A salary of up to £400,000 plus bonuses is on offer for the Ministry of Defence’s new national armament director role.
The new NAD position is responsible for ensuring the armed forces are properly equipped to defend Britain, building up the British defence industry and cracking down on waste.
It is part of the MoD's new leadership "quad", alongside the permanent secretary, chief of defence staff and chief of defence nuclear.
Defence Equipment and Support chief executive Andy Start has taken on the role on an interim basis while the recruitment process, which is being run by global consultancy firm Korn Ferry, takes place.
The just-published job advert for the permanent postholder sets out a salary of between £290,000 and £400,000, plus an annual bonus of up to 60% of the salary, which means the total pay package could be as high as £640,000.
That is the same as the amount received by Mark Thurston, the highest paid civil servant in 2022, the last year data has been released on the high earning officials. The then-HS2 chief’s £640,000 salary included pay in lieu of pension. The NAD role includes a civil service pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%.
Defence secretary John Healey described the role last month as being like running "a new FTSE 100 company within the MoD tasked...with getting the very best capabilities needed into the hands of our frontline forces".
While the salary could be one of the highest in government, it is dwarfed by FTSE 100 chief execs, who earn around £4.2m on average per year.
The job ad says the successful candidate will be tasked with “widening the UK’s defence ecosystem and driving international collaboration” following last month's announcement that defence spending will increase to 2.5% of GDP by 2027.
Their “overriding objective” will be to ensure that the UK’s manufacturing base can provide the UK’s armed forces with the capability, resources and capacity required to meet any future challenge.
Responsibilities will include shaping and delivering the defence industrial strategy, leading acquisition reform, and cutting waste and duplication by harmonising procurement.
The NAD will be asked to work closely with wider government, industry, academia and international partners. They will be accountable to the defence secretary.
In a foreword to the job pack for the role, Healey said the role is a key part of the government's manifesto commitment to create "a strong defence centre capable of leading Britain in meeting the increasing threats we face".
A key objective for the role will be to build a centre that can secure better value for money and better outcomes for the armed forces, he said.
"To succeed in this role, you will be an exceptional leader with experience of transforming the performance and culture of a large organisation, visibly leading significant change, with clear emphasis on outcomes," Healey added.
The defence secretray said the successful candidate will also need to have the ability to secure the confidence of ministers and chief executives, manage complex relationships, and build strong collaborative partnerships across government, and with international partners.
The advert also says the successful candidate will need demonstrate “deep understanding” of relevant industry, operational efficiency and commercial constructs, with a strong network at the highest levels of industry and government.
Other requirements for the role include confident commercial, financial and operational abilities, and a track record of managing large budgets and driving innovation.
Healey said the department is looking for applications from “a wide range of backgrounds and with different experiences and perspectives”.
In a speech outlining his defence reform plans last month, Healey said the department would have an interim NAD in post by the end of March.
The closing date for applications for the London-based role, which offers flexible working arrangements, is midnight on Monday, 14 April. Interviews are planned to start at the beginning of June.