Associate Director – Project Management

The Associate Director is responsible for leading multiple engagement teams, all of which play a critical role in supporting the objectives of Vercity’s Programme & Project Management practice. The Associate Director ensures that resources are effectively prioritised and allocated across engagements, aiming to deliver strategic outcomes fully aligned with departmental goals.

Location: UK

Reporting To: Head of Project Management

Hours: 35 h / week - 9-5, Monday to Friday

Key Responsibilities

• Commercial and Consulting Expertise: As a commercially minded delivery professional, the Associate Director demonstrates a strong consulting ethos. This role requires the ability to identify and shape new opportunities in both the public and private sectors. The Associate Director brings senior-level credibility and depth of advisory skills, with a proven record of securing and successfully delivering complex programmes within live operational environments.
• Project Management Experience: The Associate Director is an experienced Project Management professional, particularly skilled in overseeing multi-disciplinary and multi-location projects. This includes managing complex, high-risk, or lead consultancy projects. The role involves leading projects valued at +£500,000 and assumes responsibility for managing large teams.
• Professional Qualifications: A recognised Project Management qualification, such as PMQ or an equivalent certification, is required for this position. Full individual membership of the Association for Project Management (APM) or a comparable professional project management body is considered standard for the Associate Director.
• Delivery: Accountable to the Head of Project Management function for creating and leading the project (‘engagements’) to deliver agreed outcomes within the time, cost, and quality constraints. Delivers engagements in line with Vercity VMS and SOPs and suggests improvements where appropriate.
• Project / Engagement Management: Provides day-to-day management and leadership for the project (engagement) and team. Offers effective leadership and management controls, follows the VMS, sets project controls and ‘stop/go’ decision points, designs the project structure appropriate for its stage, sets delivery methodologies, and manages transitions between project phases. Manages the Engagement Delivery in accordance with the financial controls and operational excellence KPIs set by Vercity.
• Business case: Develops the business case for Client needs as engagement services, e.g., in line with HMT Greenbook or alternatives as required by the engagement. Develops specific engagement proposals as the engagement case to detail services for the client via the standard scope of services and terms of appointment.
• Budget: Develops the budget and tracks progress within it.
• Resources: Identifies skill requirements for all project stages, recruits resources within budget, and oversees resource deployment. This includes building the project team, delegating roles and responsibilities, developing capability, and fostering innovation. Manages resource forecasting, actuals and controls changes across this via monthly reviews to ensure change management is followed. Delivers the agreed benefits and outcomes from the business case. Identifies, understands, measures, tracks, and owns benefits. Ensures a benefits realisation strategy is in place and monitors long-term benefit delivery against the client’s business case and the Vercity engagement proposal.
• Risks and issues: Manages risks and issues, escalating to the Head of Project Management as needed. Ensures strategic and operational risks are identified, prioritised, assessed, and mitigated throughout the project. Keeps senior stakeholders briefed and engaged in risk management monitoring and control.
• Governance: Subject to governance processes and is required to provide reporting to the Head of Project Management. Establishes and manages quality assurance and change management processes.
• Assurance: Engages with assurance reviews and implements recommendations. Organises assurance processes, such as gateway reviews, as required by the Head of Project Management.
• Change management: Ensures change management processes are in place to agree on and document changes to deliverables with stakeholders.
• Guidance and support: Provides support, guidance, and coaching for the project team, promoting effective individual and team performance.
• Project performance and controls: Develops and agrees on the vision and success criteria with the Head of Project Management. Maintains the project plan and integrates it with other interdependent projects. Monitors progress, enforces standards, applies good practices, and learns from lessons. Defines and agrees on deliverables with stakeholders. Manages project closure and sign-off.
• Digital and data: Ensures the use of digital tools for planning, scheduling, and resource management. Uses data insights to monitor project performance and implement changes.
• Sustainability: Ensures that environmental and social considerations are embedded in programme design, procurement and monitoring processes.
• General: Maintain a programme of personal professional development. Ensure that confidential information is not disclosed about Vercity or its associated companies to any unauthorised member of staff, or to anyone outside the employment of the company. In addition, abide by the confidentiality policies of the Trust. Ensure that HSAW legislation is fully observed at all times and that Vercity’s HSAW policies and procedures are adhered to. Undertake other duties as requested by Vercity in accordance with Vercity’s delivery of contract requirements.

Person Specification

• Experience and Knowledge: Proven experience in project management, including all aspects of process development and execution in a high-profile, high-volume environment. Understanding of the relationship between client, SPV and service provider. Proven record of service delivery. Experience of PFI Projects. Ability to work under own initiative with minimal supervision. Relevant professional qualifications in respect to Hard FM. All-round experience of construction disciplines. Worked in a PFI Healthcare environment. Led and managed staff or service providers in either a direct or indirect setting. Qualified to Authorised Person level in an appropriate discipline. Thorough knowledge and experience of Whole Life Costing.
• Skills and Competencies: Computer literate across the Microsoft suite and project management software packages. Ability to solve problems in complex environments. Good communication skills and an ability to communicate complex issues in an easily understandable and persuasive manner. Strong report writing skills. Strong planning and organisation skills with the ability to prioritise and work to deadlines with excellent attention to detail. Ability to use initiative and manage situations effectively. Excellent written and presentational skills. Ability to apply effective management of internal and external relations using tact, persuasion and teamwork, exchanging routine and non-routine information clearly so that the recipient can understand and act upon it as required. Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to utilise these to build trust and confidence.
• Qualifications: Degree-level education or equivalent experience. APM Chartered Project Professional. APM Project Management Qualification. Membership – CIOB, RICS or similar.
• Personal Attributes: Visible leadership, Expert The ability to engage, motivate and coach others. To act as a role model and inspire and empower others. Aligned with the leadership. Credible action, Expert The ability to promote the wider public good in all actions and to act in a morally, legally and socially appropriate manner at all times. Challenges unacceptable behaviour. Aligned with the leadership. Working with ambiguity, Practitioner The ability to work in an environment of uncertainty and continual change. Able to feel comfortable making decisions and setting direction without having the whole picture and re-focus as details emerge. Can apply knowledge and techniques to reduce ambiguity. Aligned with making practical decisions. Collaboration, Expert The ability to establish and develop productive relationships with internal and external stakeholders, bringing people together to benefit the project. Aligned with working together. Influencing, Expert The ability to influence, change and impact decisions with both internal and external stakeholders. Aligned with the communicating and influencing. Conflict resolution, Expert The ability to recognise, anticipate, and effectively deal with existing or potential conflicts at an individual, team or strategic level. Aligned with working together and leadership. Inspiring others, Expert The ability to create and present a compelling vision and set a clear direction that motivates others to work towards a common goal. Aligned with the leadership. Resilience, Expert The ability to adapt to changing circumstances and adverse situations whilst remaining calm, reassuring others and maintaining performance. Aligned with the delivery at pace. Culture change, Expert The ability to plan, lead and effect positive cultural change, securing commitment and buy-in, and promoting a positive long-term vision. Recognises when a broader cultural shift is necessary to deliver a project. Aligned with seeing the big picture, and changing and improving. Can do attitude with a flexible approach to work and time management. High level of integrity. Possessing a high degree of self-confidence and resilience to withstand criticism of the compliance process, as it may identify areas where poor practice has been the previous norm.

Vercity believes that diversity is paramount to driving creativity, innovation and value for our clients and for our people. All applications will receive consideration for employment without regard to ethnicity, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, nationality, disability, age, or social background.