Design Strategy Manager

Overview

In this role you will drive the Design Strategy and Technical Assurance for Anglian Water’s New Reservoirs Programme, guiding two multi-billion-pound reservoir projects. You will align design workstreams, obligations, and assurance across delivery, engineering, procurement and regulatory teams to ensure coherent, justified outputs. You’ll work in a cross-functional environment to shape outcomes, manage risk ownership, and support milestone delivery. This is a high-impact, client-side leadership role at a landmark water infrastructure programme in the East of England.

Pay / Benefits

• car allowance
• private health care
• life assurance (up to 8 x salary)
• double-matched pension
• 26 days annual leave
• bonus scheme

Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain the Programme Design Strategy covering all design workstreams (DCO, Reference, ECI, Early Works, Enabling Works) for design development, detailed design and commissioning
• Define design liability and risk ownership, clarify CDM responsibilities, and ensure smooth hand-off between supply partners
• Create and maintain the Technical Assurance Strategy with First Line of Defence across the supply chain
• Oversee integration of work packages, review assurance plans, and prepare technical scopes for procurement
• Manage a Technical Assurance Manager responsible for day-to-day system and process management
• Define, develop, and maintain Client Requirements aligned to programme outcomes and enable efficient delivery
• Provide direction to solution development and supervise a Requirements Manager
• Coordinate independent Technical Assurance activities and monitor progress with engineering, programme management and commercial teams
• Promote Health, Safety & Wellbeing and drive a culture of continuous improvement

Key requirements

• Significant design/technical experience in senior roles within large design and build contractor procurements
• Strong project management skills
• Design leadership at both detailed engineering and system level
• Experience managing multiple stakeholders internally and externally
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management

• stakeholder management
• leadership
• communication
• design leadership
• technical assurance
• requirements management

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