Rodeo
Get started

Network Rail

Portfolio Delivery Director

York
£116.7k – £150.7k/yr
Posted about 20 hours ago
Sign up to applySee more jobs like this

How your CV stacks up

1Upload CV
2Analyse CV
3Improve CV

Upload your CV to see how well it fits this job role

?%

Who We Are

Transpennine Route Upgrade

The Transpennine Route Upgrade (TRU) is a £10.7 billion Programme of activities that is improving the railway between York and Manchester via Leeds and Huddersfield.

Stretching across the North of England, this key 76-mile Transpennine railway serves 23 stations, crosses over and dips under 285 bridges and viaducts, passes through six miles of tunnels, and crosses over 11 level crossings.

Proposed improvements as will deliver a hard-working, reliable railway for passengers, allowing for trains with more seats, more services and faster journey times.

For more information visit www.theTRUpgrade.co.uk

Role: Portfolio Delivery Director (Deputy Programme Director, TRU)

Salary: £116,753 to £150,696 per annum

Car Allowance: £8,000 per annum

Location: York with travel to Leeds, Huddersfield and Manchester

Contract Type: Permanent, full time

Office Requirement: Hybrid. Minimum 3 days per week working from the office

Interview dates: Candidates who are successful at the sift stage will be invited to a face-to-face competency-based interview. Interviews are anticipated to take place in late September.

About The Role

The Portfolio Delivery Director, known within the Transpennine Route Upgrade (TRU) programme as the Deputy Programme Director, leads the programme management function and is accountable for providing strategic leadership, direction and governance across the programme, ensuring all projects remain aligned to organisational objectives, delivery priorities and intended benefits. The role provides stewardship of programme integration, overseeing the effective management of interfaces, dependencies, risks and opportunities to enable successful delivery and informed decision-making across the directorate.

Working collaboratively with Project Directors and functional teams, the Deputy Programme Director ensures delivery activities are coordinated, performance is effectively monitored, and governance arrangements support timely intervention where required. The role drives consistency in programme management practices, facilitates cross-programme alignment, and ensures accurate information is available to support strategic decisions, optimise delivery outcomes and realise programme benefits.

Some Of The Key Accountabilities Of This Role Are

  • Direct the programme directorate team and allocate appropriate resources within the function, taking full responsibility for achieving production of robust development stages across the portfolio, focussing on specific and measurable outcomes, benefits and requirements, to achieve an unambiguous procurement exercise and efficient, compliant, contract awards.
  • Direct the programme team to achieve optimum outcomes for clients and funders considering various schedule and cost options, lead the strategic planning, alignment and delivery of the business case for the portfolio in alignment with overall business plans, contributing to the TRU programme leadership team.
  • Direct the project delivery in the development of access strategies for the programme in collaboration with senior colleagues to achieve optimum balance between affordable, deliverable and of minimal impact to passenger and freight colleagues, actively promote Putting Passenger First Principles.
  • Develop the strategic direction to the programme directorate in the establishment of integrated funding strategies to secure optimum incremental funding for the programme through the Integrated Client Team, embodying and promoting project SPEED and PACE Principles in the approach to investment proposals and decisions.
  • Develop the strategic direction to the development and definition of contracting and procurement strategies for the projects within the Programme aligned to legislative, corporate governance and procurement guidelines.
  • Deliver strategic direction to the progressive programme of Lines of Defence Level 1 within the Programme Directorate, Level 2 and Level 3 as required by the TRU Programme assurance plans. Input into with Level 4 and 5 as deemed required.
  • Undertake and coordinate assurance reviews assigned to the Programme Directorate, ensuring findings, recommendations and actions are effectively managed.
  • Drive continuous improvement initiatives to enhance performance, efficiency and delivery outcomes.
  • Direct the establishment, implementation, resource allocation and monitoring of the assurance framework appropriate to the stages of the projects within the portfolio or major project. Establish and direct an assurance regime that monitors the team and supply chain compliance with standard requirements, those identified in specification stages and core requirements of delivering safely to time cost and quality, escalation route thought the TRU Enterprise
  • Manage Programme stakeholders relating to Owners Risk profiles.
  • Manage the integration of TRU projects and those on the TRU core to enable the Programme to remain on schedule.

Reasons to use Rodeo

I’m in my final year doing Economics and I don’t know whether to apply for grad schemes now or do a masters first. What do you think?

Honest answer — it depends on where you want to end up. A lot of top grad schemes (Big 4, civil service, banking) don’t need a masters. Let’s look at the ones you’d be competitive for now, and we can decide if a masters actually adds anything.

Also worth knowing: most autumn 2026 applications are open now. Timing matters more than you think.

Start with a chat, not a search bar

Grad scheme, placement, apprenticeship? Not sure what you want yet — that's fine. Your agent talks it through with you and turns "I have no idea" into a shortlist.

P

Graduate Consultant — 2026 Scheme

PwC·London, UK
£35,000/yr

Why you're a good match

Strong

Your economics background and your summer at a regional bank line up with what PwC looks for on the consulting scheme. Applications close in four weeks.

See breakdown
Save jobNot relevant
View details

It searches the market for you

Every day your agent scans the market matching roles against what actually matters to you, not just keywords on a CV.

Why you're a good match

You’ve got the grades and the economics background, and your bank internship is exactly the experience this scheme looks for. Apply soon — deadlines close within the month.

See breakdown
Strong

Experience fit

Your summer at the bank plus your econometrics coursework map directly to the day-one responsibilities on this scheme — client modelling, market briefings, and deal support.

See breakdown
Strong

Only hits

No noise. No "maybe this fits." Just roles with a clear explanation of why they're right — and where to focus when applying.

We Need You To Have

  • Member of a relevant professional body with chartered status and/or educated to degree level.
  • Relevant experience in the successful management and assurance of major programmes of work in the construction industries or infrastructure sectors.
  • Demonstrable commercial focus and financially astute (including management of P&L Accounts)
  • Detailed knowledge of the principles of investment processes and procedures.
  • Detailed knowledge of the principles of Health & Safety, quality and environment legislation and best practice.
  • Detailed practical knowledge of the Construction Design and Management (CDM) 2015 regulations.
  • Experience of successful management in a matrix structure.
  • Knowledge and application of the Three Lines of Defence Assurance Model.
  • Demonstrable experience in Construction Design Management (CDM) and the Common Safety Method (CSM)
  • Knowledge and application of the Lines of Defence Assurance Model.
  • Demonstrable experience of confidently building strong, diverse internal and external networks to unblock issues and achieve progress
  • Demonstrable experience of promoting team agendas, breaking down barriers and focussing on the best outcomes
  • Significant experience of creating clear standards, delegation and empowering others.
  • Demonstrable experience that the physical and emotional well-being and safety of others is a key priority, supporting colleagues at all levels to challenge unsafe and unsafe behaviours or risks.
  • Demonstrable ability to differentiate between strategic and operational issues, collaborating with a range of external stakeholders and colleagues.

Get help with your application

Your very own career expert that helps elevate your application to the next level.

Get help applying for this job

It Would Be Advantageous

  • Detailed Knowledge of the PACE Framework.
  • Experience of working in a P&L business including stakeholder engagement and bid management
  • Experience of systems integration of complex systems
  • Exceptional interpersonal skills, possessing the ability to interact and maintain credibility with people at all levels within the business and industry stakeholders

For further information about the role or process, please contact TRUResourcing@networkrail.co.uk.

What's In It For You

Here are a few of the benefits we offer

  • 28-day annual leave with the option to buy and sell days
  • Choice of pension schemes
  • 75% discretionary discount of leisure travel for you and your family
  • Private Healthcare
  • 5 days paid volunteer or carers leave
  • Up to 75% subsidised Rail and Underground travel
  • Gym Pass - access to gyms across UK
  • My Benefits platform - giving national and local retail discount

Our aim is to ensure your candidate experience is as positive as possible. If you require reasonable adjustments at any point, simply let us know and we'll do our best to assist you.

We're committed to creating a diverse, inclusive workplace that reflects the communities we serve. To discover more about our ED&I commitments click here. We value flexibility and understand the importance of a healthy work-life balance. As a Disability Confident Leader, we'll do everything we can to accommodate any needs throughout the recruitment process.

Network Rail adheres to a structured pay framework, any salary offered will be within the pay range advertised. If your current salary is above the maximum shown you will transfer into the new role on your current base pay. For more information refer to your pay.

This vacancy is Band 1 C, salary starting £116,753 to £150,696 per annum.

Car Allowance: £8,000 per annum

Safe behaviour is a requirement of working for Network Rail. Applicants should be able to demonstrate their awareness of our safety vision.

Should you require any reasonable adjustments/modifications, please contact TRUResourcing@networkrail.co.uk.

Your Experience And Skills

A demonstrated and successful leader with extensive experience in the management of multi-billion-pound major programmes, including a strong understanding of output-based delivery, systems integration, programme-level risk management, integrated scheduling and access planning. Possesses strong customer and operational knowledge, with the ability to identify and optimise opportunities relating to access, production efficiency, and benefits realisation.

Demonstrates proven stakeholder engagement and interpersonal skills at a senior level, together with strong commercial and business acumen. Experienced in leading teams to ensure programmes remain deliverable and on track to achieve their objectives.

Trusted by 25,000+ job seekers

“It took my CV and asked me questions relevant to understanding what kind of jobs to suggest for me. Suggestions were almost perfect. Jobs were exactly what I’ve been looking for.”

Jessica, London

Get help applying for this job

Skills

Programme Management
Strategic Leadership
Governance
Risk Management
Financial Management
P&L Management
Procurement Strategy
Stakeholder Engagement
Assurance Frameworks
Construction Design and Management (CDM)
Systems Integration
Investment Processes
Health & Safety Legislation
Matrix Management
Strategic Planning
Benefit Realisation

Location

York, England, United Kingdom

Sign up to applySee more jobs like this