Senior Operations Planning Manager

easyJet Airline Company PLC; London; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

An established industry player is seeking a Senior Operations Planning Manager to lead a dynamic team in optimizing operational efficiency and strategic planning. This pivotal role involves collaborating across functions to enhance scheduling processes, utilizing data-driven insights to inform decision-making, and ensuring alignment with commercial objectives. With a focus on fostering talent and driving performance, you'll play a crucial part in shaping the future of operations within a fast-paced environment. Join a team that values resilience and adaptability, and enjoy competitive benefits including a generous bonus structure and excellent staff travel perks.

Benefits

Competitive Base Salary

Up to 30% Bonus

25 Days Annual Leave

Flexible Benefits Package

Excellent Staff Travel Benefits

Qualifications

• Proven leadership experience in fast-paced operational environments.
• Strong business planning skills balancing strategic, commercial, and operational objectives.

Responsibilities

• Lead the Operational Planning function and nurture future talent.
• Drive operational input into network planning and implement scheduling decisions.

Skills

Leadership

Data Analysis

Strategic Planning

Excel Proficiency

Communication Skills

Problem Solving

Education

Degree in Mathematics or Analytical Field

Tools

MS SQL

Job description

Job Description - Senior Operations Planning Manager (15945)

Senior Operations Planning Manager ( 15945 )

We are easyJet – a FTSE-100 listed, £multi-billion low-cost airline that serves tens of millions of customers every single year. If you’re reading this, you have probably already been an easyJet customer, and you’ll know that there is no more iconic (or Orange!) travel brand in Europe.

We fly more than 1,000 routes, connecting 35 countries across Europe, and employ more than 18,000 colleagues. We’re on a mission to make low-cost travel easy – and whatever your role here, you’ll connect millions of people to what they love using Europe’s best airline network, great value fares, and friendly service.

It takes a real team effort to run an operation as big and logistically complex as ours – and regardless of where you join us, no one day will ever be the same. One thing that does stay the same though is our people. They are energised, positive, inclusive, united by purpose, ready to meet problems head-on, and they have your back. We’re here to win together. We call that our ‘Orange Spirit’. It’s what makes our teams fun to be a part of and what brings us together.

Your Mission:

The Operational Planning team sits within the Operations Strategy & Planning function and leads the cross-functional planning activities across the operation, particularly in the context of network and schedule.Operational Planning is central to a large volume of cross-functional initiatives, driving value across the operation. The Senior Operational Planning Manager is supported by two Operational Planning Managers and a skilled team of analysts and planners.

The Senior Operational Planning Manager reports to the Head of Operational Planning, and is responsible for ensuring that the wider operation can deliver against our strategic commercial objectives whilst maintaining the right levels of operational resilience. Aligning with our strategic desire to transform planning and analytics, the role is a key link between operational and commercial functions, ensuring that the commercial process is built to support all operational safety and regulatory requirements with the right balance between operational performance and cost delivery, and that all operational stakeholders are armed with the right information to inform their own planning and readiness for operating. The role also leads in cross-functional mid-term planning including being the key operational input into the network planning process, and ensuring delivery of network allocation, particularly in terms of growth and new jurisdictions.

What Your Day Will Look Like:

· Lead & Develop – Lead the Operational Planning function, identifying and nurturing future talent, while driving team succession and high performance.

· Strategic Workforce Planning – Own visibility and coordination of long-term fleet and growth plans, ensuring alignment across Operations Strategy & Planning and broader operational teams.

· Stakeholder Collaboration – Drive operational input into the network planning process and ensure successful implementation of multi-year scheduling decisions.

· Operational Efficiency – Deliver data-backed insights to build schedules that are efficient, resilient, and aligned to commercial performance across multiple AOCs.

· Governance & Process Improvement – Own scheduling governance processes, validate operational assumptions through safety, cost, and performance data, and implement continuous improvements.

· Data-Driven Decision Making – Develop analytical models and performance simulations to inform resilient, cost-effective network scheduling strategies.

· Technology & Tooling – Enhance schedule optimisation capabilities by integrating system tools with operational data and initiatives for improved modelling accuracy.

· Cross-Functional Alignment – Collaborate with Commercial, Maintenance, and Fleet teams to optimise the network and deliver operational enablers such as wet leasing.

· Agility & Resilience – Respond to shifting operational demands, using insights from past performance to drive future improvements and support operational robustness.

What You’ll Bring to the Team:

· A degree in mathematics or a related analytical field.

· Proven leadership experience within complex, fast-paced operational environments.

· Ability to inspire and support a high-performing team through evolving priorities and operational challenges.

· Strong business planning skills with the ability to balance strategic, commercial, and operational objectives.

· High proficiency in Excel and practical experience using databases (e.g., MS SQL) for data extraction and modelling.

· Excellent communication skills with a talent for presenting complex data to senior stakeholders in a clear, actionable way.

· Experience in analytical, problem-solving roles with a track record of process improvement and data-driven decision making.

· Knowledge of financial budgeting and forecasting within dynamic, multifaceted organisations.

· Understanding of crew scheduling, establishment drivers, and regulatory constraints like flight time limitations.

· A resilient mindset with adaptability to navigate and thrive in a fast-moving and changing environment.

What you’ll get in return

· Competitive base salary

· Up to 30% bonus

· 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays

· BAYE, SAYE & Performance share schemes

· Flexible benefits package

· Excellent staff travel benefits

Location & Hours of Work

Hours of work: This role is full time and hybrid where we spend 60% of our time together as a team at our head office at Luton Airport

We welcome applications from people from all backgrounds as part of our ongoing commitment to having a team that truly represents the customers that we serve . You may feel that that you don’t meet every single requirement for this role, but we’d still encourage you to submit an application if you feel you meet enough criteria to be considered. And if you need any adjustments or support during the recruitment process please let us know and we’ll work with you to find a solution.

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Business Area

Business Area

Operations

Primary Location