Senior Portfolio Officer
About the Role
Senior Portfolio Officer
Shape Change at the Heart of NPL
Location: Teddington (Hybrid – typically 2 days per week on site, with flexibility to reduce to 1 day depending on business need)
The Portfolio Office sits at the centre of NPL’s change agenda. We provide integrated oversight, governance, prioritisation, assurance and insight across NPL’s internal and external portfolios — enabling the right change to be delivered at the right time, in the right way, with the right support.
We are now seeking a Senior Portfolio Officer to take a visible, influential leadership role within this model. This is not a passive or purely coordinating PMO role — it is a hands on, delivery facing leadership position where your judgement, challenge and assurance directly influence outcomes. Operating within a Hub and Spoke model , you will be:
• Based centrally within the Portfolio Office (the Hub), and
• Embedded within a major programme (a Spoke), flexing to where senior governance, assurance and decision support are most needed. You will be expected to spend around two days per week on site in Teddington , building strong relationships and providing effective challenge face to face. This may reduce to one day per week over time , but candidates must be comfortable with hybrid working and flexibility. What You’ll Be DoingLead Governance & Assurance
You will take ownership of assurance activity across programmes and projects, ensuring it is robust, proportionate and genuinely adds value.
• Lead health checks, start up reviews, stage gates and deep dive assurance activity
• Ensure governance cycles run effectively, with clear, high quality evidence presented to boards and committees
• Provide independent, constructive challenge to test readiness, controls and delivery confidence
• Capture lessons learned and embed them across the portfolioOperate as a Senior Leader
This role requires demonstrable leadership. You’ll be expected to set direction, influence outcomes and act as a trusted authority — not simply work within existing structures.
• Act as a senior point of contact for delivery teams on PPM frameworks, standards and assurance expectations
• Provide leadership and direction to Portfolio Office colleagues when embedded in programmes
• Communicate confidently and credibly with senior sponsors, executives and board level stakeholders
• Be comfortable challenging assumptions and decisions in a constructive, evidence based wayManage Risk, Dependencies & Value
You’ll play a key role in ensuring NPL understands where its real risks and value lie.
• Monitor and escalate major risks, issues and dependencies surfaced through governance and assurance
• Ensure RAID information is credible, consistent and aligned to agreed standards
• Provide informed commentary on benefits, outcomes and value delivery
• Champion a culture of benefits realisation and value led decision makingProvide Financial & Portfolio Insight
When embedded within programmes, you’ll support financial discipline and portfolio level insight.
• Support budget tracking, forecasting and financial inputs
• Provide analysis to inform prioritisation, sequencing and resource planning
• Contribute to evidence based decision making at portfolio levelDrive Continuous Improvement
You won’t just operate the system — you’ll improve it.
• Lead enhancements to governance frameworks, assurance approaches and portfolio processes
• Benchmark against external good practice to keep NPL’s standards credible and effective
• Actively shape how the Portfolio Office evolves as a Centre of ExcellenceAbout You
About You
Essential
• Significant experience in a senior PMO, Portfolio Office or assurance role within complex change environments
• Strong understanding of portfolio, programme and project governance and assurance
• Proven ability to lead, influence and challenge senior stakeholders, not just collaborate
• Excellent analytical skills, sound judgement and confident communication
• Comfortable operating in delivery facing environments where credibility mattersHighly Desirable
• Experience working within a Hub and Spoke or Centre of Excellence model
• Background in complex, multi stakeholder or public sector organisations
• Professional qualification or equivalent experience (e.g. APM, MSP, P3O)
• Experience supporting portfolio prioritisation and benefits led decision makingWe actively recruit citizens of all backgrounds, but the nature of our work in specific departments means that nationality, residency and security requirements can be more tightly defined than others. You will be asked about this throughout the recruitment process. To work at NPL, you will need to obtain BPSS security clearance.
Please note: Applications will be reviewed, and interviews conducted throughout the duration of this advert therefore we may at any time bring the closing date forward. We encourage all interested applicants to apply as soon as possible.
About Us
The National Physical Laboratory (NPL) is a world-leading centre of excellence that provides cutting-edge measurement science, engineering and technology to underpin prosperity and quality of life in the UK. Find out more about what it is like working here - The measure of us - Overview
NPL and DSIT have strong commitments to diversity and equality of opportunity, and welcome applications from candidates irrespective of their background, gender, race, sexual orientation, religion, or age, providing they meet the required criteria. Applications from women, disabled and black, Asian and minority ethnic candidates in particular are encouraged. All disabled candidates (as defined by the Equality Act 2010) who satisfy the minimum criteria for the role will be guaranteed an interview under the Disability Confident Scheme. At NPL, we believe our success is a result of the diversity and talent of our people. We strive to nurture and respect individuals to ensure everyone feels valued by treating everyone on the basis of their own individual merits and abilities regardless of their own or perceived identity, as part of our commitment to diversity & inclusion, we ensure we’re creating an environment where all our colleagues feel supported and welcome. More about this on our Diversity & Inclusion page. We are committed to the health and well-being of our employees. Flexible working and social activities are embedded in our culture to create a positive work-life balance, along with a broad range of rewards, benefits and recognition . Our values are at the heart of what we do, and they shape the way we interact, develop our people and celebrate success. To ensure everyone has an equal chance, we’re always willing to make reasonable adjustments to the recruitment process. If you would like to discuss, please contact us.
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