Principal Change Manager

Sword Group; Glasgow; On-site; GBP 70,000 - 110,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Career development

Flexible working

Pension & private health

Job summary

Sword is seeking an experienced Principal Change Manager to operate at portfolio level, delivering integrated digital business change across multiple projects in the United Kingdom. The role focuses on shaping strategic change narratives, maximizing adoption, and embedding change to enable a smooth transition to business-as-usual.

The successful candidate will combine strategic leadership with hands-on delivery, driving change activities across programmes, with strong stakeholder engagement and

Qualifications

• Experience leading large-scale change programmes from initiation to completion.
• Experience operating at programme or portfolio level.
• Experience leading change teams.
• Must be PROSCI certified.
• Strong stakeholder engagement and facilitation skills.
• Ability to balance strategic thinking with hands-on delivery.

Responsibilities

• Lead the design and delivery of integrated digital business change plans across programmes, portfolios, and projects.
• Shape the strategic change narrative and ensure alignment across initiatives.
• Maximise adoption, embed change, and enable transition to business-as-usual.
• Governance and reporting; Stakeholder management and engagement.
• Collaborate with HR on organisational design and people impacts.
• Provide strategic oversight and hands-on delivery of change activities.

Skills

Stakeholder engagement

Change management

Strategic thinking

Facilitation

Communication

Leadership

Portfolio management

Hands-on delivery

Tools

Prosci

Job description

Sword is a leading provider of business technology solutions within the Energy, Public and Finance Sectors, driving transformational change within our clients. We use proven technology, specialist teams and domain expertise to build solid technical foundations across platforms, data, and business applications. We have a passion for using technology to solve business problems, working in partnership with our clients to help in achieving their goals.

This role represents an outstanding opportunity for an experienced Principal Change Manager to operate at a portfolio level, leading the design and delivery of integrated digital business change plans across multiple projects.

The role will be responsible for shaping the strategic change narrative, ensuring alignment across initiatives and articulating the cumulative value delivered by digital capabilities. Working closely with the Lead Change Manager, the role will maximise adoption, embed change, and enable successful transition to business-as-usual.

The successful candidate will combine strategic leadership with hands‑on delivery, focusing on the people side of change to drive sustainable outcomes.

• Lead the development and delivery of integrated change strategies across programmes, portfolios, and projects
• Create a clear strategic narrative linking multiple initiatives and articulating business value
• Drive adoption and usage of new systems, platforms, and processes
• Conduct change impact assessments and define mitigation actions
• Lead stakeholder management, engagement, and communication planning
• Focus on the people side of change, ensuring individuals are prepared, supported, and equipped to adopt new processes, systems, and technology
• Facilitate workshops and drive alignment across business and project teams
• Partner with HR on organisational design, role changes, and people impacts
• Provide both strategic oversight and hands‑on delivery of change activities
• Contribute to the continuous enhancement of change capability and frameworks
• Collaborate with programme, project, vendor, and business stakeholders
• Governance and reporting
• Stakeholder management and engagement
• Change impact assessment (Discovery)
• Change strategy, principles, and approach

Requirements

• Demonstrable experience of leading large‑scale, complex change programmes from initiation to completion
• Experience operating at programme or portfolio level
• Experience leading change teams
• Must be PROSCI certified
• Strong stakeholder engagement and facilitation skills
• Experience working in complex, multi‑project environments
• Ability to balance strategic thinking with hands‑on delivery
• Highly motivated and proactive
• Curious with a continuous improvement mindset
• Strong communicator and influencer
• Collaborative and partnership‑driven
• Solution‑oriented with a focus on delivering value

Benefits

At Sword, our core values and culture are based on caring about our people, investing in training and career development, and building inclusive teams where we are all encouraged to contribute to achieve success. We offer comprehensive benefits designed to support your professional development and enhance your overall quality of life. In addition to a Competitive Salary, here’s what you can expect as part of our benefits package:

• Personalised Career Development: We create a development plan customised to your goals and aspirations, with a range of learning and development opportunities within a culture that encourages growth.
• Flexible working: Flexible work arrangements to support your work‑life balance. We can’t promise to always be able to meet every request, however, are keen to discuss your individual preferences to make it work where we can
• A Fantastic Benefits Package: This includes generous annual leave allowance, enhanced family friendly benefits, pension scheme, access to private health, well‑being, and insurance schemes

At Sword we are dedicated to fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace and are proud to be an equal opportunities employer, ensuring that all applicants receive fair and equal consideration for employment, regardless of whether they meet every requirement. We embrace diversity in all its forms, valuing individuals regardless of age, disability, gender identity or reassignment, marital or civil partner status, pregnancy or maternity status, race, colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin, religion or belief, sex, or sexual orientation. Your perspective and potential are important to us.