Design Manager

About JJ Rhatigan & Company

JJ Rhatigan & Company is a main building contractor with over 70 years’ experience delivering high-quality, sustainable projects across Ireland and the UK. We specialise in residential, commercial, education, healthcare, and mixed-use developments, delivered with innovation, integrity, and a commitment to excellence.

The Role

We are seeking an experienced Design Manager to join our growing UK delivery team. You will play a key role in managing and coordinating the design process across complex UK projects, typically ranging from £20m to £100m+, from pre-construction through to design close-out. Working closely with the Project Manager and Quantity Surveyor as part of the Project Delivery Team, you will ensure that design information is fully coordinated, compliant, buildable, commercially aligned, and delivered to programme. This role involves managing pre-construction activity and leading the design process using Procore as the primary design and document management platform.

Key Duties and Responsibilities

• Manage the design process across live and pre-construction projects, ensuring all design information is fully coordinated between consultants, subcontractors and internal teams.
• Engage in pre-construction activities, working closely with the estimating and commercial teams to review tender documentation, identify design risks, opportunities, assumptions and cost impacts, and support bid de-risking.
• Manage the production of design with full awareness of commercial, contractual and programme constraints, ensuring designs are within budget, buildable and aligned with procurement and construction strategies.
• Prepare, manage and maintain the Design Programme / Information Release Schedule (IRS), ensuring alignment with construction and procurement programmes and proactively flagging risks or delays.
• Chair and manage Design Team Meetings and design workshops, driving consultant performance and ensuring clear actions, responsibilities and close-out periods are agreed and tracked.
• Produce and maintain key design management documents and trackers, including (but not limited to): Design Programme / IRS; Design Responsibility Matrix; Design Risk & Opportunity Schedule; Planning Condition Tracker; Building Control and Warranty Trackers; Design Change / Change Control Tracker; Design Fee and Consultant Payment Schedules.
• Coordinate the appointment of the Design Delivery Team, including preparing and issuing consultant scope packages, design deliverables, programme requirements and responsibility matrices.
• Ensure all design outputs are thoroughly reviewed and coordinated, with “For Construction” information issued to the required standard and aligned with tender allowances and Employer’s Requirements.
• Drive health, safety and buildability considerations throughout the design process, actively reducing risk both in the final design and during construction.
• Manage consultant performance and design fee payments against agreed milestones, reviewing invoices prior to commercial approval.
• Lead the design close-out process, ensuring timely discharge of planning conditions, building control and warranty requirements, completion of as-built information, O&M manuals, testing, certifications and final approvals.
• Produce regular design reports and contribute to internal Design Review Meetings, working closely with the Regional Design Lead to resolve issues and maintain programme certainty.

Skills & Experience Required

• Proven experience as a Design Manager within a main contractor environment in the UK or Ireland.
• Strong understanding of UK construction processes, planning conditions, building regulations, warranties and design management best practice.
• Ability to manage multiple workstreams and projects simultaneously in a fast-paced delivery environment.
• Strong commercial awareness with the ability to challenge design development against budget and buildability.
• Excellent coordination, communication and stakeholder management skills, with confidence leading multidisciplinary design teams.
• Experience managing design programmes, information release schedules and change control processes.
• High level of attention to detail and a methodical, organised approach to design delivery.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office and experience using Procore or similar document and project management platforms.
• Ability to mentor and develop junior team members and contribute positively to team culture.

Qualifications

• BTEC, HNC/HND or Degree in Construction Management, Architecture, Building Studies or a related discipline (or equivalent industry experience).
• Minimum 5 years’ experience managing elements of construction projects, with demonstrable design management responsibility.

What JJ Rhatigan Can Offer You

• Competitive salary and benefits package.
• Clear career progression and ongoing training, CPD and professional development.
• Opportunities to work on complex, high-profile UK residential and mixed-use projects.
• A collaborative, forward-thinking environment within a growing UK business.

If you are a driven Design Manager looking to play a key role in delivering high-quality UK projects, we would love to hear from you. JJ Rhatigan & Company is an equal opportunities employer.