Business Planning Strategy Lead

**Business Planning Strategy Lead - (Inside IR35)**

**Contract Term: 6 Months**

**Contracting Authority: Department for Transport**

**Location: Hybrid - up to 3 days a week in either the London, Birmingham or Leeds offices / Remote Working**

**This role sits in the Coordination and Planning (CAP) team within the Strategy and Planning directorate of Passenger Services. The CAP team is responsible for coordinating the business planning process for train operators, ensuring fit between individual operator plans, Department and industry policies and strategies, the contractual basis and incentives for rail operators, and the industry financial settlement the Department agrees with HMT.**

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**As a Business Planning Strategy Lead**your main responsibilities will be**
- Developing and setting the medium term (1-5 year) strategy for operator Business Planning to allow for more effective strategic planning and to ensure the planning approach is driving the right industry behaviours.
- Managing strategic advisors to deliver a report summarising the post pandemic role of rail and options to improve overall financial sustainability and use this output to shape strategy development and its implementation through the annual business planning process.
- Overseeing the development of 5-year plans for each train operator aligned with the output of the strategy, with a core objective being financial sustainability.
- Managing technical advisor support to strategy development, including the production of Profit & Loss modelling by operator.
- Providing input to the annual business planning (“ABP”) activities run by the Department, including contributing to the RfBP going to the operators and ensuring fit with the medium-term strategy for Operator Business Planning as well as other strategies under development within the Department and across the rail industry.
- Identifying and maintain interfaces across the Department and wider government, to ensure alignment on key strategic policy areas with other areas of work, especially around contract development, the Long Term Strategy for Rail, and other industry (and non-rail) planning activities.
- Chairing working groups and steering groups to gather input into strategy development from policy experts and brief senior colleagues on direction of travel.
- Manage the working relationship with external stakeholders including Network Rail GBRTT, train operating companies and their owning groups in relation to business planning strategy development.
- Producing guidance notes, decision papers and presentations to internal and external governance boards, and briefings for senior leaders and Ministers

**Essential Skills**
- Experience of developing and delivering strategies and plans, with a particular emphasis on ensuring deliverability of strategies.
- Knowledge of the railway’s commercial and operational environment, including the contractual business planning and budgeting arrangements for the industry
- Extensive stakeholder engagement at all levels both external and Internal
- Commercial management skillset within the rail sector
- Strong self starter
- Excellent communication skills

**Should you require reasonable adjustments at any point during the recruitment process or if there is a more accessible way for us to communicate, please do let me know.**

**If you consider yourself to have a disability or if you are a veteran, and you meet the essential criteria for the role, PSR provides a ‘Guaranteed Interview’ scheme whereby you will have the opportunity to discuss this role and your suitability with a member of our PSR Sourcing team.**

***- Please be aware that this role can only be worked within the UK and not Overseas._