Vacancy Reference Number
21688
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Number of Vacancies
1
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(B) OCU
Digital, Data & Technology
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Location
The main location for this role is Newlands Park (SE26 5NF) with requirement to travel across the Met Estate, to attend meetings as required by the business.
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Building
Newlands Park
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Band
Band B
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Part/Full Time
Full Time
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Hours per Week
36 hours per week
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Type of Contract
Permanent
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Job Advert
Job Title: CONNECT Operations Lead
Salary: The starting salary is £62,310, which includes allowances totalling £3,009.
The salary is broken down as £59,301 basic salary, which will increase annually until you reach the top of the scale £72,254. Plus, a location allowance of £2,009 and a non-pensionable allowance of £1,000.
Location: The main location for this role is Newlands Park (SE26 5NF) with requirement to travel across the Met Estate, to attend meetings as required by the business.
Employment: Permanent, Full-Time (36-hours p/w)
“Keep checking Met Careers on a daily basis for new and exciting opportunities being released to join Digital & Innovation!”
Policing London is a hugely complex challenge that evolves every day. To make sure the Met is up to the task, we need the right IT and systems across our organisation. As a CONNECT Operations Lead, you will help to enable us to do our best for the London area. Join us and play your part in making London the safest capital in the world and delivering ‘More Trust, Less Crime and High Standards’.
As a member of the Met, you will also enjoy great benefits including annual leave, civil service pension arrangements, maternity/paternity support, as well as being part of a continuous learning culture.
Digital & Innovation Business Group
The Digital & Innovation Business Group brings together technology, the effective use of data, and our capability to deliver change and reform to drive the Met forward: this is central to progressing delivery of New Met for London 2. It includes the Met’s Transformation, Technology, Data and Analytics functions, as well as work underway to make the organisation more productive and efficient (referred to as Productivity & Efficiency or P&E). The Group was created in early 2026 and is led by Marie Heracleous, Chief Digital & Innovation Officer. It’s an exciting time to be part of D&I, as it builds new capabilities and ways of working to support the frontline and make a real difference to London.
D&I is committed to creating an inclusive working environment. We support hybrid working, and the hiring manager will be happy to discuss arrangements for this role.
Job Purpose
The CONNECT Operations Lead is responsible for overseeing the effective and efficient delivery of CONNECT operational functions, including finance, business change, business processes, communications, HR, commercial activity, and supplier management.
The role holder will lead the day-to-day delivery of the Operations and Communications functions, ensuring that priorities are clearly defined and that activities are delivered to a high standard, within agreed timescales, and in alignment with programme objectives.
The post holder will have first- and second-line management responsibility, providing strong leadership, direction, and support to team members, fostering a high-performing and accountable culture. The role also provides direct support to the Head of CONNECT Operations, contributing to strategic priorities and ensuring continuity of leadership where required.
Key Role Responsibilities
Provide robust financial oversight and governance, including the development and management of detailed capital and revenue budget forecasting and planning. Ensure financial plans are actively managed through the tracking of actuals, forecasting, and accruals, with early identification and mitigation of variances. Work closely with central finance colleagues to ensure alignment with agreed budgets, compliance requirements, and strategic priorities.
Lead business change and operational readinessacross CONNECT, ensuring new processes, systems, and ways of working are effectively embedded. This includes assessing change impacts, engaging stakeholders, driving adoption, and supporting the transition into business-as-usual operations.
Oversee governance, risk, and control frameworks, ensuring risks, issues, dependencies, assumptions, changes, and decisions are effectively captured, monitored, and managed to enable early identification and mitigation of challenges.
Own performance, delivery, and reporting, coordinating with Workstream Leads to produce high-quality status reports and insights that provide senior leadership with accurate, timely, and actionable information to support strategic decision-making.
Direct and assure programme planning, ensuring MSP plans are developed, maintained, and aligned to key milestones, with clear visibility of progress, dependencies, and risks to enable proactive delivery management.
Lead workforce planning, organisational design, and operational onboarding, ensuring clear roles, responsibilities, and reporting lines across CONNECT. Oversee resource allocation, vetting, system access (e.g. Aware), and equipment provisioning, supported by accurate organisational artefacts, enabling staff to be onboarded efficiently and become operationally effective at pace.
Ensure effective information, document, and configuration management, setting standards and assuring adherence to version control and information management practices to maintain integrity, accessibility, and consistency across the programme.
Oversee governance forums and drive continuous improvement across CONNECT Operations, ensuring high-quality board materials, clear agendas, and accurate records of decisions, alongside robust tracking of actions to drive accountability. Identify and implement opportunities to enhance processes, strengthen controls, and improve efficiency and overall operational performance.
Deputise for the Head of CONNECT Operations, providing leadership coverage and continuity as required.
Additional Information
Vetting Clearance
For this role the Vetting Clearance is Force Clearance Level, Management Vetting (MV), and National Security Vetting (NSV) Level, Security Check (SC).
Working Pattern
Hybrid Working available in line with the Metropolitan Police Service hybrid working policy.
The role requires that you attend the Newlands Park office (SE26 5NF) 3-days per week: Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday between the core hours of 10:00 to 16:00.
How to apply
To begin your career at the Met, please click the "apply button “. The application process requires a comprehensive CV, a Personal Statement, and an online application form. In your Personal Statement (1-page of A4, 500 words maximum) you should explain your interest in the position and illustrate how your skills and experience (see stated criteria) make you a suitable candidate. Please note that you should not submit two copies of your CV and ensure that your documents are saved in either PDF or Word format, clearly labelled as CV and Personal Statement.
Completed applications must be submitted by 23:55 on 23rd June 2026.
Once received, your application will be reviewed against eligibility criteria, following this, your application will be reviewed by the hiring manager. The application review for this vacancy will commence 24th June
Following application review, successful candidates will be invited to interview. Interview dates will commence 6th July.
www.metpolicecareers.co.uk
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Essential For The Role
Essential For The Role, e.g. qualifications, licenses, languages, training
Essential Criteria:
Knowledge
Knowledge of capital and revenue budget forecasting and planning.
Knowledge of business change and operational readiness principles, including change impact assessment, stakeholder engagement, and embedding new ways of working.
Knowledge of risk management practices and how and when to implement them.
Know-how in project management practices and approaches.
Understanding of key business management disciplines, including workforce planning and resource management.
Skills
Financial management skills.
Outstanding communication skills, both written and oral.
Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Office.
Proven ability to deliver to agreed deadlines.
Proven ability to provide and deliver briefings and presentations.
An interest in promoting positive improvement in the MPS and helping the organisation to adapt to new ways of working.
Critical thinking and problem-solving skills.
Evidence of inclusive behaviour.
Experience
Experience in management accounting and PFP processes.
Experience working in business and/or operations management.
Experience constructing cases which initiate change, understanding and projecting specific benefits to come from these changes.
Desirable Criteria:
Qualifications
Higher Education - Degree or significant experience (preferable but not essential)
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Required Languages
English
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Reports To
Band A – Head of CONNECT Operations
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Candidate Information Pack
Band B Products CONNECT CONNECT Operations Lead 202605.docx – 225KB Opens in a new window
Converted File Band B Products CONNECT CONNECT Operations Lead 202605.docx.pdf – 262KB Opens in a new window
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Additional Information
CVF Staff Band.pdf – 971KB Opens in a new window
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Disability Confident Statement
The Met is committed to being an equitable (fair and impartial) and inclusive employer for disabled people, striving to have a diverse and representative workforce at all levels. We encourage applications from people from the widest possible range of backgrounds, cultures and experiences. We particularly welcome applications from people with disabilities and long-term conditions, ethnic minority groups and women.
As a Disability Confident Leader, the Met has committed to making disability equality part of our everyday practice. We ensure that people with disabilities and those with long term conditions have the opportunities to fulfil their potential and realise their aspirations.
The Met is committed to making reasonable adjustments to the recruitment process to ensure disabled applicants can perform at their best. If you need any reasonable adjustments or changes to the application and recruitment process, we ask that you include this information within your application form. All matters will be treated in strict confidence.
Please note, if you are applying for a police officer role or to become a police community support officer (PCSO) or designated detention officer (DDO), there is a minimum requirement that you must pass a job-related fitness test (JRFT) at point of entry. This does not apply to police staff roles. Find out more about police fitness standards.
Read our full disability confidence statement.
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