Top-notch Planning Manager - UK Defence (Hybrid)

Are you a bit tired of the standard, old-fashioned way of doing things in the construction industry? Have you always cared about the importance of proper planning and the connection between the schedule and the real, day-to-day delivery of the job? Do you get deep satisfaction from making things run more efficiently using a good dose of common sense and maybe a bit of technology? Sounds like a dream. Well, it isn’t. It’s quite real! Read on.

We are Laminar Projects! If you’ve already heard about us, you’re probably reading this because you’re tired of the typical, chaotic ways of doing things in construction. But in case you haven’t, we’re a high-end project management consultancy and tech developer with a focus on upgrading the way construction projects are delivered. Improving construction strengthens the very foundation of human civilisation. We bring transparency and control to projects through a pragmatic mix of the latest tech, our own processes, and a big dose of common sense. We then take our deep understanding of these projects and we invest heavily into developing the digital solutions that anyone can use to deliver their projects better. The core of all this is our true secret sauce: our people. We only recruit the very best, both in capability and personality. We’re deeply focused on designing a new type of organisation that’s optimised for the flourishing of the people in the team first and foremost. People who join us develop fast as a whole person in ways they never imagined. This approach has allowed us to grow from just two people in 2017 to over 220 today. We have a stable, repeat client base across infrastructure and complex building projects in the UK and internationally, and we’re still growing fast. Joining us isn’t just some “job”. It’s a transformative educational experience. We challenge you to be your best self in all aspects of life. There are many diverse and interesting challenges available. It’s up to you to guide yourself into whichever areas you’re most interested - we’ll enable it.

Core values for a good life:

• Grow yourself – your relationship with yourself
• Care about people – your relationship with others around you
• Execute to greatness – your relationship with your team
• Build civilisation – your relationship with humanity and the world

We enshrined our values in our vision: We exist so that everyone in our team can flourish in a high-impact community that:

• Connects us with meaningful relationships
• Inspires us to develop ourselves to become better humans
• Empowers us to pursue our own learning adventures

And enable the achievement of our vision through our two missions:

• To fully digitalise the construction of human civilisation
• To create a new type of organisation that enables human flourishing while delivering a huge positive impact on society

The Role UK Critical Infrastructure - Defence At Laminar, we believe the way the industry delivers its projects is as important as what it delivers. Strong controls, clear governance, and disciplined programme management aren't bureaucratic overhead; they're how you protect taxpayer investment and get critical capability into the hands of the people who need it. Joining our defence team means working at the intersection of national importance and professional craft - helping to raise the bar on how the UK's most significant programmes are run. The role is primarily open to UK passport holders who have resided in the UK for at least the last 5 years, however candidates who hold nationalities from NATO or MISWG will also be considered. Candidates must reside in the UK and be entitled to work with no restrictions. The project is based in Southern England. Our client typically requires 2-3 days on site per fortnight, but this can be subject to change and we can discuss specifics with you. Please consider how flexible you are, and how practical travel to this location is for you, when applying.

Purpose of the role: As a top-notch Planning Manager we are looking for a combination of excellent planning and people skills to lead planning in one of our major UK Critical Infrastructure projects. This is a hands-on leadership role where clients will look to you as their planning expert. You could be leading a team of 5 - 10 planners and other project controls professionals; working as part of a larger integrated client team as a specialist partner. As a dynamic, innovative team, we value curiosity and ingenuity to create the right solutions for us and our clients. You will lead improvement initiatives, from assessing client capability to working with clients to implement enhancements for project success. At Laminar, you will be a key person helping shape and support our growth through project controls excellence by being a development mentor for 2-5 consultants, helping them flourish and grow.

Your Team: Such Laminar project teams comprise of multi-discipline Project Controls experts including; Project Planning, Integrated Planning, Project Controls Reporting, and Earned Value Management. As a senior leader in the project team your role will be to provide strategic insight, support the client in getting the best out of the skills within the team, and to balance this with helping the team to get the most out of the project. Such engagement is a key part of the Laminar portfolio and you will have the chance to support the wider Infrastructure sector with your knowledge and experience via internal initiatives and growth efforts.

Core Responsibilities:

• Own the plan: Define clear roles and responsibilities across your team to ensure all project requirements are met on time, while remaining adaptable as project needs evolve.
• Own the outcome: Regardless of reporting lines, take full ownership of delivering the project's outcomes - bringing your best effort to keep your team and the wider project aligned and focused on the plan.
• Report and inform: Drive the creation of clear, actionable reports tailored to stakeholders at all levels, enabling each of them to deliver their part of the project more efficiently and effectively.
• Make scalable solutions: Develop repeatable and scalable best practices and tools in collaboration with the teams so that long-term impact can be achieved beyond the project.
• Develop everyone: Maximise the development of your team personally and professionally and educate our clients to improve as well.

Your Capabilities:

• Planning Excellence: You have over 10 years of experience delivering engineering and construction projects, with expert-level planning skills and the configuration and use of planning tools (Primavera P6 for this project).
• Planning Leadership: You have a demonstrated history of leading planning teams where you are responsible for planning, planning tools and quality assurance. Ultimately clients trust your advice on how to deliver construction better, safer or more efficiently.
• Communication: You’re a competent communicator in English and have the charisma and influence to guide people towards the best approach, even in challenging situations. You're passionate about helping others grow, both professionally and personally, and lead by example with a dynamic, people-first approach.
• Elevate with Energy: You are driven by a passion for improvement and a desire to leave a lasting legacy, connecting your interest in people, processes and systems to deliver real change. You bring curiosity and innovation to everything you do - you don't just deliver, you elevate.

Eligibility Requirements: Due to the nature of the client and project, this role requires the ability to obtain UK security clearance. To be eligible you must:

• Hold a UK passport and have resided in the UK for at least the last 5 years, or hold a nationality from a NATO or MISWG member state
• Currently reside in the UK
• Have no restrictions on your right to work in the UK

As a candidate, you should have:

• Mastery: Construction engineering background with at least 10 years of experience on construction projects. Expert project planning understanding both in software and principles.
• Communication: Excellent communicator in written and verbal English.
• Leadership: A proven leader with a relentless, positive approach to dealing with people.
• Impact: A track record of making projects and organisations better beyond just doing the basics.

Nice to Have (If you don’t have it now you will be trained intensively after joining):

• Mastery: Strong Excel skills and an interest in data
• Communication: The charisma, influence, and presence to get people to do new things and take the best approach.
• Leadership: A proven coach/developer of teams or teams of teams.
• Impact: A track record of implementing repeatable and scalable solutions in projects and organisations that had a significant positive impact.

Laminar isn’t the place for you if any of the following is true:

• You want an easy, chilled-out role without much challenge
• You like to be the smartest person in the room
• You don’t like continuously receiving honest candid feedback
• You prefer to do your own thing rather than work with a team

Frequently Asked Questions:

What kind of projects are Laminar involved with? It’s common for people to be exposed to several projects in their first year with us. You’ll work on some of the most complex and interesting environments in the world. We’ve delivered over 100 data centres internationally, many of them fast-tracked and multi-package. Our teams have supported flagship infrastructure programmes like HS2 through integrated planning and digital delivery, contributed to over $30bn in power generation and transmission projects, and played a key role in the development of high-containment labs and R&D campuses for some of the world’s most advanced industrial and life sciences clients. You might find yourself working in sectors such as data centres, infrastructure (including defense, rail, and highways), high tech (such as advanced manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, and semiconductors), or complex building projects. These aren’t hands-off assignments. They’re dynamic, hands-on environments designed for people who want to be challenged. We bring back the lessons from every project to help our team grow and deliver the highest levels of value.

Who are our clients? Major owners/operators and main contractors with project values between £1m and £1bn+ globally.

Where would I be working? One week you might be working from home. The next, you might travel to the site to meet the construction teams and help organise them. Maybe you’ll pop into our London office for a workshop or a beer. On a different project maybe you’ll fly out to exotic and sometimes not! locations in Europe or the Middle East to visit clients. It really depends on what you want to get involved in and what fits with your life.

How does what I do connect with the long-term impact on the construction industry? You’re tasked with understanding and solving common problems. We don’t want to reinvent the wheel every time, so you’ll be responsible for documenting new solutions and evolving ones we’ve developed. This goes into our knowledge repository, which we’re going to open source to the industry. The knowledge you capture will be used by us to build new products. You’ll constantly test those products in the field, so we can rapidly iterate and improve them for anyone in the industry to use.

Benefits:

• The standard stuff: Health Insurance Scheme. Comprehensive private health coverage - for you and your family. Because your well-being is our priority.
• Pension Scheme. A competitive plan to help you plan for the long term - plus salary sacrifice options available to maximise your savings.
• Bonus Scheme. As a permanent member of the team, you’ll share in our success. Our annual bonus is designed to reward both the now and the future - with a flexible mix of cash and high-growth equity that you choose. Bonuses are discretionary and based on performance.
• Professional body membership. One fee covered per year - so you can stay connected to your field and develop your craft.
• Cycle to Work Scheme. A tax-efficient way to get wheels - and do your bit for the environment.

The life-changing stuff:

• In-house coaching. Regular 1:1 coaching sessions, fully confidential, to help you navigate challenges, build self-awareness, and grow intentionally - professionally and as a human being.
• Equity upside. As we grow, you grow. Our generous equity scheme is especially powerful for those who stay with us on our journey. You help us build the future - and own a piece of it.
• Flexible working. Work where it makes sense - most of our team works from home, visiting sites or clients regularly. We care about outcomes, not clock-ins.
• Relentless development. Our goal is for every year here to be worth five years of development anywhere else. You’ll get a coach, a mentor, honest feedback, and a culture that challenges you to keep levelling up.