[ref. b67246324] Project Officer Level 1
Reporting to the Programme Management Officer, this role provides an exciting opportunity to play a vital part in the delivery of transformation across the Council.
You would be joining an established, skilled team, with well-developed Portfolio, Programme and Project Management (PPM) tools, templates, procedures, and processes. We are looking for someone who can ensure adherence to standards, be a champion for best practice and help to embed the work that has already been done whilst enabling continual improvement of the service and portfolio.
The role of the Project Officer will:
- Ensure data is collected, analysed and reported.
- Identify any trends or improvements for project, programme and portfolio (PPM) management effectiveness.
- Highlight problems or delays within the ICT portfolio to the Programme Management Officer.
- Ensure project status reports are submitted in line with the reporting schedule, quality assured and provided to the Programme Management Officer and Programme Lead.
- Ensure the required quality information is collated for the running of regular reporting processes in multiple formats (including the ICT PPM tool, ServiceNow) to produce management information dashboards and reports on progress, whilst highlighting any issues and risks that may impact on the reporting.
- Prepare management information for leadership teams, relevant governance review boards, including Executive and Board-level committees.
- Provide guidance and direction to the relevant stakeholders (e.g., Programme and Project Managers, Strategic Business Partners, other ICT colleagues) on the completion of programme and project artefacts, templates and gateway assessments.
- Ensure the required information to enable project and initiative lifecycle gateways are undertaken in line with ICT governance is captured and maintained.
- Provide user support to those delivering projects and programmes regarding ServiceNow SPM(the ICT PPM tool). Escalate technical issues to the Programme Management Officer to enable resolution.
- Support the facilitation of planning workshops, risk workshops, capacity planning and portfolio prioritisation.
- Support the development and collation of business continuity plans across the ICT service.
- Contribute to the development, management and maintenance of project processes and documentation including business cases, project plans/briefs, progress reports, Risks, Assumptions, Issues and Dependencies (RAID) logs, stakeholder engagement planning and communication activities.
- Provide a point of contact for the Programme Office and Governance Team, managing communications and engaging with a wide range of internal and external stakeholders.
- Quality assure information on Programme Office and Governance SharePoint guidance site.
- Support the Programme Management Officer, Programme Lead and Head of Programme Office in ensuring the required level of governance and control is applied to the ICT portfolio.
- Support the Programme Management Officer, Programme Lead and Head of Programme Office in identifying improvement opportunities to services provided to the ICT portfolio.
We offer flexible working within a set range of core hours, and a combination of remote and in-office working.
We are looking for an experienced candidate with a working knowledge of Portfolio, Programme and Project management. They will be passionate about ensuring good practice standards are adhered to and continually improved.
You must have excellent stakeholder management, communication, and organisational skills, with an ability to manage competing demands whilst working at pace with a passion to deliver change via the project/initiative gateways in line with ICT governance.
The successful candidate will have good analytical skills, be a problem solver and able to find creative solutions where issues may arise, with a willingness to learn and develop their skill sets.
We are looking to recruit someone that can demonstrate the Our Manchester Behaviours by ensuring effective communication and collaboration with internal and external stakeholders, fostering a sense of community and shared purpose, and emphasising continuous self-development and service improvement, aligning with the values of taking pride in the city and striving for excellence showing how you can take personal responsibility to deliver high quality work to demanding timescales.
Importantly, you will be excited about using technology to improve the lives of Manchester residents and staff. You will help achieve the ICT &Digital Strategy by leading the use of innovative digital tools, ensuring that our services are well run, designed around user needs and are continuously improved, whilst supporting the creation of a data-driven council by managing and protecting data effectively, enabling better decision-making and fostering a culture of continuous learning and digital inclusion.
You must also have:
- Knowledge of PPM policies, processes and procedures.
- Knowledge of methodologies and toolsets, such as P3O, MSP, PRINCE2 and APM.
- Previous experience of working with/within a PMO, supporting Project Management Teams or similar structures.
- The ability to work as part of a team, with excellent stakeholder engagement and management, including the ability to engage with senior stakeholders.
- Excellent communication and facilitation skills.
- Be exceptionally well organised, with excellent written and oral communication skills.
- The ability to work flexibly across a large portfolio of change, effectively managing numerous and sometimes conflicting priorities.
- Be confident working with and managing data, identifying emerging trends/issues, plus the ability to explain complex data/information simply.
- Strong IT skills, with an appreciation of the move towards Digital services.
Desirable qualities of the candidate are:
- Hands-on experience of ICT and Digital projects and implementation methodologies.
- A recognised PPM qualification (e.g. MoP, P3O, MSP, PRINCE2, APM).
- Previous public sector experience.
- Previous experience of ServiceNow SPM or another PPM tool.
We’re the local government authority for Manchester, and have teams across the city helping to make this a great place to live for everyone. We’re proud to do local government differently, in a city with an international reputation for diversity, creativity, culture and passion.
When you join us, you’re joining a team of over 7,000 council staff helping to make our ambition for Manchester a reality. Whatever your role, you’ll be supporting our residents and communities to be the best they can be, and helping to build a Manchester that's fairer for everyone who lives, works, volunteers, studies or plays here.
To make our ambition a reality, every person we recruit needs to play their its part. It takes a certain type of behaviour, attitude and way of working to get Manchester where it wants to be. Our people and partners have agreed five ‘behaviours’ – the grounding for how we must work together and treat one another:
- We take time to listen and understand
- We work together and trust each other
- We show that we value our differences and treat each other fairly
- We ‘own it’ and we’re not afraid to try new things
- We’re proud and passionate about Manchester
A career with us means you can be yourself, thrive, and build the career your talent and ambition deserve.
Creating an inclusive team at Manchester City Council
At Manchester City Council, we strive to create a fair and inclusive workplace that is as diverse as the communities we serve. We want to further increase the diversity of our workforce, in particular the number of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic staff and disabled staff at all levels of the Council.This advert is open to all applicants, and we would particularly encourage applications from candidates identifying with one or both of those characteristics.
If you want to find out more about the role, our ways of working, flexible arrangements or any workplace adjustments, please let us know by emailing jobs@manchester.gov.uk. If you are invited to interview, we will ask you if you require any adjustments for you to best demonstrate your suitability for the role in the interview process.
Guaranteed Interview Scheme
As part of our commitment to inclusion, we offer guaranteed interviews for specific groups of people. To qualify, you'll need to meet the minimum requirements for the role, and identify with one of the below criteria:
- Members of the Armed Forces and veterans
- Are currently in care, or have previously been in care
- If you consider yourself to be disabled or if you have a long-term health condition
Accessibility
As a Disability Confident Employer, we provide support for employees with physical or mental-health conditions, a disability or neurodiversity. Our workplaces are accessible by design, and we make workplace adjustments including providing aids, adaptations and equipment.These, combined with our flexible working policies such as disability-related leave, enable our employees to perform their role, thrive and be their authentic selves in work. We’ve also included some useful tips on how to submit the best application.
In accordance with Home Office guidance, successful candidates must evidence their right to work in the UK before commencement of employment. This is not a role we consider to be eligible for sponsorship under the Skilled Worker route based on Manchester City Council policy.Candidates are therefore encouraged to consider their own right to work options without the requirement for Manchester City Council sponsorship.
What we will need from you if you’re successful
If you are successfully offered a position with us, the pre-employment checks you will be asked to undertake will depend on the role you've applied for. As a guide, these may include:
- Passport/ID: You will be required to provide documentary proof of your right to work in the UK – please note that visa sponsorship is not guaranteed for this role
- References (Current and Previous employer)
When you join us
We want everyone to be able to be themselves at work and give their best. If you need additional support to undertake the duties of the role, we’ll make every effort to source any necessary aids, adaptations or equipment. If, however, any task proves to be unachievable, we will look at redesigning parts of the role.
Other relevant information
Why work for us
Who we are - Manchester City Council
Privacy Notice
Calculate your take home pay. Use this service to estimate how much Income Tax and National Insurance you should pay for the current tax year.
Employment could affect your benefits, find out more here. Turn2us Benefits Calculator.
Plan your public transport journey. Navigate Greater Manchester and beyond with Transport for Greater Manchester’s journey planner and additional travel resources. Plan a journey | Bee Network | Powered by TfGM