Head of Change and Portfolio Management in Newport

As the Commission's Head of Change and Portfolio Management, you will be at the forefront of ensuring that the Commission is able to deliver its ambitious portfolio of programmes and projects, developed in line with its corporate business plan and strategic priorities to drive and deliver meaningful and impactful change. You will collaborate and engage closely with colleagues and key stakeholders to ensure that change is joined up and understood across the organisation, with delivery remaining on track and the business benefits being realised. This will support the Commission to become more effective and efficient, introducing a range of improvement such as improved systems, processes and ways of working, all contributing to making a significant difference to us and the sector we support.

You will be responsible for the management of the Commission's change portfolio through the provision of project management support and providing a single view of change. You will manage and enable a multifunctional team, providing expert and robust project and change management capabilities to support the delivery of the corporate business plan and overarching portfolio, including business analysis, continuous improvement of existing products/services, project/change management, planning and performance, and a portfolio management office (PMO).

You will collaborate with senior stakeholders to ensure that business benefits and objectives of change are clearly understood and articulated, with measures identified to track progress in delivering these objectives. You will establish a clear and holistic whole system change narrative connecting all change into one single, cohesive, and deliverable change plan visible to senior leaders. You will horizon scan to proactively spot risks to the change programme early and help in identifying mitigating actions to secure the best possible outcomes.

You will make sure interventions are in place to make sure that the change sticks, working in partnership with key stakeholders across the business, in particular People and Development, Internal Communications, and senior leaders, ensuring that messaging is consistent. This will include ensuring timescales are set out and mapped across the portfolio to identify and mitigate any capacity issues, monitoring and reporting on the delivery of business impacts and the progress of change, and ensuring diversity and inclusion underpins all projects and change.

Job description

Key Responsibilities:

• Decision making & autonomy. You will be accountable for making day to day decisions about projects to ensure that the change portfolio is delivered and embedded effectively. You will make recommendations about the best way to deliver and embed change, working with senior stakeholders to agree a collectively owned journey. You will also make recommendations to inform business planning and will make decisions about how best to prioritise the change portfolio to deliver the best results.
• Problem solving. You will be accountable for proactively spotting risks to the change portfolio early and identifying mitigating actions. You will make decisions about which risks require senior visibility and which can be managed locally. Investment requirements and dependencies including people, finance, estates, and IT requirements are clearly set out at the beginning or projects and are monitored throughout the project lifecycle, with any changes to requirements flagged and reassessed.
• Business impact. You will be critical in ensuring that the Commission is able to effectively deliver its change portfolio in line with its business plan and strategic priorities. You will ensure that change is joined up and understood across the organisation, with delivery remaining on track and the business benefits being realised.
• Management of resources (staff, finance). You will directly line manage approx. 10 PB5 (SEO) project and change management specialists, together with the team budget as appropriate.

Person specification

Ability:

• Drafting skills. You know how to assimilate information and translate it into a single joined up picture, articulating risks, issues, and dependencies clearly.
• Performance reporting. You will have an aptitude for data and reporting, able to identify key information to track progress and identify issues early.
• Stakeholder management (engagement). You will be confident in stakeholder management and engagement at all levels, with the ability to constructively surface challenges.
• Portfolio prioritisation. You will translate the business plan into deliverables and prioritising work accordingly, with the ability to deliver at pace. You will plan and prioritise competing demands to ensure performance targets and deadlines are met.
• Data analysis. You will research, investigate, and analyse facts and numerical data to inform and support effective decision making. Handling data and information sensitively in accordance with the business procedures and/or law.
• Problem solving. You will be able to solve problems and broker solutions that balance risk, confidently able to deal with ambiguity.
• Communication skills. You will have the ability to explain complex information, in a variety of media, including excellent written communications skills, and ensure that the recipient understands the information.

Experience:

• Managing portfolios. Experience of managing a diverse portfolio of programme and projects, understanding agile and waterfall project management techniques.
• Line management. Leadership at a senior level, role modelling the behaviours and ways of working expected of our people.
• Delivery business change. An understanding of change theory and practice and how to effectively deliver change.
• Change/project lifecycle. You will effectively manage the corporate change/project lifecycle and ensure compliance across the portfolio of change.
• Conflict resolution. You will maintain a professional approach when presented with a challenging discussion and provide a constructive and proportionate outcome also understanding the value of diversity & inclusion.
• Delivery methods. You will have an in-depth understanding of project management methodologies (agile and waterfall) and change management theories and practice.
• Risk management. Application of risk management principles during the management of work and when making decisions.
• Governance & assurance. You will implement and manage corporate governance and assurance to support the portfolio and align standards in the field of project delivery, portfolio, programme and project management.

Technical:

• PPM tools. Experience of various project portfolio management tools used to collect and analyse data to ensure that the portfolio is aligned with the overall strategic planning and goals of the organisation.
• Qualifications. A relevant portfolio, programme and/or project practitioner qualification and/or change management practitioner (PROSCI and/or similar).

Qualifications

A relevant portfolio, programme and/or project practitioner qualification and/or change management practitioner (PROSCI and/or similar).

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Making Effective Decisions
• Communicating and Influencing
• Working Together
• Delivering at Pace

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £56,764, Charity Commission contributes £15,326 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme.