Every minute of every day, Smiths Detection’s threat detection and security screening technology helps to protect people and infrastructure, making the world a safer place. 

Smiths Detection, part of Smiths Group is a global leader in the development, manufacture and management of security and detection solutions designed to make the world a safer place. Our technology provides threat detection and screening solutions for customers in our key markets: aviation, ports and borders, defence, and urban security.

Our expertise spans 21 global offices, seven manufacturing sites and five R&D centres, with a global network of 3,000 dedicated colleagues contributing towards over 40 years at the frontline of advances in safety and security.  

This results in careers built on variety and the opportunity to work on a range of state-of-the-art solutions, where you can develop your knowledge and experience every day.

Duties:

Project/Programme Management:

• Accountable for the initiating, planning, monitoring & controlling, communicating and close-out phases for all assigned projects/programmes, which includes the completion of Product Lifecycle Process (PLP) Gates or Commercial Lifecycle Tollgates where applicable. Apply best practise and operate in accordance with relevant Smith Detection Programme Excellence Centre (PEC) processes.
• Lead the activities of integrated project/programme and/or cross-functional teams to achieve successful completion of projects/programmes to their committed delivery dates within budgeted costs and in accordance with relevant PEC processes.
• Execute projects/programmes in accordance with the standardised business rhythm that coordinates the activities of Global Programmes, Finance and Project Controls teams. Accountable for ensuring that project/programme records are maintained within defined software tools/databases.
• Ensure that assigned projects/programmes have a minimum number of artefacts (e.g. Work breakdown Structure, Cost Breakdown Structure, Responsibility Assignment Matrix, Responsible Accountable Consulted Informed (RACI) Matrix, time scheduling, resource planning, risk and change management controls, etc) commensurate to the project/programme categorisation.
• In coordination with the site financial managers, be accountable and responsible for the financial reporting elements of the portfolio deliverables; ensuring financial data is updated, controlled, aligned with Sales and Finance, in order to be presented by team members as requested.
• Accountable for the establishment of cost and schedule baselines and the maintenance of such baselines through forecast updates and the management of scope. Ensure that the PEC defined risk and change control process is applied across the portfolio in accordance with the business rhythm.
• Accountable for the accurate completion of monthly variance analysis for explaining and interpreting impact against the baseline and the completion and tracking of corrective/preventative actions. Incorporate this within monthly project/programme reviews and conduct ad-hoc reviews as required.
• Act as a role model and mentor to project/programme management team members. Provide ad-hoc support based on their experience.
• When required, act as a deputy for Global Programmes Operational Excellence Director/Head of Market and Global Programmes Director. This will include duties such as supervising activities of team members and leading or providing representation at reviews or meetings.
• Embrace and act as a champion for collaboration across Global Programmes and wider global Smiths Detection business. Responsible for integrating assigned Commercial and/or Technology projects/programmes where necessary to maximise effective end-to-end delivery.
• Typical duties specific to Commercial orientated projects/programmes include:
  • Deliver competitive customer tenders working in accordance with the Commercial Lifecycle Process with emphasis on the preparation of an accurate compliance matrix and providing a clear account specific technology needs e.g. via technical requirements and associated risks.
  • Manage the teams to define and derive opportunity requirements that enable cost effective and winning proposals to be tendered. Ensure that any bids that the business wins have a delivery profile and cost base that is achievable. Use process reviews to achieve this.
  • Work closely with the Sales team on the bid strategy, bid preparation, proposal support to customer and contract negotiation.
  • Negotiate and reach agreement with customers or end users on aspects such as project/programme deliverables, specifications, detailed requirements, budget/contract value or schedule.
  • Accountable for preventing projects/programmes from being initiated without adequate completion of formal process reviews, this includes the formal agreement of the Transparent Gross Margin with Commercial Finance prior to a Complex Order Management Sheet from being generated.
  • External stakeholder management during project/programme execution, acting as a key customer interface or escalation path. Accountable for delivering in accordance with customer expectations, but robustly managing scope as per defined contractual requirements. This includes progress reporting, contract change management, risk and issues management and contract closeout.
  • Finance management covering revenue recognition and reporting.
  • Accountable for successful handover to Service.
• Typical duties specific to PID orientated projects/programmes include:
  • Initiate and control feasibility or science and technology studies in accordance with the relevant process.
  • Lead the planning and execution of product development, enhancement or sustaining projects defined by an approved business case prepared by Product Management. Accountable for maintaining compliance to PLP Phases 2 and 3 for all projects within remit.
  • Work closely with Product Management to deliver project outcomes in accordance with the business case or to manage adjustments in a controlled manner. Initiate product release activities and support the handover to Manufacturing resolving issues as required.
  • Support the resolution of field service issues or product complaints.
  • External stakeholder management emphasis will be collaborating with suppliers and the achievement of defined objectives.
• Portfolio specific duties:
  • Complex Programs Market Specific FY Revenue, Cost, TGM & Cash.
  • Forecast Baselive Vs Actual Month on Month. Yearly Forecast.
  • Work Closely with Sales Director / Market Head on Strategy towards Securing Orders budgeted.
  • Customer Satisfaction and Quality in deliverance.
  • Working closely with PEC taking care of Objectives set globally.

Commercial:

• Assuring that best industry practise project/programme management is employed and through customer reporting provide confidence that projects/programmes are being monitored and controlled in a professional manner.
• By delivering projects/programmes to scope the team will satisfy our customer commitments, provide innovative products to the marketplace and maximise shareholder return.

People and Talent Management:

• Effective leadership and development of a team of project management professionals.
• Identify development activities to support professional development needs of team members in conjunction with building individual development plans. Monitor overall team capability and ensure robust succession plans are maintained at all levels.
• Ensure disciplined application of project management across entire remit.
• Effectively exploit and develop the knowledge of people from all functions.
• Map programmes or work and understand clearly the different role profiles, team structures and competencies required to deliver the goals and objectives of the project.
• Create inclusive and coordinated delivery environments to maximise the effectiveness of teams to achieve project/programme success and for individuals to develop.
• Work closely with the site management team to ensure alignment of the site goals and activities, pursue, develop and implement best practice and continuous improvement processes and procedures throughout the business.

Policies and Procedures:

• Ensure portfolio compliance with company policies for Ethics, Health, Safety and Environment.
• Promote and/or lead business change and support business change initiatives, such as the development of the Commercial Lifecycle Process and integration with Product Lifecycle Process into a PEC process framework for application across the global business.
• Contribute to regular maintenance of the PEC process framework to ensure that it accurately reflects Smiths Detection project/programme management practices or identified improvements.
• Follow a proactive approach to develop an understanding of company policies and procedures and in the first instance uses resources such as training material, procedure documents and process guidelines as a go-to source.

Technical Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

Educational requirements:

• Internationally recognised professional qualification in project/programme management (equivalent to IPMA level B/C) essential.
• Degree qualification or equivalent in relevant discipline (Business/Project/programme Management or Technology/Engineering) desirable.

Knowledge:

• Extensive knowledge of project/programme management methodologies (e.g. Waterfall, PRINCE2, Agile etc) gleaned from a mixture of experience, exposure and training.
• Good level of understanding of planning methodologies/techniques and other aspects of project controls such as earned value management.
• Awareness of complex integrated technology-based sensor systems and the critical roles that the technology and products play in the market.
• Awareness of the main priorities of typical cross-functions and how they operate and support the delivery of major technology projects/programmes (such as R&D, Legal, Finance, Supply Chain, Service etc).  

Skills:

• Extensive experience operating as a senior project/programme manager essential. Direct experience of engineering/technology or construction/infrastructure environments desirable. Can demonstrate experience of the complete project lifecycle and degrees of project complexity.
• Experience managing a portfolio and line management experience desirable.
• Strong verbal and written communication and people management skills.
• Proven problem-solving skills combined with extensive experience leading integrated teams to benefit the delivery of projects/programmes.
• Developed experience of baseline planning and scheduling, forecasting and estimating, cost/schedule integration techniques.
• Exposure to resource management and integration with Integrated Business Planning.
• Experience in critical path analysis, reporting, risk management tracking and the completion of corrective action plans.
• Experience of or exposure to the use of estimating, scheduling, risk and change software tools such as: SAP, Primavera, Oracle ERP, MS Project, Pertmaster, Active Risk Manager, Cobra, Power BI.
• Capable of driving continuous improvement across all aspects of areas of responsibility adopting both formal and informal approaches.
• High level of experience of product development covering product introduction, enhancement and sustaining and/or managing a customer in a commercial environment.

Competence and Abilities:

• Ability to demonstrate strong leadership and interpersonal skills with a natural passion to deliver against commitments.
• Ability to communicate at all levels of the organisation recognising the level of details that is required for a particular audience.
• Significant ability to build and manage a multicultural team in a matrix environment and influence people outside of direct reporting relationships.
• Advanced vision, attention to detail, highly organised and proven ability to work under own initiative developing methods and procedures for new assignments.
• Significant ability to influence and act as a champion for project/programme governance, particularly those related to project/programme management.
• Lead the production and control of baselined, fully logic linked, cost and resource loaded plans, with appropriate milestones utilising approved work breakdown structures and techniques.
• Capable of producing special reports for the Senior Leadership Team within short timescales and comfortable working with ambiguity.
• Leading the application of change activities from proposal through to integration into the Performance Measurement Baseline.
• Must be willing to undertake occasional business trips at home and abroad.

Planning and Decision Making:

• Accountable for the effective planning, organising and execution of assigned projects/programmes across portfolio.
• Operate in accordance with a delegated authority, making prompt decisions to resolve problems and escalating issues in a timely manner.
• Required to operate autonomously in accordance with strategic direction from line manager.

Impact and Scope:

• This is a senior professional project leadership role with accountability for the successful delivery of major projects/programmes that span Commercial and/or PID.
• Failure to achieve required outputs would result in impact to major divisional organisational objectives.

Key Internal and External Relationships: 

• Global Programmes Director
• Technology Programmes Operational Excellence Director
• VP Commercial and/or VP PID
• Market Heads
• Portfolio Directors and Product Managers
• Programme Excellence Centre Team
• Technology Finance Director and Analysts
• Commercial Finance Teams
• Project Controls Manager and Project Controllers
• Customer and supplier representatives

Job Purpose:

The  Head of Programmes  is responsible for managing a professional project/programme management team and for driving project/programme delivery excellence throughout their area of accountability by applying a broad range of recognised project management methodologies. The purpose of the role is consistent across all areas and therefore internally it is generalised to ‘Head of Programmes’ or ‘HoP’.

This is a second-level management role and therefore includes team leadership covering both project/programme delivery and support. The HoP is accountable for the successful delivery of major complex projects/programmes as a large department or more than one department spanning Commercial and/or PID and for the management of integrated project teams in a matrix organisation. The HoP directs the activities of their team in accordance with their overall accountability.



Additional Information

Join us and we’ll help build your career, with excellent training and opportunities for career growth across the business, both locally and globally. You’ll experience an inclusive environment, with strong leadership and a focus on safety and wellbeing. You’ll also have the flexibility to choose from a wide range of benefits to suit your lifestyle, offering you and your family support from a health and wellbeing, financial and lifestyle perspective.

Join us and work for a world-leader, with the benefits and training to reward your dedication and skills. Be part of a team where we are making the world a safer place.

We believe that different perspectives and backgrounds are what make a company flourish. All qualified applicants will receive equal consideration for employment regardless of color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, economic status, disability, age, or any other legally protected characteristics. We are proud to be an inclusive company with values grounded in equality and ethics, where we celebrate, support, and embrace diversity.

At no time during the hiring process will Smiths Group, nor any of our recruitment partners ever request payment to enable participation – including, but not limited to, interviews or testing. Avoid fraudulent requests by applying jobs directly through our career’s website (Careers - Smiths Group

We believe that different perspectives and backgrounds are what make a company flourish. All qualified applicants will receive equal consideration for employment regardless of color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, economic status, disability, age, or any other legally protected characteristics. We are proud to be an inclusive company with values grounded in equality and ethics, where we celebrate, support, and embrace diversity.

At no time during the hiring process will Smiths Group, nor any of our recruitment partners ever request payment to enable participation – including, but not limited to, interviews or testing. Avoid fraudulent requests by applying jobs directly through our career’s website (Careers - Smiths Group plc)