Workshop Controller/Manager in Heathrow

Workshop Controller/Manager

🌍 Rygor Auto: Heathrow Passenger Car
💰 Up to £50,000pa DOE - bonus opportunities available
⏰ Monday to Friday with Saturday on rota

🔧 Your Role & Purpose

At Rygor Heathrow Passenger Car we are seeking an experienced and highly capable Workshop Controller/Manager to join our management team.

This is not an administration-focused Workshop Controller position. We are looking for a strong operational leader who can take ownership of workshop performance, challenge and support technicians, implement structure and discipline, and drive productivity, quality and customer satisfaction from day one.

The successful candidate will play a key role in creating a high-performing aftersales operation, working closely with the Service Manager to build a culture of accountability, professionalism and customer focus.

⚙️ Skills & Behaviours Required for this role

The successful candidate will be:

• Highly organised and structured.
• Confident challenging underperformance.
• Calm under pressure.
• Customer focused.
• Results driven.
• Commercially aware.
• Resilient and hands-on.
• A visible leader rather than a desk-based administrator.

Day to day you will:

• Workshop Performance & Planning

  • Manage daily workshop loading and capacity planning.
  • Ensure work is allocated effectively based on technician skill set and efficiency.
  • Monitor productivity, efficiency and utilisation throughout the day.
  • Maximise labour sales opportunities whilst maintaining quality standards.
  • Drive workshop output and profitability.

  Technician Management

  • Lead, motivate and challenge technicians to achieve performance targets.
  • Hold technicians accountable for productivity, quality and clocking accuracy.
  • Support technician development through coaching and performance feedback.
  • Promote a professional working environment with high standards of conduct and housekeeping.

  Work in Progress & Workflow Control

  • Manage WIP to ensure jobs flow through the workshop efficiently.
  • Identify delays and implement solutions before customer commitments are impacted.
  • Monitor workshop status throughout the day and proactively manage bottlenecks.
  • Ensure parts availability and workshop readiness.

  Customer & Service Delivery

  • Work with the service team to ensure customer expectations are met or exceeded.
  • Support effective communication on vehicle progress and additional work requirements.
  • Drive improvements in vehicle health check performance and conversion.
  • Help create a customer-focused culture built around ownership and accountability.

  Quality & Compliance

  • Maintain high standards of workmanship and first-time fix performance.
  • Reduce repeat repairs and "No Fault Found" outcomes.
  • Ensure manufacturer standards and warranty requirements are followed.
  • Support health and safety compliance across the workshop.

  Leadership

  • Act as the operational leader within the workshop.
  • Support the Service Manager with performance management and process improvement.
  • Drive continuous improvement initiatives.
  • Be visible, engaged and proactive on the workshop floor.

  Essential Experience

  • Previous Workshop Controller experience within a franchised dealer environment.
  • Strong understanding of workshop planning and labour management.
  • Proven track record of improving productivity and efficiency.
  • Experience managing and influencing technicians.
  • Excellent organisational and communication skills.
  • Strong commercial awareness.

  Desirable Experience

  • Premium brand experience.
  • Understanding of warranty processes and manufacturer systems.
  • Leadership or management qualifications.

Research shows that some people are less likely to apply for a role unless they meet 100% of the criteria. As long as you are experienced for the role, and hold the relevant and required qualifications, we encourage you to apply, even if you don’t feel like you meet all our requirements. We want to know about your passions, achievements, learning and growth. If this role excites you, start a conversation with us!

DBS: Please be advised that successful applicants to Rygor or any of our associated businesses, may be subject to satisfactory completion of a DBS check prior to joining the business.

🥳 Benefits for you

• An extra day off for your Birthday
• 23 days of annual leave per year PLUS Bank Holidays
• Four times death in service benefit.
• Internal Mentorship programme
• Working for WhatVan?’s ‘Van Dealer of the Year 2026’.
• Working for Motor Trader’s ‘Employer of the Year’.
• Working for an official Great Place to Work™️
• Working for a workplace which champions women.
• Awarded Armed Forces Covenant Silver Award (RLS)
• Working with our award-winning team – several of our team were recogniosed at the MT WIMT awards and we won silver at the internal communication and engagement awards for our new starter onboarding process.
• Auto-enrolment pension.
• Self-development journal
• Rygor Group Ranked 101 in SW Business Insider’s Top 500 Companies
• Enhanced Maternity and Paternity pay policies and return to work post mat-leave policy.
• Access to our wellness programme and Employee Assistance Programmes, including WeCare from Canada Life (EAP and 24HR Online GP access and second Medical Opinion).
• Mental Health First Aiders.
• Reward and recognition programmes, including our annual Rygor Group Awards and opportunities to attend the Rygor Wembley box as a celebration of your hard work and dedication.
• Annual appraisals programme and progression opportunities.
• Manufacturer training and access to our in-house training.
• Long service recognition and annual leave increase after 5 years’ service.
• Rygor Auto and Rygor Service Solutions are Maintenance Provision Rating Scheme (MPRS) accredited
• Branded uniform
• Charities of the Year programme, Army Sport sponsors and community engagement initiatives

💙 Our Values & Behaviours

We’re looking for incredible team members who share our values and can add to our culture. Values are shared beliefs that guide our decision-making, culture is how we function as a group and how we live our values as individuals.

Rewarding
I am grateful. I am courageous. I am curious.

Reliable
I am honest. I am attentive. I am trustworthy.

Respectful
I am inclusive. I am resilient. I am kind.

🚛 About Rygor Group

We are an award-winning, multi-franchise Dealer Group with branches across England, offering extensive coverage for customers throughout the M5, M4 and M42 corridors. Our business has gone from strength to strength in recent years, with significant investment in site renovations nationwide and exciting expansions, including the launch of a brand-new Mercedes-Benz Passenger Car Aftersales facility in 2024 and running four new vehicle maintenance units in 2025.

Our commitment to excellence has earned us multiple industry and network awards, and in 2025, we were proud to be named Employer of the Year at the prestigious Motor Trader Awards. We also received the Silver award for our onboarding experience at the ICE awards, meaning that if you're considering a new career with Rygor, you can be confident you'll receive an award-winning induction and support from day one.

We’re officially a Great Place to Work™ (four years running) and our company culture truly reflects our core values: Rewarding, Reliable, and Respectful. Exceptional customer service is at the heart of what we do and so is creating an environment where our team can thrive.

Rygor Group comprises of a diverse collection of UK automotive businesses, with a primary focus on trucks, vans, coaches, passenger cars, armoured vehicles, body repairs and coachbuilding. Through the hard work of our team members, we have secured our position as one of the UK’s top automotive Groups, with a turnover of circa £300m a year.

Rygor Auto consists of three renowned brands: Mercedes-Benz, SAIC Maxus, Farizon and Higer Buses. We are home to the largest UK dealer group for Mercedes-Benz Commercial vehicles, and also offer passenger car aftersales at select locations.

Rygor Plant is an official partner of Hyundai, Mecalac, and Dieci. We offer a diverse range of high-performance equipment designed to meet the demands of sectors including construction, agriculture, rail, roadworks, aggregates, and beyond.

Rygor Service Solutions is our independent fleet workshop division, specialising in full management of commercial vehicle fleets within customers premises, or totally mobile servicing solutions. We look after some of the UK’s largest fleets, including Tesco, Ocado, Bookers and Brakes and are committed to keeping them on the road, serving their customers.

Rygor Land Systems supplies vehicles and systems for military, humanitarian and security operations. With a dedicated and focused team that can provide exacting customers with the support required to deliver the capability needed by operational staff located in the harshest environments around the world.

✅ Hiring Process

1. 🗎 We shortlist CVs through our ATS against the requirements of the role and desired skills and behaviours, so make sure your application is tailored to the role you are applying for. For help with your application visit Rygorcareers.co.uk - Rygor Careers Hub
2. 📞 We may conduct a first stage virtual interview with our hiring manager or a member of the team
3. 🚶🏾 If successful at first stage you will be invited to a second stage, in person interview.
4. 🫱🏿 🫲🏻 If your application is successful, we will send you a formal offer in writing

We wish you luck in your application

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB)

At Rygor, we are committed to fostering a workplace culture that champions diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. As an award-winning organisation, we are proud to be a community of professionals from a wide range of backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives. We believe that individuality should be celebrated, and we strive to ensure that every team member feels valued, respected, and empowered. We welcome and support people of all ages, ethnicities, nationalities, religions or beliefs, gender identities, sexual orientations, disability statuses, caring responsibilities, and neurodiverse profiles. We actively promote an inclusive environment where you can bring your authentic self to work every day, because we know that when you thrive, so does our business

Support

If you need to make reasonable adjustments to our process, please let us know so we can talk about how we can best support you and make the adjustments that may be needed.