are critical to our mission. To protect the UK, we need a truly diverse workforce that reflects the society we serve. This includes diversity in every sense of the word: those with different backgrounds, ages, ethnicities, gender identities, sexual orientations, ways of thinking and those with disabilities or neurodivergent conditions. We therefore welcome and encourage applications from everyone, including those from groups that are under-represented in our workforce such as women, those from an ethnic minority background, people with disabilities and those from low socio-economic backgrounds.

Find out more about our culture, working environment and diversity on our website: https://www.gchq-careers.co.uk/life-at-gchq/diversity-inclusion.html

Disability Confident

GCHQ are proud to have achieved Leader status within the DWP’s Disability Confident scheme.  This is aimed at encouraging employers to think differently about disability and take action to improve how they recruit, retain and develop disabled people.  Being Disability Confident, we aim to offer a person-to-person interview to any candidate who self-identifies as disabled and meets the essential criteria for the role.  This is our ‘Offer of Interview’ (OOI). To secure an interview for this vacancy, the essential criteria (in order of application process) are:

•    Demonstratable previous experience in events delivery or comparable complex project management.
•    Evidence of time-management skills and the ability to work under pressure.

Selection Process

What to Expect

Our recruitment process is fair, transparent, and based on merit. Here is a brief overview of each stage, in order:

1.    Online Application
2.    Application sift
3.    Interview
4.    If successful, you’ll receive a conditional secondment offer.

Please note, you must successfully pass each stage of the process to progress to the next. Your application may take around 6-9 months to process clearance, so we advise you make your Home Department aware that secondment dates will be agreed on completion of clearance.

Before You Apply

To work at GCHQ, you need to be a British citizen or hold dual British nationality. You can read our full eligibility criteria here.

This role requires security clearance, known as (SC). It’s something everyone in the UK Intelligence Community undertakes. You can find out more about the vetting process here.

Please note we have a strict drugs policy, so once you start your application, you can’t take any recreational drugs and you’ll need to declare your previous drug usage at the relevant stage.

Before you apply, we advise you to consider setting up a separate email address for your contact with us, to ensure your personal and application correspondence remain separate. Try to avoid having identifying features in your email address, such as your first and/or surname and date of birth. This is good practice and will help you to manage your application with us more discretely.

The role is based in central London, so you’ll need to live within a commutable distance. Please consider any financial implications and practicalities before submitting an application, as we do not offer relocation costs.

Please note, you should only launch your application from within the UK. If you are based overseas, you should wait until you visit the UK to launch an application. Applying from outside the UK will impact on our ability to progress your application. You should not discuss your application, other than with your partner or a close family member.

To apply for this secondment, you must be a permanent civil servant.

if applying on promotion, it will be for your home department to decide whether this can made substantive, following the secondment.

At the end of a secondment, you will be expected to return to your Home Department, rather than move to a permanent role within the NCSC.

This is a 12-18 month secondment. If successful, you will remain on their Home Department Salary (GC09 equivalent), Terms and Conditions.

The closing date for this role is: 12th August 2024 at 23:55hrs

Right to Withdraw Statement: 

Please be aware that we withhold the right to bring forward the closing date for this role from the original closing date once a certain number of applications have been received. Please be mindful of this and submit your application at your earliest convenience to avoid disappointment.