Atkins has been a leader in transport asset management over many years – focused primarily in the highways sector. While we are leaders in our sector we are increasingly now helping our clients develop and implement end-to-end asset delivery models, making best use of data and digitally-enabled decision-support tools, refining operating processes, and developing their teams. This is to help our clients deliver better value for money and best outcomes in operating and maintaining their transport networks. We are working also in the rail sector applying our end-to-end asset management approach in conjunction with the skills and expertise available in Atkins’ rail engineering business.
We have ambitious growth plans in this area including moving beyond consultancy-based services and towards products and managed services as part of our end-to-end philosophy. We are backing this with investment to rapidly growing our staff capability and capacity and to develop new products and services. We are supported also by colleagues in other infrastructure sectors in the UK and by SNC-Lavalin globally leveraging strategic partnerships with asset management system providers.
The Practice Director provides the key leadership role for our Digital Asset Management practice. This comprises technical leadership, ensuring that we deploy and continually develop the best tools, processes and methodologies, that we strive for technical excellence and that we continually enthuse and develop our staff so that we are retain our market leading position. The Practice Director will have a key role in work winning and delivery, and ensure that we have the right skills, capabilities and technical approaches to secure and deliver work for our clients. The Practice Director also has overall operational responsibility for meeting business performance targets, ensuring compliance with Atkins’ and SNC-Lavalin’s management systems and ensuring safety and well-being of over 85 staff.
The Digital Asset Management practice forms part of the 900-person strong UK Consultancy Practice within the Atkins Transportation Division. The Practice Director is one of a team of four other practice directors reporting to the Practice Director of the overall Consultancy Practice. The Practice Director will be expected to work collaboratively with this senior team to drive growth and improve operational performance across the whole of the Consultancy practice.
Our Transportation business is structured according to Practices and Market teams. The Digital Asset Management Practice Director will work closely with Market and Client Directors accountable for each of our key client accounts. This includes Market Directors responsible for our relationships with Highways England, Network Rail and local authorities and who develop our wider business strategy for these clients. The Digital Asset Management Practice Director will be required to collaborate effectively with the Market teams to support business development, develop technical propositions, grow our resource base and prioritise the practice’s work winning and work delivery activities to align with the strategic framework set by the market teams.
Driving rapid growth in asset management services is a key priority for our wider UK & Europe. The Practice Director will also work with colleagues from other UK divisions and infrastructure sectors to grow the sector. The operating model to enable this is still in development but it is expected that the Practice Director will contribute to a wider UK team to ensure that we maximise growth in this sector.
Role Objectives
The Practice Director will define and deliver a business plan for the Digital Asset Management practice that enables us to deliver rapid growth in asset management across the road and rail sectors in the UK. This will comprise:
•Securing new revenue from clients – including key clients such as Highways England and Network Rail – in line with wider business revenue growth aspirations. This will require taking roles leading bids and working with the wider market teams in business development activities and maintaining pipeline of future revenue opportunities.
•Ensuring the practice delivers technically excellent projects on time and on budget for our clients, taking responsibility for the overall technical quality of work delivered by the practice. This is expected to include taking roles as Project Director or Technical Reviewer on our most strategically important commissions.
•Ensuring that the practice meets budgeted performance targets which will include revenue, operating profit, staff utilisation, headcount, customer satisfaction.
•Ensuring staff are safe, healthy, motivated and high performing with clear career development plans.
•Ensure we have sufficient resources with the right skills to deliver our current and future market strategies. This includes those within the practice, colleagues in our GDC and through our supply chain partners
•Develop our technical offer through continual improvement and new value proposition development, working in conjunction with the market teams and the wider Atkins asset management community.
•Promote the practice and wider Atkins/SNCL externally.
•Support the Consultancy Practice Director in delivering the performance targets for the wider practice.
Requirements
•Proven experience in a leadership role, preferably in the same practice area, or alternatively in comparable areas
•Strong leadership and interpersonal skills
•Strong collaborative behaviours to interface with Practice Director, Market Directors, and other stakeholders
•Performance driven
•Customer centric
Responsibilities
•Lead the Digital Asset Management Practice, building on the reputation for technical excellence and ability to flexibly respond to business needs.
•Implement the delivery of our strategy for growth in Digital Asset Management, working in conjunction with the Transportation Strategy Director.
•Recruitment and staff development.
•Drive technical best practice, knowledge sharing, and process standardisation /optimisation across the Practice
•Work with the Practice Director, Consultancy to drive collaboration across markets and divisions
•Liaise through the Practice Director, Consultancy with the Market Directors to establish resource demand based on pipeline of opportunities in collaboration with divisional resource managers
•Manage Practice performance with focus on meeting or exceeding productivity targets and keeping break even rates as low as possible
•Winning work through tendering processes and maximising additional/repeat/follow-on work from clients.
•Ensure skills and capacity meet the needs of the target markets through targeted recruitment and focused staff development
•Ensure and manage the relationship with the Global Design Centre in Bangalore developing skills and sharing resources as appropriate.
•Identify where skills are not available in-house and work with external alliance partners and subcontractors to deliver project needs
•Motivate managers and team members ensuring they are challenged, stretched and developed with succession plans in place.
•Ensure that business activity conforms to the Business Management System (BMS) and does not present an unacceptable risk.
•Ensure that staff are working safely and with integrity in line with Atkins/SNCL procedures for health and safety and business ethics.
The Individual
•A recognised leader in asset management with experience in the UK transport sector with a track record of growing a business in a consultancy environment.
•Able to lead the Digital Asset Management Practice so that it has a reputation for technical excellence and quality of delivery.
•A hard working and flexible individual, who is reliable, proactive and innovative, whilst able to keep calm under pressure and when working to often demanding deadlines
•A high expectation of performance for themselves and other members of the team, coupled with a drive for continuous improvement
•Customer focused with excellent relationship management skills
•Excellent interpersonal, organisational and communication skills both verbally and in writing
•Able to build and motivate a team and demonstrate good leadership qualities. Self-motivated and able to work both independently as well as within a larger multi-discipline team
•A supportive and encouraging approach to mentoring less experienced members of the team, combined with a passion for staff development.
•Able to adapt to different cultures and working environments to build rapport with both clients and the practice teams
•Be available to travel across the UK as required
•Strong business acumen with a demonstrated knowledge of identifying potential value creation
•Excellent team player, able to influence technical and delivery staff, and collaborate effectively with other divisional colleagues and with the UK team
•Able to fully engage staff through their alignment with business objectives, promoting involvement, and fostering loyalty
•Degree level or equivalent professional qualification
