Senior Project Manager (Utilities)

MAKE STRATEGY A REALITY | ACCELERATE YOUR GROWTH | CHOOSE YOUR PATH

As the world’s leading change and transformation consultancy and delivery partner, we enable our clients to move from strategy to reality, taking a pragmatic, practical approach to delivering change that lasts.
We’re seeking Senior Project Managers and Project Managers to help our utility clients deliver the digital, technology and organisation change across the AMP cycle.

*Please note, this is an initial 3-6 month contract that will require up to 3 days working on client site in the South of England and may involve extensive travel to other sites

SUMMARY

You’ll join North Highland’s Energy & Utilities (E&U) practice, working with our UK water utility clients across the South of England delivering their multi-year transformation and change portfolios, delivered under managed service and consulting frameworks. The sector is delivering the biggest upgrades seen in a century — modernising assets, systems and ways of working to ensure essential water and waste services are provided.

These portfolios are delivered against the backdrop of the AMP 8 regulatory period and include various delivery modes:

• Enterprise Programmes (core platform and technology replacement / modernisation, regulatory-driven programmes etc),

• Digital Delivery (Agile/hybrid programmes transforming customer journeys, operational decision-making, case management etc),

• Operational Change (targeted, “deploy and embed” initiatives affecting frontline populations), and

• Operating model change (p(people, governance etc)
   

The portfolios span all core business units of water utilities — Water, Waste, Engineering, Asset Management, Supply Chains, Operations and Control Centres as well as enabling functions such as HR, Finance, Commercial and Procurement.

You’ll lead end-to-end delivery of discrete projects within these portfolios — for example a CRM upgrade, data platform, field mobility rollout, lab data system or cyber uplift. You’ll strengthen governance and controls, manage risks, issues and dependencies, and keep integrated teams aligned to outcomes, timelines and quality, often operating as a Transformation PM or Digital Project Manager within the client’s delivery model.


YOU WILL:

• Own end-to-end delivery of discrete projects across IT and business workstreams; develop and maintain plans (waterfall/agile/hybrid) with milestones aligned to AMP and regulatory deadlines.

• Deliver on time, on budget and to functional/quality specifications; track progress, dependencies, RAID and benefits at project level with clear planned-vs-actuals reporting.

• Produce weekly/monthly reports aligned to PMO standards; manage project-level governance including design authority, architecture and cyber approvals, and data governance sign-off.

• Escalate risks and issues into programme or portfolio forums and communicate effectively with senior stakeholders.

• Manage System Integrators, SaaS vendors and niche suppliers — Statements of Work, deliverables and acceptance criteria — and control project budgets and change requests in line with financial controls.

• Coordinate with Change, Training and Service teams to prepare go-live and cutover, support business readiness, and hand over into BAU and IT service management (ITIL).

IDEALLY, WE'D LIKE:

• . Proven project delivery experience (Agile/Scrum or hybrid), including multi-stream delivery and leading integrated teams; 5+ years for Project Manager and significant senior-level delivery for Senior Project Manager.

• Utilities/regulated sector delivery experience strongly preferred (water, power, telecoms, infrastructure), or field-based and asset-intensive environments.

• Familiarity with the kinds of systems in scope: SAP S/4HANA, Salesforce, GIS Utility Network Model, GeoSCADA, EAM (SAP PM, Maximo), workforce management and operational dashboards.

• Strong facilitation, excellent written/verbal communication, and comfort engaging stakeholders from control room operators and field operatives to senior leaders and suppliers.

• Proficiency with common delivery tools (e.g. MS Project, Jira) and strong working knowledge of the MS Office suite.

Applicants must be authorized to work in the United Kingdom, without the need for visa sponsorship by North Highland. Work visa sponsorship will not be provided, either now or in the future, for this position.
This is a temporary employee (PAYE) opportunity working via an Umbrella company.

North Highland is an equal opportunity employer, and we adhere to all applicable laws and regulations to ensure a fair and equitable workplace. All qualified applicants will receive fair and impartial consideration without regard to race, color, sex, gender identity, religion, national origin, age, sexual orientation, disability, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. We handle all information in accordance local privacy standards and maintain strict confidentiality.