Business Readiness Project Lead

Job summary

The Government Property Agency is the largest property holder in government, with more than £2.1 billion in property assets and over 55% of the government’s office estate.

We are transforming the way the Civil Service works by creating great places to work, leading the largest commercial office programme in the UK, working towards halving carbon emissions from government offices, and achieving greater value for taxpayers. And we are looking for innovative, solutions-focused people to join our team.

Representing the best covenant in the UK – His Majesty’s Government – we are leading significant transformational programmes. We are also delivering cost-effective property services such as asset management, lifecycle replacement and workplace services.

Innovation and progress underpin our behaviours. We foster a culture of lifelong learning, where curiosity and self-improvement are encouraged. Our four core values are at the heart of everything we do. They shape our culture and guide how we work, lead and grow together:

• Striving for excellence- We always aim to deliver great results
• Empowering through respect- We insist on fair treatment for all, always
• Acting with integrity- We consistently do the right thing
• Succeeding together- We rely on each other to achieve success

We are committed to representing the communities we serve by making Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) part of everything we do. Our strong emphasis on EDI is not just about driving inclusion across our organisation, it is also about ensuring our services meet the needs of government departments and the civil servants who use our spaces. To ensure that we are always recruiting and retaining a diverse mix of talent, we are particularly inviting applications from candidates who are disabled, ethnically or gender diverse, and people who identify as being part of the LGBTQ+ community.

Join our dynamic and diverse team that leads with purpose, improving sustainability, nurturing social value, driving inclusivity and flexibility, and kickstarting economic growth. We are driven by purpose, and you can be part of it too: where you make a meaningful impact; where you influence; where your voice really matters; where you help to shape our future direction.

Job description

Manchester Digital Campus

The Manchester Digital Campus (MDC) is part of the Government’s Major Projects Portfolio (GMPP), and is an exciting transformation across multiple Government departments, with significant ministerial, public, industrial and media interest.

A central Manchester brownfield development site will become the vibrant workplace for well over 8,000 people (including ministers) from the digitally focused departments. The new, bespoke buildings will be designed to support the transformation objectives, collaborative working across government and with industry, academia and the community. MDC will strengthen HMG’s skills, innovation and enable multi-department careers, whilst learning from and contributing to the exciting digital/AI sector in Manchester and the North West. It will directly support economic growth, skills, Civil Service reform (PAS) and the UN Sustainable Development Goals. It is an exciting vision!

MDC is overseen by its policy sponsors (including Places for Growth and Government Digital/Data – in Cabinet Office and DSIT), together with the Departmental Partners transforming to use the new site. Having completed our Outline Business Case approval, and approaching our RIBA3 milestone (design complete), we are expanding the dedicated MDC team to match the growing workload. The MDC team is multi-disciplinary, matrix-managed from the GPA Directorates, and wider Government, but all dedicated to and passionate about our amazing programme. We pride ourselves on our inclusivity, curiosity to explore and solve problems, our openness to challenge and our commitment to delivering what's needed for the Civil Service’s future. MDC is GPA’s biggest delivery programme yet.

Specific security requirements have been set for MDC, and will be discussed with you during the recruitment process. These posts require Developed Vetting before a candidate can start.

The MDC team are all expected to have a significant presence in Manchester (averaging at least 2-days a week). Regular travel is expected to attend GPA offices, and partner locations, especially London and occasionally Birmingham. The role involves hybrid working with an expectation of office/meeting attendance on three days a week or more as the project demands.

All MDC roles are being offered on a choice of permanent or initial 2 year loan basis to allow you to retain an initial link with your home department if preferable. The programme completes in 2032.

If you are interested at all in this role, but have a question, do please reach out.

As a Business Readiness Project Lead, you will be responsible for leading the Business Readiness workstream for Manchester Digital Campus or a workplace within the wider GPA portfolio.

Working closely with the team, your wider GPA colleagues, delivery partners and clients you will support the delivery of great places to work for Civil Servants across the UK.

You will:

• Work with internal and external stakeholders to manage and support the customers experience during a period of significant refurbishment, relocation and change. Building relationships which result in a clear understanding of client requirements, priorities and ways of working, you will work with GPA colleagues to deliver suitable outcomes.
• Play a key role in determining the feasibility of services and a Community Group across the building.
• Leverage relationships with client departments to ensure GPA customers’ (Civil Servants) needs are being met at every stage of project delivery, and that they are sufficiently informed about the move to their new location and ways of working.

In addition to supporting on the project, you will:

• Support the development and continuous improvement of products and processes for the Business Readiness Framework that will help GPA Clients to transition within the MDC Transformation vision and move to a smarter working environment and realise the full benefits of a great place to work.

Support the Business Readiness team in delivery across project lifecycles. In particular:

• Represent the Business Readiness work-stream in project meetings, providing activity-based progress reports and escalating emerging issues to mitigate project risk.
• Support Project Teams during the engagement process, building strong relationships with clients at an early stage and where necessary educating them on the different aspects of a smarter / hybrid working environment and the customer experience. Lead business readiness related client engagement at various stages throughout the project lifecycle, working very closely with the MDC transformation team.
• Deliver discovery activities to help develop a clear understanding of Client business and current ways of working, using customer insight from satisfaction surveys and Leesman Workplace Experience surveys to challenge the status quo when required.
• Gather and baseline client smarter working and building occupation readiness data to help plan and prepare individual client workplace strategies and transition plans and scope where additional support is required.
• Support and guide clients with their preparation for a smarter working/hybrid environment and building occupation through change management and business readiness activities, where necessary drawing upon the expertise within