Head of Special Projects

Head of Special Projects

£65,000 – £85,000 + Bonus

Hybrid – Tangmere, West Sussex

Are you the person people turn to when something difficult simply needs sorting?

We are looking for an exceptional Head of Special Projects to work closely with our Directors, taking ownership of complex projects, business challenges and new initiatives across our rapidly growing UK and US operations.

This is not a conventional project management role.

We aren't looking for someone whose strength is simply managing timelines, producing project plans and coordinating meetings.

We want a commercially astute, highly capable problem-solver who can be given an objective or unfamiliar problem, work out what needs to happen and drive it through to completion.

One project might involve researching a legal or regulatory issue. Another could involve negotiating a commercial agreement, finding a new supplier, implementing a system, resolving an insurance issue, improving a customer process or supporting our US expansion.

You won't always be given the answer – and sometimes you won't even be given a particularly detailed brief.

Your job will be to work it out and make it happen.

We are the clear market leader in our sector and one of the fastest-growing car buying companies in the world. In the UK, we generate around 150,000 customer enquiries each month and book around 14,000 vehicles through our high-traffic websites and nationwide operations.

We have also launched across the United States, with multiple states already live and ambitious plans for nationwide expansion.

We have been established for over 15 years, are highly profitable and have achieved our scale without external funding. We combine the security of an established, successful business with the pace, energy and ambition of an entrepreneurial company.

Our aim is bold: to build a billion-dollar valuation within the next five years. We also want our growth to make a positive difference and have already donated over £1 million to various charities.

Reporting directly to the Directors, you'll take ownership of important projects and problems that require dedicated attention and don't necessarily sit neatly within an existing department. Alongside special projects, you will have ongoing responsibility for improving procurement and supplier value across the business.

You'll be expected to understand the objective, establish the facts, identify the commercial, operational or legal considerations, find the right solution and take responsibility for delivering it.

• Leading complex or business-critical projects from initial idea or problem through to implementation.
• Investigating commercial or operational problems and identifying practical solutions.
• Researching unfamiliar areas and quickly developing enough knowledge to make informed recommendations.
• Reviewing commercial arrangements, contracts and agreements and identifying potential risks or issues.
• Managing relationships with external risk, legal, compliance and other professional advisers, ensuring their advice is proportionate, practical and implemented effectively.
• Recognising material commercial, regulatory, insurance and operational risks, obtaining specialist external advice where required and taking ownership of the resulting actions.
• Reviewing significant expenditure and supplier arrangements to identify savings, improve commercial terms and ensure the business is receiving appropriate value.
• Leading significant supplier selections, tenders, negotiations and contract renewals, and improving how supplier performance is measured and managed.
• Supporting projects connected with our continued US expansion.
• Resolving unusual or sensitive issues requiring discretion, persistence and sound judgement.
• Working across departments to remove obstacles and ensure projects keep moving.
• Supporting the Directors with selected projects relating to their wider business and property interests.

The scope is intentionally broad. You could find yourself working across commercial, legal, technology, property, insurance, procurement, risk, customer experience, suppliers, new markets or entirely new business…