Senior Design Manager

Consortium of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Voluntary and Community Organisations Limited; Manchester; Hybrid; GBP 65,000 - 85,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading construction firm is seeking a Senior Design Manager to manage and lead design teams for various projects. You'll be responsible for ensuring project compliance and delivering high-quality outputs in a hybrid working model. Ideal candidates will have proven experience in a Tier 1/Tier 2 Head Contractor environment, exceptional technical design skills, and a strong track record in multi-disciplinary team coordination. This role offers progression to Principal Design Manager.

Benefits

Inclusive workplace

Career progression opportunities

Structured development programs

Qualifications

• Proven experience as a Senior Design Manager in a Tier 1/Tier 2 Head Contractor environment.
• Experience leading design teams on larger scale projects.
• Excellent level of technical design skills.

Responsibilities

• Manage and lead design teams ensuring compliance and quality outputs.
• Coordinate design programmes maintaining deadlines and information flow.
• Contribute to design meetings ensuring collaboration across teams.

Skills

Team management

Technical design skills

Communication skills

Collaboration

Proficiency with MS Office Suite

Education

Professional qualifications (CIOB, RIBA)

Tools

Drawing mark-up tools

Job description

Senior Design Manager role with Willmott Dixon

Hybrid working model with three days office/site, two days home

Manage and lead design teams, ensuring project compliance and high-quality outputs

Experience in Tier 1/Tier 2 Head Contractor environment required

Opportunity for progression to Principal Design Manager

Senior Design Manager

Are you an experienced Senior Design Manager looking for your next challenge with a Tier 1 contractor? Willmott Dixon is seeking a motivated and technically strong Design Manager to join our Construction North team, where you'll play a key role in delivering exciting projects across the Northwest.

Our pipeline includes a diverse mix of projects such as Department for Education schemes, high-rise residential, offices, town centre regeneration, leisure, and blue-light facilities etc. With an excellent reputation as one of the UK's leading contractors, this is a fantastic opportunity to join a business that was recently ranked in the top five of the Financial Times' 'Europe's 1,000 Best Workplaces' list for 2025.

This role offers you flexibility with a hybrid working model, typically three days in the office or on site and two days from home.

Key Responsibilities

• Manage a team of 1 to 2 Design Managers on larger scale projects
• Lead the design process on allocated projects, ensuring compliance with Willmott Dixon procedures and delivering high-quality outputs.
• Manage and coordinate design programmes, maintaining control of deadlines and information flow.
• Chair and contribute to design team meetings, ensuring collaboration across consultants, supply chain partners, and internal teams.
• Review and challenge technical details to maintain buildability, value engineering, and quality.
• Work closely with Pre-construction Managers, Principal Design Managers, and Operations Managers to ensure design aligns with programme, cost, and customer requirements.
• Proven experience operating as a Senior Design Manager within a Tier 1/Tier 2 Head Contractor environment - on larger scale projects from preconstruction phase right through delivery (cradle to grave).
• Excellent level of technical design skills and capabilities.
• Experience across multiple sectors such as Education, Health, Commercial, Defence, Residential, Leisure.
• Strong track record of leading and coordinating multi-disciplinary design teams.
• Technical confidence in reviewing design details, drawings, and specifications.
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills, able to influence both internal and external stakeholders.
• Proficiency with MS Office Suite and drawing mark-up tools.
• Professional qualifications (e.g. CIOB, RIBA) or evidence of continued professional development.

At Willmott Dixon, we pride ourselves on creating an inclusive workplace where people can thrive, develop, and build long-lasting careers. For this role, the career pathway includes progression to Principal Design Manager, supported by structured development and active knowledge-sharing forums.

About Us

With over 170 years of rich history, Willmott Dixon's purpose is beyond profit; delivering brilliant buildings, transforming lives, strengthening communities and enhancing the environment so our world is fit for future generations. Ensuring that we add lasting value to the neighbourhoods we work in; our values, people, innovation, partnerships and focus on sustainability has allowed us to build a successful and solid privately owned business where our people can thrive.

Willmott Dixon was recognised by The Sunday Times as one of the Top 10 'Big' Companies to Work For in 2025, named among the Times Top 50 Employers for Gender Equality in 2024, and ranked in the Top Five of Europe's 1,000 best workplaces by the Financial Times in 2025.

Willmott Dixon is also the first major contractor and developer to win a King's Award for Enterprise in the category of sustainable development.

If this job opportunity is not suitable, then check out the other LGBT friendly jobs across UK!