Senior Project Controller

Location: Crawley, United Kingdom

Thales people provide armed forces customers with operational advantage at every decisive moment throughout the mission. Defence and armed forces customers rely on us to deliver the full range of defence mission systems solutions at land, sea, and air. Our platforms extend across the battlespace including Above and Sonar, Electronic Combat, and Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance systems.

Together we offer fantastic opportunities for committed employees to learn and develop their career with us. At Thales UK, we research, develop, and supply technology and services that impact the lives of millions of people each day to make life better, and keep us safer. We innovate across the major industries of Aerospace, Defence, Security and Space. Your health and well-being matters to us and that’s why we offer you the flexibility to do what’s important to you; whether that’s part time hours, job sharing, home working, or the ability to flex your start and finish times. Where possible, we support a working pattern that suits your lifestyle and helps you reach your ambitions.

Senior Project Controller

Based Crawley or Bristol – hybrid working – this role involve travel within Europe to other Thales partners

Are you an inquisitive individual that likes to identify risks and opportunities and solve problems? Are you looking to apply your project controls or accounting skills to a new challenge, working on a number of large exciting international projects?

What the role has to offer:

• Excellent career development opportunities - as this major contract grows this will offer opportunity for career development and progression. This role is an excellent fit for an accountant or project controller wanting to grow her/his role, remit and responsibility.
• Opportunity to travel within Europe and build relationships with Thales Partners.

What can we offer you?

Our offer is a competitive salary and benefits package, which includes;

• Performance Related Bonus
• Half day every Friday, usually finishing around 13:00pm
• Pension Scheme
• 28 days annual leave (Plus Bank Holidays) 
• Life Cover
• 24/7 Employee Assistance Program and access to mental wellbeing app
• Employee discount shopping schemes on major brands and retailers
• Gym membership discounts

Our Opportunity

We have a fantastic opportunity for a Senior Project Controller to join Thales Above Water Systems (AWS) who provide integrated combat management systems and services for naval surface ships in the UK and internationally.

You will be responsible for ensuring strong project controls across the program and ensure that data from the controls is interpreted and clearly presented as actionable information for Program Leadership and Senior Management decision making.  In particular, you will ensure that all contracts within the program have a robust Integrated Master Schedule (IMS), Performance Management Baseline (PMB) and strong financial control covering the control of costs (actual costs, ETC, EAC, cost variances and their root causes, risk allocation and movement in provisions) in line with Thales accounting rules and IFRS 15.  You will work closely with the involved project managers, project planners and financial accountants.

This role will require SC Clearance. It would be advantageous if currently held; if not currently held it is expected that the post holder will undergo SC Clearance, please visit the UKSV website for further guidance.

About You

We are looking for an experienced project controller who would like to broaden the experience into finance/ or an accountant wanting to gain more experience within project control together with the following:-

• Implementing and/or operating advanced Project Control techniques e.g. Earned Value Management and Schedule Risk Analysis

• Building strong relationships with key stakeholders in complex environments and working across functional boundaries
• Preparing budgets and forecasts for allocated projects and prospects portfolios; forecast activities and budget activities. Ensure data is available on time.
• Defining and implementing appropriate KPIs to understand progress and provide insight into likely future performance
• Using Project data (e.g. Variance Analysis) to influence Project Leadership and Senior Management decision making and proactively mitigate risk through both Project Reviews and the day to day operation of Project Controls
• Implementing robust governance and project reporting frameworks
• Managing the process of reviewing and updating actuals/forecasts each month, ensuring accuracy and timeliness completion
• Coaching and guiding other, less-experienced, team members
• It would be advantageous to be ACCA or CIMA qualified but this is not necessary

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In line with Thales' Baseline Security requirements, candidates will be asked to provide evidence of identity, eligibility to work in the UK and employment and/or education history for up to three years. Some vacancies may require full Security Clearance which can require further evidence to be provided. For further details of the evidence required to apply for Baseline and Security Clearance please refer to the Defence Business Services National Security Vetting (DBS NSV) Agency.

At Thales we provide CAREERS and not only jobs. With Thales employing 80,000 employees in 68 countries our mobility policy enables thousands of employees each year to develop their careers at home and abroad, in their existing areas of expertise or by branching out into new fields. Together we believe that embracing flexibility is a smarter way of working.

Thales UK is committed to providing an inclusive and barrier-free recruitment process. We will provide reasonable adjustments and support to ensure neuro-diverse applicants or those with a disability or long-term condition can be their best during the recruitment process. To request an adjustment, if you need this job advert in an alternative format or if you have any questions about the recruitment process, please contact Resourcing Ops for mid to senior roles, or the Early Careers Team for graduate and apprentice roles.

Great journeys start here, apply now!