Portfolio Dependency Management Review Consultant at Hays DT - Midlands, Birmingham, £800-£1k per day

Rate: £800 - £1,000 per day
Contract Length: Up to 3 months
Engagement Type: Outside IR35
Location: Birmingham (some on-site required)

Overview
An opportunity has arisen for a highly experienced independent consultant to undertake a strategic review of dependency management across a large and complex corporate transformation portfolio within a major public sector organisation.
Operating in a highly scrutinised and politically sensitive environment, this organisation is delivering a wide-ranging Improvement and Recovery Plan (IRP) aligned to its wider corporate strategy. With multiple programmes running concurrently at varying levels of maturity, effective dependency management is critical to ensure successful delivery, minimise risk, and drive sustainable transformation.
This engagement will provide an independent, strengths-based assessment of current approaches, alongside clear, actionable recommendations to improve the identification, management, and governance of dependencies across the portfolio and wider organisation.

Scope of the Assignment
You will conduct an independent review focusing on:

• Evaluation of current dependency management processes, tools, templates, and adoption across the portfolio
• Assessment of how programmes identify and manage inter- and intra-dependencies
• Review of how dependencies are escalated, reported, and governed at portfolio level
• Analysis of the Portfolio Management Office (PMO) approach, including future optimisation plans
• Identification of best practice benchmarks and maturity gaps
• Development of a scalable framework to support improved dependency management across the wider organisation

The review will primarily involve desktop analysis alongside stakeholder engagement at all levels, including senior leadership.
Key Deliverables

• Regular progress updates to senior stakeholders (including PMO leadership and executive level)
• Draft report outlining findings, insights, and initial recommendations
• Final report covering:
  • Areas of good practice
  • Short-term and long-term improvement recommendations
  • Practical roadmap for implementation
  • Key enablers required to increase organisational maturity

Candidate Profile
We are seeking a senior consultant with:

• Proven experience delivering and reviewing complex transformation programmes within local government
• Strong expertise in portfolio and programme management, including dependency management best practice
• Demonstrable experience conducting organisational or portfolio-level reviews and assessments
• Ability to assess strategic impacts of dependencies across large-scale change initiatives
• Excellent stakeholder engagement skills, with experience operating at Director and executive level
• Strong track record of delivering actionable recommendations that drive measurable improvement

Essential:
Extensive local authority experience
Prior delivery of major transformation/change programmes within councils
Independence (must not have previously worked with this organisation)

Additional Information

• Full-time initially (approx. 4-6 weeks), with potential for part time continuation up to 3 months
• Relevant data, documentation, and stakeholder access will be provided
• This role requires someone who can operate autonomously, quickly assess complex environments, and deliver high-impact outcomes

What you need to do now

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