This role provides senior delivery leadership for the Cerberus programme as it enters its next phase of delivery from July 2026. Cerberus is a critical priority programme, operating in a complex and high‑risk environment, where sustained leadership is required to maintain momentum, manage delivery risk and ensure outcomes are delivered in a controlled and deliberate way.
The postholder is accountable for leading delivery against the agreed programme roadmap, with clear ownership of delivery outcomes, interdependencies, risks and assurance. The role requires mature delivery leadership to ensure the programme progresses predictably, with strong grip of delivery confidence and effective engagement with senior stakeholders.
A core aspect of the role is the management of complex delivery dependencies, including the effective oversight and integration of third‑party suppliers and delivery partners. The Programme Manager is responsible for ensuring supplier activity aligns with programme priorities, contractual deliverables are met, performance is actively managed, and external contributions are integrated into the overall delivery plan.
The role also plays a key part in embedding and maturing the AI delivery capability established through Cerberus. This includes ensuring the capability is fully operationalised, embedded into business‑as‑usual ways of working, and delivering tangible outcomes at scale.
Overall, the role provides the senior leadership necessary to ensure Cerberus continues to deliver with clarity, control and confidence through a critical phase of its development.
Where business needs allow, some roles may be suitable for a combination of office and home‑based working. Where this is the case, employees will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of their working time in the office.
What You’ll Do
* Accountable for delivery against the agreed roadmap, with clear ownership of outcomes, plans, dependencies, risks and assurance, ensuring delivery stays on track within agreed quality, cost and time constraints.
* Establish and maintain effective governance, ensuring it is proportionate, decision‑making is timely, teams are well prepared to engage, and actions arising are owned and completed. Provide clear, consistent reporting and delivery confidence to senior stakeholders.
* Actively manage delivery risks and interdependencies, ensuring risks are identified, understood and mitigated, drawing on specialist input where required, and escalating issues appropriately.
* Lead stakeholder engagement and communication, identifying stakeholder groups and their needs, developing engagement strategies, and ensuring regular, accurate communication throughout delivery.
* Lead supplier and partner management, ensuring supplier performance aligns to programme priorities, issues are addressed proactively, and supplier activity is fully integrated into delivery plans, while continuously improving supplier management practices.
* Build and sustain high‑performing, joined‑up delivery teams, creating the right environment for effective cross‑functional collaboration, monitoring team health, resolving issues, and embedding and scaling the AI delivery capability into BAU ways of working to deliver outcomes at pace.
Essential skills
* Proven experience leading delivery across complex technology programmes or products, spanning multiple teams, lifecycles and delivery approaches.
* Strong control of risks, issues and dependencies, with the ability to keep delivery on track and moving at pace through effective prioritisation and intervention.
* Confident stakeholder management and communication, with the ability to engage, influence and manage expectations across technical and non‑technical audiences, including senior stakeholders.
* Experience creating the conditions for effective cross‑team collaboration, bringing teams together around shared goals, removing blockers and resolving issues at team boundaries.
* Strong understanding of delivery governance and assurance, with experience ensuring governance processes are efficient, effective and support decision‑making; underpinned by a recognised delivery qualification (e.g. Scrum, SAFe, PRINCE2).
* Supplier management experience, including monitoring performance, resolving issues, and integrating third‑party delivery into overall plans and ways of working.
At the Home Office, your work has real‑world impact, shaping the safety and security of millions. We offer:
* Meaningful Work: Contribute to critical national security and public service initiatives.
* Career Growth: Benefit from tailored development frameworks and professional communities.
* Flexible Working: Balance your professional and personal life with hybrid work options.
* Diversity and Inclusion: Join a workplace where your unique background and talents are celebrated.
Benefits include
* Exceptional pension: Employer contribution of 28.97%.
* Generous leave: 25 days annual leave (rising to 30 with service), 8 public holidays, and 1 day for the King’s Birthday.
* Flexible working: Options include full‑time, part‑time, compressed hours, job sharing, and a hybrid model (minimum 60% on‑site).
* Learning and development: Access to training, technical accreditations, and funded qualifications (subject to approval).
* Recognition and inclusion: A culture that champions diversity, enhanced parental leave schemes, annual bonuses, and recognition awards.
* Learn more about our benefits: Benefits - Home Office Careers
Additional Information
* This role requires SC clearance. To meet national security vetting requirements, you must typically have been resident in the UK for at least five years. Unfortunately, we cannot sponsor visas.
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