Senior application operations engineer

Band 6 · Application operations engineer · 434 job evaluation points

UK GDaD PCF level: Senior application operations engineer

Most often performed at Civil Service grade HEO or SEO.

Dealing with more complex issues, a senior application operations engineer is responsible for code deployment and co-ordinating change-based activities, such as taking services live. Depending on the complexity and size of a project and the likely impact it will have on the business, you might manage and maintain certain aspects of an application.

Contains public sector information from the UK Government Digital and Data Profession Capability Framework (https://understand-digital-data-roles-skills.service.gov.uk/), licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. © Crown copyright.

Responsibilities

Deploy releases, patches, and configuration changes to live applications, following change and clinical safety procedures.
Coordinate the technical work to take new applications and major upgrades live, including cutover and rollback plans.
Investigate complex application faults with suppliers, infrastructure teams, and clinical system specialists.
Plan maintenance windows with clinical services, and make sure downtime procedures are ready.
Provide evidence for clinical safety cases, such as test and deployment records.
Act as an escalation point on the on-call rota for out-of-hours faults.

Skills

Skill	Expected level	What this level means
Asset and configuration managementUK GDaD PCF	Working (2)	You can: maintain secure configuration and accurate information control IT assets in one or more areas verify the location and state of IT assets
Availability and capacity managementUK GDaD PCF	Working (2)	You can: manage service components to ensure they meet business needs and key performance indicators (KPIs)
Change managementUK GDaD PCF	Working (2)	You can: analyse and assess the impact of change document change requests action changes from change requests
Continual service improvementUK GDaD PCF	Working (2)	You can: identify process optimisation opportunities with guidance, and contribute to the implementation of proposed solutions
Incident managementUK GDaD PCF	Working (2)	You can: diagnose and prioritise incidents, investigate their causes and find resolutions
Ownership and initiativeUK GDaD PCF	Working (2)	You can: own an issue until a new owner has been found or the problem has been mitigated or resolved
Problem managementUK GDaD PCF	Working (2)	You can: initiate and monitor actions to investigate patterns and trends to resolve problems effectively consult specialists where required determine the appropriate resolution and assist with its implementation determine preventative measures
Service focusUK GDaD PCF	Working (2)	You can: take inputs and establish coherent frameworks that work
Service management framework knowledgeUK GDaD PCF	Awareness (1)	You can: show you have a Level 3 service management framework qualification
Technical specialismUK GDaD PCF	Working (2)	You can: use management system software and tools use logical schemata to investigate problems, collect performance statistics and create reports carry out the routine configuration, installation and reconfiguration of database and related products optimise performance and forecast resource needs
Technical understandingUK GDaD PCF	Working (2)	You can: understand the core technical concepts related to the role, and apply them with guidance
TestingUK GDaD PCF	Working (2)	You can: review requirements and specifications, and define test conditions identify issues and risks associated with work analyse and report test activities and results
User focusUK GDaD PCF	Working (2)	You can: identify and engage with users or stakeholders to collate user needs evidence understand and define research that fits user needs use quantitative and qualitative data about users to turn user focus into outcomes
Understanding health and care servicesThis reference	Working (2)	You can: explain the clinical and care workflows your work supports use common health care terms correctly with clinical and care colleagues recognise when a change could affect patient care and raise it
Information governance and data protectionThis reference	Working (2)	You can: apply data protection principles to your work contribute to data protection impact assessments handle information requests and records correctly
Identity and access managementThis reference	Practitioner (3)	You can: design and run identity and access services review access regularly and fix problems
Clinical risk managementThis reference	Working (2)	You can: take part in hazard workshops and contribute to a hazard log follow the clinical risk management process for your work provide evidence for a clinical safety case, such as test results
Health data interoperabilityThis reference	Awareness (1)	You can: explain why interoperability matters for joined-up care name the main health data exchange standards, such as HL7 FHIR

Typical qualifications and experience

Substantial experience of supporting live applications, at a level equivalent to a degree.

Band 6 outline

Knowledge: Specialist knowledge across a range of procedures, built through further training or experience.
Autonomy: Works independently; interprets policy for own area; seeks advice on complex issues.
Scope: A product, service, or workstream.
Leadership: May lead a small team or mentor colleagues.
Accountability: Outcomes of own workstream and quality of advice given.

Job evaluation (illustrative)

Factor	Level	Level summary	Points
Communication and relationship skills	4	Gives complex, sensitive, or contentious information needing persuasion, negotiation, or training skills, or highly complex information.	32
Knowledge, training, and experience	6	Specialist knowledge across the range of the specialism (postgraduate diploma level or equivalent).	156
Analytical and judgemental skills	4	Judgements on complex facts or situations needing analysis, interpretation, and comparison of options.	42
Planning and organisational skills	3	Plans several complex activities, adjusting plans as needed.	27
Physical skills	3	Developed skills needing speed or accuracy, such as advanced keyboard use.	27
Responsibility for patient and client care	1	Helps patients, clients, or relatives during incidental contact.	4
Responsibility for policy and service development	3	Implements policies for own area and proposes changes that affect other areas.	21
Responsibility for financial and physical resources	2	Handles cash or valuables, looks after equipment used by others, controls stock, or authorises small payments.	12
Responsibility for people	2	Supervises or coordinates staff day to day, trains others regularly, or gives basic HR advice.	12
Responsibility for information resources	4	Adapts or designs information systems to others' specifications, or runs information systems for a department as the main duty.	24
Responsibility for research and development	2	Regularly does research, development, trials, or equipment and system testing as part of the job.	12
Freedom to act	4	Results are defined, but the job holder decides how to achieve them, within broad policy.	32
Physical effort	1	Sitting, standing, and walking, with little physical effort.	3
Mental effort	4	Frequent prolonged concentration, or occasional intense concentration.	18
Emotional effort	1	Rare exposure, or occasional indirect exposure, to distressing circumstances.	5
Working conditions	2	Occasional unpleasant conditions, frequent travel or outdoor work, or near-continuous screen use on most days.	7
Total (Band 6: 396 to 465)			434

Mental effort reflects frequent prolonged concentration during go-lives, deployments, and out-of-hours incidents.