Description
Summary
Purpose:
The Lead Project Manager leads the team’s delivery of assigned projects, ensuring they are completed on time, within budget, and to the required quality standards. This includes end-to-end planning, documentation, resource coordination, and progress monitoring to achieve key milestones and deliverables. The LPM also plays a key role in facilitating delivery by removing obstacles, generating ideas for improvement, and championing the Voice of the Customer internally.Landscape:
Reporting to the Head of Customer Programmes, the Lead Project Manager plays a key role in delivering projects within the Assessment Services Limited portfolio. The role involves regular collaboration with teams across AQA, including senior leaders, project stakeholders, Business Development, Scanning Centre Operations, Electronic Script Processing, Reconciliation, and Technology.
Activities:
Manage the delivery of concurrent customers examination series, both UK and International, ensuring compliance to each individual contract and service provision.
Lead and manage the performance and development of project team members, with a focus on building their skills, supporting personal development, and enabling them to deliver high-quality outcomes.
Develop, maintain, and track progress of the team’s projects, ensuring key milestones and dependencies are clearly identified and effectively communicated to stakeholders.
Act as a customer advocate in internal technology strategy discussions, working closely with Product Managers and technology teams to prioritise change requests, influence resource allocation, and ensure technical requirements are aligned with customer needs and expectations.
Lead and support the delivery of the ASL strategic goals through various workstreams and initiatives.
Work with stakeholders and AQA leadership teams to ensure the delivery of key project milestones to time and quality, and within the project budget.
Prepare and deliver regular RAG status updates for stakeholders and manage the MI provided by the team to monitor delivery.
Contribute to, monitor and manage any SLAs defined in the contract or planning document.
Liaise with client teams and act as a point of escalation for priority incidents, escalating as appropriate.
Lead the delivery of operational excellence through the identification, planning and implementation of continuous improvement activity.
Support the Business Development team through activities such as bid documentation, cost gathering, product demonstrations, pilots, contract negotiations, and account management activities.
Lead and facilitate the planning and delivery of customer training sessions to examiners and client Admin teams.
Responsible for the identification, assessment, mitigation and management of risks and opportunities for the team’s assigned projects.
Travel to customer and AQA sites, both within the UK and internationally, as required.
To be successful in this role, you will need to:
Have a recognised Project Management qualification or be able to demonstrate relevant experience.
Display a good understanding of the Projects and Programmes environment
Have excellent organisational, prioritisation and decision-making skills with ability to delegate project-related activities.
Demonstrate excellent communication skills including experience of writing concise reports that include analysis of financials and metrics.
Ability to solve problems, adapt to change, and unblock challenges that may hinder project progress.
Have strong people management skills with the ability to inspire and motivate team members and other colleagues to meet deliverables and adhere to agreed processes and ways of working
Demonstrate excellent stakeholder management skills, including the ability to work collaboratively, negotiate, influence and provide constructive challenge when required.
Effectively line manage and coach colleagues on their performance goals, project discipline and personal development.