Senior Delivery Manager

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Senior Delivery Manager

Job Introduction

What is the role?

This role will sit in our Technology function partnering closely with our Product team to deliver consistent, reliable change across our most complex, highest risk initiatives.

The Senior Delivery Manager is accountable for one or more highly complex, business-critical initiatives. May have line mgmt responsibility, or mentoring. Leading multiple delivery streams, managing strategic stakeholder relationships, and shaping delivery practices across teams.

This role requires strong leadership, excellent stakeholder management at a senior level, and communication skills and experience across multiple delivery methodologies, from agile to waterfall.

As the Senior Delivery Manager you will:

• Partner with Product to define complex, multi-year initiatives and/or products with clear outcomes
• Build strong, influential relationships across business areas and third-party suppliers to support successful delivery at scale, anticipating and managing risks and dependencies proactively.
• Use your experience of various delivery methodologies to shape the best approach for these complex initiatives, based on delivery capability maturity and cultural fit both within your squad(s) and with multiple third-party suppliers.
• Plan and estimate large-scale initiatives, using appropriate methods to manage ambiguity. Input to planning activities such as quarterly and annual planning
• Lead squad(s) and / or project teams, providing direction and support to ensure successful initiative delivery. Remove day to day blockers
• Apply critical thinking and decision-making skills to resolve complex delivery challenges. Leverage domain knowledge to guide decisions to support successful delivery.
• Identify and mitigate risks, issues and dependencies, using your influence to drive outcomes
• Accountable for initiative budget management, including forecasting and variance management. Initiatives usually multi-million pound, multi-year.
• Communicate delivery progress with senior level business stakeholders ensuring clear and consistent communication throughout the initiatives

You will also play a leadership role in the delivery community to:

• Drive excellence in delivery through effective processes and practices.
• Develop and empower team members to achieve their full potential.
• Foster a positive team culture and engage team members effectively.
• Coaching team members in their delivery journey

And you will have:

• Track record of delivering complex, high value Technology initiatives in a retail environment utilising multiple delivery methodologies
• Previous experience delivering and working with highly skilled engineering squads, and an understanding of the application of Agile and Engineering principles
• Knowledge of the high-level architecture, platforms and engineering techniques required to drive customer experience. Be able to understand a technical architecture to be able to foresee the impact on dependencies, delivery timelines and implementation plans.
• Excellent communication and influencing skills at senior organisation level, with the ability to manage, engage and collaborate with a wide range of complex stakeholders, building a shared and compelling vision
• Experience of budgetary responsibility and close control using appropriate rigour at a multi-million pound scale
• Knowledge of software integration, engineering and infrastructure practices and implementation to appreciate delivery challenges.
• Experience of using data to encourage innovation and track benefits

How you'll do it...you will have:

• Leadership You hold yourself and others accountable to meet commitments and role models excellent behaviours and leads through both success and failure with a high focus on outcomes. You provide guidance and mentoring to colleagues around you.
• Judgement. Ability to make informed decisions based upon analysis, data, experience, and judgment. Comfortable with managing ambiguity.
• Stakeholder Management & Communication. Comfortable challenging the status quo respectfully, providing advice to improve delivery. Very clear, business-oriented communications at senior level.
• Influencing. Demonstrated ability to influence and negotiate with senior stakeholders, driving alignment and securing commitment.
• Collaboration. Builds partnerships with internal and external suppliers & stakeholders and works collaboratively with others to meet shared objectives. Builds strong relationships and trust quickly at all levels of the organisation.
• Problem Solving. Able to foresees and resolves potential bottlenecks, delays and barriers to delivery. Seeks and drives solutions to problems.
• Business Insight. Applies knowledge of the business and the marketplace to advance the organisation's goals. Demonstrates clear understanding of how own activities relate to critical business drivers and customer outcomes.
• Action Oriented. Takes on new opportunities and tough challenges with a sense of urgency, high energy, and enthusiasm. Takes timely action on important or difficult issues. Identifies and pursues new opportunities that benefit the organization.

Selfridges