Deputy Director - Data Value in Manchester

SCS Pay Band 1 Salary: £86,000 – £117,800, based on capability

Location: London, Bristol or Manchester

Security clearance: SC

Show government what it’s data is really worth. Then help it decide what to do next.

Government invests in data, but when you ask what it gets back, the answer is often a case study or two. That makes it difficult to decide where to invest, what to scale and what to stop.

This role changes that.

As Deputy Director, Data Value, you'll build a clear, trusted view of where data is making a difference across government - and where it isn't. You'll help senior leaders make better decisions, using evidence rather than anecdote to understand the value of data to citizens, services, the economy and national security.

With AI raising the stakes on data, this is an opportunity to shape how government understands, measures and maximises the value of one of its most important strategic assets.

Why now?

Government needs a consistent way to understand what its investment in data delivers.

We need to know where data creates value, where investment will have the greatest impact, and how to make better decisions about what to scale, redirect, pause or stop.

The challenge is to establish a clear, credible approach to valuing data across government - one that captures economic and operational benefits, as well as assurance, resilience and reduced risk.

You'll help build that approach, bringing together evidence from across government to support better investment decisions and deliver meaningful outcomes.

What you'll do

You'll lead the development of a government-wide approach to understanding and measuring data value, ensuring evidence informs decisions across portfolios, products and services.

Your responsibilities will include:

• Understanding what government owns. Oversee a joined-up view of public data assets, including inventories, asset intelligence and valuation, prioritising those most important to national infrastructure, public services and citizen-facing products.
• Building the yardstick. Develop methods to assess the potential and realised value of data assets and data-enabled products across their lifecycle, including opportunities to safely generate revenue to support public services.
• Defining what value means. Establish consistent, comparable measures of data value, covering economic, operational, assurance and risk-reduction benefits. Advise senior leaders on how value should be understood, evidenced and communicated.
• Showing where data is working. Use evidence to identify where data creates the greatest value and where attention or investment should go next.
• Helping leaders make the call. Provide senior decision-makers with value-led evidence to inform priorities, sequencing and investment, helping them determine what to scale, redirect, pause or stop.
• Keeping citizens and users in the room. Ensure their perspectives inform prioritisation and investment decisions, working closely with Product, Portfolio and Strategy colleagues.
• Following the value through. Embed value into decisions before, during and after delivery, tracking performance, adoption and longer-term outcomes to inform future choices.
• Working safely in sensitive environments. Operate within legislative, regulatory, governance and national security frameworks, making visible the value data brings through assurance, resilience and reduced risk.
• Telling the story. Translate complex activity across government into clear, credible insight for senior leaders, moving from individual case studies to a system-wide understanding of impact.
• Leading a rigorous team. Lead teams and partners working on data value, insight and asset intelligence, setting a high bar for quality and professionalism and building a culture where decisions follow evidence.

You’ll provide evidence and analysis to inform commissioning, roadmap and portfolio discussions. You won’t own delivery or benefits realisation within departments.

What success looks like

You’ll help establish a clear, trusted view of data value across government, supported by comparable evidence of use, adoption, outcomes and benefits.

Success will mean:

• A consistent, system-wide understanding of the public value of data, covering citizen, service, economic and national outcomes.
• Senior leaders able to see where data is delivering value and where intervention is needed.
• Valuation methods that enable meaningful comparisons between data assets and products, informing decisions about investment, scaling and closure.
• Value embedded throughout the lifecycle of data initiatives, shaping strategy, architecture and product priorities.
• A credible, evidence-led narrative that moves government beyond isolated case studies towards a genuine understanding of impact.

About you

You’ve helped very senior leaders make significant decisions using data and evidence. You understand the difference between being busy and making a difference and can demonstrate how your work has influenced decisions and outcomes.

You’ll bring:

• Experience treating data as a strategic asset at a senior level, shaping how it is valued and accessed, and influencing decisions across a portfolio, system or organisation.
• A track record of bringing together evidence from multiple sources to inform priorities, sequencing and investment in complex environments.
• Strong analytical judgement, with the ability to distinguish delivery activity and adoption from genuine outcomes and impact.
• The ability to translate complex data, analysis and performance information into clear insights that help senior stakeholders make informed, risk-aware decisions.
• Experience working in governed, risk-aware environments, including legislative, regulatory, assurance or security-sensitive settings.
• The ability to recognise and articulate value beyond delivery, including assurance, resilience and reduced risk.
• Experience working across organisational boundaries, bringing policy, delivery, technical and operational teams together around a shared understanding of performance and value.
• The confidence to operate in ambiguity, challenge assumptions and help establish a new approach where the methodology is still developing.

For further information or to discuss the opportunity, please contact Tom King at DSIT-Value@global-resourcing.com or on 0208 253 1806.

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