Audit Director - Performance Audit and Best Value in Scotland

Join to apply for the Audit Director - Performance Audit and Best Value role at Audit Scotland. Audit Scotland provides the Auditor General and Accounts Commission with the services they need to carry out their duties. Together we ensure that the Scottish Government and public-sector bodies throughout Scotland are held to account for the proper, efficient and effective use of public money. We employ around 340 staff in a wide variety of roles, working from our main offices in Edinburgh and Glasgow, and through a network of regional offices across Scotland.

Overview

Overall purpose of the role: Our Performance Audit and Best Value Group (PABV) delivers audit products on issues such as the affordability of public services, health and social care integration, digital transformation, community empowerment, inequalities, skills and training, economic development, and climate change. Our Best Value audits of councils look at important issues like how well they perform in delivering services to their communities. Our work programme is dynamic and refreshed on a regular basis to ensure it responds to changing circumstances.

You will lead the delivery of a portfolio of audit work across a range of public services, reporting to the Executive Director of PABV. You will be a member of Audit Scotland’s Leadership Group and will be expected to play a key role in the leadership of the organisation as a centre for excellence, both in the way we deliver our work and the way we run our business. You will be responsible for leading areas of improvement activity, both within PABV and as a member of the wider Leadership Group creating a culture of innovation and continuous improvement.

You will advise the Auditor General for Scotland and the Accounts Commission on significant audit risks affecting the Scottish public sector and scope and develop audit work to ensure it focuses on what matters. An inspiring leader, you’ll manage and lead your team to make complex audit judgements and harness the power of your teams to deliver high quality and evidence-based audit outputs. You will use your experience and knowledge to make clear judgements and present the results of your work to the Scottish Parliament and/or the Accounts Commission.

You will engage with senior figures across the public sector – including Scottish Government, Parliament, local authorities, NHS Boards and other public bodies – and develop strong relationships with scrutiny partners to ensure that our audit work is well-connected, relevant and respected. You will work with colleagues in the PABV Leadership Team to ensure we have engaged, well-supported and high-performing staff who are confident in working in a flexible and agile way.

What you will be doing

• As a member of our leadership team, you’ll inspire our people and help Audit Scotland meet our vision, that public money is well spent to meet the needs of Scotland’s people, by:
• Contributing to the corporate management of Audit Scotland, and the achievement of the corporate plan, through membership of the Leadership Group.
• Contributing to the development of PABV.
• Leading the effective development and delivery of a portfolio of audit work, ensuring delivery is to time, budget, quality and stakeholder satisfaction targets.
• Bringing a personal commitment to self-review, providing feedback to colleagues and active participation in our quality processes.
• Building and maintaining strategic relationships with public sector leaders, professional groups, scrutiny partners and other UK and international audit organisations, utilising these networks to add credibility and value to the strategic aims and objectives of Audit Scotland.
• Providing effective leadership to your staff – leading, developing and supporting them to achieve their full potential.
• Contributing to the achievement of PABV’s business plan, taking the lead on aspects of business management.
• Playing a proactive role as a member of the PABV Leadership Team, working closely with the Executive Director and other Audit Directors to secure effective collaborative working and added value.
• Leading by example in demonstrating and reinforcing our corporate values of independence, integrity, equality, innovation and respect.

Knowledge & Experience

• You are educated to a degree level and/or have demonstrable, relevant experience (e.g. leading work in audit, research, scrutiny, strategy and policy, public services, performance management).
• You have extensive experience of audit, organisational performance management and service improvement.
• You have extensive experience of working in or with the public sector at senior level.
• You have excellent knowledge and understanding of the public sector, including public finances and policy, how it works and the issues it is facing.
• You have a deep knowledge and understanding of the business of Audit Scotland and the challenges and opportunities arising.
• You have excellent communication and interpersonal skills, including an ability to build trusting relationships with others to enable an open and collaborative environment.
• You have excellent analytical skills, including being able to identify proportionate responses to risks and issues, analyse financial information and performance data, and make clear judgements and persuasive recommendations based on evidence.
• You can lead, inspire, develop and motivate teams to deliver across a complex and varied portfolio of work.
• You can manage organisational resources to add value to our work and maximise its impact.
• You hold a CCAB or CIMA qualification, or equivalent.

Interested? Next Steps

Download the attached role profile for detailed role information. Click apply to submit an application. If you wish, you can also share your CV. However, please note that due to the volume of applications, we cannot guarantee that CVs will be screened alongside your application form, therefore please ensure your application form includes all information required to demonstrate you met the essential and desirable criteria for the role. If you require an alternative way to apply under grounds of a reasonable adjustment, please get in touch with a member of the HR team.

The closing date for applications is Sunday 24th August 2025 at midnight. Interviews will be scheduled for w/c 1st September 2025.

Please contact us if you have any queries about the role.

Audit Scotland

Our vision is that public money is well spent to meet the needs of Scotland's people. To achieve this, we support the Auditor General for Scotland and the Accounts Commission to provide clear, independent and objective assurance on how effectively public money is being managed and spent. Our work covers about £59bn of public spending, almost 300 public sector accounts, and the services and projects that affect all people and communities in Scotland.

As well as what we do, how we do it is integral to delivering our vision and critical to our wellbeing and our organisational success. We put our organisational values of equality, independence, innovation, integrity and respect at the heart of everything we do. We employ around 340 staff in a wide variety of roles, working from our main offices in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Inverness and Aberdeen. There has never been a more interesting or important time to join us. We offer a rewarding place to work, a supportive and open culture and a wide range of professional development opportunities. Benefits include 42 days of annual leave including public holidays, an attractive local government defined benefit pension scheme with 17.6% employer contributions, personal development allowances and flexible working hours.

Diversity and Inclusion

We value the unique perspective a diverse workforce brings to what we do. Therefore, we’re keen to increase representation in our workforce and support progression of minority ethnic groups. We are also a proud disability confident employer.

Reasonable Adjustments

Audit Scotland’s recruitment process may include various stages and activities including application forms, online assessments, and interviews, to assess whether you meet the requirements of the role. As a Disability Confident employer, we are committed to providing inclusive and accessible recruitment where everyone is supported to perform at their best. When applying for a job with Audit Scotland, you will be asked in the application form if you need an adjustment at any stage of the recruitment process. Please include the reason you require an adjustment and details of what adjustment/s might help. Some examples of adjustments that have been given to candidates include changing the time, location or format of interviews and providing additional time in any assessments and interviews. This is not an exhaustive list, and we will consider any adjustments that you might need.

As part of our commitment to equality and diversity, our equality network groups would be delighted to offer an insight into Audit Scotland’s culture of inclusivity. If you consider yourself to have a visible or hidden disability and wish to hear more about life at Audit Scotland or wish to speak with someone about the possibility of any adjustments, please contact us for further information and a member of the HR team will be in touch.