Associate – Portfolio Management

Turner-; Birmingham; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 85,000; Full time

Job summary

Turner & Townsend in Birmingham is seeking an Associate - Portfolio Management to drive excellence in portfolio delivery, governance and financial oversight across complex programmes. You will lead delivery teams, establish structures and performance metrics to turn strategy into measurable outcomes and build stakeholder confidence in portfolio solutions.

We value strong leadership, collaboration and a proactive approach to risk, safety and value realisation, with a focus on real estate,

Qualifications

• This role requires accreditation or strong working knowledge of portfolio and/or programme management methodologies and governance frameworks in fast-paced delivery environments.
• Proven experience delivering portfolio or programme management in large-scale real estate or infrastructure projects.
• Experience in performance optimization, capital investment planning and driving continuous improvement.
• Strong leadership with ability to foster high-performing teams and partnerships with clients.
• Excellent communication skills across seniority levels and adept at driving governance and transparency.

Responsibilities

• Deliver as part of high-performing teams to drive outcomes and shape portfolio direction.
• Establish and embed portfolio management and control frameworks for rigor and transparency.
• Build trusted relationships with senior leaders and clients to deliver joint outcomes.
• Identify and mitigate portfolio risks and safety considerations.
• Oversee financial performance, budgets, cost reporting and governance alignment.
• Support business development and procurement activities and client partnerships.
• Lead by example, foster inclusive culture and internal team growth.

Skills

Portfolio management

Governance frameworks

Stakeholder engagement

Leadership

Financial management

Business development

Contract/Commercial awareness

MS Office

Education

Degree or postgraduate qualification in a relevant field

Tools

MS Office Suite

Reporting systems

Digital platforms

Job description

At Turner & Townsend we’re passionate about making the difference. That means delivering better outcomes for our clients, helping our people to realise their potential, and doing our part to create a prosperous society.

For 75 years we have been leading the delivery of major transformational programmes. Our success at realising outcomes for clients has resulted in significant growth.Every day we help our major global clients deliver ambitious Net Zero programmes from over 110 offices worldwide.

Further to this success we are now facing a new wave of growth to achieve our ambitious 2025 vision. To achieve this, we need great people who are passionate about both delivering great outcomes to our clients and contributing to our future vision. This is made entirely possible through our entrepreneurial culture, allowing employees of all levels to directly influence the business and to own their career.

The world is changing, and we have a responsibility to support that change, helping drive it and be part of it.

Through the commitment, capability and care our team brings, we build trust between clients, suppliers, governments, and society. Delivering better outcomes that have a positive impact on the world around us.

We work smarter to face the challenges of the future; bringing the clarity that helps teams realise their full potential across the real estate, infrastructure, and natural resources sectors.

As an Associate - Portfolio Management, you will have experience playing a key role in driving excellence in global/national/regional portfolios with a focus on converting strategy into delivery, optimising portfolio performance, driving strategic capital planning and driving sustained success against annual portfolio objectives.

You lead and are a part of high-performing Portfolio and Portfolio Management Office teams, establishing and delivering the governance, controls and disciplines required to enable efficient and effective delivery across complex portfolios, programmes and projects. You set up and/or deliver the structure, behaviours and performance needed to realise successful portfolio outcomes and build stakeholder confidence in portfolio solutions through your working approach and the implementation of best practice methods and standardised, integrated and scalable ways of working,

You lead by example, and provide assurance, challenge and insight into portfolio performance. You ensure compliance with contractual, commercial, financial and risk management requirements, lead delivery teams to operate with transparency, accountability and consistency across portfolios, and drive continuous improvement and performance impact and maturity.

Your delivery approach contributes to informed decision-making, effective portfolio controls and the successful delivery of strategic objectives, establishing and maintaining a culture of operational excellence and high quality client service.

Through your performance you are a trusted advisor and key interface for portfolio delivery teams and senior client stakeholders. You provide assurance, challenge and insight into portfolio performance materially contributing to a culture of operational excellence, high-quality client service, a strategically aligned, competitive portfolio and continuous improvement.

Key Responsibilities:

• Portfolio Leadership & Delivery: Effectively deliver as part of high-performing teams, motivating and leading by example, to drive success and cohesion across delivery activities, turning strategy into measurable outcomes. Help shape, embed and communicate portfolio direction. Lead and be a key part of driving success and cohesion across delivery activities in line with our behaviours. Work effectively with internal and client leads as required to support the direction and sustained strategic performance and business value across the portfolio.
• Portfolio Controls & Optimisation: Evaluate the current state of portfolios through gap analysis, creating a roadmap and effectively leading a team to deliver the optimised future state. Establish and embed portfolio management and control frameworks to ensure rigor, compliance, transparency, and continuous improvement.
• Stakeholder Engagement & Influence: Establish and maintain trusted relationships with senior leaders, clients and key stakeholders, building a reputation as a collaborative partner & advisor. Foster effective and strong partnerships and connecting diverse stakeholders behind a common vision and shared outcomes. Proactively collaborate across stakeholder groups to establish and deliver innovative and integrated solutions.
• Risk & Health/Safety Management: Deliver safeguards that manage portfolio risks including health and safety considerations. Deliver and/or lead on the proactive identification, escalation, and mitigation of risks and issues across the portfolio.
• Financial Oversight: Drive the implementation and control of financial management processes, including CapEx performance, budget tracking, cost reporting, and financial risk visibility. Ensure portfolio financials are controlled, accurate, and aligned with governance requirements.
• Commission Management and Business Development: Contribute as required to commission management and make sure the commission is well-managed from a contractual and commercial standpoint, build trusting client partnerships and identify and pursue future business growth / Business Development opportunities.
• People & Culture: Act as a first-class colleague, positively contributing to the culture of internal and commission teams and demonstrating leadership by example in internal team activities. Build capability, mentor teams and colleagues, drive inclusion across the team and successfully carry out people management responsibilities to drive internal team performance and growth and our One Business culture.

Qualifications

This is an Associate level role. To excel in this role, you will have:

• Accreditation or strong working knowledge of portfolio and/or programme management methodologies and governance frameworks, within real estate and complex/fast-paced delivery environments.
• Proven experience in portfolio and/or programme management, including in large-scale and/or high-profile real estate transformation projects.
• Experience in performance optimisation initiatives and managing capital investment plans.
• Experience overseeing the delivery of expected outcomes with best practice and high standards, driving performance and discipline in a culture of continuous improvement.
• Good leadership skills, with experience acting as a high performer within portfolio / programme teams, leading by example and proactively contributing to high performing team cultures.
• Proven ability to build successful delivery partnerships and trust, leading to strong stakeholder relationships.
• Ability to balance multiple tasks and preserve delivery performance and the right behaviours.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills across various seniority levels.
• Experience in effective portfolio / programme financial performance management including financial reporting, budget tracking, and cost / financial management processes. Awareness of procurement methodologies, contract forms, and commercial frameworks.
• Experience in business development/procurements and contributing to business generation/procurement activities, for example through industry networks, competitive tender and interview processes and/or negotiations.
• Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite and programme management tools, reporting systems and digital platforms, with a proactive approach to data, innovation and technology adoption.
• Professional membership in a relevant field.
• Degree or postgraduate qualification in a relevant field desirable.

Additional Information

Our inspired people share our vision and mission. We provide a great place to work, where each person has the opportunity and voice to effect change. We want our people to succeed both in work and life. To support this we promote a healthy, productive, and flexible working environment.

At Turner & Townsend, we celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. We encourage applications from all sectors of the community, and we strongly believe that this diversity is what creates great solutions for our clients, bringing together people with different ideas and skills who want to push boundaries. In celebration of our diversity and to keep this agenda at the forefront of what we do, we have several internal networks, such as LGBT+, Diversity & Inclusion, and Race & Ethnicity which create a safe space for employees to express themselves and to drive change.

SOX control responsibilities may be part of this role, which are to be adhered to where applicable.

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