People Programme and Project Manager

City Football Group; Manchester; Hybrid; GBP 55,000 - 70,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Private healthcare

Dental cover

Annual discretionary bonus

Health cash plan

Pension

Free on-site parking

Breakfast & lunch provided

Job summary

City Football Group seeks a People Programme and Project Manager to coordinate the People Programme and central governance for strategic change in a hybrid Manchester role. The role drives momentum across portfolios, maintains plans, reports, risks and dependencies, and ensures delivery aligns with priorities.

You will work with the Director of People Services and Transformation to prioritise workstreams, manage stakeholder communications, and escalate delivery issues promptly.

Qualifications

• Experience coordinating programmes, portfolios or strategic initiatives.
• Excellent organisational and planning capability to manage multiple priorities.
• Experience maintaining governance, reporting, plans, risks, and dependencies.
• Strong stakeholder management and communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate the People Programme and the central governance and delivery mechanism for strategic change.
• Maintain programme plans, reporting, risks and dependencies; support stage-gate reviews.
• Ensure delivery issues are identified and escalated appropriately.
• Programme manage the employee experience and engagement initiatives.

Skills

Programme coordination

Governance

Stakeholder management

Planning and organisation

Risk and dependency management

Reporting and governance papers

Delivery focus

Job description

People Programme and Project Manager

Location: Manchester, GB

Full Time / Part Time: Full Time

Contract Type: Fixed Term

We are looking for a People Programme and Project Manager to coordinate and drive delivery across our strategic People agenda. Based in Manchester working in a hybrid working pattern, this fixed-term role runs until October 2027. You will join an established programme environment, keeping priorities connected, visible and moving forward through effective programme coordination, governance and stakeholder management.

Who We Are

Founded in 2013, City Football Group is the world’s leading private owner and operator of football clubs, with a shared purpose of empowering better lives through football.

Our People Team plays a critical role in creating the environment, experiences and capabilities that enable our people and organisation to perform at their best. This role sits within People Services and Transformation and supports the coordinated delivery of strategic change across the People function.

The Role

As People Programme and Project Manager, you will coordinate the People Programme, the People function’s central governance and delivery mechanism for strategic change. Our Project Management methodology brings together four outcome‑led portfolios through a single roadmap, ensuring initiatives are prioritised, sequenced, governed and progressed through the agreed approach.

You will also coordinate the People Experience and Culture portfolio, keeping activity across employee experience, engagement, lifecycle, products and strategic initiatives connected and visible. Working closely with the Director of People Services and Transformation, you will maintain programme plans, reporting, risks and dependencies, support prioritisation and stage‑gate reviews, and ensure delivery issues are identified and escalated appropriately.

Alongside the portfolio coordination, you will programme manage the employee experience and engagement programme and project manage agreed People Services initiatives. The emphasis is on driving momentum within an established programme environment: connecting stakeholders, maintaining high‑quality programme information, coordinating milestones and dependencies, and helping strategic priorities translate into practical delivery.

What You’ll Bring

• Experience coordinating programmes, portfolios, projects or strategic initiatives, ideally within an established PMO, programme or portfolio environment.
• Excellent organisational and planning capability, with the ability to coordinate multiple priorities, milestones and workstreams while maintaining delivery momentum.
• Experience maintaining programme governance, reporting, plans, documentation, risks, actions and dependencies to provide clear visibility of progress.
• Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills, with the confidence to coordinate activity across multiple teams and prepare clear reports, presentations and governance papers.
• The ability to identify dependencies, risks and delivery issues, bring structure to complex or ambiguous activity and support practical resolution.
• A delivery‑focused and detail‑conscious approach, balancing appropriate governance with pace and practicality.
• Demonstratable understanding of a people function and working with people focused PMO.

Why Choose Us

• As part of our team, you will receive 26 days’ annual leave plus a day off for your birthday, private healthcare and dental cover, and an annual discretionary bonus.
• You will also have access to a Health Cash Plan, Employee Assistance Programme with 24/7 GP support, and a company pension and life assurance.
• Manchester‑based employees also benefit from free on‑site parking, complimentary breakfast and lunch, and access to a range of sports and leisure clubs.
• You can enjoy a range of additional benefits, including cycle to work, Give As You Earn, discounted match tickets, savings in the City Store, a free City+ subscription, stadium tour discounts, and wider retail and lifestyle offers.

City Football Group promotes equal opportunities in employment and we positively welcome applications from all candidates regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation.

We will screen all applicants and select candidates whose skills and experience seem to meet our needs. We will carefully consider your application during the initial screening and will contact you only if you are selected for an interview. If you require reasonable adjustments or any support throughout the process, please contact [e-mail] and we will be happy to help.

All CFG recruitment communications originate from @cityfootball.com email addresses. If you receive communications from Gmail, Outlook.com or other personal email services claiming to represent CFG, please verify with the hiring team. Employment is subject to the provision of proof of eligibility to work in the UK.

Due to our safeguarding promise, all UK‑based CFG roles will be subject to a DBS check upon commencing employment with us. This will be either a basic, standard or enhanced check depending on the job role and responsibilities.