Further Particulars This document includes information about the role for which you are applying and the information you will need to provide with the application. 1. Role details Vacancy reference: 9942 Job title: Lead Developer (Sharepoint) Reports to: Head of IT Development (Content & Collaboration) Salary: Up to 45,053 Terms and conditions: Academic Related Grade: 8 Duration of post: Permanent Working hours: 37 hours per week Location: Walton Hall, Milton Keynes Closing date: midday 8 May 2014 Type of application form accepted: Full Number of referees required: 3 Unit recruitment contact: Glyn Bailey Page 1 of 5
2. Summary of duties Responsibilities 1. To provide professional technical leadership for a team of SharePoint developers in our Content & Collaboration team. 2. To lead and oversee technical design activities on large programmes of work, working closely with analysts, leading analysts and resource owners to translate business needs into suitable enterprise tools and information architecture. 3. To plan, allocate and control work on projects and supervise project progress, including tasks for people from inside and outside the SharePoint competency team. 4. Where staff are not matrix-managed, to provide line management to the team, incorporating CDSAs, staff development and performance management. 5. To fulfil professional responsibilities associated within the post-holder s own specialism, including researching & proposing SharePoint and other technology solutions that are applicable for the business and in-line with architectural and security standards. 6. Develop SharePoint programming and development standards and ensure documentation is up to date Duties 1. Producing and agreeing resource estimates and project schedules for the work carried out by staff in the competency team. Monitoring team performance against these estimates and schedules, reporting progress in a timely manner. 2 Co-ordinating all software design, development, testing and implementation activity within the competency team, & liaising with other teams as appropriate. 3. Leading application design activities small, large & complex - providing overall design authority for SharePoint and ensuring integrity between component designs. 4. Ensuring that appropriate testing is conducted ahead of user acceptance testing. 5. Carrying out configuration management to ensure integrity of production software. 6. Monitoring the technical quality of the work within the competency. 7. Supervising developers, including coaching, guidance, motivation and discipline. 8. Development of staff, including the operation of the CDSA system; advising management of recruitment and training requirements. 9 Advising IT management on technical issues and standards. Assisting in the development and revision of standards and methods. 10. Operating the IT resource planning and project control systems to ensure accurate measurement of activity within the team. 11 As necessary, fulfilling the duties associated with the post-holder s own professional specialism. Page 2 of 5
3. Person specification Qualifications and experience 1. Degree level or equivalent preferably in an IT or Business-related subject. 2. Appropriate Microsoft SharePoint developer/architect qualifications are desirable 3. Existing experience (three or more years desirable) delivering business SharePoint solutions, using standard and custom functionality with both SharePoint Designer and Visual Studio 4. Expert skills and understanding of the Microsoft SharePoint platform (2010 & 2013) 5. Some experience in integrating other applications with SharePoint 6. Experience with IIS 7. Experience in maintaining high quality software and understanding of typical SDLC 8. Knowledge and experience of software tools, development methods and standards 9. Experience in coaching other team members 10. Good knowledge of technical platforms and impact on business systems 11. One year s experience in working with TFS 2010 (or higher) is desirable 12. Experience in working in an Agile environment is desirable 13. Experience of test automation is desirable Personal Qualities 1. Being able to translate requirements into tasks for self and others to implement 2. Can quickly grasp business problems and assess when and how IT can add value, including translating mid to long-term business needs and technology capability into a future proof vision for SharePoint solutions 3. Ability to communicate effectively with both business and IT colleagues, including at Director and executive level when required. 4. Able to translate complex technical issues into business language and has oral presentation skills suitable for conveying this. 5. Strong influencing and negotiation skills, able to manage expectations. 6. Commitment to maintaining and improving processes and standards. 7. High levels of personal performance and desire to improve performance Leadership 1. Team player, results-focused and unafraid to challenge constructively and appropriately when necessary 2. Able to define objectives, prioritise, plan, allocate and monitor work, communicate plans and get commitment to their delivery. 3. Manages expectations and facilitates flexible responses to changing plans 4. Identifies and manages risk and contingency 5. Motivates colleagues through trust and respect, can coach and build confidence in members of team 6. Consults, negotiates and questions but is capable of generating consensus External Awareness 7. Keeps up to date with developments in professional field and within the organisation Page 3 of 5
4. Role specific requirements e.g. Shift working There are no formal shift working requirements for this role. The post-holder may occasionally be asked to work flexible hours or plan out of hours work for the team, e.g. for system deployment & delivery or upgrade activities. 5. About the unit/department INFORMATION ABOUT INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (IT) The Higher Education sector in England is undergoing dramatic change as institutions adjust to serious reductions in state funding for teaching and students have to bear more of the cost of their education. As well as these cost drivers, the entry of more private providers to the sector and the increasing consumer power of high fee-paying students will put a premium on service delivery and cost efficiency. In turn, this will throw emphasis on the development of robust, efficient, enterprise-scale IT systems to increase efficiency and customer choice. Information Technology provides and supports all central University IT services and is responsible for the University's technical infrastructure. In addition to this service and support provision, it develops systems to support the business requirements of the organisation. The IT Development department has a number of teams including Learning Systems, Media Production, Content & Collaboration, Corporate Systems, Pre-Study, Study, and Vantage. It works closely with business partners to ensure that requirements are prioritised according to business value and then delivers agreed changes. The IT Development function is responsible for the development and maintenance of the University's key operational applications. The main systems support Virtual Learning, Student and Customer Administration, Course Development and Production, Finance and Staff. Teams of Analysts and Developers are responsible for developing and maintaining systems for particular business areas. Whilst much of the software is developed in-house, there are a number of packages that are used. These include applications from the Siebel Customer Relationship Management suite, EMC Documentum s Content Management as well as Finance Ledger, Payroll and Stock Control packages. In-house developed software includes transactional websites to provide self service facilities for students and staff, virtual learning, information websites, decision support, workflow and student and staff records management. 6. How to obtain more information about the role or application process If you would like to discuss the particulars of this role before making an application please contact Mark Hudson on 01908 652195 or email mark.hudson@open.ac.uk. If you have any questions regarding the application process please contact Glyn Bailey on 01908 653285 or email IT-recruitment@open.ac.uk.. Page 4 of 5
7. The application process and where to send completed applications Please ensure that your application reaches the University by: Midday 8 May 2014 e-mail your application to: IT-Recruitment@open.ac.uk Or, post it to: Name/Job title: Glyn Bailey Recruitment Co-ordinator Department/Unit: Information Technology Address: The Open University Walton Hall Milton Keynes Post Code: MK7 6AA 8. Selection process and date of interview The interview panel will be chaired by Mark Hudson. The other members of the interview panel will be Andrew Goetzee and Lawrence Lilley. We will let you know as soon as possible after the closing date whether you have been shortlisted for interview. Further details on the selection process will also be sent to shortlisted candidates. Applications received after the closing date will not be accepted. Page 5 of 5