Future Operations Manager

Role: Future Operations Manager
Location: Marylebone Station - Can also be based at any other location on the Chiltern network
Contract Type: Fixed Term Contract - 6 Months
Salary: Up to £65,000 per annum


Help shape the future of Chiltern Railways

We're looking for a forward-thinking Future Operations Manager to help shape how Chiltern Railways operates in the future.

This is a unique opportunity to lead the planning and coordination of operational change, ensuring our people, processes and infrastructure are ready to support new services, industry programmes and future growth. Working across Operations, Engineering, Commercial and Network Rail, you'll play a key role in delivering safe, efficient and customer-focused change.

Please see below for a full job description....

Role Purpose
The purpose of this role is to ensure detailed operational plans are developed and deployed in line with the requirements of the proposed industry change programmes that will deliver sustainable growth.

This role is not about day-to-day operational management. Instead, it focuses on shaping the necessary systems, people, and infrastructure to enable the deployment of new operational plans.

The role will need to work extensively across all internal functions to ensure alignment and a robust delivery plan is in place. 


Key Accountabilities

Operational Requirements & Long-term Planning

• Develop operational plans aligned to business objectives and future passenger demand (industry programme proposals or future service aspirations)
• Develop or identify the associated operational readiness change activities required to implement strategies or operational change
  Lead internal operations collaboration between (but not exclusively) Control, Stations, Traincrew, Performance and Train Planning functions
• Represent operations for cross functional collaboration between Engineering, Commercial, Stations and Network Rail where appropriate.
• Ensure operations are aligned with Chiltern’s strategic goals, sustainability commitments, and customer experience ambitions.
   

Workforce Strategy & Capability Development

Across Control, Traincrew, and Performance:

• Understand or propose overall resourcing plans to support the operational plans and change requirements
• Identify associated business change processes

 
Project Reporting
For each industry programme, ensure that for operations appropriate PM controls are in place:

• Governance
• Risk, Actions, Issues, Decisions  

 
Stakeholder Engagement & Industry Collaboration

• Work closely with Network Rail, DfT, and industry partners to shape future operational interfaces
• Represent Chiltern in cross industry working groups, and future projects forums

 
Safety, Assurance & Compliance

• Ensure future operations changes comply with safety standards, regulatory requirements, and industry best practice

Person Specification

The job demands the following blend of experience/knowledge, skills and behaviours (all are essential, unless otherwise shown and will be assessed by application and/or interview/assessment):

 
Experience

• Experience of working as a Operations professional within rail or similar operationally complex industry
• Detailed knowledge of rail resourcing/ traincrew management policies and practices including the RDG KPI framework
• Experience of working or good knowledge of Integrated Control Centre systems and processes
• Experience of leading and influencing new initiatives and rolling out new ways of working
• Good knowledge and understanding of Operations policies and processes
• Good technical knowledge of change management models and theories
• Experience of conducing diagnosis, analysing findings, generating options and building commitment to solutions
• Degree or equivalent with significant post qualification experience

Skills/Behaviours

• Strong interpersonal, communications, influencing and negotiating skills
• Ability to establish rapport and credibility at all levels within the organisation
• Proactive and flexible
• Pragmatic in approach
• Strong presentation, data interpretation and report writing skills
• Demonstrates strong commercial/business led approach to problem solving
• Able to travel across network to our different locations
• Willing to support and engage with colleagues through ‘frontline days’