EoI - Level Transfer - Board Secretary and Deputy Director, Executive Team Strategic Governance Office
Requirements
Candidates must be substantive Deputy Directors eligible for level transfer within the Scottish Government. The role requires expert-level skills in system leadership, strategic connections, and decision-making, along with a proven track record of building senior-level partnerships.
Job Description
Applications are invited from substantive Deputy Directors on level transfer for this fantastic opportunity to work at the heart of Scottish Government, providing strategic leadership for the organisation's corporate governance and assurance system and leading reform to ensure it supports a more accountable, agile and delivery-focused organisation in line with ministerial priorities and our ‘Serving Scotland’ Corporate Plan.
Applications are open to Core Scottish Government employees and those under Common Citizenship only.
As custodian of the Scottish Government's governance framework, the Board Secretary leads the Executive Team Strategic Governance Office (ETSGO) and works closely with the Executive Team, Non-Executive Directors, Directors General, and stakeholders across the organisation to maintain and develop effective governance and assurance processes and related obligations. The post holder will provide authoritative advice, influence and constructive challenge at the most senior levels of the organisation, ensuring governance and assurance arrangements enable effective strategic leadership, decision-making, accountability and delivery.
As Board Secretary you will be responsible for setting the strategic direction of the Scottish Government's corporate governance framework, ensuring these support effective decision-making, accountability and strategic delivery across the wider organisation. This includes:
- Corporate Board, which sets the strategic direction for SG, and sub-boards;
- the Executive Team in all modes;
- the SG Audit & Assurance Committee and quarterly DG Assurance meetings; and
- working with our Non-Executive Directors to ensure their challenge and support is deployed effectively.
ETSGO is a small and busy function and you will provide visible, supportive and confident leadership, using sound judgement and political and organisational awareness to navigate complexity, competing priorities and uncertainty. You will also be able to use your strategic insights and leadership skills to ensure that Scottish Government governance is resilient, transparent and proportionate, and creates the conditions for effective and accountable delivery across the organisation, including a positive and empowering experience for those who engage with it.
In return, you will have the opportunity to build unrivalled networks across the organisation, enable strategic leadership and decision making, and help support national outcomes and a high performing and trusted government to improve the lives of the people of Scotland.
You’ll be joining the team at an exciting time as we continue to optimise and streamline the governance landscape in support of the Scottish Government's ambitious reform agenda. As Board Secretary you will lead a programme of governance reform, translating organisational ambitions into practical changes to structures, behaviours and ways of working. You will build senior ownership for change, overcome barriers to implementation and ensure improvements are embedded and deliver measurable benefits.
Responsibilities
- Strategic leadership, management and development of the Executive Team Strategic Governance Office, ensuring delivery of high-quality services in line with the Scottish Government governance and assurance framework.
- Set the strategic direction for the governance and assurance system, working with stakeholders to ensure coherence across the operation of the Corporate Board, Executive Team (in all modes), Scottish Government Audit and Assurance Committee, quarterly Directors-General Assurance Meetings and other committees and forums.
- Provide evidence-based advice, support and challenge to enable the Permanent Secretary and Directors General to discharge their responsibilities as Principle Accountable Officer and Accountable Officers.
- Lead whole system collaboration and continuous improvement activities to ensure that Scottish Government governance arrangements are proportionate and streamlined, aligned to organisational delivery and reform priorities, and meet evolving regulatory requirements and best practice.
- Champion efficient and effective governance by ensuring arrangements are lean, connected and fit for purpose, and provide clear information flows, escalation routes and decision-making accountabilities.
- Lead and continuously improve the delivery of high-quality and resilient secretariat support functions for all associated Boards, Committees and meetings, working with a range of stakeholders.
- Lead and manage the Scottish Government's relationship with Audit Scotland on relevant governance-related matters.
- Facilitate and enable the contribution and engagement of the Scottish Government’s Non-Executive Directors across relevant Scottish Government business, ensuring their expertise, independent perspective and constructive challenge contribute to organisational performance and decision-making.
- Create and champion an inclusive, empowering and improvement-focused leadership culture within ETSGO, enabling high performance, learning, and innovation.
- As a member of the Senior Management Team, contribute to the strategic leadership of Financial Management Directorate and the wider Scottish Government, promoting accountability and enabling delivery against key directorate and organisational priorities.
Qualifications
- Power of Connections - Expert
- System Leadership - Expert
- Data and Insight - Practitioner
- Decisions at Pace - Expert
- Experience of managing effective governance and assurance arrangements to enable robust scrutiny, accountability and informed decision-making in line with required frameworks.
- A track record as a visible leader, building strong networks and partnerships with stakeholders at all levels to deliver organisational objectives or services.
- Seeing the big picture - level 5
- Managing a quality service - level 5
- Leadership – level 5
Apply online by 23:55 on 22nd November 2026, providing a CV and supporting statement (of no more than 1500 words) with evidence of how you meet the reqirements of the role and why this would be a great opportunity for you at this stage of your career. This should confirm that you have discussed the opportunity with your Director and that they would be content to release you if the application is successful.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools can be used to support your application, but all statements and examples provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, and presented as your own) applications will be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action.
Please see our candidate guidance for more information on acceptable and unacceptable uses of AI in recruitment.
Working pattern
As a government organisation, we adhere to the Civil Service Commission Recruitment Principles and we investigate any complaints received in relation to recruitment cases. Read our Candidate Guide for further information on our recruitment and application processes.