Project Manager

We recognise the challenges that people with protected characteristics may experience on the job market and in their career progression. We are fully committed to being an inclusive employer and ensuring equal opportunities. We are keen to make our workforce as diverse as possible, and we hope to attract applications from underrepresented groups, including ethnic minorities, people with a disability, and people with gender diverse identities.
Do you enjoy working with a range of stakeholders?
Would you relish the opportunity to put into practice your project management skills on one of the UK Government’s largest transformation programmes, to drastically improve the railways?
If so, we would love to hear from you!, The Rail Sector Transformation Programme (RSTP) is one of the largest transformation programmes in government and is part of the Government Major Projects Portfolio (GMPP). This role is based in the RSTP Programme Management Office (PMO) working to the RSTP Head of PMO. The RSTP PMO provides support to the RSTP Programme Director and to the programmes Senior Responsible Owner.
We are seeking an experienced project delivery professional to lead on a range of key activities including, planning, assurance and risk management, that will involve regular working with senior stakeholders across the Department and wider civil service. You will also work collaboratively with colleagues in your own division, project delivery teams across the Department, and with GBR.
The work will be high-profile, complex, and fast-paced. This is a fantastic opportunity to be part of a team where you will have scope to visibly impact and input into the delivery of a major transformation programme that will fundamentally reshape the rail industry on a scale not seen for a generation.
Responsibilities
You will:
+ Have an oversight of the day-to-day delivery of project milestones and products. This will include working closely with project leads including at SCS level and with the programmes planning function.
+ Support the development and management of the end-to-end Programme Plan, identifying and managing delivery of key phases, milestones, outputs, workstreams and interdependencies.
+ Develop and maintain the programmes Integrated Assurance and Approvals Plan (IAAP) as part of the GMPP reporting process.
+ Managing project deliverables and reporting progress to the Head of PMO and other relevant audiences including though relevant governance.
For full details see role profile.
If you would like to find out more about what it's like to work at DfT Rail, please click here., You will have the option to be based in Leeds or Birmingham attracting the National salary. Occasional travel to our London office will be required for key meetings and team events.
A minimum 60% of your working time should be spent at your principal workplace, although requirements to attend other locations for official business, or carry out detached duty in another DfT workplace, will also count towards this level of attendance. Occasional travel to other DfT offices will be required., + Managed several projects of medium complexity or large scale. May have been in a specialist or work-strand lead role within a large-scale project, in a fast paced and complex environment.
+ Engaged with internal/external stakeholders to develop plans at both project and programme level, including the baselining of plans and the development of a critical path.
+ Worked collaboratively with a diverse range of stakeholders to achieve commitment to shared goals in a changing environment.
+ Experience of working on a GMPP programme including a good understanding of assurance and approvals processes.
The sift is due to take place from 02 January 2025.
Interviews/assessments are likely to be held from week commencing 13 January 2025.
We will try to meet the dates set out in the advert. There may be occasions when these dates will change. You will be provided with sufficient notice of the confirmed dates.
The selection process will be designed specifically for the role. As a result, your assessment will include:
+ an interview.
This interview could be conducted online via Teams or face to face at one of our offices (for personal circumstances or reasonable adjustments). Further details will be provided to you should you be selected for interview.
You’re encouraged to become familiar with the role profile, as you may be assessed against any of the criteria recorded within.
The Department for Transport alongside other Government Departments recruit using Success Profiles. This means for each role we consider what you will need to demonstrate in order to be successful. This gives us the best possible chance of finding the right person for the job, drives up performance and improves diversity and inclusivity.
For further information on Success Profiles visit our Careers website.
Reasonable Adjustments
As a Disability Confident Leader employer, we are committed to ensuring that the recruitment process is fair, accessible and allows all candidates to perform at their best. If a person with a visible or non-visible disability is substantially disadvantaged, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes., Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty had their employment continued. Any applicant’s details held on the IFD will be refused employment.
A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5-year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government.
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security
Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.
People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements
This job is broadly open to the following groups:
+ UK nationals
+ nationals of the Republic of Ireland
+ nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
+ nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
+ nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
+ individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
+ Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service
Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service
The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.
We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).
The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.
The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Diversity and Inclusion
The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

Apply and further information
This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative.
The Civil Service welcomes applications from people who have recently left prison or have an unspent conviction. Read more about prison leaver recruitment (opens in new window).
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We are looking for a highly capable project management professional with excellent interpersonal skills and experience of working at pace whilst ensuring a high level of quality. You should have recent experience of both project and programme planning, be a confident communicator and are comfortable working with and building relationships with a diverse range of partners and team members at all levels, including senior staff.
You will be someone with strong personal impact who can look beyond the norm and see the bigger picture, who has a strategic approach to make effective decisions and present strong recommendations in a timely manner outlining the consideration of other options, costs, benefits and risks.
Ideally, you have previous experience of working on a Government Major Projects Portfolio (GMPP) programme or project in a PMO or transformation programme environment.
You will hold at least one typical qualification and/or professional memberships such as PRINCE2 Practitioner, APM Project Management Qualification (PMQ), PMI Project Management Professional (PMP), APM Project Professional Qualification (PPQ), APM Chartered Project Professional (ChPP), full membership MAPM or Project Leadership Programme (PLP) or equivalent.
Experience of project planning software such as Microsoft Project or P6 is desirable but not essential., You will hold at least one typical qualification and/or professional memberships such as PRINCE2 Practitioner, APM Project Management Qualification (PMQ), PMI Project Management Professional (PMP), APM Project Professional Qualification (PPQ), APM Chartered Project Professional (ChPP), full membership MAPM or Project Leadership Programme (PLP) or equivalent., We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
+ Seeing the Big Picture
+ Making Effective Decisions

Technical skills
We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:
+ The technical competencies under Project Delivery Capability Framework
+ Planning
+ Assurance

The Government has committed to overhauling the railways in Great Britain, putting passengers at the heart of the service by bringing passenger services into public ownership as existing contracts expire. Great British Railways (GBR) will deliver a unified system that focuses on reliable, affordable, high-quality, and efficient services; along with ensuring safety and accessibility.

Alongside your salary of £54,857, Department for Transport contributes £15,892 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.
Being part of our brilliant Civil Service means you will have access to a wide range of fantastic benefits. We offer generous annual leave, attractive pension options, flexible working, inclusive working environments and much more to support a healthy work/life balance.
Find out more about what it's like working at the Department for Transport.