General Manager - PBSA

The People Pod; Birmingham; On-site; GBP 54,000 - 66,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary

Job summary

The People Pod in Birmingham is seeking a General Manager to lead a brand-new PBSA building from day one. You’ll drive pre-mobilisation, shape resident experience standards, and ensure the site is launch-ready with strong safety and compliance controls.

You’ll partner with sales and marketing to maximize occupancy and performance. Initially focused on pre-opening activity, you’ll later assume full on-site leadership as the building opens, developing your team and delivering exceptional student

Qualifications

• PBSA operational experience is required.
• Strong leadership and people-management skills are essential.
• Experience in safety compliance and building management is preferred.

Responsibilities

• Lead pre-mobilisation from the ground up and support sales & marketing.
• Oversee safety frameworks, FRA actions, PPM schedules and audit readiness.
• Act as on-site leader for resident experience and drive occupancy performance.

Skills

PBSA operations

Leadership

Safety compliance

Job description

Our client is a leading PBSA brand with an amazing culture and a product that consistently raises the bar for student living. With multiple new sites launching over the next few years, this is a business on a serious upward trajectory, creating huge opportunities for progression, development and long-term career growth.

They’re now hiring a General Manager for their brand-new Birmingham building. This is a rare opportunity to join before mobilisation, shaping the building, embedding standards, supporting sales & marketing, and being part of the journey from day one. For the first nine months, you’ll be heavily involved in pre-opening activity then leading the full operational takeover in 2027.

If you’ve ever wanted to be part of a site launch, or you’ve done one before and loved it, this is the perfect moment to step in.

What you’ll be doing:

• Leading pre-mobilisation from the ground up - supporting sales & marketing, preparing operational frameworks, shaping resident experience standards, and ensuring the building is ready for a flawless launch.


• Travelling to operational sites early on - to learn systems, processes, safety frameworks, and best practice - building relationships with the wider operations team and understanding the brand’s DNA.


• Owning building safety and compliance - including statutory checks, FRA actions, PPM schedules, critical systems and ensuring all documentation is accurate, up-to-date and audit-ready.


• Acting as the on-site leader for resident experience - ensuring students feel safe, supported, and proud to live in the building, driving rebookers, referrals and strong advocacy.


• Leading and developing your team - coaching, motivating and setting clear standards for service, safety, communication and operational excellence.


• Driving commercial performance - working with the Area Manager to achieve full occupancy, maximise rebookers, track KPIs, analyse competitor activity, and identify new income opportunities.


• Managing incidents and emergencies - with calm, clarity and full compliance, ensuring the building remains safe and operational at all times.

What we’re looking for:

• PBSA operational experience - ideally someone who has managed a student accommodation building or been part of a mobilisation/opening.


• If not PBSA then Strong BTR leaders with resident-experience focus or high-calibre hospitality or retail managers with experience running complex buildings, leading large teams and managing safety-led environments.


• Someone who thrives in fast-growth settings, enjoys shaping new buildings, and is excited by the idea of joining early in the journey.


• Deep understanding of building compliance, safety frameworks, statutory checks, PPM, FRA, testing schedules and safety documentation.


• A natural leader who is confident, calm, structured, commercially sharp, and brilliant at communication


• Resilient, adaptable, and comfortable working across multiple sites during early onboarding.

What’s in it for you:

• Basic Salary up to £60,000 + 10% Bonus


• Join a PBSA brand with an amazing, values-led culture


• Be part of significant national growth over the coming years


• A rare chance to join before mobilisation, shaping the building from the ground up


• Work with a genuinely supportive senior team who invest heavily in their people


• Long-term progression as the portfolio expands


• Monday-Friday generally but some flexibility required during peak student periods (evenings/weekends)