Senior Project Manager - Rail in Manchester

Joining Arup’s purpose, shared values and collaborative approach have set us apart for 80 years, guiding how we shape a better world. Our established Rail business brings together multidisciplinary teams to deliver complex and meaningful projects across the UK and internationally. We work with a broad range of clients and partners. Our portfolio includes station design and masterplanning, high-speed rail, depot remodelling, signalling renewals, electrification and associated decarbonisation programmes. You will join a collaborative team committed to technical excellence, sustainable outcomes and creating long-term value for the clients and communities we serve.

The Opportunity: We are seeking a Senior Project Manager, Rail to join our multidisciplinary team, based in Glasgow, Manchester or York. You will lead the successful delivery of technically excellent rail projects and bids across our UK portfolio, working with design teams throughout the project lifecycle. You will manage engineering and design activities, technical interfaces, programmes, budgets, scope, quality and commercial performance. You will also coordinate communication between clients, multidisciplinary teams, subcontractors and delivery partners, ensuring projects are delivered against agreed objectives.

As a senior member of the team, you will build trusted client relationships, provide leadership and guidance to colleagues, and share knowledge and best practice across the business. You will own project delivery plans and oversee projects through to completion, including capturing lessons learned, maintaining project records and supporting client feedback. The role offers the opportunity to take ownership of project delivery while continuing to develop your multidisciplinary engineering design management and leadership experience through meaningful project work and internal and external learning opportunities.

At Arup, you belong to an extraordinary collective, in which we encourage individuality to thrive. Our strength comes from how we respect, share and connect our diverse experiences, perspectives and ideas. You will have the opportunity to do socially useful work that has meaning, to Arup, to your career, to our members and to the clients and communities we serve.

Is this role right for you? We are looking for people who have:

• Significant experience managing multidisciplinary rail or complex infrastructure design projects, with a strong understanding of requirements, change, programme, cost, quality, risk and commercial management.
• Proven experience leading projects and multidisciplinary teams, delivering successful outcomes and building trusted relationships with clients, project partners and other stakeholders.
• Good knowledge of the rail industry, ideally gained across areas such as stations, depots, civils, enhancements, remodelling, renewals, electrification, decarbonisation, rolling stock or rail systems.
• An appropriate degree or equivalent qualification, together with Chartered Project Professional (ChPP) status or a clear pathway towards chartership. An Association for Project Management (APM) Project Management Qualification, or equivalent, would be advantageous.
• Strong communication, organisation and leadership skills, with a collaborative and adaptable approach.
• A willingness to travel to client or project sites across the UK when project needs require.
• Experience of mentoring and developing colleagues, improving project delivery processes, or using data analysis and visualisation tools such as Microsoft Excel or Power BI would be beneficial, but is not essential.

We recognise that suitable candidates may have gained relevant knowledge and capabilities through different career routes. If you meet most of the requirements and believe you could contribute to our team, we encourage you to apply.

What we offer you: At Arup, we care about each member’s success, so we can grow together. Guided by our values, we provide an attractive total reward package that recognises the contribution of each of our members to our shared success. As well as competitive, fair and equitable pay, we offer a career in which all of our members can belong, grow and thrive – through benefits that support health and wellbeing, a wide range of learning opportunities and many possibilities to have an impact through the work they do.

Different people, shared values: Arup is an equal opportunity employer that actively promotes and nurtures a diverse and inclusive workforce. We welcome applications from individuals of all backgrounds, regardless of age, gender identity or expression, marital status, disability, neurotype or mental health, race or ethnicity, faith or belief, sexual orientation, socioeconomic background, and whether you’re pregnant or on family leave. We are an open environment that embraces diverse experiences, perspectives, and ideas – this drives our excellence.