Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 11
11
Accepted
However, the National Audit Office reported that the Department finds it difficult to recruit and...
Recommendation
However, the National Audit Office reported that the Department finds it difficult to recruit and retain digital specialist talent.31 We were interested in what is stopping the Department from getting the skills it needs; for example, its ability to pay the market rate for digital specialists. The Department acknowledged that it does not expect to compete with the private sector on pay. However, the Department said it is starting to extend government’s common digital pay framework across the whole of Defence to help remove internal competition across the Department.32 We noted that around 60% of the Department’s digital jobs are based in Corsham and the Department acknowledged that it had “saturated the Corsham catchment area”, but felt it would be a big challenge over many years to move all its staff from there. The Department explained that it is looking to partner with other departments at different locations in the UK and is doing more remote and flexible working.33 The Department also suffers from lengthy security clearance waiting times, which on average are currently over 200 days for developed vetting clearances, 24 Committee of Public Accounts, Challenges in implementing digital change, Thirtieth Report of Session 2021–22, HC 637, 10 December 2021 25 Committee of Public Accounts, Challenges in implementing digital change, Thirtieth Report of Session 2021–22, HC 637, 10 December 2021 26 Q 14 27 Qq 34, 79–82 28 Ministry of Defence, digital strategy for Defence: Delivering the backbone and unleashing the power of Defence’s data, April 2021 29 Qq 24, 61 30 Q 76 31 C&AG’s Report, para 21 32 Qq 25–27 33 Qq 87–88 12 The Defence digital strategy making the on-boarding progress take too long in a competitive labour market. Although the Department agreed this is not good enough, it explained that it is working with the Cabinet Office, which is responsible for vetting services, to improve this.34
Government Response Summary
The department has established a dedicated talent acquisition team and intends to implement the Digital, Data and Technology (DDaT) and cyber pay framework to help attract and retain talent, and are expediting elements of the recruitment process.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
3. PAC conclusion: The department faces a considerable challenge to recruit the specialist digital skills that its strategy relies on. 3. PAC recommendation: In its update to us in six months, the department should also set out how it has changed its approach to recruitment and what quantified effect this has had. 3.1 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Target implementation date: Summer 2023 3.2 The department has established a dedicated talent acquisition team to support digital recruitment. It intends to implement the Digital, Data and Technology (DDaT) and cyber pay framework which will help attract and retain talent - this offers enhanced pay ranges and 26 allowances, targeting skills gaps and enabling departments to compete more effectively in the labour market to attract new talent and improve retention. 3.3 Under Project ACCELERATE, the purpose of which is to improve digital processes and delivery (sponsored by the Second Permanent Secretary), the department is implementing the plan to expedite elements of the recruitment process that it controls. This includes new, innovative digital branded recruitment which was launched for the graduate recruitment campaign. The impact has been an 81.5% increase in applications (from 383 to 695), demonstrating the potential to improve the ability to attract applicants for digital vacancies. Consequently, the department intends to apply this approach to wider digital recruitments.