One of the government agencies most familiar to citizens is seeking a new CEO to take over from the outgoing Julie Lennard and take on the organisation’s tech reform programme

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency has launched its recruitment drive for a new chief executive to replace Julie Lennard, who is departing this month.

The Department for Transport-sponsored agency is offering a salary of £135,000 for the Swansea-based role, a cornerstone of which will be driving the agency “to fully complete our digital transformation and prepare us for fundamental changes in the motoring environment”.

Lennard, who has been the DVLA’s chief since 2018, is leaving to join the Crown Prosecution Service as its chief operating officer on 25 November.

The job advert says the agency is looking for an “outstanding, inspiring” senior leader with experience operating either as a chief exec or a senior executive in a large, complex delivery organisation.

It says the chief exec will be asked to provide leadership to support the DVLA to continue support further transformation that for an organisation that is already a “leader in UK government for providing modern, flexible, digital services”.

The chief exec leads a workforce of more than 6,000 people, most of whom are based in Swansea, but the DVLA also has offices in Birmingham.

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Candidates should have experience of shaping an organisation, leading high-performing teams, and developing a motivated and engaged staff team, as well as a strong commitment to diversity and inclusion, the advert says.

They should also be “strategic and commercial” and be able to “drive what good looks like in delivery”, it states, adding that “people leadership should be at the heart” of their skillset.

In a video explaining the role, David Jones, chair of DVLA’s board, said: “Most importantly, the workforce, our colleagues and staff are some of the best that I’ve ever worked with across the public sector. There is a real family culture that exists within the organisation, embedded in its community, and I know that any incoming chief executive is going to want to maintain that.”

The role has a minimum assignment duration of three years. Applications are open until 11.55pm on 13 November, and the process is being run by recruitment firm Gatenby Sanderson.