Key Business Areas

About us > Key Business Areas

SIB is currently organised into five business lines within a flat organisational structure, all reporting to the Chief Executive. Colleagues work in small teams within these business lines, or as individuals embedded within our partner organisations. Examples of the functional areas within each of these business lines are summarised below.

SIB’s model is primarily demand-led. There is no statutory requirement for any public sector organisation in Northern Ireland to use our services, and so the growth of business is led by the entrepreneurial activity of SIB’s colleagues.

STRATEGIC ADVICE

  • Investment Strategy Northern Ireland (ISNI)– responsible on behalf of Ministers for creating a draft ISNI in collaboration with The Executive Office, Department of Finance and spending departments.
  • Strategic Advisers– provide professional skills on infrastructure procurement and delivery with the objective of getting best value for the public purse
  • Residential Building Safety -DfC -Leading in the development of new residential building safety legislation.
  • Strategic Support Unit (SSU)– supports programme and project assessment, business case development and technical analysis.
  • Small Business Research Initiative (SBRI) Unit– tailored support to accelerate research and development and stimulate innovation using challenge-based Pre-Commercial Procurement.

PHYSICAL INFRASTRUCTURE

  • Project Directors and Managers – for regionally and sub-regionally significant construction, and other physical infrastructure projects.
  • Council Support Unit (CSU)– supports local councils in areas such as sport and leisure, regeneration, waste management, asset management.
  • Regional Stadia Programme including Casement Park.

SOCIAL INFRASTRUCTURE

  • Social Value Unit– improves social return on public sector procurement and investment.
  • Urban Villages Initiative– delivers community-led, cross-cutting capital projects
  • Ending Violence Against Women and Girls (EVAWG) – The NI Executive’s cross-cutting strategy to reduce violence, abuse and harm.
  • Tackling Paramilitarism– designed to tackle all aspects of paramilitary activity, associated criminality and organised crime.

DIGITIAL INFRASTRUCTURE

  • Data analytics and Data science – supports the Public Health Authority and Department of Health by improving their use of data.
  • Digitisation – helps partner organisations improve their performance by using digital technology.
  • System dynamics – helps partner organisations make better decisions through the analysis of complex systems.
  • Digital projects and programmes – the provision of senior leaders for major IT projects and programmes.

CORPORATE SERVICES

Our Corporate Services team is comprised of staff working in Finance, Human Resources, Information & Compliance, Legal and Strategic Communications.

  • Finance: provides input into the whole of government accounts processes including providing professional accounting services; ensuring financial compliance and controls; managing SIB finances in line with statutory obligations; developing financial systems, policies, and procedures; oversight of the accounting functions; and supporting various Committees and Boards.
  • Human Resources: covers the full remit of HR management including, equality, employee relations, recruitment and selection, employee well-being and benefits, and learning and development.
  • Information Management and Compliance: manages all records within the organisation including the day-to-day management of the Content Management System. They ensure compliance to legal and statutory obligations by providing support and guidance around FOI/EIR/SAR/AQ requests, information risk management, cybersecurity and data protection.
  • Legal: SIB legal team provides advice on a wide range of legal matters arising in relation to SIB supported projects and programmes, including procurement, public law and contractual matters.
  • Strategic Communications: supports SIB corporate communications as well as a range of SIB projects and programmes including ISNI. The communications team also provide strategic communications advice and support to key programmes across the NI public sector in both central and local government, and ALBs.