Job summary
Opening Message from Paul Kissack, Permanent Secretary at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
I am delighted to invite applications for the role of Director General for Strategy and Change at Defra.
Defra’s work lies at the heart of the Government’s mission to grow the economy and raise living standards. From reforming the water system to ensuring food security, to showing how economic development and nature restoration work hand in hand, to supporting farming profitability, to resetting our trading relationship with the EU, Defra’s work is foundational to our economic way of life and to our national security and resilience.
Working very closely with me and the executive team, and with ministers, the Director General for Strategy and Change will be pivotal to shaping Defra’s overall programme of work and the organisational shifts needed to improve our focus on delivering outcomes and boosting departmental productivity and efficiency. They will play a central role working with No.10 and HM Treasury – and others across government – to ensure Defra fulfils its role as a core economic department and a department of national security. They will lead a critical set of functions within the department – including ministerial support, communications, legal, strategy and resilience as well as change and the programme delivery portfolio.
In short, the new Strategy and Change Group, led by the Director General, will provide the central capability needed to strengthen Defra’s strategic grip and drive improvements across the department and the wider Defra group.
The Director General for Strategy and Change will be part of the leadership team of a department of over 6,200 people – and a wider Defra Group of more than 34,000 – helping to create the conditions for talented and dedicated colleagues to deliver their best for the public.
It is a role that will require exceptional leadership, sound judgement, and the ability to bring clarity and direction to a complex and wide-ranging portfolio and, through that, make a significant contribution to public service, our environment, our economy and our security.
If you share our ambition and are committed to shaping the long-term future of Defra, I look forward to your application.
To hear more from Paul directly, view his video welcome message here.
Role
The Director General for Strategy and Change will play a pivotal role in shaping the future direction of Defra ensuring the department is equipped to deliver its ambitious agenda, supporting ministers to accomplish their priorities.
The role provides the strategic grip that connects long-term priorities to delivery, strengthening Defra’s ability to prioritise, govern and assure its most significant change, reform and efficiency activity. Through strong portfolio leadership, risk and performance insight, the role underpins delivery confidence, transparency and benefits realisation across the department, including holding Director General peers to account for delivery of agreed organisational change and efficiency commitments.
The role requires disciplined and creative leadership, a strong focus on outcomes, and clarity on the organisational shifts needed to support improved productivity.
Key responsibilities will include, working closely with ministers and the Defra executive team to:
- Define Defra’s strategic direction, articulating a clear, outcome-focused vision that positions Defra to address environmental, economic, security and societal challenges across the UK and internationally.
- Embed a culture where leaders across Defra are relentlessly focused on delivering outcomes in line with the refreshed Defra Outcomes Framework, with creativity, well-defined risk appetites, a ‘can do’ mindset and building feedback loops that allow continually improving performance and impact.
- Shape and lead a clear set of organisational shifts to improve productivity, agility, creativity and efficiency so that we are a solutions-focused department, supported by strong portfolio prioritisation, delivery assurance and data-driven performance insight, ensuring change is coherent, prioritised and delivers measurable benefits, in line with recent reviews into Defra’s delivery and regulatory approaches. This includes working closely with the Group Chief Operating Officer to support digital transformation.
- Define and strengthen relationships with Defra’s various Arms’ Length Bodies (ALBs) to ensure clarity of roles and accountability, and group-wide organisational shifts, necessary to deliver Defra’s Outcomes Framework.
- Ensure we are well set up to deliver a portfolio of major programmes and projects underpinning different Defra outcomes, with well-embedded project management disciplines.
- Continue to build our capacity, capability and culture as an economic department and a department of national security and resilience, playing a full part across government in these areas. Work closely with the Chief Scientific Adviser to ensure all Defra’s work is underpinned by excellent science and analysis.
- Lead very high-quality enabling functions for the department in ministerial and parliamentary services, communications and legal services.
- Play a full role in the Defra executive team, creating an empowering and inclusive environment in which people are able to do their best work in pursuit of Defra’s outcomes.
Person specification
To be successful in this role you will need to be an outstanding leader. We will assess your capability against the following criteria:
- Exceptional strategic leadership in complex, politically-sensitive landscapes, with a proven record of defining a compelling long-term vision, setting priorities, and making high-impact, evidence-based decisions under pressure while upholding values. Personal credibility and composure in high profile, contentious, and time critical contexts.
- Shaping and leading organisational change programmes at scale in complex environments, working with peers and other organisational leaders to embed cultural change and translate strategic intent into coherent governance and delivery.
- Sophisticated stakeholder engagement and influence at the most senior levels, with the ability to operate confidently with, for example, ministers, permanent secretaries, senior officials across government, the Defra executive team, regulators, Arm’s Length Bodies, and industry leaders. Skilled in negotiating alignment, resolving contention, and securing durable consensus.
- Deep fluency in governance, risk and assurance, with experience providing credible assurance to boards and senior decision makers. Able to articulate risk appetite, manage reputational and operational risk, and ensure statutory and propriety compliance, while exercising strong command of evidence, insight and horizon scanning to inform strategic choices and adapt direction in response to changing external and societal drivers.
- Outstanding people leadership, actively shaping a positive, inclusive culture and building high‑performing teams.
- Financial and resource leadership at scale, with experience leading strategic resourcing processes that shape organisational priorities, guide investment decisions, and assure value for money. Demonstrated ability to act as an enabling and constructive challenger of significant budgets and investment portfolios, exercising strong stewardship of public money even where budgets are not directly held.
More detailed information can be found in the candidate brief attached below.
Benefits
Alongside your salary of £130,000, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs contributes £37,661 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.
- Learning and development tailored to your role
- An environment with flexible working options
- A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
- A Civil Service pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%
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
The closing date for applications will be 23:55 on 8 June 2026. Paul Kissack is happy to discuss the role with prospective candidates, however please contact [email protected] in the first instance.
Your application should include:
- A CV (no longer than 2 pages) setting out your career history, with key responsibilities and achievements. Please ensure you have provided reasons for any gaps within the last two years;
- A Statement of Suitability (no more than 1000 words) explaining how you consider your personal skills, qualities and experience provide evidence of your suitability for the role, with particular reference to the criteria in the person specification
- A Declaration of Interest form.
As part of the online application process, you will be asked a number of diversity-related questions. If you do not wish to provide a declaration on any of the particular characteristics, you will have the option to select 'prefer not to say'. The information you provide when submitting your application will help us monitor our progress towards the Civil Service becoming the most inclusive employer.
Please note that references and open-source due diligence checks (including into social media accounts) may be undertaken for all short-listed candidates.
This vacancy is part of theA Great Place to Work for Veterans initiative. For further information on whether you are eligible to apply under this scheme please follow the link above.
The Selection Committee for this role will be Chaired by Elizabeth Hambley, a Civil Service Commissioner and will include Paul Kissack, the Permanent Secretary of Defra, together with a member of the Civil Service Senior Leadership Committee (SLC) and Heather Hancock, Defra Lead Non-Executive Director. We expect the process for this role to be as follows:
- The closing date for applications will be 23:55 on 8th June.
- A shortlist of the applications will then take place in the week commencing 15th
- Shortlisted candidates may then be invited to the following between 22nd and 29th June: an Individual Leadership Assessments;a meeting with the Secretary of State for Defra; anda Stakeholder Engagement Panel.
Inputs from all these elements of the selection process will be incorporated into the interview process. Interviews will be held in week commencing 29th June in person. Candidates may be asked to take part in an exercise or give a presentation at the start of the interview.
Full details about the assessment phase will be provided to shortlisted candidates. We recognise that there are a number of steps in this process and, whilst we plan to conduct this phase in face-to-face sessions, we will do our best to arrange the sessions in a way that works for you.
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.
Security
Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is developed vetting (opens in a new window). See our vetting charter (opens in a new window).
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.
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
Recruitment team
Attachments
DG Strategy and Change - Declaration of Interest form Opens in new window (docx, 209kB)
DG Strategy and Change - Candidate Brief Opens in new window (pdf, 757kB)
