Overview
Arriva is one of the largest transport services organisations in Europe, employing more than 34,000 people and delivering more than 1.6 billion passenger journeys across 11 European countries every year. We have strong roots dating back to 1938, an ambitious growth agenda, and a continuously developing relationship with I Squared who acquired Arriva in 2024.
Role and Responsibilities
The Project Manager supports the Programme Director in the successful delivery of the Workday transformation programme. The role is responsible for managing day-to-day programme and project delivery activities, embedding robust delivery controls, and ensuring effective integration between transformation activity and BAU operations. The Project Manager plays a critical role in enabling a smooth transition from programme delivery into a sustainable Workday support operating model.
Location: Sunderland or London office. This is a full-time role for at least 18 months.
* Workday Transformation Programme Delivery (Supporting the Programme Director)
* Support the Programme Director in the execution of the Workday transformation strategy and roadmap.
* Manage day-to-day delivery of the Workday transformation programme in line with agreed objectives, scope, and priorities.
* Develop, maintain, and track integrated programme and project plans, ensuring alignment across all workstreams.
* Coordinate delivery activities across functional, technical, data, integration, testing, and change workstreams.
* Manage dependencies, risks, and issues, escalating to the Programme Director with clear analysis and recommendations.
* Support the preparation of materials for governance forums, steering committees, and design authorities.
* Ensure programme delivery adheres to agreed methodologies, standards, and Workday best practices.
* Delivery Controls, Planning & Assurance
* Establish and operate delivery management controls, including RAID logs, milestone tracking, financial tracking, and quality checks.
* Support scope management and change control, ensuring impacts to timelines, cost, and BAU operations are understood.
* Coordinate release planning, ensuring Workday changes are scheduled and deployed in a controlled manner.
* Support with testing coordination across all phases (system, integration, UAT, regression), supporting issue triage and resolution.
* Support cutover planning, go-live readiness assessments, and deployment activities.
* BAU Workday Team Management
* Provide operational leadership for the BAU Workday team during the transformation period.
* Balance BAU priorities with transformation delivery demands, ensuring business continuity.
* Coordinate resource planning between BAU support and project activities.
* Support capability development, knowledge transfer, and skills uplift within the BAU team.
* Act as an escalation point for BAU-related risks impacting transformation delivery.
* Transition to Support Operating Model
* Support the People Director in the design and implementation of the target Workday support operating model.
* Coordinate transition activities from project delivery into BAU and support teams.
* Ensure effective handover of configuration, integrations, reporting, and documentation.
* Support the establishment of service management processes, KPIs, and SLAs.
* Assist in planning and managing post-go-live stabilisation activities.
* Stakeholder, Vendor & Partner Coordination
* Act as a key delivery interface between business stakeholders, Workday teams, and implementation partners.
* Support vendor and systems integrator management through delivery tracking and issue escalation.
* Provide accurate and timely reporting to the Programme Director and senior stakeholders.
* Support communications relating to delivery progress, risks, and upcoming milestones.
* Risk, Financial & Benefits Support
* Track programme delivery costs and support budget forecasting and controls.
* Maintain programme RAID and benefits tracking, supporting value realisation reporting.
* Identify and escalate delivery, operational, and transition risks with mitigation options.
Essential knowledge, skills & experience
* Proven experience project managing Workday programmes
* Strong project management skills across multi-stream delivery environments
* Experience supporting senior programme leadership on large transformations
* Strong understanding of BAU operations and service transition
Desirable
* Experience working with Workday systems integrators
* Knowledge of ITIL and service transition practices
* Workday module or functional experience
* Experience in regulated or complex organisational environments
Personal Attributes
* Highly organised and detail-focused
* Strong collaborator and trusted delivery partner
* Proactive and solutions-oriented
* Confident communicator with senior stakeholders
* Resilient and adaptable in complex delivery environments
This job description sets out the main duties and responsibilities of the job-holder. It does not constitute an exhaustive or comprehensive description of duties and the job holder will be required to carry out any additional tasks as and when requested to do so by their manager. Responsibilities and duties may also change in light of future business needs and personal development.
The closing date for applications is Thursday 29th January 2026. Arriva Group reserves the right to close tis vacancy early.
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