Sr Proffesional Development Specialist: Management, People Development

The role of Senior Professional Development Specialist in Management, People Development and Strategic HRM is a new position which will play a pivotal role in the development, management and delivery of Institutes established and successful professional development portfolio in these areas.

This portfolio includes role and grade development programmes in the civil service and local authority, people development, recruitment, CIPD, strategic HRM and related courses.

Through their leadership, the appointee will be responsible for ensuring that the existing and future portfolio of professional development services contributes to enhancing relevant capabilities and capacity of the public service in Ireland.

The Senior Specialist, their team and Department colleagues, and the Institute as a whole, play an important role in supporting the public service to deliver on its ambitions for its services to the public, as illustrated, for example, in thematic transformation strategies such as Better Public Services, and through public and civil service capability frameworks and professionalisation strategies.

The role is central to the Institutes commitment to support the learning and development needs of our civil and public service clients and thereby ensure that public service employees are equipped with the latest skills and knowledge to effectively serve society and adhere to regulatory standards.

In this regard, the Senior Specialist will be a role model internally and externally for our values and ambitions.

Reporting to the Director of Professional Development, the Senior Specialist will be responsible for leading and managing a team and associate specialist resources to design and deliver professional development courses, advisory and related services on behalf of the Institutes clients.

Ongoing scoping, design, promotion and review of appropriate role-, grade-, organisation- and sector-relevant courses and services will be critical to ensure this portfolio continues to successfully meet the needs of the public service.

The post-holder will collaborate with other Specialists across the Professional Development Department (Governance, Policy, Local Government, Sustainability, etc.), the Whitaker School, Senior Public Service Department and Digital Learning to ensure a quality, holistic, relevant and responsive portfolio of services are available to our clients.

Duties and Responsibilities The key duties and responsibilities of the role are outlined below.

As a Senior Specialist, the role holder will focus on these duties in the areas of Management, People Development and Strategic HRM, and will also work collaboratively across Professional Development and the IPA to achieve goals and objectives.

Design and Delivery of Professional Development Design and Delivery: Convene, design and deliver professional development and training programmes, seminars, conferences, fora and events, taking responsibility for the content and delivery of programmes in Professional Development.

Manage quality system: contribute to an ongoing quality assurance, management and enhancement programme as a senior member of the team, reviewing evaluation and feedback gathered from programmes, and integrate this to future developments.

Curriculum Development: Lead the team on the design and development of professional development solutions that reflect best practice and requirements in public service.

This will include a range of non-accredited and professionally accredited programmes, and will often involve client and stakeholder engagement in the development and review process.

Best Practices: Regularly research and integrate best practices into Professional Developments portfolio of services.

Develop and maintain relevant networks.

Design, lead and provide advisory services: and related services for the sector.

Management and Leadership Line management of specialist and professional staff: Manage and lead team members as assigned, including day to day line management duties, resource planning and fostering of a positive team environment for staff, to high standards and compliance with policies.

Management of Associate (contracted) Specialists: Manage contracted associates across the life cycle of engagement and across the learners life cycle, in accordance with IPA policies and procedures.

This includes the engagement process, overseeing content and delivery of material by Associate Specialists / Lecturers, performance evaluation and contract management.

Role model the Institutes values: actively develop a culture within the team that reflects the mission, values, strategy and ambition of the Institute.

Resource and Capacity Management: Plan and manage the capacity requirements for the portfolio based on annual budgets and business plans.

Guide staff assigned to programmes and projects to ensure that the services are delivered to a high standard.

Financial Management: Assist the Director of Professional Development with the financial management of the Department as required, including the preparation and review of annual plans and budgets, income/ spend analysis, operational review of day to day finances in the team, and contribute to proactive risk management.

Reporting and Documentation: Ensure that accurate record keeping and reporting of portfolio activity, staffing, quality, finance and other measures as required.

Strategic Planning and implementation Strategic Management of portfolio: In conjunction with the Director of Professional Development and colleagues, strategically plan for the Departments Management, People Development and HRM portfolio, implementing over a multi-year horizon.

Strategic Initiatives and Solutions: Initiate, contribute to, and develop services to respond to the challenges, needs and opportunities facing clients, demonstrating thought leadership and long-term value for the public service.

Stakeholder and Client Relationships Client Relationship Management: Build and manage client relationships with key stakeholders across the public service.

Stakeholder Engagement: Pro-actively engage with stakeholders to identify learning, development and advisory needs and solutions.

Contribute to a cross-departmental stakeholder engagement plan.

Business Development: Develop proposals and responses to client requests, both from direct requests and in collaboration with the IPA and departments communications and operations teams.

General Continuous Professional Development: Actively participate in professional development opportunities to enhance personal training skills and sector-specific knowledge.

Thought Leadership: Contribute to the ongoing development of the Institutes reputation for thought leadership in professional development, and relevant service domains through publications, insight pieces, speaking engagements and other events.

Collaboration: Work collaboratively with other IPA teams and with external stakeholders on the design and delivery of programmes and services, e.g., through project and working groups, and formal steering and advisory groups.

Other Duties: Undertake such other duties as may be assigned from time to time by the Director General or Director of Professional Development.

Deputise for the Director of Professional Development as required.

About the Ideal Candidate Qualifications: Bachelors degree in a relevant discipline (essential) Postgraduate degree (or equivalent) in management, leadership, learning and development, strategic human resource management, public administration/policy, social sciences or a related field (essential).

Commitment to relevant continuous professional development, including pursuit of any relevant qualifications or memberships required for the continued success of IPA Professional Development Knowledge An understanding of the role and objectives of the Institute.

Demonstrated knowledge of the latest trends in professional development within the public service in general.

In-depth understanding of public service operations and challenges is desirable.

Working knowledge of the Public Sector Equality and Human Rights duty.

Essential Experience Seven to ten years experience at the appropriate level and in a relevant role comprising professional development/training, learning and development, education and/or operations, preferably within the public service Experience of management of teams in a professional setting Experience in course/curriculum development and delivery Evidence of managing projects in a complex multi-stakeholder environment Experience of working in or with a public service system.

Further Skills and Attributes required can be found in the Candidate Booklet found via the Conscia portal.

How to Apply Applications must be made by way of: A comprehensive CV.

A short cover letter outlining why you wish to be considered for the post and where you believe your skills, experience and values meet the requirements for the position Uploaded to the Conscia portalno later than 12 noon Tuesday 18th March 2025 (Irish time).

Applications will not be accepted by any other method, nor if received after the closing date.

When outlining your application, accuracy is essential.

The information you supply in your application will play a central part of the selection process.

If you do not receive an acknowledgement of receipt of your application within 24 hours, please check your junk/spam folders as email notifications may be filtered here.

The onus is on each applicant to ensure that they are in receipt of all communication from Conscia Limited.

Conscia Limited accept no responsibility for communication not accessed or received by an applicant.

If you have any queries about the role, please contact us via the contact details found on the Conscia portal (via the Apply Now button).

---