Audit Stream Learning & Development - Lead Programme Manager (Fixed Term Contract) in Liverpool

We’re BDO. An accountancy and business advisory firm, providing the advice and solutions entrepreneurial organisations need to navigate today’s changing world. We work with the companies that are Britain’s economic engine – ambitious, entrepreneurially-spirited and high‑growth businesses that fuel the economy – and directly advise the owners and management teams leading them.

Learning and Development (L&D) is a key enabler of our strategy as an Audit Stream and critical to our success. It supports our ability to attract, develop and retain talented people who take pride in their work and successfully deliver for our business. Effective L&D underpins quality and productivity by supporting our people to develop the necessary knowledge and skills to perform their work, helping them reach their personal and professional potential.

Effective L&D does not happen by chance. It requires specialist resources who partner with the Audit Stream to identify training needs and appropriately respond to them. Careful planning and project management are necessary, as are a critical-thinking and commercial mindset, and an understanding of regulatory requirements. Effective L&D needs consideration of the latest innovation, tools and technology to lead the development of personal and professional learning that is tailored, relevant and timely for our people.

The Lead Programme Manager will be responsible for the day-to-day management of the Learning Implementation team, a group of 5-6 individuals who are geographically spread across the UK. They will be responsible for the strategic sourcing and management of various external suppliers including venues, facilitators, licenses and event production and, together with the other team leads, will manage the book of work (and relative prioritisation) for learning across the Stream; with audiences of 3,600 learners and covering both in person and virtual learning.

The Lead Programme Manager will own the effective delivery, prioritisation, and execution of the Audit L&D calendar of events, including early in careers, post qualified learning, US, FS and other sectors curricula, ensuring learning is implemented effectively, in an efficient and standardised manner. They will work closely with colleagues across the L&D team, particularly the Audit L&D Operations team and the Leadership Team (LT).

It is expected that any successful candidate has a working knowledge of Audit and the associated regulatory environment and practical experience of learning implementation is a must for the role. Strong project management, an ability to work with and influence a variety of stakeholders, and a focus on continuous improvement are also key for the role. Learning experience should be a top priority for any successful candidate.

The successful candidate can be based anywhere in the UK. Regional candidates are welcomed. Travel to the London office, where Audit Stream L&D is based, as well as some travel to other offices and external venues, will be required. Certain support on courses will require residential stays. This role is a fixed term contract for eighteen months.

You will be responsible for:

• Strategic sourcing and management of various external suppliers ensuring that service level agreements are established to serve business needs effectively and in a commercially viable way.
• Owning the implementation aspects of all programmes and projects, including tracking, risk management and reporting and overseeing the coordination of learning logistics as needed to support the delivery of the book of work.
• Building and maintaining key strategic supplier relationships.
• Communicating effectively with the L&D team and other central teams such as Procurement, Finance, IT and Facilities, ensuring relevant matters are drawn to their attention on a timely basis.
• Establishing the learning implementation strategy to optimise ways of working across the team and deliver effective learner experience.
• Driving the transformation of learning implementation through standardisation, automation and optimisation as appropriate to future proof operations for the team – working closely with the Operations Manager and LT on this key project for the coming period.
• Leveraging practical learning implementation experience and working knowledge of audit and the regulatory environment to bring best practice implementation to Audit Stream L&D.
• Managing the day-to-day activities within the Learning Implementation team, providing coaching and leadership to others in the team as needed.
• Working with and across the horizontal team as needed to support appropriate delivery of our book of work and provide the best learning experience possible.
• Collaborating with other teams within BDO, such as Procurement, Finance, IT and Facilities to support effective delivery.
• Providing onsite project management support for programmes as appropriate.
• Bringing fresh ideas to the business to support effective learning solutions.
• Leading on various transformation projects in Learning Implementation to support standardisation, automation and optimisation with our processes (as appropriate).

You’ll be someone with:

• Current experience working as a Manager (or equivalent) with a strong knowledge of learning and development and best practice implementation.
• Experience of working with and across the horizontal business partnering, design and delivery teams.
• Enhanced knowledge of working with suppliers, ensuring value-for-money and operational excellence in delivery against agreed SLAs.
• A strong working knowledge of Audit and the associated regulatory environment.
• A proven track record of transformation (including simplification and automation processes) and bringing about continuous improvement to / within existing processes.
• Experience of working with other teams within an organisation; Procurement, Finance, IT, Facilities etc is favourable.
• A working knowledge of Workday (our LMS) would be beneficial but is not essential.
• Strong project management skills (and associated tools knowledge).
• Exceptional communications skills, with and across numerous grades in any organisation.
• Strong and evident experience of leading a team which are geographically spread across the UK would be advantageous.
• Experience of evident budgetary management would also be advantageous but is not essential.

We’re in it together. Mutual support and respect is one of BDO’s core values and we’re proud of our distinctive, people-centred culture. From informal success conversations to formal mentoring and coaching, we’ll support you at every stage in your career, whatever your personal and professional needs. Our agile working framework helps us stay connected, bringing teams together where and when it counts so they can share ideas and help one another. At BDO, you’ll always have access to the people and resources you need to do your best work. We know that collaboration is the key to creating value and satisfying experiences at work, so we’ve invested in state-of-the-art collaboration spaces in our offices. BDO’s people represent a wealth of knowledge and expertise, and we’ll encourage you to build your network, work alongside others, and share your skills and experiences. With a range of multidisciplinary events and dedicated resources, you’ll never stop learning at BDO.

At BDO, we help entrepreneurial businesses to succeed, fuelling the UK economy. Our success is powered by our people, which is why we’re always finding new ways to invest in you. Across the UK thousands of unique minds continue to come together to help companies we work with to achieve their ambitions. We’ve got a clear purpose, and we’re confident in our future, because we’re adapting and evolving to build on our strengths, ensuring we continue to find the right combination of global reach, integrity and expertise. We shape the future together with openness and clarity, because we believe in empowering people to think creatively about how we can do things better.