Overall Purpose of the role

You will take a pivotal role in leading and implementing the delivery of designated project(s)*, working closely with teams across Arts Council and with external stakeholders, to ensure service redesign programmes are delivered on time, in budget and meet (or exceed) their scope.

You will define timelines, set up Agile ways of working, monitor progress, identify and address threats to the intended outcomes and continually optimise efficiencies.

You will facilitate continuous improvement of the project teams identifying and removing blocks on the progress of their projects.

You will coach and mentor team members, and other staff, to identify and apply the most appropriate Agile and service redesign tools and techniques, ensuring that the Art’s Council’s ambitions to become a user centred organisation are fully supported.

You will build and maintain cross function teams, ensuring they are motivated, collaborating and that they understand, and are focussed on, the most important aspects of the project delivery.

Main day to day responsibilities

You will identify and challenge organisational processes which are unnecessarily complicated and impact the project(s) upon which you’re working.  This includes coaching the organisation to make change, and guiding teams with the implementation of a new process

You will ensure that the most appropriate delivery methods and processes are in place for the success of the identified project(s). The focus being on Lean and Agile working methodologies with an emphasis on using a blended approach depending on the context and the specific needs of the project – both of which you need to apprise.

You will provide delivery confidence, remove blockers or impediments that affect plans and foresee future difficulties and plan accordingly. This includes ensuring that teams plan appropriately for their capacity and capability in the long-term.

You will be responsible for assessing when skills shortages mean external suppliers should be brought in and for making the appropriate proposals.  These will, most commonly, be around specific digital and data expertise requirements which must be managed in a cost-effective way.

You will manage the contracts of relevant third-party suppliers and our relationship with those suppliers.  This includes procurement, budgetary and relationship management.

You will act as the conduit between technical and non-technical stakeholders, listening to and interpreting their needs and managing their expectations.  This will, occasionally, include managing difficult discussions with senior stakeholders within, and external, to Arts Council.

Having compared and selected the most appropriate delivery methods and processes you will recognise and adapt when something does not work, encouraging experimentation and helping teams to measure and evaluate the success of the improved ways of working.

You will input into active and, more occasionally, reactive communications about the project(s) you are managing.

To deliver your role you will:

·       Have excellent and demonstrable project management skills

·       Be able to develop creative solutions to resource work – within budgetary and staff resource constraints

·       Manage external contracts to ensure they are meeting their brief and providing value for money

·       Have an ability to clearly convey information and expectations, listen actively to others and facilitate open dialogue to ensure misunderstandings do not negatively impact the project delivery or team morale

·       Have good leadership and negotiation skills to influence others to deliver to the highest standard whilst maintaining relationships and morale internally and externally.

·       Contribute to a positive working culture in the organisation by taking a proactive approach to learning, responding to change, inclusive practice, and environmental responsibility.

·       Reflect the Nolan Principles of Public Life and the Arts Council's values with a commitment to equality, diversity, and inclusion.

Key relationships

·       Colleagues across the business and notably in our IT, Finance, HR, Data, Procurement and Digital Transformation teams.

Essential (Skills, Knowledge, and Behaviours)

·       Extensive experience of the management and coordination of complex projects

·       Experience of procuring and managing services ideally in the Public Sector

·       Budget Setting and Management experience

·       Knowledge of Agile and Lean methodologies

·       It would be desirable to be a Certified ScrumMaster or have a relevant Project Management qualification.

·       Proven influencing and leadership skills

·       Personal resilience to maintain own motivation and inspire others

·       Proactive in risk management and problem solving

·       You will demonstrate a commitment to working in line with the Arts Council’s duty as an arm's length public body. This includes an understanding of equality, diversity, and inclusion with a commitment to challenging discrimination of all kinds.

We are a Disability Confident Employer and we participate in the ‘Offer an Interview’ scheme, which means that we offer an interview to any disabled candidates who meet the essential criteria for the role they’re applying to, subject to the volume of applications received. Disabled candidates, those living with a long-term condition and/ or neurodivergent candidates may be eligible for this scheme.

Our Code of Ethics requires that employees of the Arts Council are not able to receive an Arts Council grant, investment or loan funding - either in person, as a member of a partnership, or for any organisation they own. There are also limitations on board or CEO positions employees can hold in organisations we fund. For more information on this, please talk to the recruiting manager or contact recruitment@artscouncil.org.uk

 1st Interview: 24 February

2nd Interview: 03 March