Senior Planner

HS2 (High Speed Two); Birmingham; On-site; GBP 71,000 - 86,000; Full time

Job summary

High Speed 2 (HS2 Ltd) seeks a senior planning professional to lead the development and maintenance of an integrated project schedule across delivery areas. You will coordinate dependencies, manage interfaces, and guide a team of planners in applying planning systems and standards.

The role requires advanced Primavera P6 skills, strong data analysis, and stakeholder communication. Location options include London or Birmingham with flexible working arrangements.

Qualifications

• Advanced Primavera P6 experience essential.
• Ability to lead planning across multiple complex projects.
• Experience leading a team of planners and delivering planning products, processes and guidance.
• Strong analytical skills to produce timely reports for diverse audiences.
• Excellent communication and presentation skills to stakeholders at all levels.
• Capable of coaching and motivating direct reports.
• Full valid UK driving licence to attend site visits.

Responsibilities

• Lead and integrate the project schedule across delivery areas and manage dependencies.
• Correlate schedule, cost and risk to influence critical path analysis.
• Collaborate with delivery teams to document and manage key interfaces.
• Maintain project schedules with Project Managers and Project Controls Managers.
• Support What-if scenario planning and decision making.
• Provide proactive planning and integration support as required.
• Collaborate with supply chain and stakeholders to integrate time, cost and quality information.
• Promote improvements and ensure policy adherence across the programme.
• Manage direct reports through performance reviews and objective setting.

Skills

Advanced Primavera P6

Lead planning activities

Team leadership

Data analysis & reporting

Effective communication

Coaching & mentoring

Problem solving

Driver’s licence

Tools

Primavera P6

Prism

CEMAR

Job description

Job Description

Salary from £78,568 inclusive of 20% flex fund

Location can be London or Birmingham

HS2 Ltd endeavours to ensure everyone working for us and with us feels included, thrives and achieves their full potential. In practice, this means we are positive and inclusive about making adjustments, providing flexible working, encouraging our staff networks to flourish and providing personal and professional development opportunities.

Job Purpose

This role is responsible for leading the development and maintenance of an integrated project schedule across delivery area(s), and the wider HS2 Programme of Works whilst supporting the management and coordination of dependencies and interfaces. A key aspect of this role is leading a team and ensuring the application of Project Planning Systems, Policies and Standards are adhered too.

About the Role

• To be accountable for leading the management and integration of the project schedule across delivery areas, ensuring dependencies and interfaces are effectively managed, identifying any risks, potential impacts, and proposing mitigation strategies where applicable.
• To be responsible for leading and enacting schedule input into developing and maintaining an integrated project schedule across delivery areas. Correlating schedule, cost and risk assessment through to influence critical path analysis and providing robust and quality plans to support decision making.
• To be accountable for identifying key programme interfaces and working with delivery teams within both HS2 and the supply chain, to document and manage these.
• To be responsible for working with Project Managers and Project Controls Managers to maintain project schedules and effectively manage change.
• To be responsible for supporting What-if scenario planning, providing integrated solutions to programme and project conflicts and recoveries, supporting trade off decision making.
• Provide proactive specialist planning and integration support where required.
• To be accountable for collaborating with other project delivery teams, the supply chain and stakeholders (including regulatory bodies, and the Department for Transport) where necessary to integrate all time, cost and quality information to support the monitoring of project progress and supply chain performance.
• To be responsible for working closely with the supply chain teams to constructively challenge and enhance delivery performance whilst developing mitigation strategies across the programme.
• Aligned to the reporting cycle carryout associated review/assurance of supply chain submissions whilst adhering to contract requirements. Attend site walkouts as required to validate data.
• To have accountability for providing functional line management, performance management and objective setting support to direct reports.
• To have accountability for developing and delivering the planning and integration policy, processes and standards across the business, taking industry best practice to facilitate continuous improvement and ensure these are implemented consistently and effectively across development and delivery areas.
• Actively promote and embed Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) in all your work and support and comply with all organisational initiatives, policies and procedures on EDI.

About You

Skills

• Ability to use planning software including Primavera P6 at an advanced level.
• Ability to proactively lead and integrate planning activities across multiple complex projects.
• Ability to lead a team of Planners to deliver planning products, processes, procedures and guidance that support project delivery and improve efficiency and accuracy within planning systems.
• Ability to analyse and interpret data, producing accurate, timely and informative reports in multiple formats targeted to the needs of the audience.
• Ability to present information clearly and concisely to a variety of audiences at various levels.
• Able to solve problems with an attention to detail and communicate solutions.
• Ability to support, coach and motivate direct reports.
• Full drivers licence to attend site visits, ability to validate supply chain submissions.

Knowledge

• Knowledge of planning systems, processes and procedures that are capable of delivering large complex programmes.
• Knowledge of the core Project Controls disciplines, including; Schedule Management, Cost Management, Change Management and Risk Management and an understanding of how they interrelate.
• Experience of leading and challenging contract progress and schedule change reviews.
• Understanding of NEC contracts / agreements, amendments, early warning notices and the work flows of communications between contractor and client.
• Knowledge of the all stages of the project life cycle.
• Knowledge of metrics used to build and maintain integrated schedules.

Type of Experience

• Experience of working in a multi discipline environment delivering a senior planning or planning role within complex delivery projects.
• Experience in the core project controls functions, including; baseline maintenance, schedule management, cost performance, change management, risk management and performance reporting.
• Experience of working on projects during all stages within the project lifecycle.
• Experience of governance procedures such as re-baselining, funding approval or major contract implementation.
• Experienced in the management and control of key Project Controls systems (e.g. Primavera P6, Prism, CEMAR, etc.).

About Us

High Speed 2 (HS2 Ltd) will be the UK's new high speed rail network. As well as improving capacity, the new scheme will shorten journey times between a number of Britain's major population centres, boost the economy and create thousands of jobs.

HS2 Ltd will create a skills legacy and develop a diverse range of talent. We aim to be a leader in EDI practice by creating a safe & inclusive working environment for all our staff - living our values of Safety, Respect, Integrity and Leadership.

In practice, this means we are positive and inclusive about making adjustments, providing flexible working, encouraging our staff networks to flourish and providing personal and professional development opportunities.

HS2 Ltd is also a safety-critical organisation. Employees are required to ensure reasonable care of their own and others' health and safety by taking personal responsibility for working to our 'Safe at Heart' programme principles and following safe working procedures at all times.

HS2 Ltd endeavours to ensure everyone working for us and with us feels included, thrives and achieves their full potential.