Job Description

Brook Street are currently working on behalf of our global IT client to recruit a Data Center Modernisations Project Manager on a contract basis to start early April 2021 for 15 months initially.

The role will be based remotely to begin with but will require regular presence at our client's offices in Reading once they reopen.

The salary offered is up to £67,000 per annum (depending on experience).

Role summary

Our client is looking for a critical and highly visible professional who will be the orchestrator of their data centre modernisation (DCM) efforts through their partner ecosystem in the UK. The DCM Project Manager is responsible for coordinating the contracting, execution and monitoring of a complex program of transformation with our client's specialist partners. The Project Manager will be responsible for liaising with our client's partner teams in the UK and at the corporate HQ, and our partners, ensuring excellence in execution of the DCM program objectives such as to achieve and exceed contract targets. The Project Manager will be accountable for providing regular, accurate tracking of project progress across on-boarded partners, risk mitigation, and holding stakeholders to account for delivering results in a timely manner to meet milestone deadlines.

Many of our client's customers and partners deliver services and solutions via technology that is hosted on-premises or through a third-party hosting company. There has never been a greater opportunity to digitally transform those services and solutions by moving to a hybrid or entirely public-cloud strategy. The DCM program is aimed at accelerating that transformation, incentivising partners to make the move to Azure cloud platform. It requires a high degree of coordination and discipline to achieve success, so they are investing in a Project Manager to ensure excellence in execution.

The DCM Project Manager is a brand new and exciting role focused on delivering outcomes which extend our client's SMB business. The successful candidate will enjoy opportunities to work within our client's organisation and its ecosystem of partners and will be at the core of the DCM virtual team. Furthermore, the successful candidate will become a subject matter expert on the processes and procedures involved in negotiating and executing a successful DCM contract, ensuring that they're run efficiently, and that all stakeholders are kept informed throughout.

The successful candidate will track progress using standard project management tools and methods (e.g. Microsoft Project) and partner and customer management tools (e.g. CRM, etc.) and follow aspects of PRINCE2 where relevant or applicable.

In addition to the core accountabilities of the role, the successful candidate will also be a key contributor of feedback and insights to the business on the programme (e.g. what's working, what's not, etc.).

NB: Occasional flexibility may be required to account for time zone scheduling where calls are arranged with US colleagues.

Key responsibilities

• Schedule and lead a consistent "rhythm of connection" with stakeholders from project initiation through to conclusion of the contract(s).
• Develop relevant documentation and materials to support the execution of the contract(s) in a controlled, professional manner.
• Act as a knowledge coordinator and point of contact for partners, connecting them to the right subject matter experts or other team members as required.
• Own the task of reporting accurately the progress of partners, and the capture and sharing of best practices to increase likelihood of success in subsequent engagements.

First 30 days priority is to get familiarised with the programme, the local and corporate stakeholders, the target partners, and begin to develop a process for tracking the projects.

Weekly sync with sponsors on progress - contract negotiations in flight, signed, being executed, etc., insights into what's working and not, where possible forecast the likelihood of success for each contract.

This is a brand-new role, so the successful candidate has room to bring their knowledge and expertise to bear to shape the UK DCM strategy. The role requires working with a wide range of stakeholders, so the successful candidate will build a strong and varied network internally and with our client's core partners.

Candidate requirements

Demonstrable experience working preferably, but not necessarily, in the technology sector required.

Previous roles should have included experiences such as:

• Engaging directly with customers / suppliers.
• Managing projects.
• Worked with colleagues effectively to achieve a common goal.
• Worked with customer relationship systems, updating records and keeping track of customer progression, revenue closure etc.
• Reporting back to teams, giving insights / ideas, process improvement.
• Influencing without authority.
• Dealing with conflict.

Key performance measures include:

• # DCM contracts successfully negotiated and enacted.
• # contract milestones successfully completed.
• $ Azure Consumed Revenue generated from contracts.

Candidates should have familiarity with the following standard tools - Project, Outlook, Teams, Excel, PowerPoint and Dynamics CRM.

Our client has placed extra emphasis on the following requirements;

• PRINCE2 or similar project management qualification. This role is in place to bring rigour and focus to the execution of the DCM programme; demonstrable skills in this area are critical for any prospective candidate.
• Excellent communication skills. This role will interact with a broad range of stakeholders and customers; clear, consistent and professional communication is essential. Communications will be written and spoken, so experience of and confidence in using video conferencing (Microsoft Teams) tools is necessary.
• Cloud computing. Whilst not a technical role, a working knowledge of core cloud technology concepts and familiarity with industry terminology will be an advantage.

Deadline for applications: 26th February 2021