Policy and Process Lead

Job Description

 

Are you looking for a role where you can play a key part in improving financial processes in the Scottish Government?

 

One of five divisions within Financial Management Directorate, Risk, Control and Assurance was established in 2024 and brings together a range of specialist roles to support and develop effective internal controls, risk management, and assurance activities across the organisation, and in relation to corporate shared services.  

This is an exciting time to be joining the team, working at the heart of the Scottish Government to lead a range of activities that support effective use of resources, and ensure that the Scottish Government’s financial policies and its new Oracle Cloud Finance, HR and Purchasing system align with global best practices.

About the Role

The Scottish Government finance function supports Ministers and senior officials across the public sector make sound decisions about the allocation and management of resources. In doing so, we deliver a range of financial management, compliance, and strategic roles to ensure that the Scottish Government’s reputation for competent government, prudent fiscal management and value for money is maintained and enhanced, helping the organisation to manage and govern around £50 billion of public spending, and deliver a wide range of compliance and reporting requirements.

As a Policy & Process Lead you will ensure that financial policies, processes and controls are robust and underpin effective fiscal management, and facilitate compliance and best practice across the organisation and a range of partner bodies. 

We are keen to hear from finance professionals who are enthusiastic about continuously improving financial practices and can facilitate a range of stakeholders across the Scottish Government and its partner agencies to adopt new ways of working which improve the quality and effectiveness of their operations. 

This is an excellent opportunity to develop your career within a corporate setting, and the successful candidate will be joining an innovative, forward looking team and division, with a  commitment to support all staff grow their professional knowledge, skills, and experience through a range of Learning & Development opportunities. 
 

Responsibilities

 

You will be a designated policy lead and process owner for core finance processes within a team that collectively covers the Finance process taxonomy, for example, Purchase to Pay, Order to Cash, Record to Report.

The duties of this role will include: 

• Process owner and process lead for the maintenance of relevant core finance policies and associated end to end processes across the finance function.
• Supporting and reinforcing the design and improvement of processes and controls delivered through Oracle Cloud and other systems .
• Engaging closely with business areas and operational colleagues across the organisation to ensure that guidance materials and training are in place and drive required standards and best practices.
• Line management and development of The policy and process advisors.
• Working closely with Subject Matter Experts and with operational process leads to ensure that policies and processes are reviewed and remain fit for purpose.
• Scrutinizing the application of policies and processes to identify areas for continuous improvement and working with teams and functions to implement associated changes.
• Collaborating with colleagues to develop internal financial controls, ensuring these are robust and support assurance mechanisms and reporting.
• Consulting with finance system customers on future process requirements and with Oracle Cloud service management and support colleagues to enable these.

Qualifications

Please note, this is a finance role, and you may be a Finance Professional with a professional qualification but that is not a specific requirement.  However you must have experience that is relevant to the role and be able to evidence that through your application. 

Success Profile

Success profiles are specific to each job and they include the mix of skills, experience and behaviours candidates will be assessed on. 

Technical / Professional Skills:

1. Understanding and managing financial performance improvement. Practitioner.
2. Understanding the operating environment. Practitioner.

You can find out more about the skills required here: Finance Profession Capability Framework.xlsx 

Experience:

1 Experience implementing, improving, or managing finance processes, internal controls, or related assurance.

2. Persuasive written and verbal communication skills, with ability to collaborate and explain the importance of policies and processes to stakeholders.

3. Ability to work on your own initiative, with strong planning and prioritisation skills to deliver high quality outcomes and  meet deadlines 

Behaviours:

• Changing and Improving (level 4)
• Working Together (level 4)
   

You can find out more about Success Profiles Behaviours, here: Behaviour levels - Success profiles: candidate guide - gov.scot

How to apply

Apply online, providing a CV and Supporting Statement of no more than 1500 words which provides evidence of how you meet the skills, experience and behaviours listed in the Success Profile above.

 

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. Artificial intelligence (AI) within the recruitment process

 Assessments are scheduled for w/c 15 September 2025  however this may be subject to change. About Us This section is included on all SG vacancies, content is supplied.For public bodies this section should be removed and following information should be added to the Further Information section:

• A short description of the public body or agency
• A link to their careers website
• A link to the Civil Service Nationality Rules

The Scottish Government is the devolved government for Scotland. We have responsibility for a wide range of key policy areas including: education, health, the economy, justice, housing and transport. We offer rewarding careers and employ people across Scotland in a wide range of professions and roles.

Our staff are part of the UK Civil Service, working for Ministers and senior stakeholders to deliver vital public services which improve the lives of the people of Scotland.

We offer a supportive and inclusive working environment along with a wide range of employee benefits. Find out more about what we offer. 

As part of the UK Civil Service, we uphold the Civil Service Nationality Rules.

Working Pattern

Our standard hours are 35 hours per week.  We offer a range of flexible and hybrid working options depending on the needs of the role. If you have specific questions about the role you are applying for,  please contact us.

Equality Statement

We are committed to equality and inclusion and we aim to recruit a diverse workforce that reflects the population of our nation.  

Find out more about our commitment to diversity and how we offer and support recruitment adjustments for anyone who needs them.

Further information

Find out more about our organisation, what we offer staff members and how to apply on our Careers Website.

Read our Candidate Guide for further information on our recruitment and application processes.