Operational Leader

About the job

Job summary

The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) are the public sector's property valuation experts and advisers with a vision to be a world-leading provider of public sector valuations. As one of the largest employers of surveyors in the country, our work is vital to the collection of over £60 billion of revenue which goes back into communities, touching every citizen and every business across England and Wales.

We champion the values of professionalism, integrity, respect and innovation. We are committed to providing a collaborative and supportive working environment that encourages every colleague to contribute, grow and excel together. With opportunities to drive your own development and growth, we empower our colleagues to succeed by ensuring support at every step of their career journey.

Job description

Role Overview

The Operational Leader for the Regional Valuation Unit covering the East Region is a key leadership role with responsibility for leading a team of around 300 to 400 people undertaking property valuations. The post holder's responsibility will cover the East region, combining operational delivery with a statutory officer role for Non-Domestic Rating.

The post holder will work closely with the Deputy Director of Rating to drive forward transformational change, seek out operational efficiencies, and engage our people to support the business to deliver excellent customer service. This is a hugely collaborative role, so you will be required to quickly build effective relationships with colleagues, peers and key stakeholders with a focus on driving the best possible service for our customers.

With responsibility for high-profile, complex, and contentious work, you'll have the chance to make a significant impact on the Agency's reputation and performance.

Key responsibilities

• To lead and manage the Regional Valuation Unit ensuring high-profile, complex and contentious work is managed in order to take into account implications for the Unit and wider Agency reputation.
• Undertake stakeholder management to resolve potentially competing requirements - and to be a visible and active member of the Operations Senior Management Team, and wider Corporate Leadership Community.
• To manage the Regional Valuation Unit to adapt to changing requirements in an operational context that will be continually changing, sometimes at pace. Have overall accountability for performance of all Teams within the East Unit.
• To be pro-active in managing risks, anticipating issues and understanding underlying causes before providing solutions.
• To be accountable for the Unit budget and to ensure that activities are undertaken within budgetary forecast and constraints, reporting anomalies.
• To actively manage Unit performance and take proactive action where problems are identified by Team Leaders.

Person specification

We are looking for an experienced leader for this critical role within the Agency. The ideal candidate will be a qualified surveyor with a proven track record in managing large teams across multiple locations. You will possess the ability to set strategic direction, engage and motivate colleagues, and deliver high-quality services while maintaining visibility and fostering collaboration across the Unit and broader Agency stakeholders.

Essential Requirements

• MRICS/FRICS or IRRV (hons) qualification in the valuation or real estate pathway.
• Extensive experience in operational management, including planning, budget management, and resource allocation.
• You will possess an extensive valuation practices and legislative knowledge which you use to deliver technically sound solutions.
• Proven ability to lead, develop and coach large teams across a wide geography, enabling the delivery of business objectives driving engagement and continuous improvement.
• Strong stakeholder management and interpersonal skills, with the ability to influence and collaborate effectively to achieve co-operation over mutually acceptable solutions . Using these relationships to manage demand and determine priorities in a robust and considered way, thinking beyond your own remit and contributing to wider business pressures adopting an outward facing approach.
• Ability to deliver change and support transformation to lead teams through change, particularly around changing behaviours, demonstrating high levels of resilience in adapting to changing requirements.
• Political awareness and understanding of the wider business environment, including risk management and reputational considerations.
• Completing regular site visits to support engagement and collaboration across the Unit.

Qualifications
MRIC/ FRICS or IRRV (hons), qualified in the valuation or real estate pathway

Memberships
MRIC/ FRICS or IRRV (hons), qualified in the valuation or real estate pathway

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Seeing the Big Picture
• Leadership
• Communicating and Influencing
• Delivering at Pace

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £73,092, HM Revenue and Customs contributes £21,174 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

HMRC operates both Flexible and Hybrid Working policies, allowing you to balance your work and personal commitments. We welcome applications from those who need to work a more flexible arrangement and will agree to requests where possible, considering our operational and customer service needs.

We offer a generous leave allowance that starts at 25 days, increasing by a day for every year of qualifying service up to a maximum of 30 days and a Civil Service Pension with an average employer contribution of 28.97%.

• Pension - We make contributions to our colleagues' Alpha pension equal to at least 28.97% of their salary.

• Family friendly policies.

• Personal support.

• Coaching and development.

To find out more about HMRC benefits and find out what it's really like to work for HMRC hear from our insiders or visit Thinking of joining the Civil Service

Things you need to know

Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements 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, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details
This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window) , and will assess your Behaviours, Strengths and Experience.

How to Apply

As part of the integration with HMRC there has been system changes within Civil Service Jobs. To ensure you are not rejected from the application process please select HMRC as your Home Department from the drop-down list within the application form. Do not select VOA as this will result in your application being rejected.

If you can meet our person requirements above, we are keen to hear from you.

To apply for this post, you must complete an online application with the following:

A CV setting out your Job History/Full Qualifications/Previous skills and experiences .

Sift (8/07/2026) Please note these dates are provisional and may be subject to change.

We will assess you on your CV, Personal Statement, Qualifications and Memberships.

A Personal Statement (maximum 1000 words) please outline your suitability for the role. Please pay particular attention to the 'Essential Requirements' and 'Person Specification' outlined in the advert when providing your answer.

Should a large number of applications be received, an initial sift may be conducted using the Personal Statement. Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift or progressed straight to interview.

Staff Engagement Exercise

If successful at sift stage, you will be invited to take part in a Staff Engagement Exercise (SEE) on 27/7/2026. The SEE will take place via Microsoft Teams. More details will be provided at this stage. Please note this date is provisional and may be subject to change.

Interviews (6/08/2026) Please note these dates are provisional and may be subject to change. These will be confirmed should you be invited to interview.

Interviews are currently taking place using Face to Face in Leeds. We will provide more detail if you are shortlisted for interview.

We will assess you on the Behaviours listed in the job description, Strengths and a Presentation.

At the interview, the panel can then probe further and ask applicants to provide further specific examples that show how they best demonstrate their skills.

Presentation

You will also be required to conduct a presentation. Information on the presentation topic will be provided to you if you are shortlisted for interview.

Please note that no IT will be available on the day.

Application Hints and Tips

For more information on Success Profiles, tips on how to write a successful application and find out more about what's involved in the application process please visit About the application process , Civil Service Careers (civil-service-careers.gov.uk) .

Further Information

Hybrid working at HMRC

HMRC is an office-based organisation, and colleagues are expected to spend 60% of their working time in the office. Our offices provide opportunity for interaction, collaboration which aids learning and development and a sense of community. Where the role allows it, and where the home environment is suitable, colleagues can work from home for up to 2 days a week, averaged over a calendar month (or a proportionate amount of time for colleagues who work less than full time).

Reasonable Adjustments

We want to make sure no one is put at a disadvantage during our recruitment process. To assist you with this, we will reduce or remove any barriers where possible and provide additional support where appropriate.

If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should:

Contact the UBS Recruitment Team via resourcingteamvo@hmrc.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.

Complete the "Assistance required" section in the "Additional requirements" page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if you're deaf, a Language Service Professional.

Criminal Record Check

Applications received from candidates with a criminal record are considered fairly in accordance with the DBS Code of Practice and the Recruitment of ex-offenders Policy.

Locations

As part of the application process, you will be asked to tell us which of the locations available you can work in. You will be able to specify up to 2 options. Please be aware that you can be posted to any location that you put in your preferences. If you would only like to be posted to one location, please confirm one location only.

Successful candidate must select one of the locations noted in this advert as their base office and will be expected to undertake regular travel to this location under HMRC hybrid working policy.

Terms & Conditions

The Civil Service values honesty and integrity and expects all candidates to abide by these principles. The evidence you provide in your application must relate to your own experiences.

Any instances of plagiarism or other forms of cheating will be investigated and, if proven, the relevant application(s) will be withdrawn from the process.

Recording of interviews is prohibited unless explicit agreement is sought in line with the UK General Data Protection Regulations.

Questions relating to an individual application must be emailed as detailed later in this advert.

Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty had their employment continued. Any applicant's details held on the IFD will be refused employment.

A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5 year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government.

Please note that, if you are applying for roles on a part-time basis, the salary agreed will be pro-rata, reflective of the working hours agreed within your contract.

If you experience accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section.

Reserve Lists

If we have more successful candidates than available vacancies, we will hold a 3 month reserve list as standard .During that time, we may use the list to fill the same, or similar roles with closely matching essential criteria, without further testing of merit. Any appointments from the Reserve list will be made in strict merit order.

Concerns/Complaints

If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the values in the Civil Service Code and/or if you feel the recruitment has been conducted in such a way that conflicts with the Civil Service Commissioner's Recruitment Principles, you may make a complaint, by contacting the Central Recruitment Team at the following address: resourcingteamvo@hmrc.gov.uk.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security
Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.

People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service
The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window) .

The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Diversity and Inclusion
The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window) .

Apply and further information

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative.

The Civil Service welcomes applications from people who have recently left prison or have an unspent conviction. Read more about prison leaver recruitment (opens in new window) .

Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants

Job contact :

• Name : Lewis White
• Email : lewis.white@hmrc.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : voarecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Further information
Appointment to the Civil Service is governed by the Civil Service Commission's Recruitment Principles. You have the right to complain if you feel a department has breached the requirement of the Recruitment Principles. In the first instance, you should raise the matter directly with the department concerned. If you are not satisfied with the response, you may bring your complaint to the Commission. For further information on bringing a complaint to the Civil Service Commission please visit their web pages: http://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk/civil-service-recruitment/complaints/