Lead Planning and Scheduling Manager

Salary: £57,000 - £67,000 depending on skills and experience

This role is an exciting opportunity to lead and develop an existing team within our Customer Hub team whilst improving employee cross- skilling and standardising internal processes.

As the Lead Planning and Scheduling Manager you will work towards a target to deliver and lead a team which service, plan and schedule all areas of the business within an aligned data rich control style environment utilising real time data and work integration to maximise productivity and aid customer service, streetworks performance/compliance and incident response ensuring that we have clear line of sight on all operational activities across our network whilst ensuring business targets and outputs are met.

You will influence internal governance and share/apply industry best practice across such workstreams as leakage repair and maintenance, new connections, metering and an increasing number of renewals, enhancements, and regulatory planning and scheduling workstreams.

Day to day you’ll be…

• Lead a team of multi skilled planning managers and other planning professionals to deliver the plan and to determine annual access strategies that minimise the disruptive impact on customers, delivering access planning to time, quality and cost.
• Manage the delivery of the end-to-end process encompassing all functional units within the business.
• Lead and direct the Planning, Scheduling and Streetworks functions.
• Lead and manage the necessary governance, processes, and control to effectively deliver the plan.
• Direct and support the planning, implementation and delivery of the Customer Hub and other customer focussed strategies to successfully implement business aspirations for increased productivity through identifying. opportunities to minimise access disruption, maximise customer satisfaction and value.
• Direct the management of all aspects of the Planning & Scheduling team budget and produce efficiencies through improved processes and novel delivery of work activities.
• Lead the coordination of workbanks throughout the planning teams.
• Act as the focal point for all planning in the short, medium and long term across the business.
• Develop and deliver initiatives to improve the integrated planning process.
• To provide a matrix of support services to other operational areas of the business in line with any agreed service level agreements (SLA’s) and maximising both operational performance and the customer experience.
• To work with our delivery partners and other external suppliers to ensure that work is managed, controlled, planned and scheduled for the optimum price, efficiency and service delivery.
• To ensure that our delivery partners and other external suppliers are delivering to the contract specification in relation to planning and scheduling interfaces.
• To oversee capacity management and technical job planning with Network Operations, optimising schedules to maximise utilisation and responding to urgent requirements and emergencies.
• Overseeing the effective planning and management of street work requirements including the securing of appropriate permits and prevention of fines.
• To co-operate with the company to ensure it meets all statutory health and safety compliance requirements and to promote a best practice culture with respect to health, safety and the environment to ensure that all reasonable steps are taken to ensure personal health and safety and that of others.

What we’re looking for...

• Previous background working in planning and scheduling.
• Project management experience, particularly of complex projects.
• Previous financial/budgetary accountability – commercial acumen.
• Strong stakeholder management.
• Previous experience of managing professionals and/or other managers.     
• Ability to lead and motivate a team.
• Excellent customer service and communication skills.
• Influencing and negotiation skills.
• Highly numerate with competent IT skills.
• Ability to analyse information/problems and seek solutions in a structured way.
• Coaching skills.
• Excellent stakeholder management skills.
• Familiarity with mobile working technology.
• Knowledge of health, safety and environmental standards in the workplace and the ability to carry out risk assessments.
• Motivated, flexible and reliable, can work independently or part of a team.

Ideally, you’ll also have…

• 5 years + operational experience in the water industry or other equivalent role.

What’s in it for you?

As well as a great opportunity to develop, make your mark, in a local company, the role also offers:

• Up to 15% annual bonus.
• 27 days holiday, plus bank holidays.
• Entry into the company pension scheme.
• Flexible, supportive friendly working environment.
• Access to flexible benefits and discounts.
• Opportunity for some home working.
• Onsite parking, when you’re in the office.