Industry Forum Liason Lead in Manchester

Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) is seeking to commission an Industry Forums Liaison Lead for an initial period of twelve months, with a commitment of two days per week. The commission will be reviewed on a 3 monthly basis.

As the rail industry embarks on Reform, Greater Manchester (GM) will work collaboratively with stakeholder partners to influence buy-in and drive cultural change across existing ways of working to meet the needs of GM as a client. The core focus of this role is to support TfGM's Strategic Rail Manager in ensuring that TfGM is appropriately represented at industry forums and aligned with associated processes to enable delivery of the objectives as set out in GM's 2050 vision for the future of rail: On the Right Track for Growth.

The role will primarily interface with the Network Rail North West & Central Long-Term Strategy, Manchester Taskforce, North of England Timetable Integration and Old Trafford Regeneration programmes, assessing rail service and infrastructure matters that are deemed pivotal to delivering GM's future rail ambitions. It will also take account of the emerging development of HS2, Liverpool - Manchester Railway, Northern Powerhouse Rail and Birmingham - Manchester Railway initiatives in considering longer term ambitions.

As we embark on a major transition to developing a robust client place-based partnership model with Great British Railways (GBR), there is a requirement to drive change across the established forums to pivot them to become enablers for GM Mayoral Strategic Authority (MSA) requirements. These forums will become a test bed for working differently, with their work ultimately forming the basis for developing GM's Local Commissioning role with GBR.

Key to the role will be identifying and implementing a strategic basis that will enable GM's objectives for connectivity, capacity, and integration with the Bee Network and wider Reform agenda to be fully reflected in external programmes and decision-making processes. This will require collaborative working with rail industry partners to make the case for, and influence, infrastructure and network decisions to achieve GM's short, medium and long term ambitions for Rail Reform and broader rail-led growth.

Equally, there will be a focus on intelligence gathering from the forums to feedback to TfGM's programme team on the risks and opportunities across each industry group, to help shape our route forward with Reform and lobbying for change. Note: the programme operates within a complex and evolving policy environment, characterised by significant sectoral change and the need for agile responses to emerging challenges. Accordingly, the deliverables for this commission retain a degree of flexibility to ensure they continue to meet TfGM's requirements as priorities develop.

• Interpret and assess the technical outputs of national and regional rail programmes and implications for GM's long-term rail vision and priorities through:

• Reviewing and critiquing technical outputs from Network Rail Long Term Strategy, Manchester Taskforce, and OTR programmes.
• Providing evidence-based proposals for aligning external plans with GM's strategic objectives.
• Preparing briefing notes and gap analyses for internal stakeholders.
• Identifying what resource is required to service and engage in these programmes going forwards.

• Supporting engagement with external partners to represent GM's interests.
• Facilitating cross-departmental input within TfGM, ensuring all affected areas are consulted.
• Drafting and reviewing formal responses, submissions, and representation material for programme milestones.
• Taking decisions and responses through appropriate internal governance to secure internal buy-in and agreement.

• Driving a change agenda across the forums, positioning GM as the client specifier for rail, utilising industry endorsement of our 2050 Rail Vision.
• Shifting the narrative to 2030, 2040, 2050 based strategic planning with GM as a client not a consultee.

• Deep understanding of UK rail infrastructure, operations, commercial and planning processes
• Proven track record in strategic rail planning, business case development, and programme management
• Proven track record of credibility with senior rail industry representatives
• Experience at senior level with a train operator or Network Rail at leading change programmes
• Ability to interpret complex technical data and distil actionable insights for diverse audiences
• Skilled in stakeholder engagement across industry, government agencies, and advisory bodies
• Familiarity with public sector governance and decision-making