Risk and Assurance Senior Advisor - 32027

The Environment Agency is committed to building an inclusive workforce that reflects the diverse communities we serve. We don’t just talk about diversity — we actively seek it, embrace it, and embed it into everything we do.

Our new Environment and Business (E&B) Transformation Portfolio Management Office (PfMO) is creating a centralised portfolio to drive change, transformation, and continuous improvement. We’re looking for a Risk and Assurance Senior Advisor to join the E&B Portfolio Team and .

This team plays a vital role in shaping and optimising the E&B portfolio — ensuring strategic alignment, enhancing decision-making, and providing evidence to manage risk across all areas of change and transformation.

This is a fantastic opportunity to gain hands-on experience in change and transformation. You’ll bring creativity to help shape a brand-new portfolio office, with strong support and plenty of development opportunities.

You’ll also support the development and optimisation of the E&B Portfolio by ensuring strategic alignment, improving decision-making, and providing evidence to mitigate risk across change, transformation, and continuous improvement.

This role leads the development and implementation of robust risk management and assurance practices across the E&B portfolio. You’ll ensure risks are proactively identified, assessed, and managed, while delivery is subject to appropriate scrutiny and quality control.

Key Responsibilities

Assurance Leadership: Design and implement innovative assurance activities that enhance portfolio consistency, confidence, governance, and maturity.

Risk Framework Development: Establish and maintain a comprehensive, portfolio-wide risk management framework. Support teams in identifying, assessing, and mitigating risks.

Strategic Portfolio Support: Contribute to portfolio development by ensuring strategic alignment, improving decision-making, and providing evidence-based insights to mitigate risks.

You’ll gain valuable experience across the change and transformation landscape, with the chance to help build a new portfolio and grow your career in a supportive environment.

The Portfolio Management Office (PfMO), part of the Strategy and Programmes function in the Environment and Business (E&B) directorate, supports change, transformation, and continuous improvement. E&B fosters an inclusive, supportive culture and uses evidence and innovation to influence policy and delivery. You will work closely with project, programme and sub-portfolio managers across the Environment and Business directorate and your counterpart in other directorates.

You will be a strategic thinker with a focus on proactive risk management, be confident in communicating across all levels of the business with the ability to simplify complex information and be comfortable working in a collaborative and inclusive way to support others through change.  

Essential skills and experience include:  

Experience or qualification in Project, Programme or Portfolio Management

Experience in risk management and assurance within a portfolio, programme, or project environment 

Excellent analytical, communication and stakeholder engagement skills 

Ability to work collaboratively across teams and directorates 

Be a confident leader able to set standards and constructively challenge  

Be comfortable managing upwards and across directorates  

 

Desirable skills:  

Understanding of Governance including Risk & Management of Portfolio (MoP) principles 

Familiarity with assurance frameworks and delivery confidence assessments 

Proficiency in risk and assurance tools (e.g., RAID logs, dashboards, SharePoint)

We are a Category 1 responder, and all staff are required to take on an incident role. You will be given appropriate training and support to find a role that suits your role and situation. 

You’ll have an EA Office base location, as a national role the working location is flexible/hybrid, however some travel and overnights may be required.
 
If you wish to discuss this opportunity or for additional information, please contact Ben Robinson (ben.robinson@environment-agency.gov.uk).
 
Applications are “blind” assessed using your answers to the competency questions. Interviews are anticipated to be held in November. As part of the interview process there will be an additional assessment, if selected for interview these details will be sent closer to the time.

Finds and delivers optimal solutions by effectively analysing all the information, probing to develop alternatives and taking sound and timely decisions. 

More information on how to answer competency questions can be found in the candidate pack.

If a large number of applications are received, an initial sift using this lead capability may be conducted. Successful candidates will then proceed to a full sift or directly to assessment/interview.

Feedback is generally not available at sift stage.

Question:
In the context of Portfolio, Programme and Project management, tell me about a time when you have had been faced with an especially complex issue at work and have had to decide the correct course of action. Describe how you gathered the information, your decision making criteria how you involved stakeholders and any learning.

Harnesses the team to deliver results on time, to required standards and in line with organisational processes and procedures. 

More information on how to answer competency questions can be found in the candidate pack.

Question:
Give an example of when you had to lead a team or group who had to deliver a major project or piece of work. What was the outcome and how did you organise the team’s activities for the project?

Sets and delivers high work standards, demonstrates the drive to meet targets. Prioritises and organises tasks and resources to ensure timely achievement of results 

More information on how to answer competency questions can be found in the candidate pack.

Question:
Describe a time when you had to adapt a project plan to take into account changed parameters or a sudden change in project scope. How did you determine the impact of the change and coordinate your response accordingly to achieve the desired result?

Listens and questions to understand and engage. Conveys information and ideas clearly, accurately and persuasively through speech and writing.

More information on how to answer competency questions can be found in the candidate pack.

Question:
Give an example of a time when you have had to communicate effectively with a large number of stakeholders. Describe your approach and how you ensured that your message was understood by all stakeholders.