Senior Planning Manager

Our client company, based in Stuttgart (Germany), specializes in the design and construction of lightweight structures integrating architecture and engineering, based on scientific research and minimalistic forms in harmony with the ornamentation of buildings.

ROLE

The Senior Planning Manager plays a role of responsible for overseeing the planning, scheduling, and monitoring of complex engineering and construction projects. In this role, you will lead a team of planners and schedulers to develop comprehensive project plans, ensure efficient resource allocation, and monitor progress to meet project milestones and deliverables. The Senior Planning Manager will work closely with stakeholders to align planning strategies with business objectives, ensuring the successful execution of projects within time, cost, and quality parameters.

Requirements:

1. Strategic Planning Leadership:
   Lead the creation of overarching planning frameworks that define the structure and sequence of project deliverables, ensuring alignment with company objectives.
   Establish clear milestones and deliverables, ensuring they align with client expectations, contractual requirements, and internal benchmarks.
   Implement standardized planning and scheduling procedures to ensure consistency and reliability across all projects.
2. Project Scheduling Control:
   Oversee the development of detailed schedules, integrating all phases of the project lifecycle, including design, procurement, construction, testing, and handover.
   Perform critical path analysis to identify and focus on key project tasks that have the greatest impact on timelines.
   Track project progress by comparing actual performance to baseline schedules, identifying deviations, and initiating recovery plans as needed.
   Incorporate approved changes into the schedule, ensuring all impacts on timelines and resources are clearly communicated to stakeholders.
3. Resource Management and Optimization:
   Collaborate with project teams to forecast manpower, materials, and equipment needs, ensuring all resources are allocated effectively.
   Monitor resource utilization rates, identify bottlenecks, and redistribute resources as required to meet project demands.
   Work closely with engineering, procurement, and construction teams to align resource requirements with project schedules.
4. Risk Assessment and Mitigation:
   Proactively identify potential scheduling risks such as delays in approvals, material procurement, or resource availability.
   Develop and implement mitigation strategies to address identified risks, such as re-sequencing tasks or allocating additional resources.
   Conduct 'what-if' scenario analysis to evaluate the impact of potential risks and propose alternative planning solutions.
   Continuously update and manage a risk register, ensuring that planning-related risks are logged, monitored, and communicated to stakeholders.
5. Team Leadership and Development:
   Provide hands-on mentorship to junior planners and schedulers, fostering skill development and knowledge sharing.
   Set clear goals, KPIs, and performance benchmarks for the planning team, conducting regular reviews to ensure accountability.
   Promote a culture of collaboration within the planning team and across other project disciplines to achieve shared goals.
   Identify training needs and arrange for professional development programs to keep the team updated on the latest planning tools and techniques.
6. Stakeholder Collaboration and Communication:
   Engage with clients to understand their expectations, communicate project schedules, and address concerns related to timelines.
   Act as a central point of contact between planning, project management, engineering, procurement, and construction teams to ensure alignment.
   Deliver regular progress reports and schedule updates to clients, senior management, and internal teams, using dashboards, charts, and other visual aids for clarity.
   Mediate and resolve conflicts related to scheduling priorities or resource allocation to maintain harmony among stakeholders.
7. Reporting and Documentation:
   Develop and maintain metrics to measure project performance against schedule, such as Earned Value Management (EVM), Schedule Performance Index (SPI), and other KPIs.
   Provide clear, concise, and data-driven reports that highlight project progress, schedule health, and potential risks.
   Maintain accurate and detailed planning records to ensure compliance with contractual obligations, audits, and quality standards.
8. Continuous Improvement and Innovation:
   Continuously evaluate planning and scheduling processes to identify inefficiencies and implement improvements.
   Adopt and integrate advanced planning and project management tools to streamline processes and enhance efficiency.
   Analyse historical project data to identify trends and apply lessons learned to future planning efforts.
   Encourage the team to explore new approaches, tools, and methodologies to improve scheduling and project execution outcomes.