Programme Director - T5O in London

Together, we’re working to welcome millions more passengers, while ensuring aviation can continue to be a force for good by leading global efforts in sustainability. At Heathrow, you can be part of this – providing solutions that make every journey better for millions each year. That means ensuring we meet the changing needs of the passengers, colleagues and partners who use our airport to work, travel, trade, shop, eat, explore and connect.

Our Solutions team covers project management, process improvement, business change, technology, cyber defence, masterplanning, infrastructure and procurement. It brings together people with the skills to deliver prestigious and often large-scale projects, from transforming terminals to making big reductions in our carbon emissions. Every day will test your skills and give you the opportunity to make your mark.

You might be working with the technology and data that power our city within a city, driving vital commercial agreements with everyone from retailers to airlines, or improving the unique infrastructure that includes everything from 200 buildings to 250 HV substations. It’s a collaborative environment, where you can rely on the support of the experts around you as you take on projects you’ll both take pride in and feel passionate about.

Heathrow delivers one of the largest capital investment portfolios in the UK, with planned investment of between £1.3bn and £2bn per annum over the next five years. Accountability for delivering all non-technology, digital, or data programmes sits within the Development function, where this role is positioned.

The Programme Director is responsible for ensuring integration and alignment across internal and external functions, securing input and commitment to solutions while maintaining accountability for the delivery of intended benefits. The role also requires strong strategic capability, including shaping and supporting the development of business cases for the Customer and Operations functions.

This position holds accountability for the Terminal 5 Optimisation programme, leading a large, multidisciplinary team to deliver solutions that grow Heathrow’s capacity within a two-runway operation, enhance Terminal 5’s passenger experience and improve its operational resilience. This represents one of the biggest and most significant programmes in Heathrow’s next regulatory cycle, delivering Heathrow’s most significant near-term capacity increase within its largest commercial and revenue-generating asset. With a value exceeding £1.15bn, the programme also represents a foundational step in the long-term modernisation of Terminal 5.

Your role will involve:

• Lead the Terminal 5 Optimisation programme, with accountability for delivering agreed outcomes in line with the approved business case, with a focus on increasing capacity ahead of expansion, enhancing passenger experience and improving resilience.
• Define and shape programme solutions to meet business needs, ensuring they remain operable and maintainable throughout the full asset lifecycle, from initial delivery through to long-term use.
• Provide strategic governance and assurance, maintaining programme integrity, compliance with agreed commitments, and alignment with Heathrow’s corporate standards.
• Enable effective and timely decision-making, managing complex stakeholder relationships to set a clear strategic direction across planning, resource management, issue resolution, quality, governance, change control, risk management, communications, and budget oversight.
• Lead and inspire a high-performing programme team, including approximately 100 directly employed colleagues and up to c.300 supply chain contributors, establishing a clear vision and roadmap to deliver programme objectives within a complex and highly scrutinised environment.
• Hold direct accountability for the programme’s capital budget (in excess of £300m), ensuring delivery against the approved business case and influencing the remaining wider construction delivery budget through scope definition and the realisation of capital efficiency opportunities.

These skills are essential:

• Proven experience leading complex, large-scale engineering or infrastructure programmes with a value in excess of £1bn.
• Strong problem-solving capability, with a track record of applying rigorous and analytical thinking to complex challenges, delivering innovative and practical solutions.
• Expertise in stakeholder engagement, with the ability to build strong relationships and influence at senior levels across airlines, customers, government, and regulatory bodies.
• Solid understanding of strategic frameworks, governance, and commercial principles.
• Demonstrated ability to lead and inspire large, multidisciplinary teams, including effective procurement and supplier management across complex delivery environments, supported by strong commercial awareness and negotiation skills.
• Expertise in industry-standard programme and project management methodologies and tools, with the ability to adapt approaches to suit different delivery contexts and drive effective, value-focused outcomes.

Ideally you will have:

• Experience leading and delivering mega infrastructure projects.
• Experience operating within the aviation sector.
• Chartered Engineer status or equivalent experience delivering large-scale construction projects.