Learning & Development Manager

Rider Levett Bucknall; City of Westminster; Hybrid; GBP 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid Working

Competitive Salary

Wellbeing Options

Private Healthcare

APC & Mentoring

Professional Memberships

Training & development

Full spectrum benefits

Job summary

Rider Levett Bucknall seeks a strategic Learning & Development leader to shape and deliver the L&D strategy across the UK and Europe. You will drive a future-focused learning culture, leveraging digital technologies, learning systems, automation and AI to enhance employee development and business performance.

You will oversee leadership and professional development, including APC/chartership pathways, apprenticeships and talent mobility, partnering with senior leaders to align capability with

Qualifications

• Significant experience leading Learning & Development strategies.
• Proven ability to design leadership, management and professional development programmes.
• Experience implementing future-focused learning with digital tools and data insights.
• Knowledge of apprenticeships, professional qualifications and funding dynamics.

Responsibilities

• Lead development and delivery of a UK and Europe L&D strategy aligned to business goals.
• Build capability across levels with structured development pathways and programmes.
• Drive a culture of continuous learning and high performance.
• Oversee leadership, early careers and qualification pathways including APC and chartership.
• Utilise data, dashboards and analytics to measure impact and drive improvement.
• Partner with senior leaders and stakeholders on capability planning and governance.

Skills

Strategic Learning

Digital Learning

Leadership Development

Stakeholder Management

Data-Driven Decisions

AI in L&D

Job description

This is a strategic role responsible for shaping and delivering the organisation's Learning & Development strategy across the UK and Europe. The role will drive a future-focused learning culture, leveraging digital technologies, learning systems, automation and artificial intelligence to enhance employee development, organisational capability and business performance. The purpose of the role is to:

Role Responsibilities Learning & Development Strategy

• Lead the development and implementation of a future-focused learning strategy aligned to the RLB People & Culture Strategy and 2030 Business Strategy.
• Build organisational capability by ensuring employees at all levels have the skills, knowledge and behaviours required to succeed now and in the future.
• Drive a culture of continuous learning, professional excellence and high performance across the business.
• Enhance employee engagement, retention and career progression through structured development pathways and learning opportunities.
• Lead talent development initiatives, including leadership development, early careers programmes, mentoring, coaching and professional qualification pathways.
• Utilise learning data, feedback and business insights to measure impact and continuously improve learning outcomes.
• Ensure learning solutions support commercial objectives, business performance and future workforce requirements.
• Lead the development, implementation and evaluation of the Learning & Development strategy across the UK and Europe.
• Align learning initiatives with organisational priorities, workforce planning and future capability requirements.
• Act as a trusted advisor to senior leaders, Partners and People & Culture stakeholders on learning, talent and organisational development matters.
• Identify emerging skills requirements and development priorities to support business growth and transformation.

Career Development & Talent Management

• Lead the ongoing development and implementation of RLB's Skills & Behaviour Frameworks and career pathways across all employee populations.
• Design and manage career development frameworks for technical, operational and support service professionals.
• Create and embed structured development pathways for Senior, Associate and Partner populations, supporting succession planning and leadership capability.
• Support talent development initiatives that enhance internal mobility, career progression and employee retention.

Leadership & Management Development

• Design, implement and evaluate management and leadership development programmes across all leadership levels.
• Build organisational capability in leadership, coaching, performance management, communication, inclusion and change leadership.
• Develop and promote a coaching and mentoring culture throughout the business.
• Partner with senior leaders to identify capability gaps and implement targeted development solutions.

Future Professionals & Professional Qualifications

• Provide strategic oversight of Future Professionals programmes, including graduates, apprentices and placement students.
• Oversee professional qualification pathways, including APC, chartership and accreditation programmes.
• Ensure robust governance, stakeholder engagement and continuous improvement of qualification processes and learning experiences.
• Maximise utilisation of apprenticeship funding and levy opportunities to support business capability development.

Digital Learning & Learning Technology

• Evaluate, implement and manage emerging learning technologies, including AI-powered learning solutions, skills platforms and learning analytics tools.
• Partner with stakeholders to identify opportunities where digital solutions can improve learning effectiveness, engagement and accessibility.
• Establish meaningful learning metrics and dashboards, providing data-driven insights on capability development, compliance, engagement and return on investment.
• Drive the digitalisation and automation of learning processes to create a scalable and efficient employee learning experience.
• Develop a digital skills and AI capability framework to support employees in adapting to evolving technologies and ways of working.

Performance & Capability Development

• Embed a culture of continuous performance development across the business.
• Drive engagement with performance management processes and systems, including Clear Review.
• Equip managers with the skills, tools and confidence to conduct effective performance and development conversations.
• Design and implement programmes that support business performance, productivity and employee effectiveness.

Stakeholder Management & Business Partnership

• Build strong and credible relationships with Partners, Directors, managers and key stakeholders across the business.
• Collaborate closely with People & Culture, Digital, Service and Sector leaders to identify capability requirements and development opportunities.
• Manage relationships with external providers, professional institutions and learning partners to ensure high-quality and commercially effective learning solutions.

Leadership & Operational Management

• Line manage and develop members of the Learning & Development team.
• Manage the annual Learning & Development budget and ensure effective allocation of resources to maximise business value.
• Establish appropriate governance, reporting and evaluation mechanisms to measure programme effectiveness and learning impact.
• Prepare reports and insights for senior leadership teams and governance committees, demonstrating learning outcomes and business impact.

Requirements

• Significant experience in Learning & Development, Talent Development or Organisational Development within a complex and fast-paced environment.
• Experience developing and executing Learning & Development strategies within a complex organisation.
• Proven experience designing and delivering leadership, management and professional development programmes.
• Experience managing apprenticeships, early careers programmes and/or professional qualifications.
• Strong understanding of learning technologies, learning analytics and digital capability development.
• Experience using data and reporting tools to measure learning effectiveness and inform decision-making.
• Knowledge of emerging technologies, including AI-enabled learning solutions and automation tools.

Skills & Behaviours

• Strong strategic thinking combined with operational delivery excellence.
• Outstanding stakeholder management and influencing skills, with the ability to build credibility at senior leadership level.
• Strong commercial awareness and ability to link learning outcomes to business performance.
• Excellent written, verbal and presentation skills.
• Highly organised with strong project and programme management capability.
• Proactive, adaptable and resilient, with a continuous improvement mindset.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to interpret data and measure learning impact.
• Collaborative and inclusive approach with a passion for developing people

Why RLB?

At RLB, we live by four simple ideas: Truth, Trust, Together, Tomorrow. Four values that live at the heart of RLB. A place where People Make Progress. We value your skills, talents and unique perspectives - we think they are priceless. Bring them to RLB and you'll be empowered to shape our future and your career in new and meaningful ways. We'll give you opportunities to work on some of the most ambitious and exciting projects currently being designed and developed in the built environment sector. You'll continue to learn and advance as everyone who works for us is provided with a tailored training programme. Our mentoring and reverse mentoring schemes will enable you to share your expertise while gaining fresh insights. What makes RLB unique is our inclusive culture. As an independent, employee-owned business, teamwork and collaboration lies at the heart of everything we do. Hybrid and flexible working arrangements and family-friendly policies are just some of the ways we invest in employee wellbeing.

• Hybrid Working - Working patterns to support your work-life balance. As well as competitive maternity and paternity packages.
• Well-Rewarded - A competitive salary and generous holiday entitlement. As well as the opportunity to purchase up to five extra days.
• Focus On Wellbeing - We offer a number of health and wellness options, including gym membership and cycle to work schemes.
• Healthcare Packages - Private healthcare insurance and medical support, including dental insurance and eyecare vouchers.
• Personal Development - A continuous learning and development programme, including established APC and in-house mentoring schemes.
• Additional Benefits - We offer a wide range of benefits including a season ticket loan and professional membership subscriptions.
• Exceptional Exposure - You'll have the opportunity to work on diverse projects across different sectors and regions.
• Social Responsibility - We hold team and social events as well as charity fundraising and volunteering activities.

Our Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Promise We believe in building a diverse and inclusive environment where each person can be themselves, feel valued for their contribution and be challenged and supported to reach their full potential. We have a responsibility to support the communities in which we live and work, and that our workforce should reflect these communities and our clients. Our talent strategy should enable us to overcome bias in the construction industry by recruiting, retaining, developing, and promoting a diverse and inclusive workforce.