ICT Analyst Infrastructure Support Team (ICTA/09)

INFORMATION FOR APPLICANTS

ICT Analyst – Infrastructure Support Team (ICTA/09)

CLOSING DATE: 4.00 p.m.

Friday 4thSeptember 2009

Our third Corporate Plan for the period 2008-2011 sets out Invest NI’s primary objective to increase Northern Ireland business productivity so as to create wealth for the benefit of the whole community. This objective is now set against the challenging economic backdrop of slower growth in the world economy and significant readjustment in financial markets. We aim to boost Northern Ireland’s gross value added (GVA) per employee and enhance the capability of existing and new businesses based in Northern Ireland to sell more products and services in external markets, by focusing our efforts on three priority actions:

• Realising client potential by helping our clients to become better at growing profitably through applying innovation in all aspects of their businesses;

• Shifting the sectoral focus towards high-value economic activity by attracting Foreign Direct Investment in target industries and boosting indigenous businesses and start-ups in high-value sectors; and

• Encouraging the development of frontier technologies by building upon Northern Ireland’s specific strengths in private and public sector research bases in order to deliver commercial outcomes from leading-edge technologies.

Invest NI’s headquarters are in Belfast, with a network of eight regional offices in Northern Ireland and thirteen offices worldwide.

For more information about Invest NI please visit our website,

Equality of Opportunity

Invest NI is committed to a Policy of equality of opportunity in its employment practices and aims to ensure that no actual or potential job applicant or Staff Member is discriminated against, either directly or indirectly, on the grounds of gender, marital status, disability, race, community background or political persuasion, age, dependants, sexual orientation or Trade Union membership.

Each person shall have equal opportunity for employment, training and advancement in Invest NI on the basis of ability, qualifications and performance. This maximises the effective use of human resources in the best interests of both the organisation and the individual.

Invest NI is committed to equality of opportunity and welcomes applications from suitably qualified people from all sections of the community.

At this time, it particularly welcomes applications from people with disabilities and from minority ethnic groups.

To help ensure that we are meeting our Equality of Opportunity obligations, Invest NI monitors the composition of staff and applicants. This monitoring helps to identify if any of our policies, procedures or activities are operating to the detriment of any particular grouping within our diverse society. Therefore;

The monitoring form included with your application form is regarded as part of your application and should be returned.

The monitoring form will not be shown to the selection panel. It will be separated from the application form by the monitoring officer, and transferred to a computer based monitoring system. There it will be protected, access restricted and used strictly in line with good practice procedures.

Invest NI is an Equal Opportunities Employer

For more information about Invest NI please go to the Invest NI web site,

JOB OVERVIEW

More about the Corporate Services Group

The Corporate Services Group provides the critical internal services required to make Invest NI commercially responsive. These encompass Strategic Planning, Human Resources, Information Communication and Technology (ICT) and Finance functions, but also include Invest NI’s Corporate Finance Advisory Division, its Property Solutions Unit and Corporate Communications and Marketing.

More about the ICT Team

ICT is responsible for integrating and maximising the accessibility of existing information stores to fully exploit our corporate knowledge. The team is structured in four functional areas and is responsible for the integrity and performance of all ICT Hardware, Infrastructure and Applications.

More about the ICT Analyst – Infrastructure role

As part of a team of 22, you will support Invest NI’s ICT 660 user Infrastructure across its HQ operations, its eight regional offices and the international office network. This will include supporting Servers, Network (LAN, WAN and VPN) and VOIP telephony, and providing support for server hardware, software and network devices in order to ensure that a high level of customer service is maintained at all times.

More about the Technology Deployed

Invest NI operates in a Windows 2003 network environment with Exchange 2003. Availability and reliability is ensured with SAN attached storage, resilience, clustering and a robust backup solution.

Other technologies deployed to support Invest NI’s infrastructure include:

Cisco networking and VOIP
Checkpoint
Juniper
Bluecoat
Riverbed
Citrix
LANDesk
Windows Mobile
Blackberry
Virtualisation

Key Responsibilities

Support of Local and Wide Area Networks including VPN (data and IP Telephony).

Installation and support of a Windows 2003 Active Directory server infrastructure.

Administration of Microsoft Exchange and SQL Servers.

Configuration and support of comms and network infrastructure.

Configuration and support of Firewalls and security appliances.

Network monitoring, troubleshooting and problem resolution.

Support of telephony including fixed, mobile and VOIP.

Support and implementation of Disaster Recovery environments.

Management of projects to evaluate and implement new Infrastructure technologies.

Deliver ICT Best Practice and a high level of customer service to all Invest NI staff.

PERSONNEL SPECIFICATION

Applicants must demonstrate recent experience in the following areas:

The management and support of Windows 2000/3 server and Active Directory;

The configuration and support of Microsoft Exchange (2000/2003);

Network infrastructure security;

Customer focus in dealing with end user problems.

Evidence of developing and managing relationships withclients,utilising good interpersonal and communication skills;

Recentis defined as being ‘within the last 8 years’.

PLEASE NOTE

The successful candidate will on occasions be required to work flexibly outside their normal work pattern e.g. weekends and at other Invest NI offices to meet system maintenance needs.

Points to note

You should ensure you provide evidence of your experience on your application form, giving length of experience, examples and dates as required.

It is not sufficient to simply list your duties and responsibilities.

Invest NI will not make assumptions from the title of the applicant’s post as to the skills and experience gained.

SELECTION PROCESS

To ensure equality of opportunity for all applicants:

The space available on the application form is the same for all applicants and must not be altered or re-formatted;

We will not accept CVs or any other supplementary material in addition to completed application forms;

Applicants must complete the application form in size 10 font, or block capitals using black ink;

We will not accept any applications without a completed monitoring form or which are received after the closing date.

Shortlisting

A shortlist of candidates for interview will be prepared on the basis of the information contained in the application. It is therefore essential that all applicants demonstrate through their application how, and to what extent, they satisfy each of the criteria specified. It is not appropriate simply to list the various posts that an applicant has held. Essential Criteria 1, 2 and 3will be assessed at shortlisting.

Invest NI will not make assumptions from the title of the applicant’s post or the nature of the organisation as to the skills and experience gained. It is vital that candidates highlight their specific role and contribution by using actual examples to illustrate their experience against the criteria.

Only those candidates who, from the information supplied on the application form, most closely match the essential selection criteria for the post will be shortlisted.

Application forms which do not provide the necessary detailed information in relation to the experience and skills required will be rejected.

Interview and Assessment

Following shortlisting, successful candidates will be invited to take part in an interview and assessment which are envisaged to take place week commencing 5 October 2009 and 12 October 2009. It may not be possible to offer alternative dates for interview.

Invest NI reserve the right to interview only those applicants who appear to them, from the information available, to be the most suitable.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Travel

It is not Invest NI’s policy to pay travel expenses to any candidate attending interview unless their journey is from outside Northern Ireland or the Republic of Ireland. For these candidates, expenses will be payable only for flight or ferry crossings to a maximum of £100, on presentation of valid receipts, and only for attendance at final interviews.

Canvassing

Canvassing in any form is not allowed.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

The appointment is permanent and full-time.

The salary range for the position is £24,089 - £30,520 per annum with an additional annualICT allowance of £3640. The entry point on the salary range for the successful candidate will normally be the minimum of the range, although a higher starting salary may be available to reflect the knowledge and experience of the candidate.

The person appointed will be expected to take up the position as soon as possible.

Appointment is subject to receipt of a completed Health Declaration and two satisfactory references.

Prior to taking up his/her new duties, the successful candidate must:

Supply a copy of his/her birth certificate.
Enter into an agreement setting out the terms of his/her appointment.
Supply documentary evidence of qualifications.

Training and Development

Invest NI actively develops all staff and invests significantly in training and development for business success and growth. This includes on-the-job training, external training and, where appropriate, further education. Staff undertaking further education that is deemed necessary to carry out their role may be eligible to have up to 80% of their fees refunded by Invest Northern Ireland.

General Information

Age:In line with the government’s national default retirement age (NDRA) Invest Northern Ireland normally retires staff on their 65th birthday. Invest Northern Ireland will not consider applications for employment from applicants who will reach retirement age within six months of their application being received.

Pensions:New appointees who join Invest Northern Ireland are eligible to join the Northern Ireland Civil Service (NICS) pension arrangements.

If you previously worked for an employer covered by the NICS Pension arrangements, different conditions may apply. Further information can be obtained by contacting Civil Service Pensions at:

Waterside House

75 Duke Street

Londonderry

BT47 6FP

Tel: 028 7131 9000

Email:

Any further queries about NICS Pensions for new appointees to Invest NI should also be addressed with Civil Service Pensions as above.

Hours of Work

Employees work a minimum 37 hour week, Monday to Friday. Employees will be required from time to time to work outside normal working hours.

Leave Arrangements

The leave year runs from 1 February – 31 January. Annual leave entitlement is 25 days. Leave entitlement in the period prior to the start of the new leave year is pro-rata.

Location

The position is based in Bedford Square, Bedford Street, Belfast, and is easily accessible to all main public transport routes. Successful candidates may be required to travel throughout Northern Ireland.

Flexible Working Hours

Invest NI operates a flexible working scheme. Staff are required to be in attendance between the hours of 10.00am to 12.00pm and 2.00pm to 4.00pm Aside from core time, staff may work flexibly from 8.00am to 6.00pm with a minimum of half an hour for lunch. At management discretion and without adversely affecting the overall efficiency of Invest NI, staff who have built up enough hours each month can take up to a maximum of 3 flexible working days. A credit of up to 3 days or a deficit of up to 2 days may be carried forward into the following month.

Family Friendly Policies

Invest NI has a range of policies designed to assist staff with families, and is keen to promote a Work/Life Balance.

Sports and Social Club

Invest NI’s Sports and Social Club organises entertainment and team-building events, trips to foreign cities, and runs a weekly Walking Club.

Gym membership

Invest NI staff can enjoy supplemented rates at the Spirit Health Club, Holiday Inn, Ormeau Avenue, Belfast.

Probation

All employees are subject to a 10 month probationary period. At the end of this period, subject to satisfactory performance, the successful candidate will be confirmed in post.

No Smoking Policy

Invest NI operates a no smoking policy in all its offices.

Annex A

INTERVIEW GUIDANCE

If this is your first experience of a competence-based interview, bear in

mind that it does not require you to:

• talk through previous jobs or appointments from start to finish;

• discuss your background and experience at a general level; or

• provide any information that is not relevant to the post for which you

are applying.

A competence-based interview does however require you to:

• focus exclusively on the competences required for effective

performance in the role; and

• provide specific examples of your experience in relation to the required

competence areas.

In preparation for the interview you may wish to think about having a

clear structure for each of your examples, such as:

• Situation – outline the situation;

• Task - what was your objective, what were you trying to achieve;

• Action - what did you actually do, what was your unique contribution;

• Result - what happened, what was the outcome, what did you learn.

It is strongly recommended that you familiarise yourself with the competences

and associated behaviours. The interview panel will ask you to provide specific examples from your past experience in relation to each of the competences.

You should therefore come to the interview prepared to discuss in detail a

range of examples which best illustrate your skills and abilities in each

competence area. You may draw examples from any area of your work / life

experiences.