Head of Quality Assurance

Role

Head of Quality Assurance

Job Purpose

Positioned within Operations Directorate, the Head of Quality Assurance will lead on developing, maintaining and overseeing a system of technical assurance to build the confidence of employers, regulators and stakeholders in the fitness for purpose of what we produce and what is delivered on our behalf.

Reporting to

Director of Operations

Stakeholder relationships managed

• Standards bodies, trade associations, training organisations, regulatory bodies, government departments and agencies – e.g. LSC, TQS lead assessors, providers and learners

• SfL Chief Executive Officer and Board

• Employers and representative bodies

• Employees and representative bodies

• SfL staff

Peer relationships

• Regional and National managers

• Head of Skills

• Head of Intelligence  

• Head of Demand Chain Development

• PR and Events function

• Corporate Performance Manager  

Job Description

The Head of Quality Assurance role has three main elements, two mainly outward facing and one predominantly facing inwards. The external facing elements concern:

• The establishment and management of a QA regime for the components of the National and Regional Logistics Academy system.

• Taking responsibility for all relevant QA concerned with the Driver CPC and, particularly taking responsibility for all SfL interface with the Joint Accreditation Unit for Periodic Training.

The inward facing element will focus on: 

• the establishment of an exemplar self-regulating QA system for SfL in all its relevant activities.

These will be achieved by:

1. Defining and maintaining a Training Provision Quality Strategy (TPQS), as part of the SfL Business Plan, including methods for achieving continuous improvement in the sector.

2. Establishing a project for increasing employer confidence through Quality Assurance methodologies including revised Quality Standards and pathways for quality improvement.

3. Providing the JAUPT Board with an annual review of the key elements of the JAUPT QA system and how it compares with the SfL TPQS.

4. Line managing all regular interface with the JAUPT unit and, where necessary the DSA as the customer of JAUPT.

5. Identifying and managing risks, opportunities and threats to SfL arising from the TPQS and its resultant QA systems

6. Consulting with opinion formers amongst employers and stakeholders and supplementing with commissioned desk research from the Head of Intelligence to validate core quality criteria in existing SfL deliverables, services and approaches.

7. Establishing QA input to the knowledge management system thereby contributing to Intelligence team research deliverables

8. Delivering revised methodology to the Heads of Demand Chain Development, Skills and Intelligence for inclusion in evaluation criteria in products. Completing and promulgating ‘lessons learned from QA’ exercises to ensure that all processes across the blended teams of the Operations Directorate continuously improve and develop.

9. Carrying out technical quality reviews of the Demand Chain Development, Skills and Intelligence products as necessary.

10. Achieving closely integrated working between the QA team and the rest of the Operations Directorate and as necessary, the 'green box' functions of Finance and Administration, and Re-licensing Performance Management.

11. Developing  a learning and development culture for professional growth of team members and ensuring that all SfL staff are regularly appraised to the necessary extent of the work done by the Quality Assurance team
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12. Ensuring that equality, diversity and sustainability practices are mainstreamed throughout the team, to satisfy SfL' s charitable and UKCES-inspired objects

 
Person Specification - required competences, qualifications and experience

• graduate calibre with an expert knowledge of QA methodologies and skills learning, and a good knowledge of the training sector.

• able to challenge conventional wisdom and current working practices and to innovate for greater effectiveness

• an adaptable, big picture thinker combining ‘Project and Product Management practitioner’ insights and competent in risk management 

• a behavioural role model for SfL with strong interpersonal skills, self aware and self-regulating and able to mix credibly with a wide range of stakeholders

• strong presentational, influencing, writing and facilitation skills - effective in negotiating with delivery partners

• ability to influence and manage people who the Head of Quality Assurance does not directly manage in order to eradicate silo working from SfL. 

• supportive of the Director of Operation’s fundamental challenge to legacy ways of working and mindsets.

• able to behave reliably and remain agreeable under pressure and be conscientious about fulfilling the role

Performance criteria

To be fit for purpose including value for money, the Quality Assurance team’s processes and outputs must be:

• strategically and internally consistent (e.g. with The Stairway blueprint)

• complete

• current

• coherent 

• accurate 

• reliable and valid 

• affordable

• compliant with UKCES regulatory requirements

• lawful and fit for all technical and user purposes

• mainstreaming equality, diversity and sustainability issues 

• able to make demonstrable and measurable impacts on the sector

If the system for training quality standards is to satisfy requirements and meet expectations of quality it must be proved:

• reliable 

• valid and credible

• independently tested by users and authoritative technical stakeholders independent of the QA Team 

• a hallmark for the National Academy, services delivered, and joint ventures undertaken e.g. with GoSkills for Driver CPC 

• to be embedded, with deliverables produced by Demand Chain Development, Intelligence and Skills teams  incorporating quality and evaluation criteria approved by the QA team 

• transparent and straightforwardly explained to all stakeholders 

Closing Date: 12th December 2008.

Interviews will take place on December 17^th & 22^nd in Milton Keynes.