Department for Science, Innovation and Technology
Portfolio Management Office Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Manager
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Job Summary
At DSIT we’re all about improving people’s lives by maximising the potential of science & technology.
We accelerate innovation, investment and productivity through world-class science, research and development.
We use technology for good by ensuring new and existing technologies are safely developed and deployed across the UK, with the benefits more widely shared.
We are driving forward a modern digital government which gives citizens a more satisfying experience and their time back.
We do all this to enable the Government’s 5 national missions: kickstarting economic growth, making Britain a clean energy superpower, taking back our streets, breaking down barriers to opportunity and building an NHS fit for the future.
Above all, we focus on improving people’s lives. Whether it’s researching new treatments for disease, developing better batteries, reducing burdens through better public services, keeping children safe online, and much more, outcomes for citizens are at the heart of what we do.
Our Inclusive Environment
We offer flexible working benefits, employee well-being support and a great pension. We are enormously proud to be a Disability Confident Leader employer. We support candidates with adjustments throughout our recruitment process. Information about disability confidence and just some examples of the adjustments that you can request can be found in the reasonable adjustment section below.
Find Out More
We regularly run events where you can find out more about the department and tips for the application and interview process. You can sign up for upcoming events here: https://forms.office.com/e/Jae3B4w7xm
You can also follow our LinkedIn Page: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/dsitcareers/
Job Description
As the Government Cyber Unit (GCU), our mission is to protect public services and the wider Government from cyberthreats. We set strategic direction for Government and the public sector on cyber security, finding standards and policies through the Government Cyber Security Standard and the Cyber Policy Handbook. We assure system and organisation cyber security via initiatives such as GovAssure. Our team leads the operational response to cyberthreats, vulnerabilities and incidents through the Government Coordination Centre (GC3) and manages the GCSS Portfolio to implement strategy across central Government and departments.
In June 2025, the GCU (under its previous name, the Cyber Directorate) moved from the Cabinet Office to the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) as a part of a machinery of government change. This change aims to bring together the digital transformation of public services into one central department, presenting exciting opportunities and positioning DSIT to lead the government’s digital agenda.
The Portfolio Team supports the delivery of our strategic objectives via a portfolio of activity that supports their achievement. We undertake a traditional Portfolio Management Office (PMO) function, overseeing delivery, risk and outputs. As part of this, we closely track our financial position to maximise delivery. Alongside our PMO role, we offer our constituent projects and programmes targeted support from a deployable resource pool of P3M experts. We are a geographically-spread, hybrid team that recognises work life balance and flexible arrangements. The team also plays a key role in developing Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) approaches across the portfolio, supporting outcomes tracking, benefits realisation and evidence-based decision making.
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Role Purpose
The postholder will be responsible for the implementation, operation and continuous improvement of the portfolio-level Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) and benefits realisation system within the Portfolio Management Office.
Working to an agreed MEL framework and performance architecture, the role will ensure that monitoring, reporting, evaluation and learning processes are embedded, consistently applied and actively used to support decision-making across the portfolio.
Role information
Join us as a Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) Manager and play a central role in embedding evidence-based portfolio management across a complex, high-profile government programme.
The portfolio-level MEL system — including theories of change, performance frameworks and reporting structures — has been designed centrally. This role is responsible for operating and embedding an agreed portfolio-level MEL and benefits framework, ensuring it is consistently applied and actively used to support decision-making.
You will work closely with the GCAP Monitoring and Evaluation Lead, portfolio colleagues, programme teams and departmental stakeholders to run monitoring and reporting cycles, support the use of evidence, and ensure learning informs delivery, prioritisation and investment decisions.
Person specification
Key Responsibilities
Implementation and operation
- Support programme teams to apply agreed theories of change and benefits maps in practice, ensuring outcomes and benefits are clearly owned and tracked.
- Lead the implementation of the portfolio-level MEL and benefits system, ensuring agreed frameworks, indicators and reporting processes are applied consistently across programmes.
- Run regular monitoring and reporting cycles, working with programme teams and outcome owners to collect, validate and synthesise performance information.
- Maintain oversight of agreed indicators, milestones and benefits measures, ensuring they are applied consistently and remain fit for purpose.
Portfolio reporting and insight
- Run regular reporting and benefits-tracking cycles with programme teams and outcome owners, ensuring timely, high-quality inputs.
- Produce portfolio-level performance products (dashboards, briefings, slide packs) that translate monitoring data into clear, decision-ready insight.
- Support the PMO and senior leaders to use performance evidence to inform prioritisation, course-correction and resource allocation.
- Track delivery against agreed milestones and outcomes, highlighting risks, emerging issues and areas requiring management attention.
- Progress against expected benefits, highlight risks to benefits delivery, and support senior leaders to take action where benefits are off-track or no longer achievable.
Evaluation and learning
- Coordinate and support evaluation and learning activity in line with the agreed MEL strategy, ensuring findings are captured and fed back into portfolio decision-making.
- Work with programme teams to ensure learning is captured, synthesised and fed back into portfolio decision-making and future planning.
- Support a culture of proportionate, practical evaluation, focused on improvement rather than compliance.
Stakeholder engagement
- Act as the day-to-day MEL point of contact for programme teams and departmental stakeholders.
- Provide guidance and support to colleagues on applying the MEL system in practice, including indicators, reporting expectations and evidence standards.
- Work closely with the Head of Monitoring and Evaluation to identify system improvements and emerging evidence needs.
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Essential Criteria
- Experience supporting benefits realisation, outcomes tracking or performance governance within a programme, portfolio or PMO context.
- Experience implementing and operating monitoring, evaluation or performance systems at programme or portfolio level.
- Strong ability to manage reporting processes, work with incomplete or imperfect data, and turn information into clear insight.
- Experience working with multiple stakeholders to coordinate inputs, challenge constructively, and maintain consistency.
- Sound judgement about proportionate evidence, balancing analytical rigour with operational realities.
Desirable criteria
- Experience working in or alongside a Portfolio Management Office or PMO-type function.
- Experience supporting or coordinating evaluations or learning activities.
- Familiarity with government performance frameworks, benefits frameworks, business cases, or investment governance.
- Interest in, or experience of, cyber, digital or technology-enabled programmes.
Behaviours
We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
- Changing and Improving
- Making Effective Decisions
- Communicating and Influencing
Salary and Benefits
Alongside your salary of £44,620, Department for Science, Innovation & Technology contributes £12,926 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides (opens in a new window).
The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology offers a competitive mix of benefits including:
- A culture of flexible working, such as job sharing, homeworking and compressed hours.
- Automatic enrolment into the Civil Service Pension Scheme, with an employer contribution of 28.97%.
- A minimum of 25 days of paid annual leave, increasing by 1 day per year up to a maximum of 30.
- An extensive range of learning & professional development opportunities, which all staff are actively encouraged to pursue.
- Access to a range of retail, travel and lifestyle employee discounts.
Office attendance
The Department operates a discretionary hybrid working policy, which provides for a combination of working hours from your place of work and from your home in the UK. The current expectation for staff is to attend the office or non-home based location for 40-60% of the time over the accounting period.
Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.
Selection process details
This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours and Experience.
As part of the application process you will be asked to complete a CV, personal statement and a number of behaviour statements. Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.
Please use your personal statement (in no more than 750 words) to set out how your skills and experience meet the essential criteria for this role.
Applications will be sifted on behavioural statements
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