Job title: Director of Information & Technology

Responsible to: The Executive Board (IT Representative)

Location: London / Manchester

Job Grade: Associate Director

Hours of Work: to Friday, 37.5 hours per week, flexibility will be required

The Company:
BDP is a highly successful multi-discipline practice of architects, designers and engineers; our aim is to create award winning, innovative, sustainable buildings, working in partnership with customers, colleagues in construction and the communities we impact. We have over 1100 staff in the UK within 10 locations. 250 staff are based within our Manchester Office.

Background to the role
BDP is an information driven organisation and with the provision of this key strategic position the practice is seeking to develop a greater emphasis upon the development, capturing and reuse of information and knowledge. People, technology and processes are vital to the effective development of knowledge management and this post is key to the effective exploitation of BDP’s Information and Knowledge base. This is a new role pulling together components previously carried out by a number of senior executives.

Overall Purpose of Job
A key function of the role is to enable the engagement of the business with the effective deployment and application of Information and Technology at all levels of the practice. BDP is seeking to transform this key area of its business in order to deliver high quality information and project technology systems as well as highly reliable and responsive infrastructure services. The Director of Information and Technology (Director of I&T), will ensure that the IT Group is distinctly service focused and orientated towards supporting the practice. They will need to demonstrate that they understand the needs of BDP’s business and ensure that IT is truly integrated with the rest of the practice.

The Director of I & T will be responsible for defining the strategic information needs of the Practice into the future embracing the requirements of professions, projects and central enablers including Quality Management, Communications, Finance and HR.

The Director of I & T would initially represent the function of IT through the Company Director responsible for Information and Technology at Board level. The Director of I & T will see the ‘Big Picture’, and be able to deliver a high quality IT control, scope and vision. The current position would be one of Associate Director with a view that the right individual would be able to progress to a Company Director and sit on the Executive Board.

Relationships
The Director of Information and Technology will need to work with others across BDP to build connections between the development of BDP as a learning organisation, project delivery, the BDP Process and the supporting information management strategies and technology deployment.

They will need to develop effective relationships with:

• The existing IT team


• Chief Executive and Process Director


• The Executive Board


• Profession IT Directors


• Enabler Directors including Communications, Finance, HR and Quality Management


• Planet Editorial Board,


• IT Users


• Regional Business Directors


• Key suppliers and technology providers

Key Responsibility of Role:

1. Information Management
Strategic Planning of the information needs of the practice in conjunction with the Chief Executive, Process Director and initially the Company Director responsible for Information and Technology at Board level involving the Profession IT Directors, Regional Business Directors and Enabler Directors. This will include chairing the Planet editorial board.
2. Technology Strategy

Development and implementation of the Information and Technology Strategy to support the business needs of the practice as defined in liaison with the customer groupings of the Executive Board, the Enabling Directors in Finance, HR, Quality Management and Communications, the Regional Business Directors and the Profession IT Directors. Ensure that the business is fully engaged in the development and operational issues of information technology and contributes fully to the effective deployment and use of technology through regular communication mechanisms with all aspects of the practice.


3. Operational Delivery

Responsible for the delivery of all IT services through the Heads of IT Support Groups of Infrastructure Services, Business and Information Services, Project Technology, and IT Project Management. Development and monitoring of a Group IT budget of around £5million per annum with a remit to ensure the delivery of the maximum value through the development of effective technology partnerships with suppliers.
4. Transformation Process

Overall management and effective communication of the ongoing and evolution of the Practice’s IT application and support infrastructure transformation process. This will involve enabling the delivery of the migration of the managed service environment currently shared between Central IT and Computacenter to the next generation managed service of an external helpdesk and internal 2nd and 3rd line Support team. The internal Support team will also incorporate region based Relationship Managers and Project Technology Managers. This will involve liaison with the Board Member for Information and Technology and the Technology Transformation Consultant in defining, and delivering the IT programme during the transformation process.

Essential Skills & Attributes

• Dynamic and positive


• Excellent communication skills (written and verbal) capable of engaging with all levels of the practice.


• Ability to develop excellent working relationships


• Well developed people management skills; able to motivate individuals and teams and get the best from people.


• Skilled in managing change


• Skilled in strategic thinking


• Planning and co-ordination skills


• Skilled in managing and controlling budgets in excess of £2 million


• Skilled in managing external suppliers; negotiating skills


• Excellent understanding of Information Management and the detailed delivery of IT Infrastructure.


• Understanding of the culture of use of technology in design based organisations.

Benefits:
In return we can offer an attractive remuneration package for the right individual, including competitive salary, stakeholder pension, private medical insurance, life assurance, payment of professional subscriptions, profit sharing scheme, excellent professional development and training opportunities, together with a positive attitude to work life balance.

BDP is an Equal Opportunities employer, we believe in development and training of our staff.