Change & Transformation Lead

Get AI-powered advice on this job and more exclusive features. Company Description Version 1 has celebrated over 28 years in Technology Services and continues to be trusted by global brands to deliver solutions that drive customer success. Our expertise enables our customers to navigate the rapidly changing Digital-First world we live in. We foster strong partnerships with leading technology giants including Microsoft, AWS, Oracle, Red Hat, OutSystems, Snowflake, ensuring that our customers are provided with the highest quality solutions and services. We’re an award‑winning employer reflecting how our employees are at the very heart of Version 1 and what we do. UK & Ireland's premier AWS, Microsoft & Oracle partner 3,300+ strong, €350/£300m revenue business 10+ years as a Great Place to Work in Ireland & UK Best Workplace for Women in the UK & Ireland by GPTW Best Workplace for Wellbeing in the UK by GPTW Job Description We're looking for an exceptional Change & Transformation Lead to establish and grow our change and transformation capability. This is a pivotal role that combines hands‑on client delivery with capability building, business development, and practice leadership. You'll be instrumental in shaping how Version 1 delivers change and transformation consulting whilst building a thriving community of practice. As our Change & Transformation Lead, you'll balance multiple responsibilities: delivering high‑impact change programmes with clients, identifying and shaping new opportunities, providing delivery assurance to consultants across engagements, and building the foundations of our change practice—from knowledge assets to community rituals. You'll work across the full change lifecycle, from understanding current state through to embedding lasting transformation, whilst mentoring others and establishing Version 1 as a trusted partner for organisational change. This role is ideal for someone who thrives in a portfolio role—equally comfortable leading complex client transformations, pitching to prospective clients, reviewing delivery quality, and building practice infrastructure. You'll have significant autonomy to shape our change offering and will play a key role in scaling the team as demand grows. Change Management Expertise Extensive proven experience applying established change management methodologies such as ADKAR, PROSCI, Kotter's 8-Step Process, or Lean Change Management Assess organisational readiness for change, identify risks and barriers, and design tailored change strategies Highly skilled at stakeholder mapping and engagement—identifying change champions, resistors, and influencers across all levels of an organisation Design and deliver sophisticated change communications, training plans, and adoption strategies Understand how to measure change success through adoption metrics, behaviour change indicators, and cultural assessment Significant experience creating change impact assessments and transition plans Accomplished at coaching leaders and teams through transformation, building internal change capability Client Delivery Excellence Strong track record of leading complex change programmes from initiation through to embedding Skilled at rapidly assessing and mapping organisations—understanding structures, cultures, processes, and ways of working Facilitate discovery sessions to uncover pain points, blockers, and opportunities for transformation Facilitate high‑level collaborative workshops that bring together diverse stakeholders to define transformation goals Translate strategic ambitions into actionable change initiatives Design and implement change interventions—from capability building and process redesign to cultural change initiatives Adapt change approaches based on feedback and emerging insights Navigate difficult conversations and resistance at senior levels Business Development and Opportunity Shaping Identify change and transformation opportunities within existing client relationships Confident presenting to senior stakeholders and C‑suite executives about the value of change management Translate client challenges into compelling propositions and statements of work Contribute to bids, proposals, and pre‑sales activities Articulate the business case for change management investment Position change work alongside technical delivery Build trusted advisor relationships that lead to repeat business Delivery Assurance and Quality Review change plans, strategies, and deliverables to ensure quality and rigour Spot risks and issues in change delivery and provide constructive guidance Support consultants when they encounter blockers or challenges Know when to escalate concerns and how to do so constructively Provide coaching and mentoring to less experienced practitioners Comfortable having difficult conversations about delivery quality or approach Balance support with accountability Practice and Capability Building Experience building communities of practice, including facilitating sessions and creating engagement Develop knowledge assets such as frameworks, templates, playbooks, and case studies Capture and codify lessons learned from client work Design and deliver internal training and capability‑building sessions Establish practice standards, ways of working, and quality criteria Build relationships across the wider V1 community to integrate change expertise Enthusiastic about building something from the ground up Transformation Domains Support organisations to adopt new ways of working such as agile delivery, product management, or DevOps practices Deep understanding of organisational implications of digital transformation Experience with AI implementation programmes—including governance, policy adoption, capability building, and ethical considerations Assess how new products or services impact organisational structures, roles, and ways of working Deep knowledge of organisational resilience and adaptive organisational models Familiar with progressive organisational models (e.g., sociocracy, self‑management, or network‑based structures) and know when to apply them Systems Thinking and Multidisciplinary Collaboration Think strategically about interconnections and system‑wide impacts Work seamlessly with service designers, product managers, technologists, and other disciplines Visualise complex systems and change journeys through multiple formats Understand how organisational change connects to service delivery, technology implementation, and user experience Translate between different disciplinary languages and perspectives Communication and Influence Exceptional communication skills across all levels—from front‑line staff to board members Build compelling cases for change using evidence, storytelling, and data Highly skilled at influencing without authority and building coalitions for change Create change narratives that inspire and motivate Confident representing Version 1 at conferences, client events, and in thought leadership Leadership and Culture Lead by example, demonstrating the behaviours and mindsets you want to see in others Build psychological safety and create environments where people feel safe to challenge and contribute Committed to growing others and creating opportunities for development Balance commercial awareness with doing the right thing for clients and team Demonstrate the kindness, empathy, and curiosity that defines V1's culture Qualifications Worked on large‑scale digital transformation programmes Experience in pre‑sales, business development, or opportunity shaping Line management, mentoring, or practice leadership experience Hold PROSCI or similar change management certifications Desirable Experience Experience working to the GOV.UK Service Standard or within the public sector Experience with AI governance and implementation Built or scaled a consulting practice or community of practice Experience with agile coaching or organisational design Delivered training or developed learning curricula Additional Information What You'll Be Doing Client Delivery (40-50%) Lead complex change and transformation programmes with our clients Work across the full change lifecycle from assessment through to embedding Facilitate high‑level workshops and strategic planning sessions Coach client leaders through transformation Design and implement change strategies, communications, and adoption plans Opportunity Shaping and Pre‑sales (20-25%) Identify change and transformation opportunities within existing accounts Contribute to proposals, bids, and statements of work Present to prospective clients alongside account teams Develop compelling propositions that combine change with service and product delivery Build relationships with client decision‑makers Delivery Assurance (15-20%) Review change deliverables and approaches from consultants Provide coaching and support when consultants encounter challenges Conduct quality reviews of change plans and strategies Escalate risks and issues appropriately Support less experienced practitioners to develop their skills Practice Building (15-20%) Establish and facilitate the change and transformation community of practice Develop frameworks, templates, playbooks, and other knowledge assets Capture case studies and lessons learned from client work Design and deliver internal capability‑building sessions Build relationships across V1 to integrate change expertise Establish practice standards and ways of working Typical Projects Implementing agile ways of working: Leading change management for a government department transitioning from waterfall to agile product management, including designing governance changes and building internal capability AI adoption and governance: Shaping and delivering the change strategy for AI tool roll‑out in schools, including stakeholder engagement at ministerial level and developing adoption frameworks DevOps transformation: Supporting multiple public sector organisations to adopt DevOps practices, whilst building reusable change assets for similar transformations Digital service implementation: Providing delivery assurance on organisational change associated with new digital services, ensuring quality of stakeholder engagement and adoption planning Organisational resilience: Leading a programme to help local authorities build adaptive ways of working, including applying progressive organisational models Product management capability: Building product management maturity whilst developing a repeatable change approach for similar capability‑building programmes What We Can Offer Your Career A supportive culture and ways of working. We lead with kindness, empathy and curiosity. We believe good teams are built on trust, psychological safety and shared purpose. We’re committed to creating a no‑blame culture, where people support each other, take pride in their work, and lift each other up. We value strong team bonds just as much as strong outcomes. We’re building an environment where everyone feels safe, respected and valued—especially people from marginalised or underrepresented communities. We actively welcome diversity of background, identity, experience and thought. You’ll be supported to show up as yourself, contribute fully, and grow your career in a way that works for you. A unique opportunity to build something meaningful. This is a rare opportunity to shape a practice from the ground up within an established and growing consultancy. You'll have significant autonomy to define how we deliver change and transformation, what our offer looks like, and how we build our community. You'll work with talented colleagues across disciplines and have the backing of leadership to invest in building something that lasts. Seniority Level Mid‑Senior level Employment Type Full‑time Job Function Information Technology Industries IT Services and IT Consulting #J-18808-Ljbffr