Location: Ruislip | Contract Type: Permanent | Working Pattern: Full-Time | Office Based
Pay / Benefits: Remuneration for this role is benchmarked competitively within our sector.
The Opportunity
OCU is delivering a significant portfolio of power infrastructure projects across substations, underground cable systems, and overhead line networks. As Design Performance and Innovation Manager, you'll play a pivotal role in shaping how our design function operates, helping to improve efficiency, quality, and consistency across a large and complex project portfolio.
This is a unique opportunity for someone with both engineering credibility and a passion for continuous improvement. You'll work closely with design, delivery, and digital teams to identify smarter ways of working, implement new technologies, and drive meaningful change that enhances project outcomes. If you're excited by innovation, process optimisation, and influencing the future of engineering delivery, this could be the role for you.
- Lead improvement initiatives that enhance design performance, reduce rework, and improve project delivery outcomes.
- Analyse design workflows to identify inefficiencies and implement practical solutions that improve productivity and quality.
- Drive the standardisation of design processes, templates, documentation, and technical outputs.
- Evaluate and implement digital tools, automation solutions, and emerging technologies that add measurable value.
- Collaborate with engineering, project delivery, and digital teams to improve design systems and data management processes.
- Influence stakeholders across the business to embed new ways of working and support successful change adoption.
- Monitor performance metrics and use data-driven insights to support continuous improvement initiatives.
- Ensure all improvement activities align with client requirements, regulatory obligations, and operational delivery needs.
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Significant experience within power, utilities, energy, or infrastructure design environments.
- Strong understanding of engineering design processes and project delivery constraints.
- Experience delivering process improvement, transformation, or operational excellence initiatives.
- Ability to engage confidently with engineers, project teams, and senior stakeholders.
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with the ability to translate challenges into practical solutions.
- Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.
- Experience within DNO, transmission and distribution, or regulated utility environments.
- Bonus if you have experience in substation, cable, or overhead line design disciplines.
- It would be great if you hold qualifications or training in Lean, Six Sigma, or continuous improvement methodologies.
- It would be great if you've implemented digital engineering tools, automation solutions, or AI-enabled processes within an engineering environment.
- Knowledge of CAD, BIM, Common Data Environments, or design management systems would be advantageous.
At OCU, we believe that meaningful work should come with meaningful support. That's the principle behind Careers with Purpose, our commitment to ensuring every person at OCU feels supported, developed, and valued, not just in their role today, but throughout their career with us.
Alongside the opportunity to work on some of the UK's most significant infrastructure projects, we offer a benefits package that we are continuing to develop as we grow, and the kind of career acceleration that only comes from being inside a business moving at this pace.
As a rapidly growing organisation, there are genuine opportunities to progress, broaden your experience, and build a long-term career within OCU Group.
For a confidential conversation about this opportunity, please contact
Jonathan Bryden at
[email protected].
Our vacancies are typically advertised for two weeks; however, we reserve the right to close applications early should we receive a sufficient number of suitable candidates. We therefore encourage early applications.
At OCU Group, we don’t just deliver infrastructure - we help power modern life.
As one of the UK’s fastest-growing utility and infrastructure businesses, we deliver complex, nationally critical projects across power, energy transition, water, telecoms, and digital infrastructure. Over the last five years, OCU has grown five-fold to a £1.1bn organisation, expanding both organically and through strategic acquisitions across the UK, Australia, New Zealand and India.
Our growth is driven by ambitious people, operational excellence, and a commitment to doing things properly. We work on projects that genuinely matter by supporting the UK’s energy transition, strengthening essential infrastructure, and helping build more sustainable communities for the future.
Whether you’re an experienced professional looking to take ownership of major projects and influence delivery at scale, or someone starting your career through an apprenticeship, graduate programme, or placement route, OCU offers real opportunity to grow, develop, and make an impact.
We are building a business where high performance, collaboration, innovation, and accountability sit at the centre of our culture. Our people are trusted to lead, encouraged to challenge thinking, and supported to continuously develop their skills and careers.
At OCU, you won’t just join a growing business, you’ll help shape it.
Our Culture & Values
At OCU, our values are at the heart of everything we do. We care about safety, lead with integrity, strive to be better every day, make a positive impact, and deliver to grow, together, as One Company United.
Our Commitment to Inclusion
At OCU Group, we believe diversity, inclusion, and belonging are fundamental to building stronger teams, better ideas, and a more successful business. We welcome applications from people of all backgrounds and are committed to creating an environment where everyone feels valued and supported.
As part of our commitment to fairness and equality, candidates may be asked to complete an equal opportunities monitoring form during the recruitment process. This information is used for monitoring purposes only and plays no part in hiring decisions.
We are proud to be a Disability Confident employer and are committed to offering interviews to candidates with disabilities or long-term health conditions who meet the essential criteria for the role.
To ensure that everyone has a fair opportunity to join our team, please inform us if you require any reasonable adjustments to our recruitment and interview process is, by emailing
[email protected].
