Assistant Project Manager

FirstGroup plc is a FTSE 250 constituent and leading transport operator in the UK. During the last year around 2 billion passengers relied on us to get to work, to school or college, to visit family and friends and much more. Each day every one of our 100,000 employees works hard to deliver vitally important services for our customers. We are one of the UK's most experienced rail operators, carrying around 140m passengers across our three franchises and our open access operation.

We are looking for a talented and enthusiastic Assistant Project Manager to join our expanding rail Project and Programme Management consulting team.

If you have experience as an Assistant Project Manager, Project Coordinator or in a Project Support role, looking for your next opportunity, have a passion to work in Rail and want to further your career within Project Management in a supportive and engaged team then we want to hear from you.

The role will primarily be located at our London Office (Paddington) with hybrid working opportunities available, we are happy to talk about flexible working with you.

• Support project(s) across First Rail Holdings and FirstGroup Train Operating Companies, ensuring the project(s) are delivered within performance, cost and time parameters
• Support planning and organising, ensuring completion of project activities
• Support development of project controls environment for the successful delivery of the project(s)
• Manage budget and funding provision associated with the project(s)
• Maintain organisational standards of quality and performance
• Keep the business fully up to date with relevant project activities through regular reporting

• Ensure documentation at all stages of the project is well managed and controlled
• Support the identification of lessons learned, and their use to drive efficient delivery of future initiatives

• An understanding /experience of project management in the context of change projects
• Experience of supporting and/or delivery of change projects
• Experience of utilising project management tools, project reporting and risk management
• Ability to challenge both the project and the business in a constructive manner
• Experience of supporting the creation of and maintaining key documentation within projects
• Financial understanding and appreciation (budgeting, reporting, interpretation)
• Already hold or working towards a recognised Project Management qualification e.g., APM, PRINCE2 (desirable)

As part of the First Rail Consulting team you will be working with different client's therefore you will also need to be able to demonstrate the following core consulting skills.

• Experience in balancing multiple and competing priorities
• Tact, diplomacy, tenacity, and an ability to engage with a wide range of stakeholders and influence key decisions
• Builds relationships, has excellent interpersonal skills, easily creates a peer network
• Attention to detail and skill in creating accessible, traceable documentation
• Has a clear focus to deliver results, motivating themselves and the team to achieve
• Open to new ways of doing things and questions existing approaches, views change as an opportunity
• A confident speaker with experience in leading cross functional forums
• Proficient in MS Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)
• A team player, focused on furthering the reputation of First Rail Holdings, and providing flexible support to peers within the organisation
• Excellent interpersonal skills and experience of working with a wide range of stakeholders

• Prior experience in the railway sector, operations, Network Rail organisational delivery, transport or in management of report-production (especially in bid environments) is desirable but not essential.

• Minimum of 8% contribution to your Pension (3% employer and 5% employee)
• 25 days Holiday plus National Bank Holidays.
• Travel Offers for Bus and Rail*
• Free Bus Travel on your local FirstGroup Operated Network.
• Payroll Giving – donate directly from your pay to a Charity of your Choice.
• Shopping Discounts including discounts and cashback on electrical goods, your weekly shop, holidays, cinema trips, car insurance, upgrading your mobile and lots more.
• All employee Share Schemes*
• Buy as You Earn - allows you to buy shares each month, with 2 free ‘matching' shares for each 3 shares you buy. You can vary the amount you save or stop it at any time. You need to participate in the scheme for at least 3 years to receive the matching shares.
• Employee Assistance Helpline – free, confidential employee support service provided by an independent provider.
• Opportunity to develop and grow both professionally and personally within a supportive and inclusive team.
• This role is primarily based on our Head Office, The Point, Paddington, London however we are happy to discuss flexible working needs.

• after 6 months of employment

FirstGroup plc welcomes applications from a diverse range of candidates regardless of background, gender, race, religious beliefs, disability, sexual orientation, or age. We aspire to be a diverse and inclusive organisation because we believe that diversity brings benefits for our customers, communities, and our people. Valuing our differences and drawing on our collective knowledge and experience helps us develop new services, open new markets, and broaden our customer.

Location London/Hybrid