Head of Change - Overview

Our client requires a Head of Change to work in its Aberdeen office.

Reporting to HR Director the Change Manager heads up the Change Team and is the focal point for change across Upstream. The Change Manager leads and manages the portfolio of strategic initiatives and provides leadership and support to the business to enable it to deliver its business change projects.

Principal Accountabilities include the following:

• Lead and manage the Change Team.
• Shape, lead and manage the portfolio of strategic initiatives.
• Ensure the business is kept up to date with the portfolio and its progress.
• Lead strategic initiatives as required.
• Provide support and direction to strategic initiatives and other business change projects.
• Assure strategic initiatives and other business change projects are set up for success.
• Act as a focal point and centre of excellence for Change Management across the business.
• Identify gaps in the organisations capability to manage change and ensure they are being addressed.

Location: Aberdeen

Head of Change - The Role:

Day to day responsibilities include:

• Portfolio Management.
• The Change Manager is responsible for managing the portfolio of strategic initiatives. He/she is responsible for managing the risks across the portfolio and providing light touch governance.
• He/she is also responsible for presenting a point of view to the Leadership Team on which business change projects should become part of the portfolio and to re-shape the portfolio as the needs of the business shift.
• On-going portfolio management duties include leading a twice yearly planning session to agree the focus of the portfolio, leading the weekly meeting of all priority strategic initiatives, sitting on the Change Board which meets every 2 months and providing assurance to the Leadership Team on the portfolio, usually on a quarterly basis.
• Change management in our client operates a de-centralised model so the business sponsors and project managers are responsible for delivering their projects.
• The Change manager is, responsible for assuring strategic initiatives are set up for success.
• A set of tools, techniques, templates and frameworks is already in place and the Change Manager is responsible for enhancing these according to the needs of the business. The Change Manger is also responsible for ensuring the business is kept up to date with the portfolio and its progress.
• Identify and lead strategic initiatives and business change projects as required.
• Provide support and direction to strategic initiatives and business change projects as required.
• Change management.
• Act as a focal point and centre of excellence for Change Management across the business.
• Own, champion and manage the roll out the Change Standard (which sets out principles for managing and controlling all types of change (capital, technical, IS, and business change. Develop the Change Community to deliver change effectively in the areas for which they are responsible.
• Identify gaps in the organisations capability to manage change and ensure they are being addressed; by coaching, training and developing tools, techniques, frameworks etc for business change as required and implement across business.

Key relationships:

• Change Team members.
• Change Community (representatives from each Region).
• Project Managers; Project Sponsors.
• Upstream Leadership Team; Operations Leadership Team.
• Different groups of stakeholders depending on the project.
• Other parts of client Group.
• External - consultants.

Keys to success in this role

• Adhere to and ensure an unrelenting focus on safety.
• An effective and motivated Change Team.
• Delivering long term value to business.
• A clear and focused portfolio of strategic initiatives.
• Ensuring the business is aware of key risks and issues relating to the delivery of portfolio and discrete business change projects.
• Strategic initiatives and other business change projects are set up for success.
• Successful delivery of those projects the Change Manager is accountable for and ability to role model best practice change management.
• Being viewed as a Go to team by the organisation for support in change matters.
• Improved capability of business unit to lead and receive change.
• A developing and maintained suite of fit for purpose tools, techniques and frameworks.
• Effective implementation of the Change Standard.
• An engaged and effective Change Community.

Head of Change - The Person:

• The Change Team is a small central function. It works with Business Project Managers and Change Representatives across our organisation in order to deliver its accountabilities. The candidate should have the following qualities:
• A deep knowledge and experience of Change, Project and Programme Management and Portfolio Management.
• Strong leadership qualities - confidence and credibility to lead the organisation in all strategic and tactical matters relating to the above.
• A role model and champion for change management.
• Ability to develop highly positive and collaborative relationships.
• Experience in running and delivering key strategic initiatives.
• Confidence as a decision-maker with the ability to develop and sell a point of view.
• Ability to engage the organisation and gain commitment for a course of action.
• Ability to work at executive level as well as at the front line.
• Ability to adapt approach to the situation; from leading at the front; to coaching; to facilitating; to supporting.
• Ability to work in formal and informal organisational structures.
• It would be desirable for the candidate to have Upstream Exploration and Production experience but not essential.