PMO Lead

Northern Powergrid; Castleford; Hybrid; GBP 65,000 - 80,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Annual bonus

25 days holiday

Hybrid working

Career development opportunities

Job summary

Northern Powergrid is seeking an experienced PMO Lead to join the Programme Delivery function. You will govern, oversee and support programme delivery across the business, providing visibility, assurance and controls for successful outcomes.

You’ll drive PMO maturity, influence stakeholders and foster a culture of delivery excellence while working with senior leaders, programme teams and Executive stakeholders.

Qualifications

• Extensive experience in large, complex portfolios (utilities, construction, energy).
• Strong governance, assurance and stakeholder-management capability.
• Proven ability to design and operate performance frameworks.
• Experience implementing delivery standards/playbooks/methodologies.
• Experience with assurance/audit activities and regulatory submissions.

Responsibilities

• Lead development and continuous improvement of PMO standards, governance and controls.
• Track programme performance, milestones, risks, issues and dependencies.
• Provide visibility of resource demand and utilisation across programmes.
• Monitor budgets, forecasts, costs and benefits with Finance.
• Produce concise reporting for Executive and Board audiences.
• Establish consistent reporting, planning and governance processes.
• Provide delivery assurance across key programmes and initiatives.
• Challenge Programme/Project Managers to improve delivery outcomes.
• Support senior leaders with portfolio prioritisation and decision-making.

Skills

PMO Leadership

Governance

Performance management

Stakeholder management

Executive reporting

Delivery assurance

Regulatory familiarity

Lean/Six Sigma

ISO 55000 knowledge

Tools

Lean

Six Sigma

PM tooling (e.g., governance software)

Job description

Ready to help shape and strengthen the delivery of some of Northern Powergrid's most important programmes?

We're looking for an experienced PMO Lead to join our Programme Delivery function and play a critical role in improving how we govern, oversee and support programme delivery across the business.

This is a high-profile role that will work closely with senior leaders, programme teams and Executive stakeholders to provide the visibility, assurance and controls needed to deliver successful outcomes. You'll bring structure, consistency and insight to a complex programme environment, ensuring priorities remain on track and leaders have the information they need to make decisions with confidence.

This role is ideal for someone who enjoys improving PMO maturity, influencing stakeholders and creating a culture of delivery excellence.

The role

Working across a portfolio of strategic programmes and initiatives, you'll help drive robust governance, effective assurance and high-quality portfolio management practices.

You’ll be involved in:

• Leading the development and continuous improvement of PMO standards, governance and controls.
• Tracking programme performance, milestones, risks, issues and dependencies.
• Developing visibility of resource demand, capacity and utilisation across programmes.
• Monitoring budgets, forecasts, costs and benefits in partnership with Finance teams.
• Producing concise, decision-focused reporting for Executive and Board audiences.
• Establishing consistent reporting, planning and governance processes.
• Providing delivery assurance across key programmes and initiatives.
• Constructively challenging Programme and Project Managers to improve delivery outcomes.
• Supporting senior leaders with portfolio prioritisation and decision-making.
• Driving continuous improvement across programme controls, reporting and governance.

About you

We're interested in hearing from individuals who combine strong PMO leadership experience with excellent governance, assurance and stakeholder management capability.

You may currently be working as:

• Senior PMO Manager
• Head of PMO
• Delivery Assurance Manager

You’ll ideally have:

• Significant experience/exposure in large complex portfolios of projects (e.g., utilities, construction, engineering, energy).
• Strong understanding of project lifecycle – from concept through to delivery and closeout.
• Proven track record in performance management across programmes or portfolios.
• Ability to design and operate performance frameworks.
• Experience defining and implementing delivery standards / playbooks / methodologies
• Proven capability in assurance and audit activities and continuous compliance monitoring.
• Demonstrated ability to Identify inefficiencies and performance gaps and lead continuous improvement initiatives.
• Understanding of Contract models and cost control and forecasting disciplines.
• Ability to create clear, concise reporting and insights for senior leadership teams.
• Experience working directly with Executive and Board-level stakeholders.
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to influence and challenge constructively.
• A proactive, autonomous approach and the ability to operate confidently in complex environments.
• Experience in RIIO price controls or similar regulatory frameworks and working with regulators or preparing regulatory submissions.
• Familiarity with Lean, Six Sigma, or business improvement approaches and experience embedding standardisation across multiple projects or regions.
• Knowledge of Asset management (ISO 55000).

What success looks like:

Success in this role will mean:

• Improved confidence in programme delivery across the organisation.
• Stronger governance, controls and assurance processes.
• Clear visibility of resource demand, utilisation and delivery performance.
• Consistent, high-quality reporting that supports effective decision-making.
• Improved forecasting and management of programme risks and dependencies.
• Increased delivery discipline across programmes and project teams.
• Becoming a trusted adviser to senior leaders within Programme Delivery.

Northern Powergrid delivers major investment programmes that are essential to keeping power flowing to the communities we serve. Effective programme delivery is critical to our success, and this role will sit at the heart of ensuring programmes are governed, managed and delivered to the highest standards.

This is a fantastic opportunity to influence senior decision-making, shape PMO capability and help drive greater delivery confidence across the business.

Along with a competitive salary of up between £65,000 up to £80,000, we also offer:

• Annual bonus opportunity
• 25 days holiday, rising with service, plus bank holidays
• Flexible and hybrid working arrangements
• Ongoing professional and career development opportunities

Additional Information

External title: PMO Lead

Internal title: Performance & Standards Lead

The role is advertised externally as PMO Lead to attract candidates with strong portfolio governance, programme assurance and delivery oversight experience. The successful candidate will be appointed to the internal role of Performance & Standards Lead within the Programme Delivery directorate.