Regional Sponsor

Highways England

Your new role

National Highways is currently recruiting for a Regional Sponsor to join the Lower Thames Crossing (LTC) directorate based in the South East.

In this role, you will initiate and oversee the delivery of this ‘mega project’, ensuring alignment with National Highways strategic priorities. You will also be accountable for the Benefits and Business case for the scheme.

Further responsibilities in this role include, leading governance and ensuring coordination between corporate and project environments and providing leadership and internal challenge to project delivery performance and progress.

What you’ll be leading on

1. Develop and maintain strong relationships with key stakeholders inside and outside of National Highways, building trust, gaining commitment to the programme and individual project objectives and benefits and clarifying and resolving issues and concerns.
2. Lead Value Management Review and initiate ad hoc reviews to support decision making and change control.
3. Be accountable for managing stakeholders such as MPs, Government departments, Government committees as well as recognised transport bodies.
4. Understand the core business drivers, environment and organisation, and manage aspects of uncertainty to maintain clarity with and for project delivery teams, reconciling different stakeholder requirements.
5. Positively representing, and safeguarding the reputation of, the project and National Highways, amongst external stakeholder and Ministers
6. Ensure a commercially viable options appraisal is delivered which takes into account a full understanding of value for money, requirements, risks and interdependencies of asset failure throughout the local and strategic network.
7. Establish and chair the Project Committee for each project and ensure that the project is delivered in accordance with the governance requirements of National Highways and the Department for Transport; that decisions are subject to review at the appropriate point and are made in a timely way
8. Accountable for ensuring adherence to the Project Controls Framework and assure and approve associated project management products, ensuring that any issues are addressed before progressing to the next stage and that products are of high quality
9. Act as an escalation point for risks, issues and changes, providing clear direction to the project management team throughout the project lifecycle. Identify and manage strategic risks within the project and work with the project delivery teams to manage and mitigate them

To be successful you’ll need

• To be a senior leader and decision maker with the credibility to work across corporate and functional boundaries, and ability to work effectively in a political environment.
• To demonstrate experience of leading people through regulated governance and assurance.
• Proven success in leading Benefits Management and business cases for the successful delivery of major infrastructure projects, and managing diverse teams, in a complex customer facing organisation, using a recognised Programme and Project framework.
• To demonstrate evidence of working successfully to influence Programmes, Projects and Project managers both within and outside of the immediate team.
• To provide evidence of the successful engagement with internal and external clients and stakeholders, and development of collaborative relationships with delivery partners.
• To provide evidence of delivering strategic outcomes and influencing project prioritisation
• Strong analytical skills, to develop, analyse and provide commentary on performance reports.

Functional / Technical Skills

• Professional accreditation / membership of a relevant body, such as Association for Project Management (APM); Institute of Value Management, or appropriate professional body for their specialist field or willingness and commitment to attain.

A bit about us

The Lower Thames Crossing is the most significant new highways infrastructure in a generation. The crossing will support local and national economic growth, connect communities and provide relief to existing congestion at the Dartford Crossing. This project will set the standard for delivery of sustainable road transport into the future.

Why you should join us

At Highways England we believe in a connected country. We are passionate about creating a culture where colleagues feel connected, included and enjoy greater wellbeing to achieve this. We’re proud that as an organisation we are continually striving to do better and actively encourage and support our colleagues to do the same with their careers.

So, if you put safety first, take ownership of your work, show passion for what you do, work effectively in a team, and demonstrate integrity in how you do it – then you’ll be a great fit for our organisation

And finally, we reserve the right to close before the advertised closing date, so we recommend completing your application as soon as possible.