Senior Project Officer

Senior Project Officer – Alzheimer's Research UK

The Senior Project Officer sits with the Chief Executive Office supporting the Project & Programme Manager and is responsible for championing project management best practice across the wider organisation via training, consultations, and effective stakeholder management. The post holder is also responsible for scoping, planning, and delivering small‑to‑medium cross‑organisational change projects that bring us closer to achieving our 10‑year organisational strategy, ARUK: Towards a Cure.

Key Responsibilities

• Act as an advisor, mentor, and source of central project management expertise for colleagues across the charity; offering tailored project management consultations which empower colleagues to deliver their own initiatives effectively.
• Collaborate with the Project & Programme Manager to enhance and deliver ARUK’s flagship internal project management training, the ARUK Project Management Masterclass, promoting best practice and continuous improvement.
• Take ownership of the maintenance and development of the Projects team intranet pages and resources, ensuring they remain relevant and accessible to colleagues across the organisation.
• Support the Project & Programme Manager with the development of a suite of project management resources to further embed project management best practice across the organisation.

Project Management

• Deliver small‑to‑medium cross‑organisational change projects, as determined by the yearly Operational Planning process, working with project teams to develop flexible, adaptable project plans (e.g., implementation of new third‑party systems and tools, regulatory and compliance projects, new fundraising campaigns, digital transformation projects).
• Apply sound judgement and problem‑solving expertise to manage project risks, decisions, and dependencies within the wider organisational context, drive and monitor project progress against timelines, and ensure stakeholders are updated at key checkpoints.
• Demonstrate accountability by escalating project risks via appropriate channels as required.
• Proactively build and maintain strong relationships with project teams, internal stakeholders, and external partners to foster collaboration and drive successful outcomes.
• Lead project reviews to capture successes and learnings and ensure project outcomes are embedded into business‑as‑usual practices.
• Provide coordination support on larger programmes of work, as and when required.

What we are looking for

• Experience managing cross‑team projects, including developing project plans, allocating tasks, and managing risks, decisions, and changes.
• Sound knowledge of project management methodologies (Waterfall, Agile).
• Demonstrable ability to work with, influence, and advise a variety of internal and external stakeholders at all levels.
• Working knowledge of project management tools, such as Excel, Smartsheet, MS Projects or similar.
• Project Management qualification (e.g., PRINCE2, APM), or evidence of equivalent learning or experience.
• Excellent communication and people‑management skills, with the ability to build relationships, trust, and inspire confidence at all levels.
• Strong team player who can work both independently and collaboratively with internal and external stakeholders.
• Excellent planning and organisational skills, and the ability to manage a varied workload and reprioritise work in accordance with the organisation’s needs.
• Excellent listening skills, demonstrating flexibility, curiosity, and an ability to learn.
• Demonstrates strong negotiation and influencing skills.
• Proactive and pragmatic approach to investigating and solving problems, striving for continuous improvement.
• Strategic and analytical thinking, able to see the bigger picture and make appropriate recommendations.
• Ability to absorb and process new information quickly.
• Strong ethical standards and high personal integrity and empathy.
• Excellent IT skills in PowerPoint, Word and Excel.

Additional Information

As part of our Agile ways of working you will be required to work approximately 2 days a week from the office, which is subject to the requirements of the role and the business needs. Flexibility on where you work can be split between working from home and our office. Roles that are classed as part of the Agile ways of working are not able to claim any costs for mileage/travel on public transport, accommodation and/or meals. This includes when attending the office for various meetings/events.

Our office is at 3 Riverside, Granta Park, Great Abington, Cambridge, CB21 6AD.

The closing date for applications is 25th January 2026, with interviews being arranged once shortlisting has been completed.

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

We value diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive culture where everyone can be themselves and reach their full potential. We actively encourage applications from people of all backgrounds and cultures, in particular those from ethnic minority backgrounds who are currently under‑represented. Any offer of employment is however subject to you having the right to work in the UK.

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