Director Of Project Delivery

Job Description – Head of PMO

Reporting to: Director of Transformation

Location: This role is a hybrid role, based in London or Sheffield but will require regular travel across the UK to visit different FareShare sites.

Contract: FTC 2 years

Hours: 35 hours per week

Salary: £60,924-£64,130 (National) or £64,448-£67,840 (London)

We welcome applications from all backgrounds. We are a Disability Confident Employer that welcome disabled applicants and provide reasonable adjustments.

About FareShare

FareShare is the UK’s national network of charitable food redistributors, made up of 18 independent organisations. Together, we take good quality surplus food from right across the food industry and get it to nearly 9,500 frontline charities and community groups.

The food we redistribute is nutritious and good to eat. It reaches charities across the UK, including school breakfast clubs, older people’s lunch clubs, homeless shelters, and community cafes. Every week we provide enough food to create almost a million meals for vulnerable people.

Every year, more than three million tonnes of food go to waste in the UK, enough for 7 billion meals. Meanwhile, the cost of living crisis is driving millions in to food insecurity. FareShare has a plan to help tackle the cost of living crisis using England’s surplus food.

We are fortunate to benefit from the support of major retailers, the media, sports ambassadors and a groundswell of public engagement. As a result, there has never been a more exciting time to join an organisation at the heart of public consciousness.

FareShare’s Strategy & Vision

Vision: We have the vision of a UK where “No good food goes to waste”.

Mission: To use surplus, fit for consumption, food to feed those who are vulnerable in the UK by supporting front line charitable organisations that tackle the cause and not just the symptoms of food poverty.

Our Purpose:We are doers. We are a community. We change lives.

Our Values:  Passion – for our cause and the challenge that lies ahead

Ambition – to go the extra mile and drive the change that must happen

Respect – for ourselves, each other, our volunteers, our partners and our beneficiaries  

Collaboration – it’s only by working with others that we can be stronger

Focus – on providing the best service possible so that we deliver and achieve the most for our clients/customers.

The role

We are looking for a Head of PMO Manager with a strong background in building and managing Programme Management Offices across complex programmes.

We have recently set a new 3-year strategy, which will result in a major transformation of the organisation.  To support this transformation, we need to build a well-supported project management environment at FareShare, using project management best practices and proven methodologies to improve measurable project success and ensure we deliver maximum impact.

This role will build and manage a new PMO function, ultimately having governance responsibilities across the whole transformation programme. This role will ensure we have the right skills and capabilities in place to support and embed new ways of working. To do this will require a change management approach and mind-set, strong relationship management skills and the confidence to introduce structure in a developing environment with a high degree of self-sufficiency.

About you

You will have significant experience setting up and driving large complex projects or change programmes, preferably in an organisation delivering professional services.

You will be an effective and clear communicator, enabling engagement with people at all levels, with the ability to positively influence colleagues up to exec level. 

You will need knowledge of PMO models and best practice, as well as experience applying these in practice from working within a PMO function.

The role will need to advise on approaches, create materials and manage existing processes during the set-up phase, therefore being a self-starter who can get things done in a limited time frame is a must.

Proficiency in project management tools and software such as Jira and Trello is desirable.

Main areas of responsibility

The Head of PMO will be responsible for setting up, successfully embedding PMO processes and managing the PMO through the programme lifecycle. This new function will promote and support best practice in the delivery of Projects to manage risk and maximise impact against investment of resources. Responsibilities will include:

• Developing the PMO setup & monitoring of pipeline activities as well as emerging activities for transformation projects, respecting the varying scale, nature and complexity of Projects undertaken
• Collaborating with project managers, change managers & sponsors on the delivery of Projects and status updates
• Building common guidance, tools and templates to support project managers in delivering against the best practice framework
• Building an effective reporting structure to track deliverables and benefits realisation, manage dependencies and ensure decisions are escalated to the right level
• Providing a consolidated view of risk so that themes can be identified, and risk effectively managed
• Monitoring and reviewing compliance with the new processes, to test effectiveness as well as adoption
• Collaborating with colleagues in Finance to ensure alignment of Project reporting with financial planning timetables, including annual budget and forecasting exercises
• Comprehensive stakeholder engagement at all levels up to executive, to ensure high levels of engagement at each phase of design and implementation
• Working with functional team managers to support colleagues across the organisation in developing project management skills and understanding
• Ensuring the new function promotes and actively facilitates project alignment with our strategy through having a consistent business case approach
• Working with the Change Lead to adopt relevant change management tools and approaches to ensure the long-term success of the new function

As an employer committed to Equal Opportunities, we will assess applications in line with these criteria that we consider either as being essential or desirable in this role.

Person Specification

Essential Criteria

• 5+ years of proven experience of setting up and driving complex PMOs for transformation programmes
• Knowledge of PMO models and best practice from an applied setting
• Effective and clear communicator, enabling engagement with people at all levels with ability to positively influence colleagues up to executive level
• Self-starter, comfortable building structure in a developing environment
• Experience identifying, addressing and resolving differences between individuals and/or interest groups
• Experience with project governance and supporting organisational decision-making
• Commitment to FareShare’s mission and vision
• Hands on and outcome driven approach

Desirable Criteria

• Experience working with project management tools and software such as Jira and Trello is desirable
• A relevant project or change management qualification would be advantageous but we are looking first and foremost for real-life experience
• A tangible understanding of the food sector would be beneficial

Competencies and behaviours

• Planning and prioritisation - develop and implement clear plans with defined outcomes and efficiency as a focus
• Communicating with impact - ability to clarify, influence and establish commitment to organisational goals and new ways of working
• Active listening – ability to actively and effectively solicit feedback and apply to realise maximum benefit from project outcomes
• Strategic-focus - ability to take a big picture view on organisational need and translate into a clear roadmap for delivery
• Building trust and strong relationships by role-modelling positive, people-centric leadership behaviours
• Problem solving and decision making - the ability to anticipate, assess and deliver solutions to problems with clear logical thinking
• Developing self and others

Benefits

• Hybrid / Flexible working, with regular UK travel
• 28 days’ annual leave + 8 bank holidays
• Employers pension contribution
• Employee Assistance Program
• Interest free bicycle purchase loan scheme
• Season ticket loan

Deadline for applications: 29th February 2024

Interview will take place early March