Supply Chain Operations Manager

As the nation’s flag carrier, we take great pride in connecting Britain with the world and the world with Britain.

It’s something we’ve been doing for over 100 years, ever since we launched the world’s first international scheduled air service between London and Paris.

This originality has been in our blood since day one. It’s the spirit we share with the people that fly with us, our partners, and our colleagues.

So, whether you are a reassuring voice on the end of a phone, a smile at the door, under a wing keeping the turbines spinning or landing us gently in far-flung places, a job at British Airways is yours to make.

We know great things can happen when you’re inspired to think big and bring your ambition to work every day, which is why, at British Airways the sky is never the limit.

The role: Supply Chain Operations Manager (12 month secondment or Fixed-term)

We are looking to recruit a highly motivated candidate to join our Engineering Supply Chain leadership team as the Supply Chain Operations Manager.  In this role you will lead the Supply Chain operations teams (including Aircraft on Ground AOG Desk) to ensure all materials, tools and equipment required to execute the Engineering plan are available and delivered to the right place at the right time and at the right cost. The role will lead the operational teams to deliver a world class service for BA Engineering and its contracted operational suppliers across the globe with effective intervention and escalation. You will have daily interaction with the Supply Chain Leadership Team and our colleagues in Engineering / Production / Planning. Through root cause analysis and the development of tools and process, the role will deliver a robust and outstanding operational support in the most effective and economical way.

You will ideally have an in depth knowledge of Supply Chain processes and experience in the airline maintenance industry, together with the ability to excel working in a high-pressure, time critical environment.  You will need to be an outstanding communicator that is collaborative, influential and be part of the control centre team engaging across a wide range of departments/colleagues at all levels of the business.  Strong analytical skills are essential to interpret business information, solving problems and issues on the day.

What you’ll do:

•  You will manage the on shift operational Supply Chain team.
• Effectively lead the team to provide the performance levels necessary to meet the business requirements against all operational and financial requirements
• To lead the operational teams to maximise all assets and resources to deliver against Supply Chain and Engineering's metrics
• Demonstrate the required hallmarks and behaviours using the information available to you to maintain Operational oversight ensuring materials and tools are aligned to the maintenance plan, managing all immediate availability issues as they arise
• Drive plan achievement and operational performance
• Through the supplier agreements maximise all warranty opportunities.
• Identifies and delivers continuous improvement for the business unit to increase processes effectiveness
• Manage the team in a planned way with clear targets and objectives.
• Set high expectations for people to work towards and recognise when they achieve them
• Identifies and builds collaborative relationships with key stakeholders within engineering and across our internal and external suppliers to ensure focus on providing customer satisfaction and plan delivery
• Promotes a culture of continuous improvement and challenges the status quo to drive improvement into operational processes and delivery
• Lead the Operational Teams to always deliver expeditious return to service of all unscheduled unserviceable aircraft worldwide ensuring all legal Customs, Shipping and Financial requirements are adhered to.
• Lead the Operational Team to deliver operational, financial and legal performance metrics within budget
• Manage all operational loans, leases and exchanges to meet financial and operational performance metrics
• Achieve the agreed performance measures, hold stakeholders to account for delivery of the plan by building relationships and identifying blockers that can be overcome
• Communicate with a wide range of departments /colleagues including Engineering Leadership team.
• Develop, manage and follow procedures for Operational Supply Chain teams with respect to accidents, incidents and business continuity issues.
• As part of the Supply Chain Leadership Team develop the inventory strategy based on commercial intelligence & market activity.
• Perform other assignments and duties as required

What you’ll bring to British Airways:

• Adapt behavioural approach to suit different business situations. 
• Proven decision-making skills in a complex business environment
• Using initiative to develop and delivering work packages in a planned environment
• Excellent influencing skills and ability to drive delivery and effect outcomes 
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, effective in a planned and operational environment
• Proven prioritisation skills and comfortable with ambiguity
• Ability to operate effectively in a high-pressure environment
• Strong leadership skills and can manage performance for the overall Engineering Business 
• Outstanding people management skills
• Management and leadership of professional and specialist staff in a regulated environment

Your experience:

• Working knowledge of engineering processes and procedures 
• Working knowledge of Operations Control Centres and Tactical Planning process. 
• Working knowledge of “Part M” and “CAA 145” requirements 
• General knowledge of Scheduled Maintenance planning principles 
• Detailed knowledge of BA IT systems including SAP
• Considerable experience of working autonomously and managing competing priorities 
• Operational management experience in large workforce areas
• Experience using Continuous Improvement processes to improve business performance
• Considerable experience working in a fast-moving operational environment.
• An appropriate technical / operational qualification, e.g. engineering apprenticeship or proven operational management experience within BA 
• Appropriate Business Qualifications i.e. DMS, or equivalent experience

What we offer:

As an airline, we never want to stand still. The same goes for our people. 

We’re committed to upskilling our engineers and providing professional development training so you can progress in your area of expertise. That way, you’ll attain the highest levels of professional achievement as we continue to invest in new technology, equipment, and aircraft.

Training modules are offered through self-study courses, or structured learning programmes, and delivered at our state-of-the-art Learning Academy at London Heathrow.

When you work in an engineering role at British Airways, you’ll be joining a high-performance culture. It’s a time-pressured environment too, but the challenges here are exciting and diverse, and you’ll be part of projects you won’t find anywhere else. That’s what keeps our exceptional colleagues inspired to do their best work. We also offer fantastic rewards, including great staff travel benefits.

Inclusion & Diversity

At British Airways we all have a part to play in creating an inclusive place to work. Diverse representation among our people is important to us and we recognise that all our colleagues are uniquely different and bring their own originality, creativity and identity to work.

Inclusion and diversity is a key driver of innovation and we’re committed to creating a culture where everyone feels that they can be themselves. We’re looking for people from all backgrounds and cultures to join us and be a part of our journey to become a Better BA as we continue to connect Britain with the world and the world with Britain.