Project Manager - Retail

Lorien; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 70,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

Lorien is seeking an experienced Senior Project Manager for a 6-month contract in London. You will drive large-scale retail change programmes across estate, transformation, and customer experience, engaging senior stakeholders and cross-functional teams to deliver on time and within budget.

You will own governance, RAID management, and reporting while applying the right delivery approach (Waterfall/Hybrid) to complex, multi-site initiatives.

Qualifications

• Senior Project Manager with retail experience.
• Delivery of large-scale store transformation and estate programmes.
• Led multiple workstreams and teams.
• Strong stakeholder engagement with executives and external partners.
• Governance, reporting and project controls expertise.
• Experience managing budgets, forecasting, and cost tracking.
• Knowledge of Waterfall, Agile or Hybrid delivery approaches.
• Excellent communication and decision-making skills.

Responsibilities

• Lead projects from shaping and planning through to execution and delivery.
• Develop and maintain comprehensive project plans, milestones, dependencies and critical paths.
• Select and apply the most appropriate project delivery methodology.
• Manage project governance, reporting and controls in line with PMO standards.
• Maintain a robust RAID framework for risks, issues, and dependencies.
• Provide concise status reporting to Programme Managers and senior leaders.
• Build relationships with key stakeholders, brands, suppliers and delivery partners.
• Coordinate cross-functional teams across People, Finance, Technology, Operations, Property and Implementation.
• Work with implementation and operations teams to ensure smooth delivery across stores.
• Drive accountability across workstreams to achieve scope and outcomes.

Skills

Retail project delivery

Stakeholder management

Governance & PMO

Cross-functional leadership

Waterfall/Hybrid

Tools

Planview

Job description

Project Manager - Retail based
6 month contract
London Hybrid
Inside IR35 via Umbrella

We are partnering with a highly respected retail organisation undergoing significant investment across its physical estate, customer experience, and operational transformation programmes.

As a Senior Project Manager, you will play a pivotal role in delivering large-scale retail change initiatives across a complex and fast-paced environment. Working with senior stakeholders, third-party brand partners, suppliers, and cross-functional teams, you'll be responsible for driving programmes from shaping and mobilisation through to successful delivery.

This is an excellent opportunity for an accomplished Project Manager who thrives in a dynamic retail environment and has a proven track record delivering estate, transformation, and business change projects at scale.

The Role

You'll take ownership of a strategically important programme, ensuring projects are delivered on time, within budget, and to the highest quality standards.

Working across multiple business functions, you'll provide leadership, governance, and direction while navigating competing priorities and ensuring effective stakeholder engagement throughout the project lifecycle.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead projects from shaping and planning through to execution and delivery.
• Develop and maintain comprehensive project plans, milestones, dependencies, and critical paths.
• Select and apply the most appropriate project delivery methodology based on project requirements.
• Manage project governance, reporting, and controls in line with PMO standards.
• Maintain a robust RAID framework, ensuring risks, issues, assumptions, and dependencies are proactively managed.
• Provide clear and concise status reporting to Programme Managers, Sponsors, and senior leadership teams.
• Build strong relationships with key business stakeholders, third-party brands, suppliers, and delivery partners.
• Coordinate cross-functional teams across People, Finance, Technology, Operations, Property, and Implementation functions.
• Work closely with implementation and operational teams to ensure smooth delivery across physical retail locations.
• Drive accountability across all workstreams to ensure agreed scope and business outcomes are achieved.

About You

You are an experienced Project Manager with a strong retail background and a history of delivering complex change programmes within customer-facing environments.

Essential Experience

• Significant experience as a Senior Project Manager within a retail environment.
• Proven delivery of large-scale store transformation, estate change, refurbishment, rollout, or property-related programmes.
• Demonstrated experience leading established project teams and multiple workstreams.
• Excellent stakeholder management skills, including engagement with senior executives and external partners.
• Strong experience managing programme governance, reporting, and project controls.
• Proven ability to manage project financials, including budgets, forecasting, and cost tracking.
• Extensive experience handling project risks, issues, dependencies, and change control.
• Strong knowledge of project delivery methodologies such as Waterfall, Agile, or Hybrid approaches.
• Exceptional communication, influencing, and decision‑making skills.
• Ability to operate effectively within fast‑paced and evolving business environments.

Desirable Experience

• Experience using Planview for project and portfolio management.
• Background within luxury, premium, department store, or multi‑site retail environments.
• Exposure to large‑scale business transformation programmes.
• Experience managing complex funding arrangements involving suppliers and brand partners.