Senior Advisor - SES

National Highways develops technical standards that are used to design and construct all roads throughout the United Kingdom and not just on roads managed by National Highways.

You’ll play a key role within the Technical Standards Group, providing advice on the development of technical standards including compliance with the construction product regulations, procurement legislation and practice and other statutory requirements within the technical standards. You will also help ensure compliance with the drafting rules and related principles. You will be supported by legal and procurement specialists, but the role requires the successful applicant to interpret this support and implement it within the scope of the technical standards.

• Act as a source of specialist subject matter expertise on the legislative and contractual content in the Design Manual for Roads and Bridges (DMRB) and the Manual of Contract documents for Highway Works (MCHW).

• Be the owner of parts of the DMRB and MCHW relating their subject matter expertise and develop updates as and when required.

• Engage with stakeholders across National Highways and externally to understand their needs to keep the DMRB and MCHW up to date and support National Highways and the other Overseeing Organisations manage technical risk.

• Engage with stakeholders across National Highways and externally to understand their business needs, to promote and gain commitment to SES objectives and solutions, to identify key areas for improvement and to share best practices.

• Represent National Highways on technical and standards committees, steering groups and at conferences, seminars and workshops, to contribute to the development of external standards, to ensure that National Highways views are appropriately represented and to enhance our reputation.

• Develop business or value management cases for new projects, to ensure that such projects are consistent with National Highways strategic goals, quantifying resource requirements and identifying project interdependencies within and beyond the team.

• Plan and manage project activities and resources, identifying risks and appropriate mitigation and reporting progress, to ensure delivery of project objectives to time and cost.

• Manage external expert and consultancy support as appropriate; and evaluate and act on such advice to ensure objectives are achieved.

• Document technical solutions and communicate to all stakeholders, to support implementation and to ensure the availability of audit evidence.

• Plan and manage own CPD to ensure continuing development of specialist skills and awareness and understanding of industry best practices.

• Responsible for managing projects with a minimum of supervision.

• Contribution and impact on other projects across Directorates, influencing and providing advice, based on technical knowledge.

• Freedom to make day-to-day tactical decisions with supervision from the Group Manager. The role is able to recognise major issues and escalate accordingly.

• Subject to guidance and general direction from the Group Manager

About you.

• An understanding of the interactions between procurement legislation, product legislation and the design and construction requirements in the DMRB and MCHW or similar technical requirements.

• Technical specialists: Membership of a relevant professional institution (CEng, IEng, MICE, or IStructE)

• Ability to demonstrate efficiencies and demonstrate value for money across a programme of projects

• Experience of working in a programme and project environment in line with APMP principles, working with programme management to support the delivery of specific programmes.

• Proven experience of providing information and specialist advice in a specific technical or expertise discipline.

• Ability to use a combination of general and specialist knowledge and understanding to optimise the solutions to complex technical issues involving significant levels of risk.

About us.

Here at National Highways, we manage and improve England’s motorways and major A roads, helping our customers have safer, smoother and more reliable journeys. Our priorities are safety, customers and delivery, and at the core of this, are our values of passion, integrity, safety, teamwork and ownership.

Safety, Engineering and Standards (SES) focuses on supporting outstanding operational delivery and providing expert technical advice for our road network. We also deliver essential services that lead, enable, and drive innovation in the development of the Strategic Road Network, while offering expert guidance on health and safety matters.

We are committed to creating a diverse environment and welcome applicants from all backgrounds.