Program Planner| 6 Month Contract | (Inside IR35) | Hybrid, Havant/Reading| Starting ASAP
Day Rate: £520
About the Role:
You will be responsible for building, maintaining, and controlling the complex cross‑supplier schedule that underpins the successful delivery of the business's Compass Service Transformation Programme. A major component of the programme is the transition from two incumbent IT outsource suppliers to a new strategic supplier contract, alongside detailed tracking of internal dependencies and obligations.
Working closely with Group IT Services, seven internal business units, the two incumbent suppliers, the new contract supplier, and senior programme leadership, you will ensure that all exit, transition, and readiness activities are accurately sequenced, commercially aligned, and monitored daily. The IMS is a critical commercial artefact within a regulated energy environment, and the Planner plays a key role in identifying broken dependencies, emerging risks, and any schedule impacts that could affect the switchover.
Main Duties:
Planning & Scheduling
- Develop, own, and maintain the integrated master schedule covering incumbent supplier exit plans, new contract supplier transition plans, and internal readiness activities.
- Break down complex multi‑supplier scope into clear work packages, milestones, and dependencies.
- Map cross‑party obligations, commercial dependencies, contractual triggers, and regulatory constraints.
- Maintain schedule baselines and track any variance, slippage, or critical path shifts.
- Support scenario planning (e.g., staged vs. fixed commercial switchover dates, alternative transition routes).
- Ensure that planning reflects regulated operating constraints and commercial commitments.
Transition Readiness & Coordination
- Collaborate with incumbent and new suppliers to validate activity durations, resource expectations, and sequencing.
- Work with the technical and operational teams to confirm internal dependencies, readiness criteria, and hand-offs.
- Facilitate multi-stakeholder planning workshops to align timelines, identify potential conflicts, and confirm ownership.
- Support cutover planning, contingency planning, fall-back strategies, and readiness reviews.
- Ensure the IMS reflects current supplier delivery plans and contractual boundaries.
Monitoring & Reporting
- Manage daily schedule updates, ensuring accuracy of progress, actuals, and forecast impacts across all parties.
- Perform critical path analysis, highlight broken or at-risk dependencies, and escalate impacts early.
- Produce regular dashboards, timelines, and exception reports for programme leadership and senior stakeholders.
- Provide clear insight and challenge where supplier or internal slippage threatens key commercial or regulatory dates.
- Maintain high-quality, audit-ready schedule reporting consistent with regulated industry expectations.
Governance & Assurance
- Ensure all schedules comply with Compass PMO standards, reporting cycles, audit requirements, and governance forums.
- Document planning assumptions, constraints, and supplier obligations.
- Support commercial checkpoints, stage-gates, assurance reviews, and transition readiness assessments.
- Maintain RAID artefacts related to schedule risks, ensuring linkages into the IMS and programme reporting.
Stakeholder Management
- Work closely with Group IT Services, the seven business units, incumbent suppliers, new supplier teams, service transition, and operations.
- Communicate timelines, impacts, and risks clearly across both technical and senior stakeholder groups.
- Manage competing priorities across multiple delivery organisations, ensuring alignment and transparency.
- Coordinate cross-team dependencies, particularly where exit and transition plans interact with internal readiness activities.
- Build trusted relationships with PMs, architects, commercial teams, and supplier leads to drive proactive scheduling discipline.
Essential Skills & Experience:
- Proven experience as a Project Planner/Scheduler in large‑scale IT transformation or multi‑supplier transition programmes.
- Strong proficiency with planning tools such as MS Project, Project Online, or Primavera P6.
- Experience managing schedules across multiple suppliers, including exit and transition planning.
- Strong understanding of service transition, cutover planning, dependency mapping, and readiness gating.
- Ability to interpret complex technical and commercial information and translate it into actionable plans.
- Excellent communication and stakeholder management, including senior leaders.
- Ability to work proactively in fast-moving, high‑pressure environments with competing priorities.
- Demonstrable ability to challenge constructively and highlight risks early.
Desirable
- Experience in regulated industries (energy, utilities, financial services).
- Familiarity with IT outsource contracts, service models, or commercial transition triggers.
- Exposure to ITIL, service transition, SIAM, or large-scale multi-supplier operating models.
Typical Deliverables
- Fully integrated master schedule combining exit, transition, and readiness plans
- Critical path and dependency mappings across all suppliers and teams
- Daily schedule updates, dashboards, and exceptions reports
- Scenario models and commercial-impact planning options
- Cutover readiness plans and schedule assurance artefacts
- Baseline documentation, version control, and change logs
