Operations Manager
Contract: Cheshire East Highways
Location: Congleton, CW12 1RG
Contract Type: Permanent
We are looking for an experienced and motivated Operations Manager to lead our Highways Operations Team within Cheshire East Highways. This is a key leadership role, responsible for delivering a wide range of essential highway maintenance services including reactive and winter maintenance, emergency response, patching, inspections, and stakeholder engagement.
Based at our Brunswick Wharf site in Congleton, and overseeing operations across multiple depots (Congleton, Wardle/Nantwich, Macclesfield, and Crewe), you will lead a team of around 80 employees, along with managing resources from our supply chain. The role is highly operational and involves managing both planned and reactive works, ensuring compliance with legislation and high standards of safety, quality, and customer service.
The Role
1. Lead and manage highway maintenance operations, including reactive works, winter services, tree maintenance, safety inspections, and emergency responses.
2. Oversee a multidisciplinary team including supervisors, operatives, highway inspectors, and local highways officers, promoting a culture of performance and accountability.
3. Ensure compliance with Health & Safety regulations, environmental and quality standards, and CDM responsibilities, maintaining a safe working environment at all times.
4. Plan, deliver, and monitor maintenance programmes, ensuring works are completed on time, within budget, and to the required technical standards.
5. Act as lead officer for emergency incidents, including weather events and environmental hazards, providing out-of-hours response leadership as required.
6. Support legal defence activities, including attendance at court for Section 58 claims on behalf of Ringway Jacobs and Cheshire East Council.
7. Coordinate with internal teams and external stakeholders, including councillors, service providers, and the public to ensure high levels of customer service and effective communication.
8. Lead depot and facility management, ensuring sites remain compliant, safe, and fit for operational delivery.
9. Drive operational improvements, contributing to PAS2080 and other accreditations, managing investigations into underperformance or policy breaches.
About You
10. Extensive experience in managing operational delivery of highway services, including statutory processes.
11. Strong knowledge of Health & Safety legislation and safety management.
12. Proven financial management skills, including planning, budgeting, and cost control.
13. Effective leadership, with experience in motivating and developing teams.
14. Collaborative approach to driving service improvement and consistency.
15. Excellent communication and negotiation skills with stakeholders and third parties.
16. Experience influencing senior officers and decision-makers.
17. Skilled in managing conflicting and changing priorities.
18. Sound understanding of risk management principles.
19. Strong written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills.
20. Customer-focused with problem-solving ability and sound judgment.
Benefits
At Ringway Jacobs we recognise that our people make the difference, and in order to do what we do well, particular care is taken in nurturing and investing in our people. That’s why you will always be given the opportunity to utilise your expertise and develop your career.
Ringway Jacobs recognises the importance of helping our employees balance their work and home life by offering flexible working arrangements across many of our roles. We therefore welcome applications from people looking for an alternative working pattern e.g. part-time hours, job share etc. Please let us know on your CV or cover letter if this is what you are looking for.
In return for your hard work you will receive:
- Sick Pay
- Competitive salary
- Opportunity to purchase up to 5 days extra leave
- A variety of discounts through our “RJ Rewards” app, including restaurants, holidays, days out etc
- Life Assurance
- Employee Assistance Programme
- Pension scheme
The Company
We are Ringway Jacobs, a leading highways service provider working with local authorities across the UK. Formed in 2005, specifically to provide road network management solutions to local government, our unique blend of engineering capability, innovation and customer care make us the best in class. We support over 10,000 miles of highways, 10,000 miles of footway, almost 7,800 miles of public rights of way and 242,000 street lights. We excel in delivering safe, sustainable service excellence, through our passion, integrity and collaborative culture.
Ringway Jacobs is an equal opportunities employer. We wish to ensure equality of opportunity in employment and the fair treatment of all our employees.