Programme & Continuous Improvement Manager

Innovative Service Group
£120-140,000 plus package

An outstanding opportunity to join one of the country’s most innovative business and consumer groups within a newly acquired business.

The business is a diverse B2B & B2C group, founded over 20yrs, ago but only recently converted into a formal ‘Group’ structure. The business has enjoyed a sustained period of growth, both organic and inorganic, and seen further sectoral and structural diversity through their acquisition strategy, all of which have created a positive environment that embraces and is excited by change. 

Their hunger remains high for further change and growth, including further acquisitions alongside a culture of continuous improvement. Equally exciting is the culture they have created within the business – a near perfect blend of commercial objectivity married to a hugely people-centric culture the likes of which I have never encountered before.

A key element in the maximisation of the group’s success is the appointment of an experienced Programme Manager to oversee key projects and take responsibility for driving an optimum continuous improvement strategy.

Integration, collaboration and engagement sits at the core of this Group. This is a business that is working well and enjoys the benefits continuous improvement initiatives bring, but further developing and enhancing the CI strategy within the group, maximising both commercial and operational synergies as well as operating within the group’s core values are critical to future success.

The group has long differented themselves by remaining totally independent and providing bespoke solutions through numerous highly qualified and focussed teams to provide swift solutions and resolutions, whilst creating maximum value for their client & consumer bases underpinned by highly principled humility and passion for what they do. This business will thrive with such a mindset; attaining it will be key.

The group has also built a hugely strong human-focus internally (and externally), creating an upbeat, friendly, innovative, and fast-paced environment with, market-leading opportunity for advancement. 

This is an energised and innovative culture, which every employee works diligently to foster and continually improve. They are an opportunistic growth company that seeks to deliver long-term prosperity to all employees. Their recent growth & acquisition strategy is yet another step along that exciting path.

Their innovative core services have won them significant recognition and an enviable client list within highly regulated environments as well as huge respect amongst their consumer base but all with an underlying reputation for objectivity; this will be an exciting environment to be in.

The Programme Manager will be a collaborative role focussed on the co-ordination and delivery of key projects as well as a strategic leadership role in designing and leading future projects with a primary focus on results and co-ordinated results from within the business, from the Group Senior Leadership Team down to the ‘coal-face’ of operations.

The appointee will initially be tasked with picking up various projects and tasks ensuring full understanding, Group-wide buy-in and agreement on current objectives and the delivery thereof.

The Programme Manager will be delivering strategic & operational projects to meet all business objectives with an understanding of its current and aspirational commitments. They will support a breadth of deliverables and initiatives ranging from commercial to operational, stretching across a large number of strategies and portfolios. They will be responsible for the delivery of projects end to end, ensuring that projects are delivered on time, maximising project benefits whilst protecting internal and external stakeholder experiences.

The role will also perform a de-facto strategic leadership function and requires a creative and strategic thinker but one with a delivery mindset. The appointee will be a ‘do-er’, someone who can think of the bigger picture, someone who is not only prepared to roll up their sleeves to get the job done, but will actively enjoy doing so.

The successful candidate will demonstrably be a team player, and influencer and a collaborator with a can-do attitude and the ability to work across all aspects of the business, delivering effective delivery-focused strategies in a fast-paced environment. 

Requirements 

• Create and manage the end-to-end delivery of the existing and future Programme plan
• Continuous and regular forecasting, estimating and effective management of uncertainty and risk
• Keeping the programmes & projects on track and aligned with group objectives
• Leadership of/influence over multiple projects and workstreams, driving delivery to plans
• Work alongside the Group SLT, proactively identifying improvements; driving adoption of new initiatives, achieving more efficient ways of working

Responsibilities

• Establishing and anchoring the delivery of all projects, facilitating the journey from objective to successful delivery
• Managing/overseeing all activities to deliver the programmes to agreed parameters 
• Delivering projects within the programme sto an agreed scope and schedule with an acceptable risk profile where relevant, and aligned with appropriate transformation frameworks 
• Managing delivery activities which include engaging stakeholders, internal (and where relevant external), in the change effort and ensuring they ready to adopt the coming changes 
• Measuring and reporting change progress, assessing business readiness and supporting change adoption 
• Identifying behaviours needed to enable change to enable the preparedness of individual leaders and project managers to lead the change, facilitating and ensuring alignment of project objectives across the business
• Ensuring that all relevant programme governance is adhered to and that all project documentation is current, relevant and correct

As with all appointment in this highly people-centric business, candidate profile and chemistry fit is critical. Working within a fast-paced, innovative, entrepreneurial environment, attitude is as important as experience. The person is everything. This Programme Manager will be a central role and will therefore have a critical hand on the tiller of this continuing journey of success. The gravity of that success is all about having the right attitude, underpinned with demonstrable experience.

Suitable candidates will already be high achieving project/programme specialists. They will likely have held a number of project management roles with some exposure to continuous improvements as well as structural change, organisational development and integration/transformation, but this may be their first true overall programme management role. They will however already possess a track record of personal success and the ability to run multiple projects concurrently.

The appointee will possess a strong ethos in delivery through engagement, collaboration, strategic planning, an innovative approach, ideation and a ‘do’ not ‘think’ mindset.

They should embrace, and be able to demonstrate the Group’s Core Values:

• Courage
• Balance
• Empathy
• Openness

Skills & Experience Required:

• Solid programme/project management experience with evidence of end to end delivery
• Influencing / networking – developing internal and external business relationships and using own knowledge, skills and experience to influence others’ opinions and actions 
• Professional communications – making oneself understood, sharing information, listening to and encouraging others to get involved 
• Ability to juggle priorities, multi-task and flawlessly execute at speed
• Ability to demonstrate extensive stakeholder management, communication and presentation skills, with solid and influential personal credibility 
• Demonstrable record of managing projects effectively and delivering within time & budget constraints 
• Analysis, creativity and innovation – able to conceive original and practical solutions to complex and business critical problems. 
• Understand at a high level the interface between complex business needs and the complex legal and regulatory environment in which the business operates
• Knowledge of techniques used for planning, monitoring and controlling Programmes, development of roadmaps and symbiotic resource forecast. 
• Contract management skills.
• Line and matrix-management across multi-disciplinary, cross-functional teams.
• Strong interpersonal, management, leadership and communication skills – Including written, oral and presenting.
• Professional qualifications in Programme or Project management would be an advantage – MSP, PRINCE 2, APM etc.

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