Business Change Manager

Animal and Plant Health Agency; Crewe; Hybrid; GBP 40,000 - 48,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Civil Service Pension

25 days annual leave

Learning & development opportunities

Employee discounts

Flexible working options

Volunteer leave

Job summary

Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) is seeking a Business Change Manager to lead change activities across multiple projects, driving delivery of business benefits and ensuring readiness and engagement across stakeholders.

You will bridge the project and business, shaping change plans, products, and communications while supporting governance and continuous improvement within APHA.

Qualifications

• Experience of working in a business change or project role at practitioner level.
• Proven leadership skills to inspire and motivate teams.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder interaction.
• Ability to persuade and influence senior stakeholders and guide junior staff.
• Strong problem-solving skills to address issues proactively.
• Adaptable and open to change.
• Excellent planning and organisational skills for fast-paced environments.

Responsibilities

• Lead on business change activity and support delivery of benefits and outcomes.
• Support the Project Manager with change management elements of the business case.
• Create and maintain Business Change products; engage with key contacts.
• Establish and maintain the change plan for the area of responsibility.
• Identify and update business readiness criteria and track go-live readiness.
• Assist Benefits Manager and stakeholders to identify and leverage benefits.
• Develop and maintain change communications and stakeholder engagement plans.

Skills

Leadership

Communication

Influencing

Problem-solving

Adaptability

Planning

Education

PRINCE2/MSP/APM qualification

Job description

Ready to lead change that makes a real difference?

Do you thrive on bringing people, projects, and transformation together to deliver lasting impact?

If so, we would love to hear from you.

We have an exciting opportunity for a Business Change Manager to join our Project Delivery and Portfolio Management team.

The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) is a brilliant place to work where our people feel valued, have a voice and can be their authentic selves. We value difference and diversity, because it helps us be more innovative and make better decisions.

We are dedicated to being an inclusive employer, offering equitable opportunities for all individuals. Our goal is to build a diverse workforce, and we hope to attract applications from all backgrounds and underrepresented groups.

Job Description

As a Business Change Manager, you will play a pivotal role in promoting and supporting the business in implementing change and improvements by carrying out Business Change activities for a range of projects from relatively small changes, continuous improvement initiatives and complex projects, as well as contributing to the progression of the Business Change profession and Continuous Improvement within APHA.

You will proactively prepare the business for the impact of the changes being delivered by the project or change initiative. You will provide a bridge between the project and the business users to ensure that activities are planned and completed to enable the business to implement the agreed change and realise the business benefits.

Change initiatives to be managed will range from complex projects and smaller changes including involvement with continuous improvement (CI). The role will include working across disciplines with colleagues focused on business analysis, project management and project management office.

You Will Be Required To Carry Out Duties Commensurate With The Grade And Purpose Of The Role Including, But Not Limited To, The Following:

Leadership & Delivery - Lead on business change activity and work with the project team to support delivery of the business case benefits and outcomes. Champion the use of best practice and provide expert advice for team members and project community. Assess and understand the impact on stakeholders to improve the likelihood of their adoption of the change.

Business Case - Support the Project Manager in preparing and updating the change management elements of the business case.

Change Products - Support the Project Manager to create the required Business Change products. Leads on engagement with key contacts. Ensures products are fit for purpose.

Change Planning - Establish and maintain the change plan for a specific area of responsibility.

Business Readiness - Identify, qualify, and update the business readiness criteria across the area of responsibility before implementation. Support the tracking of these to 'approve/refuse' go-live.

Benefits Management - Support the Benefits Manager, Project Manager and stakeholders to identify and leverage benefits. Considers Benefits Management in all Business Change activities.

Change Communication - Work with Stakeholder Managers and Project Managers to create and maintain communications plans relating to Business Change messaging. Provides content for communications relating to Business Change across area of responsibility.

Stakeholder Management - Identify and classify stakeholders and ensure their inclusion in stakeholder engagement plan. Act as a point of contact for larger pool / more senior stakeholders.

Guidance and Support – Provide direction and guidance to team. Lead Business Change activities across area of responsibility.

Person specification

You Will Be Able To Demonstrate:

• Experience of working in a business change or project role at practitioner level
• Proven leadership skills, with the ability to inspire and motivate teams to achieve high performance
• Being an excellent communicator with strong interpersonal and presentation skills to enable effective interaction with a wide range of colleagues and stakeholders
• Ability to persuade and influence senior grades and stakeholders, and to advise and guide more junior employees on complex or contentious issues
• Strong problem-solving skills, with the ability to address and resolve issues proactively
• Being adaptable with ability and willingness to embrace change
• Excellent planning and organisational skills, with the ability to deliver results efficiently in a fast-paced and complex work environment
• Proficiency in the use of change, continuous improvement and project management tools and techniques

Qualifications

Candidate must be qualified to a Practitioner level, in one of the following relevant PPM qualifications: Accreditation/Qualification in portfolio/programme/project management, i.e. Management of Portfolios, MSP, Prince2, APM, Agile, Change Management or relevant equivalent experience.

Why work for APHA?

Alongside your salary of £44,052, Animal and Plant Health Agency contributes £12,761 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme.

At APHA, we are committed to supporting you to develop your skills, knowledge, and professional capability throughout your career.

From day one, you will be welcomed through a structured induction programme, helping you understand the Civil Service, our work, and how we operate. You’ll work closely with your line manager to set clear priorities and develop a performance, learning, and development plan tailored to your role.

Alongside formal training, you will have opportunities to apply and develop your knowledge in a practical environment, contributing to continuous improvement and innovation.

Inclusion, support, and the wellbeing of our people are central to what we do, ensuring everyone at APHA can thrive both professionally and personally.

• Civil Service Pension - Defra contributes an average of 28.97% of your salary towards your pension
• A minimum of 25 days of paid annual leave, increasing by 1 day per year up to a maximum of 30.
• An extensive range of learning & professional development opportunities tailored to your role.
• Access to a range of retail, travel and lifestyle employee discounts from retailers such as high street coffee shops, cinema’s, supermarkets, high street retailers and many, many more.
• Staff bonuses and recognition including appreciate vouchers of up to £200 and larger in year awards of up to £1000,
• Salary sacrifice benefit options and an employee discount scheme such as bike to work, Tax-Free Childcare (TFC) scheme, every £8 they pay in, the government adds £2, up to a maximum of £2,000 a year for each child.
• Discounted gym membership with Fitness First or Pure Gym.
• Special Leave with pay, per year, for volunteering.
• Making it work for you - With many flexible working options, most people can find a work schedule to suit their circumstances.

Closing Date - 11.55pm on Tuesday 27th October 2026