Business Planning & Performance Director

Job Description

Business Planning & Performance Director

Lead strategy. Drive performance. Shape the future.

We’re looking for an accomplished and commercially astute Business Planning & Performance Director to play a pivotal role in shaping the future of CPS.

This is a senior leadership opportunity for someone who can turn strategy into action, bring clarity to complex challenges and drive high performance across a major infrastructure environment.

Working closely with the Managing Director and Senior Leadership Team, you will provide strategic leadership across business planning, performance, governance, risk, transformation and continuous improvement. You’ll ensure the organisation remains focused on the priorities that matter most, from delivering against contractual and customer commitments to preparing for CPS's long-term handback responsibilities.

The opportunity

As Business Planning & Performance Director, you will act as a trusted strategic partner to the Managing Director while leading the BP&P function.

You will bring together strategy, performance, risk and transformation, helping CPS anticipate challenges, identify opportunities and make informed decisions that deliver sustainable business performance.

You will:

• Shape and drive the CPS vision, strategy and long-term business priorities, translating ambition into clear and measurable plans.
• Lead annual business planning and ensure effective preparation for contractual and handback obligations.
• Provide strategic insight and constructive challenge to the Managing Director, Senior Leadership Team and Board.
• Lead the governance, enterprise risk and performance framework, ensuring emerging risks and opportunities are identified and effectively managed.
• Drive greater accountability for performance against strategic priorities, customer outcomes and contractual commitments.
• Champion business transformation and continuous improvement, identifying opportunities to improve efficiency, productivity and organisational performance.
• Shape the direction and adoption of data and digital capability, particularly within an infrastructure asset management environment.
• Lead, empower and develop a high-performing Business Planning & Performance team.
• Bring together different functions and priorities to create greater alignment and coordinated delivery across CPS.
• Build trusted relationships with key stakeholders including National Highways, Connect Plus, JV Parent Companies and industry partners.
• Represent CPS credibly at executive, client, shareholder, governance and industry forums.
• Champion a culture built around safety, wellbeing, integrity, accountability and continuous improvement.

What we're looking for

This role requires a senior leader who is comfortable operating in a complex, highly visible environment and can combine strategic thinking with commercial judgement and delivery focus.

You will bring:

• Significant experience operating at senior leadership or executive level within a complex infrastructure, operational or regulated environment.
• A strong track record of developing and delivering business strategy, annual plans and organisation-wide priorities.
• Experience of executive governance, Board reporting, organisational performance and assurance.
• Strong knowledge of enterprise risk management, business resilience and risk-based decision making.
• Successful delivery of major business transformation, continuous improvement or organisational change programmes.
• Experience leading or influencing digital and information transformation, ideally within infrastructure or asset management.
• Strong commercial awareness with the ability to balance customer outcomes, financial objectives, contractual obligations and organisational priorities.
• Experience working within complex contractual, concession, alliance, Joint Venture or partnership environments.
• The ability to build credibility and influence with senior executives, clients, shareholders, partners and governance bodies.
• A relevant professional qualification, ideally with Chartered or Incorporated status through a recognised UK institution.

Your leadership style

You’ll be a visible and inspirational leader who sees the bigger picture while maintaining a strong focus on delivery.

Strategic, analytical and commercially minded, you'll be comfortable navigating ambiguity, constructively challenging others and making informed decisions in complex situations.

Just as importantly, you'll bring people with you. You’ll build collaboration across organisational boundaries, create clarity where priorities compete and foster an environment where innovation, learning and high performance can thrive.

You’ll lead with integrity, resilience and accountability, ensuring safety, wellbeing and responsible leadership remain central to how CPS operates.

Ready to make an impact?

This is an opportunity to operate at the heart of CPS, influencing its strategic direction and helping shape how the organisation performs, transforms and delivers against its long-term commitments.

If you're an experienced strategic leader who can connect strategy, performance, risk, transformation and people to deliver meaningful business outcomes, we'd like to hear from you.

Bring the strategic thinking. Create the clarity. Drive the performance.

Qualifications

• A relevant professional qualification and ideally Chartered / Incorporated status with a recognised and relevant UK institution. 
• Demonstrable experience operating at senior leadership or executive level within a complex, regulated, operational or infrastructure environment, influencing organisational direction and business performance.
• Proven experience developing and delivering business strategy, annual business plans and organisation-wide priorities, translating strategic objectives into measurable outcomes
• Strong experience of executive governance, board reporting, performance management and organisational assurance, with the ability to turn complex information into meaningful insight that supports decision making.
• Demonstrable experience of enterprise risk management, risk-based decision making and business continuity planning, with the ability to influence leaders to proactively manage risk and opportunity.
• Proven track record of leading business transformation, continuous improvement and organisational change programmes that deliver measurable improvements in performance, productivity, efficiency or customer outcomes.
• Proven capability to deliver digital change leadership with detailed knowledge of Digital Information techniques in an infrastructure asset management environment. 
• Experience of leading cross-functional initiatives and aligning diverse business functions behind common strategic objectives in a complex stakeholder environment.
• Commercially astute, with experience of balancing business performance, contractual obligations, customer outcomes and financial priorities to support sustainable organisational success.
• Experience of operating within complex contractual, concession, alliance, Joint Venture or partnership environments, with the ability to understand contractual risk and protect organisational interests through effective governance and decision making
• Strong stakeholder management experience, with a proven ability to build trusted relationships and influence senior leaders, clients, shareholders, regulators, partners and governance bodies.
• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to influence, challenge and engage audiences at all levels of the organisation and represent CPS with credibility externally.

Personal Attributes

• An inspirational and visible leader who sees the bigger picture, creates clarity of purpose and motivates others to achieve ambitious goals.
• Strategic thinker with strong analytical, planning and problem-solving capabilities, able to navigate complexity and make sound, informed decisions.
• Able to provide constructive challenge, influence outcomes and hold the line on strategic, contractual and commercial matters while maintaining trusted relationships.
• Skilled at building collaboration, connecting people and initiatives across organisational boundaries, and creating alignment where priorities compete.
• Commercially and politically astute, with strong judgement and the confidence to operate effectively at executive and board level.
• Demonstrates integrity, resilience and accountability, remaining effective under pressure and through periods of change and ambiguity.
• Passionate about continuous improvement and creating a culture where innovation, learning and high performance can thrive.
• Champions safety, wellbeing and inclusion, ensuring these principles remain central to decision making and leadership behaviours.

Additional Information

We are an Equal Opportunities employer and we strive to build a workforce that truly reflects the communities we represent. We welcome candidates from all backgrounds, regardless of age, disability, gender, gender identity, gender expression, race, religion or belief, sexual orientation, socioeconomic background, and any other protected characteristic. If you decide to apply for an opportunity with us, your application will be assessed based purely on your experience, the essential and desirable criteria, and your suitability for the role. We value each and every one’s contribution as this builds our culture and means that if you work with us, you will be included, listened to, and respected.

The position can be based from Leatherhead, South Mimms or Dartford
We encourage the use of hybrid working should your role allow this; CPS currently has a requirement for all employees to work from CPS office on average 60% in a typical week. This role will be expected to lead by example

*Please note, to be considered for this role, you must be based in the UK and must already be able to legally work in the UK. We are unable to offer or provide sponsorship for this position*