Marine Geospatial Data Lead presso Defence Equipment and Support

Organisation: Defence Equipment & Support - SALMO
Salary: £70,300 (plus generous benefits)
Grade: Professional I (PI) 
Working Pattern: Full time, Part time, Job Share, Flexible Working 
Contract Type: Permanent

At Defence Equipment & Support (DE&S), we supply and maintain vital equipment and services for the Royal Navy, British Army and Royal Air Force. Together, we deliver a vast range of essential defence programmes and strive for what's next. Because it helps keep our military at the top of their game and our nation safe – for today, and tomorrow.

We offer 26.5+ days’ holiday, flexible and hybrid working, enhanced parental leave schemes, shopping discounts, and an exceptional employer pension contribution of around 28.97%, to help work work for you.

Nationality, visas and vetting: For security reasons this role is open to sole UK nationals only. A ‘sole UK national’ refers to an individual who holds citizenship solely in the UK, without dual citizenship or nationality from another country.

We’re unable to offer visa sponsorship.

DV clearance – Join with SC clearance and obtain DV once in post. This role requires you to have lived in the UK for the last 10 years and obtain Developed Vetting (DV) security clearance. Clearance must be obtained without any caveats that prevent you from carrying out the role you have been recruited for. If it isn’t obtained or is obtained but with caveats that prevent you from carrying out the role, any conditional offer made to you will be withdrawn. Obtaining DV security clearance can be a lengthy process. You’ll join us once Security Check (SC) clearance is obtained, and then the more enhanced DV checks will continue after you’ve started your employment. If SC clearance isn’t obtained within 12 months, we reserve the right to withdraw any conditional offer made.

Job description 
If you are excited by the prospect of working with industry leading subsea technology in a challenging environment, then this could be the ideal opportunity for you. The Salvage and Marine Operations (SALMO) team are looking for a Geospatial Data Lead to join them as part of their wider Seabed Operations department.

We are seeking a highly skilled Geospatial Data Lead with management and stakeholder engagement experience to lead the strategic management, integration, and exploitation of geospatial data assets within our maritime defence programs. You will have strong experience with marine geospatial data, ideally in an offshore survey operations role, with a deep understanding of data interpretation, governance, analysis, and digital transformation initiatives. We will provide you with the necessary additional training on mission specific hardware/software and help you on your journey to becoming an experienced Seabed Operations data lead.

Although based at MOD Abbey Wood, it is anticipated that you will be required to travel to other MOD sites/data centres throughout the course of your duties and an expectation to deploy, on occasion, to support Geospatial Analysis within the field and on operational deployments.

Our SALMO team is the lead across the Ministry of Defence (MOD) for the provision of marine salvage and emergency response. Our specialists including AUV and ROV operators and surveyors, Master Mariners, Marine Engineers, Naval Architects, Environmental Scientists, and Divers provide a centre of expertise for subsea activities and marine operations. 

Our operations are varied and include salvage assistance to damaged surface vessels, location of aircraft on the sea-bottom, survey of wrecks, towage of warships and submarines, emergency response preparedness exercises and underwater engineering support to resolve defects on MOD platforms, and gaining the operational advantage of the seabed, all at home and overseas. . 

What you'll be doing

• Data Strategy & Leadership:
  • Define and implement marine-specific data strategy aligned with broader defence data frameworks.
  • Act as the subject matter expert for all SALMO Geospatial data related  activities, advising internal stakeholders and wider defence and international partners at all levels.
  • Lead data projects for Maritime Autonomous Systems (MAS) throughout their entire lifecycle, from design, build, operation, maintenance, and eventual disposal
• Data Governance & Quality:
  • Establish robust data governance processes to ensure data integrity, accuracy, and security.
  • Ensure compliance with MOD data standards, security classifications, and applicable regulations.
• Data Integration & Architecture:
  • Oversee the aggregation of data from MAS capabilities, and external data sources.
  • Collaborate with systems architects and engineering teams to design data pipelines, models, and repositories in a quickly evolving field of defence data exploitation.
• Analytics & Exploitation:
  • Drive the use of advanced analysis, including AI/ML, to efficiently analyse data sets and create timely products to meet defence needs. 
  •  Lead the operational development of outputted products and enable specialist knowledge and software developments to be realised within products created. 
• Stakeholder Engagement:
  • Engage with Defence MAS, and international industry partners to align data priorities.
  • Support the development of data literacy and culture across SALMO 

Person specification
To be successful with your application, you'll need to show that you meet the following essential criteria:

• Hold a Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics based qualification at RQF Level 4 together with being professionally registered with a relevant Professional body/institution, either:
  • Chartered Engineer (CEng) or 
  • Chartered Scientist (CSci) or
  • Chartered Geographer (CGeog) or
  • Chartered Marine Scientist (CMarSci) or 
  • Chartered Marine Technologist (CMarTech) or
  • Chartered IT Professional (CITP) or 
  • Chartered Master Mariner (CMMar) or 
  • Chartered Marine Engineer (CMarEng)
• OR hold a relevant qualification at RQF Level 6.
• Experience of providing technical advice and presenting data products at a senior level and leading the delivery of successful engineering outcomes in multidisciplinary projects.
• Wide ranging depth and breadth of technical experience in geospatial engineering/science with knowledge and application of System s Engineering approaches.

Note: Alternatives to RQF listed above (which cover England, Wales and Northern Ireland only), is the Scottish SCQF or international equivalent qualification backed by a statement of comparability from UK ENIC.

This role is subject to Retained Grade Terms and Conditions and differ from the DE&S standard Terms and Conditions. 

For SALMO Retained Grade seeking promotion, please refer to Part 2, Section 10.2 of the SALMO Retained Grade Handbook. 

Due to the nature of this role, you are:

• Required to hold and maintain a two-yearly ENG1 seafarers medical (no geographical limitations)
• Required to enlist as a Royal Navy Sponsored Reserve
• Expected to work extended hours as and when required in support of operational commitments
• Required to live within 60 minutes travelling time of the base to which you are appointed

• Required to hold an in-date UK driving licence

In addition to the responsibilities above, the following technical competences and behaviours will be assessed at interview:

• Making Effective Decisions - CSBC 4
• Leadership - CSBC 4
• ECF_01 Suitable Systems and Systems Thinking - Expert level
• ECF_03 Supportable Technical Solutions – Expert level

Benefits

• Full time staff employed for less than 5 years are entitled to 26.5 days’ annual leave per year, rising to 31.5 days per year after 5 years of service
• Flexible and hybrid working options
• Market-leading employer pension contribution of around 28.97%
• Annual performance-based bonus and recognition awards
• Access to specialist training and funded professional qualifications 
• Support for progression
• Huge range of discounts
• Volunteering days

• Enhanced parental leave schemes

• See SALMO T&Cs for further details of benefits available

Improving innovation and enriching our culture, diversity of thought is vital to our success. So whether you’re looking for a new opportunity, a next step, or a helping hand as you return from a career break, bring your experiences and help deliver for the defence of tomorrow. Here you’ll find a supportive, family-friendly organisation to be a part of - and if you need any assistance with your application, just let us know.

Further Information

• Candidate Information Pack: https://bit.ly/DES-Candidate-Information-Pack

• SALMO Terms and Conditions: https://bit.ly/SALMO-Terms-and-Conditions 

Any personal data that you provide during the Recruitment process will be treated in accordance with the MOD Privacy Notice which can be accessed here.

Disability Confident:

Please note as a Disability Confident Leader we want to ensure you receive any reasonable adjustments that you need throughout the recruitment process. If you do require any reasonable adjustments, you can let us know on your online application under the section ‘Please indicate and give details of any reasonable adjustments you may require during the recruitment process.’

 Conflicts of Interest:

The Ministry of Defence requires all candidates who are successful at interview to declare any outside interests. These declarations will be discussed with successful candidates following the interview process and before a formal offer of employment is made, as some outside interests may not be compatible with MOD civilian roles. This will not, in the majority of cases, prevent employment in MOD, but it is a measure that must be taken to ensure that appropriate mitigations can be put in place to manage any potential, perceived or actual conflicts of interest from the first day of employment.

Please Note: In the event of a tied score at interview, the Order of Merit will be distinguished based on the ranking of the assessed behaviours and competencies below:   

• 1st: Core Behaviour 1 
• 2nd: Core Behaviour 2 
• 3rd: Technical Competencies 
• 4th: CV Review 

 In the event of a further tie using the method above, we reserve the right to utilise the Lead criterion, and/or and additional assessment.  

Selection Process Details
Your application will go through the following stages of assessment:

1. Pre-sift - We will check that you meet any essential or eligibility criteria that are listed in the Person Specification section of this advert. On your CV, please clearly show how you meet the essential criteria.

2. Sift - Your CV will be assessed against the following categories, using a simple numerical scoring system: Key Achievements; Relevant Experience; Applied Knowledge and Skills. Please follow our guidance on CV writing for best chance of success.

3. Interview - If you're invited to interview, you'll be assessed against the Sift categories listed above, as well as the Technical Competences and Behaviours listed in the Person Specification section of this advert.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview.

If you feel that your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles and you wish to make a complaint, in the first instance you should contact department via email: [email protected] 

If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Department, you can contact the Civil Service Commission: Recruitment Complaints - Civil Service Commission 

Reserve Lists

Where a competition identifies more appointable candidates than there are available vacancies, a Reserve List may be created for other similar roles in the Civil Service. This may be used for up to 12 months to fill the same role or other similar roles with closely matching essential criteria without further testing of merit.

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