Senior Planning Engineer - AI Optimisation

Laing O'Rourke; Dartford; Hybrid; GBP 70,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

Akordi, a subsidiary of Laing O'Rourke, is seeking an Optimisation Manager (Planning) to advance project planning with AI-driven analytics and optimisation tools. You will combine planning skills with innovative techniques to improve certainty, reduce risk, and drive better outcomes on major infrastructure programmes.

You will collaborate with data specialists, client teams and our delivery experts to influence strategic decisions while aligning with NEC/GRIP frameworks.

Qualifications

• Experience delivering large infrastructure or construction programmes.
• Strong planning and master schedule development ability.
• Proficiency in AI-enabled analysis and optimisation techniques.

Responsibilities

• Use simulation and optimisation to support project staging and baselining.
• Analyse complex schedules with Akordi platform to identify time/cost/risk opportunities.
• Produce clear reports and dashboards for stakeholders.
• Facilitate planning workshops and schedule reviews with clients and teams.
• Contribute to continuous improvement with service design & delivery teams.

Skills

Planning

AI analytics

Risk analysis

Scheduling

Tools

Primavera P6

Scheduling tools

Job description

Optimisation Manager (Planning)

Location: Flexible - Requirement to be Ipswich based 5/6 times a month.

Join Akordi and help transform the future of infrastructure delivery

At Akordi, we're redefining how major infrastructure projects make critical decisions.

As a rapidly growing technology business and subsidiary of Laing O'Rourke, we combine deep construction expertise with advanced AI and optimisation technology to help clients deliver complex projects with greater certainty. Our decision intelligence platform enables project teams to better manage risk, optimise schedules and make smarter, data-driven decisions throughout the project lifecycle.

Working across rail, highways, energy, utilities and major capital programmes, we partner with government organisations, developers and tier-one contractors to solve challenges that traditional planning tools simply can't.

With continued growth across Australia and the UK, there's never been a better time to join our team.

The Opportunity

We're looking for an experienced Optimisation Manager (Planning) to join our growing Services team.

This is an exciting opportunity for an experienced construction planner who wants to move beyond traditional planning and into the future of project optimisation.

You'll combine your planning expertise with AI-driven analytics, simulation modelling and advanced optimisation tools to help some of the world's most complex infrastructure programmes improve certainty, reduce risk and deliver better outcomes.

Working alongside industry experts, data specialists and senior client teams, you'll provide strategic insights that influence major delivery decisions across large-scale infrastructure projects.

What You'll Be Doing

As an Optimisation Manager, you will:

• Use simulation, modelling and optimisation techniques to support project staging, sequencing, scheduling and re-baselining.
• Analyse complex project schedules using Akordi's AI-enabled platform to identify opportunities across time, cost, risk and resource optimisation.
• Assess project performance, extracting lessons learned and identifying opportunities for continuous improvement.
• Identify critical schedule risks and work collaboratively with delivery teams to develop practical mitigation strategies.
• Produce clear, evidence-based reports, dashboards and visualisations for a wide range of stakeholders.
• Facilitate planning workshops, schedule reviews and technical discussions with clients and project teams.
• Collaborate with our Service Design & Delivery team and global specialists to continuously improve our services and products.
• Ensure all assessments align with recognised UK delivery frameworks, including NEC, PACE and GRIP/GRIP Lite.

What We're Looking For

We're interested in people who combine strong planning expertise with curiosity and a passion for innovation.

You'll ideally have:

• Experience delivering construction or infrastructure projects, ideally within major UK or Australian programmes.
• Practical planning experience gained on site or within a project environment.
• Strong capability in developing, analysing and optimising complex master schedules.
• Advanced proficiency in Primavera P6 and a solid understanding of other scheduling and project controls tools.
• The ability to interpret engineering drawings, construction methodologies and delivery strategies.
• Excellent analytical, presentation and communication skills, with the ability to explain complex information clearly.
• A proactive, organised approach and the confidence to work independently while contributing to a collaborative team.
• A genuine interest in emerging technologies, AI and innovative approaches to project optimisation.

About Us

Laing O'Rourke are an international engineering and construction company delivering state-of-the-art infrastructure and buildings projects for clients in the UK, Middle East and Australia.

Certainty, reliability, quality – this is what our clients want. And at Laing O'Rourke, we have more than 150 years of experience delivering it. Laing O'Rourke's story is one of energy, passion, ambition, people and teamwork. We harness the power of our experience, stretching back over a century and a half to deliver certainty for our clients.

As part of the Disability Confident scheme, we would like to enable access to candidates with long term conditions and disabilities through the ‘Offer an interview scheme'. This supports applicants that meet the essential criteria by offering an interview for the advertised position. Please let us know if you would like to opt in to this scheme and let us know if you require any adjustments for the interview process.

About Us

Laing O'Rourke are an international engineering and construction company delivering state-of-the-art infrastructure and buildings projects for clients in the UK, Middle East and Australia.

Certainty, reliability, quality – this is what our clients want. And at Laing O'Rourke, we have more than 150 years of experience delivering it. Laing O'Rourke's story is one of energy, passion, ambition, people and teamwork. We harness the power of our experience, stretching back over a century and a half to deliver certainty for our clients.

As part of the Disability Confident scheme, we would like to enable access to candidates with long term conditions and disabilities through the ‘Offer an interview scheme'. This supports applicants that meet the essential criteria by offering an interview for the advertised position. Please let us know if you would like to opt in to this scheme and let us know if you require any adjustments for the interview process.