Principal Design Manager

Description

• Bid submissions that meet technical, compliance, and competitive quality benchmarks.
• Maintain high-level technical oversight during construction to ensure continued design compliance and coordination.
• Design deliverables aligned with agreed programme and cost milestones.
• Lead the review and validation of concept, scheme, and detailed designs, ensuring compliance with NHS standards, Building Regulations, and fire strategy requirements.
• Represent the business in client interviews and technical presentations, articulating the rationale behind proposed solutions.
• Work collaboratively with estimators, planners, and project directors to align design assumptions with cost and programme strategies.
• Develop design management plans, technical narratives, and interface strategies that enhance competitiveness and deliverability.
• Line-manage project Design Leads, maintaining visibility of progress, risks, and deliverables across the portfolio.
• Development and performance of Design Leads and supporting technical staff.
• Ensure that all works uphold NHS technical standards, infection control requirements, and statutory approvals.
• Act as the primary technical liaison between project teams, clients, consultants, and clinical stakeholders.
• Build and maintain relationships with key design consultants and supply chain partners to strengthen technical capability and knowledge transfer.
• Oversee design change control, ensuring variations are assessed, recorded, and agreed in line with programme and commercial requirements.
• Facilitate user group workshops, technical demonstrations, and design mock-ups to ensure solutions are operationally viable.
• Lead the design and technical input to healthcare bids, ensuring that proposals are compliant with HTM/HBN standards and client requirements.
• Drive consistency in design management procedures, ensuring clear roles, deliverables, and approval gateways across all projects.
• Drive timely closeout of design deliverables to support testing, commissioning, and handover.
• Report regularly to the Operations Director on project design performance, risk, and key matters requiring escalation.
• Coordinate design assurance activities at key project gateways and ensure alignment with procurement and delivery strategy.
• Support the development of contractor’s proposals, technical submissions, and planning documentation.
• Manage design risk registers, oversee value engineering, and ensure buildability is considered throughout the design process.
• Maintain proactive relationships with design consultants, statutory authorities, and NHS technical bodies to promote best practice and compliance.
• Support resolution of design-related queries, construction challenges, and technical interface issues across architectural, MEP, and structural systems.
• Provide strategic oversight of design delivery across multiple healthcare projects, ensuring design quality, compliance, and coordination.
• Engage confidently with client technical advisors, user groups, and trust representatives to interpret briefs and manage expectations.

Requirements

• Deep working knowledge of HTM/HBN standards, infection prevention design principles, and clinical workflow requirements.
• Degree-qualified in Architecture, Building Services, Civil/Structural Engineering, or Construction Management.
• Experience leading or supporting bids for complex healthcare or life-sciences projects under national NHS or private-sector frameworks.
• Significant experience leading multidisciplinary design teams through RIBA Stages 2–5, ideally within a Tier 1 contractor or healthcare design management role.
• familiarity with Building Safety Act (BSA) 2022 requirements and Gateway 2 design accountability processes.
• Compliance with HTM/HBN standards, Building Regulations, and statutory approvals.
• Effective escalation and resolution of portfolio-level design risks.
• Excellent working knowledge of Building Regulations, fire safety compliance, and digital design tools (BIM Level 2+).
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills, with confidence in client-facing roles and technical presentations.
• Proven experience delivering healthcare construction projects in acute, clinical, or live hospital environments.
• Previous involvement in commissioning and clinical handover phases, demonstrating appreciation of operational readiness and user acceptance processes.
• Chartered or working towards professional membership (MCIOB, RIBA, CIBSE, or equivalent).
• Strong understanding of design interfaces across architecture, structure, and MEP systems in complex, service-intensive environments.

Benefits

• Unlimited learning and development opportunities
• 26 days annual leave plus additional company days
• Competitive salary
• Pension and benefits

Training + Development

Interview process

Visa Sponsorship

Security clearance