Project Manager, Program ​/ Project Manager, Operations Manager

Can't find the right opportunity? Send us your CV and we'll be in touch

Our vision is to create a safe and sustainable world.

Ricardo, member of WSP, is a global strategic, environmental, and engineering consulting company. With over 100 years of engineering excellence and employing close to 3,000 employees in more than 20 countries, we provide exceptional levels of expertise in delivering leading-edge and innovative cross-sector sustainable products and solutions. Every day, we enable our customers to solve the most complex and dynamic challenges to help achieve a safe and sustainable world.

We are seeking an experienced Senior Project Manager to lead the successful delivery of New Product Introduction (NPI) and consultancy projects within Ricardo’s Performance Products business.

Reporting to the Senior Programme Manager, you will be accountable for the end-to-end delivery of complex, multi-disciplinary projects from concept through development, validation, and transition to production. You will work closely with technical specialists, functional leaders, and customers to ensure projects are delivered safely, on time, within budget, and to the highest quality standards.

This is an opportunity to manage project teams of industry-recognised experts, delivering world‑class engineering solutions in a fast-paced, customer-focused environment.

• Lead and coordinate the end-to-end delivery of complex, multi-disciplinary engineering projects.
• Take full accountability for project performance against time, cost, quality, and customer satisfaction targets.
• Manage project scope, schedules, resources, and dependencies using best‑practice tools and methodologies.

• Apply robust risk and issue management, ensuring timely identification, escalation, and resolution.
• Ensure compliance with Ricardo’s project management processes and reporting requirements.
• Monitor performance and adjust plans based on data‑driven analysis.
• Act as the primary project‑level customer and stakeholder interface, building strong relationships at all levels.
• Manage expectations and resolve commercial or delivery issues professionally.
• Provide accurate reporting and escalation to the Senior Leadership Team.
• Control project spend against budgets and maintain accurate forecasts.
• Support preparation of customer proposals.
• Protect Ricardo’s commercial interests through effective contract and change management.

• Ensure effective transition from development to production, confirming production readiness through validation, launch governance, cross‑functional alignment, and adherence to APQP and PPAP.

• Provide accurate reporting and escalation to the Senior Leadership Team.
• Manage expectations and resolve commercial or delivery issues professionally.
• Coach and mentor junior team members.
• Contribute to the Ricardo project management community and best‑practice development.

• Proven experience delivering complex engineering projects within an NPI or consultancy environment.
• Strong leadership and communication skills in a matrix organisation.
  Experience managing demanding customer relationships.
• A strong customer focus, with the flexibility and resilience required to succeed in a fast‑paced delivery environment.
• Understanding of technical and commercial project execution.
• High IT literacy including MS Project.
• Familiarity with best‑practice PM methodologies; ideally APM qualified.
• A demonstrable commitment to continuous improvement.
• Comfortable with travel within the UK and internationally will be required.

You will be warmly welcomed into our workplace where every voice matters. We are diverse thinkers and doers, coming together to create a culture of inclusion. We will support you to find your place.

We will encourage you to use your passion and expertise to make a positive impact through the projects you work on. Your knowledge and desire to bring about change will be invaluable in helping deliver innovative solutions that support communities across the globe in becoming safer and more sustainable.