Standards Lead

• About the Role
• What You'll Be Doing as a Standards Lead at UKTL

As a Standards Lead, you will play a pivotal role in representing UKTL's interests across UK, European, and international telecoms standards bodies, with a particular focus on security and resilience. This is a high-impact, internal and external-facing position that will establish UKTL as a credible and influential voice in the global telecoms standards community.

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead UKTL's representation in international standards forums, ensuring our perspectives on telecoms security and resilience are clearly articulated and effectively advocated.
• Build and maintain strategic relationships with UK government departments, telecoms vendors, operators, and other aligned organisations to foster coordinated standards interventions.
• Promote best practices in telecoms security and resilience, positioning UKTL as a thought leader in the standards ecosystem.
• Travel nationally and internationally to participate in high-level standards meetings, acting as the voice of UKTL and ensuring our interests are well represented.
• Report back to senior stakeholders with clear, contextualised insights from standards discussions—highlighting when and where strategic interventions are needed.
• Translate complex technical standards into actionable intelligence for stakeholders across UKTL and the wider UK telecoms landscape.
• Coordinate cross-organisational efforts to align UK positions and responses to emerging standards developments.

Successful Applicants must be able to commute to the UKTL offices in Birmingham at least twice a week
We strive to offer a great work life balance - if you are looking for full time, part time or flexible options, we will try to make this work where business possible. This will be dependent on the kind of role you do and part of the business you work in

About You- What You'll Bring:
- A strong background in telecoms and security, enabling you to understand and interpret technical standards with clarity and precision.
- The ability to communicate complex information effectively to both technical and non-technical audiences.
- Experience working with government, industry, and international bodies, ideally in a standards or policy-related capacity.
- A collaborative mindset and the confidence to lead UK-wide coordination efforts in response to evolving standards landscapes.
- Proven track record of success within the international telecoms standards community, demonstrating the ability to influence strategic direction and establish a strong sphere of influence.
- Actively participating in standards meetings and fostering effective collaboration with wide variety external origination
We actively recruit citizens of all backgrounds, but the nature of our work in this specific area means that nationality, residency and security requirements are more tightly defined than others. To work in this role, you will need to have an SC clearance with no restrictions, or you must have the ability to obtain an SC clearance.

About Us
The National Physical Laboratory (NPL) is a world-leading centre of excellence that provides cutting-edge measurement science, engineering and technology to underpin prosperity and quality of life in the UK.

NPL and DSIT have strong commitments to diversity and equality of opportunity, and welcome applications from candidates irrespective of their background, gender, race, sexual orientation, religion, or age, providing they meet the required criteria. Applications from women, disabled and black, Asian and minority ethnic candidates in particular are encouraged. All disabled candidates (as defined by the Equality Act 2010) who satisfy the minimum criteria for the role will be guaranteed an interview under the Disability Confident Scheme.

At NPL, we believe our success is a result of the diversity and talent of our people. We strive to nurture and respect individuals to ensure everyone feels valued by treating everyone on the basis of their own individual merits and abilities regardless of their own or perceived identity, as part of our commitment to diversity & inclusion, we hold memberships and accreditations to ensure we're creating an environment where all our colleagues feel supported and welcome, please see our Diversity & Inclusion page.

We are committed to the health and well-being of our employees. Flexible working and social activities are embedded in our culture to create a positive work-life balance, along with a broad range of benefits. Our values are at the heart of what we do, and they shape the way we interact, develop our people and celebrate success.

To ensure everyone has an equal chance, we're always willing to make reasonable adjustments to the recruitment process. If you would like to discuss, please contact us.