Operations Manager - Integrated Communications Intelligence (ICI) Operations

23/06/2026, 23:55

800 

£4,218

£55,575 

£ 1,400

G3
Permanent
Intelligence
Collection
Intelligence, Operational Delivery, Policing, Risk Management
Full time
3
Disability Committed
Disability Leader
Civil Service Commission logo

Operations Manager - Integrated Communications Intelligence (ICI) Operations 

Location(s)

London, Warrington

About the Role

Information about the Command

The role of Intelligence is to develop the right operations, which target and disrupt - by the most effective means - the offenders who seek to cause the highest harm to the UK.
A diverse directorate with a wide variety of unique functions and specialist skillsets in our ranks, some of which we deliver as the national provider for the wider Serious Organised Crime (SOC) system. From our niche technical capabilities, to our overseas network of International Liaison Officers (ILO) and our Tasking teams, there are many component parts which contribute to the efforts of the directorate and the National Crime Agency (NCA).

Information about the Business Area

Intelligence Collection coordinates NCA collection capabilities against the NCA’s highest priorities. Intelligence Collection includes forensics, open source, covert human intelligence sources, undercover officers and technical collection capabilities. This includes responding to threats and exploiting opportunities relating to the use of electronic communications by Subjects of Interest using the various powers conferred within the Investigatory Powers Act 2016 (IPA). This is a dynamic and diverse arena with constant and rapid change, suiting those officers who thrive on near constant challenge.

The Operations Manager within Integrated Communications Intelligence (ICI) Operations plays a critical role in delivering intelligence-led responses to Serious and Organised Crime (SOC). Operating at the forefront of covert communications data collection under the Investigatory Powers Act 2016, the role ensures the timely delivery of high-quality intelligence to support operational decision-making across the NCA, UKIC and law enforcement partners. This is a fast-paced, high-impact position requiring strong leadership, operational oversight and collaboration across a complex and evolving intelligence environment.

The Operations Manager leads and delivers operational activity within Integrated Communications Intelligence (ICI) Operations, a key function of the NCA’s Intelligence Directorate. The role supports the UK’s response to Serious and Organised Crime (SOC) through the lawful collection, analysis, and dissemination of communications intelligence.

Operating in a dynamic, sensitive, and fast-paced environment, you will ensure intelligence capabilities are effectively deployed to provide timely, accurate, and actionable insight to operational partners. This includes close collaboration with NCA Investigations, intelligence colleagues, the UK Intelligence Community (UKIC), and wider law enforcement partners.

You will lead and manage a team of Intelligence Officers, delivering operational activity across a complex portfolio. The role involves enabling the lawful collection, assessment, and dissemination of time-critical intelligence, ensuring NCA collection resources are directed at the most serious criminal threats in the UK and overseas. This work directly contributes to the disruption of criminal activity, including drugs and firearms trafficking, money laundering, organised immigration crime (OIC) and child sexual abuse.

Working within a covert and sensitive environment, you will manage operational risk, including threats to life, firearms-related activity, and crimes in action, while ensuring adherence to legal and compliance frameworks. You will also represent ICI in internal and external forums, manage tasked caseloads, and build strong working relationships across teams and partner organisations.

This is an excellent opportunity for a motivated individual with strong leadership skills to operate in a high-impact, operational role.

Please note: Due to the nature of the work and systems involved, this role is fully office-based and does not support hybrid working. Candidates based in our London office will require DV (Enhanced) on entry.

Strategic Tasking & Prioritisation - Lead and direct intelligence collection and assessment activities, ensuring they are prioritised and aligned to organisational and strategic objectives. Ensure intelligence requirements are appropriately tasked and coordinated across ICI Operations to maximise operational impact.

Risk & Threat Management - Identify, assess, and manage responses to current, emerging, and evolving threats to the public, government, national security, and law & order. Ensure risks are proactively mitigated and managed in accordance with agency policies, legal frameworks and operational priorities.

Operational Delivery & Compliance - Deliver operational outcomes within a fast-paced and complex environment, ensuring adherence to Agency policy, standard operating procedures and relevant legislation.  Maintain oversight of operational activity to ensure lawful, ethical and secure execution at all times.

Intelligence Leadership & Oversight - Provide leadership and specialist guidance in relation to Intercept intelligence, ensuring effective coordination of activity. Promote and embed best practice in intelligence collection, exploitation and dissemination.

Performance & Quality Management - Allocate work across ICI Operations and monitor delivery to ensure outputs meet required standards for quality, accuracy and timeliness. Ensure all operations, outputs and projects align with strategic objectives and the NCA Control Strategy.

People Management & Capability Development - Ensure staff have the appropriate knowledge, skills, tools, and training to perform effectively. Manage performance, support professional development and build capability within the team.

Leadership & Culture - Lead by example to embed NCA values, culture, and professional standards within ICI Operations. Foster a collaborative, inclusive and high-performing team environment focused on operational excellence.

Experience of Handling Sensitive Intelligence - Significant experience working with sensitive intelligence material, applying appropriate handling, security and governance standards. Ability to lead and manage Intelligence Officers. and safeguard intelligence integrity.

Knowledge of Relevant UK Legislation - Sound working knowledge of UK legislation relevant to intelligence and law enforcement activity (e.g. Investigatory Powers Act 2016) to ensure legal compliance and maintain the Agency’s licence to operate.

Risk Management & Decision-Making - Demonstrates strong ability to prioritise competing demands, assess risk and make effective decisions in a fast-paced operational environment. Regularly reviews and adapts priorities in response to changing threats and pressures.

Communication - Communicates clearly, confidently, and professionally both verbally and in writing. Adapts communication style to influence and inform a wide range of stakeholders across all levels.

Relationship Management - Builds and maintains effective working relationships with internal and external stakeholders, influencing outcomes to support operational and organisational objectives.

Organisation & Planning - Effectively plans and manages workload, working to direction where required and ensuring delivery against deadlines and operational priorities.

IT Skills - Competent in the use of core IT systems, including Microsoft Office (Word and Excel), with the ability to manage and present information accurately.

You will join an on-call rota, currently 1 in 6 weeks, covering shifts of 06:30–14:00 or 14:00–22:00 (flexible), plus 1 in 6 weekends. Training and mentoring will be provided. Arrangements may change based on business needs.

Salary

Allowances are reviewed annually and may be increased, decreased or removed.
All salary offers will be made in line with Remuneration Policy. 
  • Roles based in London will receive an additional London Weighting (Per Annum) of £4,218
  • This role attracts a Special Duties Bonus Payment (SDBP) up to £1,400 (Per Annum)
This role attracts a SPOT Rate salary. SPOT Rate offers a progressive increase in pay to reflect the skills and experience of the officer.

Benefits

All NCA employees are members of the UK Civil Service and eligible for the Civil Service pension scheme, alongside your salary the NCA contributes £16,101. Further information on the benefits of the scheme is available on the Civil Service Pension Website.

New entrants to the NCA receive 26 days annual leave, rising to 31 on completion of 5 years continuous service, plus 8 bank holidays.  

If qualifying criteria is met new joiners from UK Police Forces or the UK Intelligence Community (UKIC) will have service with those employers taken into account for continuous service purposes for annual leave entitlement only, this will be up to a maximum of 31 days leave (including 1 privilege day).

Other benefits include:

  • Flexible working, including flexi-time, compressed hours and job sharing (in line with business requirements) 
  • Family friendly policies, notably above the statutory minimum
  • Learning and Development opportunities
  • Interest free loans and advances, including season tickets, childcare and rental deposits
  • Housing schemes - Key Worker status
  • Discounts and Savings with a wide variety of services including Cycle to Work, Smart Tech schemes, dental insurance, gym discounts and savings on everyday spending, available through the Reward Gateway | Edenred and Blue Light Card schemes.
  • Staff support groups/networks
  • Sports and social activities, including membership to the Civil Service Sports Council (CSSC) 

Further information is available on the NCA Website.

Selection Process Details

This vacancy is using the Success Profiles framework and will assess using the following criteria: Behaviours, Experience, Technical Skills 
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 for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

How we will assess you

Your application will be assessed against the following:
Technical - this will be assessed by 250 word examples on:
  • Makes effective, timely decisions by assessing risk and prioritising competing demands in a fast-paced operational environment, adapting approach as threats and pressures evolve. 
  • Demonstrates sound knowledge and understanding of relevant UK legislation (e.g. Investigatory Powers Act 2016), applying this effectively to ensure lawful decision-making, compliance, and the maintenance of the Agency’s licence to operate. 
  • Demonstrates significant experience of handling sensitive intelligence material, applying appropriate security, handling and governance standards to maintain integrity. Effectively leads and manages staff to ensure compliance, accuracy and the secure delivery of intelligence outcomes. 
Experience - This will be assessed:

CV

Please include your full career history, training, qualifications, key responsibilities, and achievements. Explain any employment gaps in the last two years. Ensure all accreditation dates are accurate.

Details of what is expected within your CV are as follows: Candidates are required to submit a CV as part of their application. Your CV must clearly demonstrate how your skills, knowledge, and experience meet the criteria outlined in the Person Specification for this role. Any gaps in employment or education over the past 5 years should be clearly explained within your CV. 

A panel will assess how well your application demonstrates the requirements outlined above.

Longlist

In the event of a high number of applications, we may operate a longlist. Applicants will need to meet the minimum pass mark for the lead criteria.

 - Makes effective, timely decisions by assessing risk and prioritising competing demands in a fast-paced operational environment, adapting approach as threats and pressures evolve. .

Candidates who do not meet the minimum pass mark for the lead criteria will not progress to having their other criteria assessed. Applications must meet the minimum criteria to be progressed to the assessment stage.

You will receive an acknowledgement once your application is submitted.

We aim to have sift completed and scores released within 10 working days of the closing date of the advert. For high volume campaigns this timeframe may be extended.

Scores will be provided but further feedback will not be available at this stage.

For guidance on the application process, visit: 
NCA Applying and Onboarding 

Assessment 1

The format of this assessment will be Interview which will be tested on the criteria listed in the Success Profiles at Assessment section.

Success Profiles at Assessment

Behaviours
  • Leadership 
  • Communicating and Influencing 
  • Making Effective Decisions 
Technical
  • Makes effective, timely decisions by assessing risk and prioritising competing demands in a fast-paced operational environment, adapting approach as threats and pressures evolve. 
  • Demonstrates sound knowledge and understanding of relevant UK legislation (e.g. Investigatory Powers Act 2016), applying this effectively to ensure lawful decision-making, compliance, and the maintenance of the Agency’s licence to operate. 
  • Demonstrates significant experience of handling sensitive intelligence material, applying appropriate security, handling and governance standards to maintain integrity. Effectively leads and manages staff to ensure compliance, accuracy and the secure delivery of intelligence outcomes. 
Assessment Outcome
Outcomes will be communicated via the NCA recruitment portal. 
If successful but no role is immediately available, you may be placed on a reserve list for 12 months. 
Reserve lists can be used to fill similar role types across the Agency where the assessment criteria is considered a match by the recruitment team and the business area.

In the event of a tie at the assessment stage, available roles will be offered in merit order using the following order: 

  1. Lead criteria (behaviours/technical/experience)
  2. If still tied, desirable criteria will be assessed (if advertised) 
  3. If still tied, application sift scores will be used
Feedback is provided only to those who attend an assessment.
You will be subject to vetting and pre-employment checks before appointment.
Once the vacancy closes, the advert will no longer be accessible. Please save a copy for your records. 
We encourage all candidates to visit the NCA Careers Page for more information.

Eligibility, Pre-Employment Check and Vetting

Please see the NCA T&Cs and Privacy Policy (pdf) for details on how your data is handled. 
If you are an internal candidate who has passed interview but is undergoing an internal investigation or have a written warning in place preventing a post move you may not be able to be posted until this investigation is concluded or restriction lifted.

Nationality Requirements

This role is broadly open to the following groups:
• UK nationals or dual nationals, where one component is British
Further information on nationality requirements
You will be required to participate in digital right to work and address checks as part of the recruitment process.

Security and Vetting

People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard checks.
Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is SC Enhanced. All security clearances will be managed by the NCA.
For more information on security vetting please visit: UK Security Vetting guidance for applicants and Demystifying Vetting and see our vetting charter at: The Vetting Charter.

Vetting requirements - SC Enhanced

Prior to commencing the role, you will need to successfully complete SC Enhanced clearance and then achieve both DV Enhanced and DV STRAP clearance within the first 12 months in post. 
The requirement for SC clearance is to have been present in the UK for at least 3 of the last 5 years.
The requirement for DV Enhanced clearance is to have been present in the UK for at least 7 of the last 10 years.
To obtain DV STRAP you must be willing to undergo STRAP induction and must hold full UK nationality or dual nationality, where one component is British. Applications will be considered on a case by case basis.
Failure to meet the residency requirements will result in your security clearance application being rejected.
If the increased clearance cannot be obtained you will be moved to a role appropriate to your clearance level achieved on entry. 
For further information on National Security Vetting checks please visit the following page Demystifying Vetting
Individuals will be required to undertake and pass a substance misuse test as part of pre-employment checks.

Occupational Health

Successful candidates will be expected to undertake an occupational health assessment. Depending on the role an in-person medical may be required in either London or Warrington. Unfortunately, travel costs will not be reimbursed.

Things you need to know

Multi Location

Where multiple locations are advertised, appointments will be made in merit order for each location.

Please indicate up to three location preferences clearly. Only your first three preferences will be considered. You may be allocated to any of the locations you select. If you decline an offer for a location you have selected as a preference, a further offer may not be made.

If you choose to reject an offer and no alternative preferred location can be offered, you will not be able to return to the process or be placed on a reserve list.

Only the advertised locations are available; any additional notes added to the application will not be taken into account.

Near Miss

If you meet the criteria for a lower grade, you may be offered that role if not appointable at the advertised grade.

Conversely, if found appointable at a higher grade but no posts are available, you may be offered a lower-grade role.

All offers are made based on merit.

Hybrid Working

The NCA supports hybrid working. The extent of remote working will depend on the role and can be discussed at the offer stage.

Reasonable Adjustments

We’re proud to be a Disability Confident Leader and an inclusive, equal opportunities employer. 

We’re committed to creating a workplace where everyone can be their authentic self. If you’re neurodiverse, have a disability, or live with a long-term health condition, we encourage you to let us know about any reasonable adjustments you may need during the recruitment process. 

If you experience accessibility issues with the advert or require reasonable adjustments, please contact our Recruitment Team at Central.Recruitment@nca.gov.uk before the advert closing date.

Please ensure you complete the ‘Equal opportunities’ and 'Reasonable Adjustments' sections in the application form to inform us on what support you may need in the recruitment process.

For more on our Disability Confident commitment, visit Disability Confident Scheme | Civil Service Careers.  

Visit NCA Benefits and Support for more details. 

Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy

In order to monitor the effectiveness of the National Crime Agency's Diversity & Inclusion strategy, we require certain personal details about you on submission of your application for statistical and monitoring purposes only. Please note that this will be treated in confidence and will not impact your application.

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans initiative.

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit on merit through fair and open competition, in line with the Civil Service Commission's Recruitment Principles.

The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

If you believe your application has not been treated fairly, email: Central.Recruitment@nca.gov.uk (quoting the vacancy reference). 
If unresolved, you may escalate your complaint to the Civil Service Commission. 

Working for the NCA

The National Crime Agency is a 24/7 organisation, and working patterns must support business requirements. Some roles may require you to respond at short notice or outside of core hours.
If preferable, alternative contract types may be available. Please review the green bar of this advert to view all available contract types for this role. Where Loan or Secondment options are available, these would be for existing Civil Servants (Loan) and applicants from accredited Non-Departmental Public Bodies (NDPBs) or any other employer (Secondment). Prior agreement to be released on a loan basis must be obtained before commencing the application process. In the case of Civil Servants, the terms of the loan will be agreed between the home and host department and the Civil Servant. This includes grade on return.
If you have any specific queries about the role that are not covered by the advert, please contact:

Name : Central Recruitment Team
Email : Central.Recruitment@nca.gov.uk

Attachments


NCA T&Cs and Privacy Policy (pdf)