Project Manager (Maternity Cover)

Job description

About Global University Systems (GUS) Global University Systems (GUS) is an international education group that empowers students to transform their lives through education. We believe education drives careers, lives, and society forward, enabling a brighter future for all. Our network of 30 institutions offers the broadest range of industry-relevant skills through inclusive, accessible, and digital-first learning. We currently educate around 122,000 students on campuses worldwide and have 20M+ unique subscribers to our courses. Our global ecosystem powers accessible digital learning and academic achievement. Role Overview We are seeking an experienced Freelance Project Manager to provide maternity cover within the Digital Operations team. The role will focus on the successful delivery and coordination of website-related projects across multiple international education brands, ensuring that both strategic initiatives and business-as-usual (BAU) activities are delivered efficiently and effectively. The successful candidate will act as the central coordination point between stakeholders, digital teams, development resources, compliance teams, UX/UI, performance marketing, and external partners. Strong communication, organisation, and stakeholder management skills are critical to success in this role. This is a hands-on delivery role requiring someone who can manage multiple concurrent projects, balance competing priorities, and maintain clear communication across a diverse global stakeholder group. Key Responsibilities Project Management & Delivery · Manage end-to-end delivery of website-related projects across multiple brands. · Coordinate website launches, redesigns, migrations, enhancements, and optimisation initiatives. · Manage project timelines, dependencies, risks, issues, and delivery milestones. · Ensure projects are delivered on time, within scope, and aligned to business objectives. · Maintain project documentation, plans, status reports, and action logs. · Facilitate project meetings, workshops, and stakeholder reviews. BAU & Change Management · Oversee incoming website change requests and enhancement requests. · Prioritise workstreams in collaboration with business stakeholders and Digital Operations leadership. · Coordinate implementation of content, design, functionality, and technical changes. · Monitor delivery progress and ensure adherence to agreed SLAs and processes. · Identify and escalate blockers or risks that may impact delivery. Stakeholder Management & Communications · Serve as the primary point of contact for project stakeholders. · Build strong working relationships across marketing, admissions, compliance, IT, development, and external agencies. · Provide regular project updates and status communications. · Manage stakeholder expectations and facilitate decision-making where required. · Ensure clear communication between technical and non-technical teams. Coordination & Resource Management · Coordinate activities across multiple internal teams and external vendors. · Schedule and facilitate project meetings and governance forums. · Track resource allocation and capacity across concurrent workstreams. · Ensure actions are followed through to completion. Governance & Quality Assurance · Support established governance processes and delivery standards. · Ensure compliance, accessibility, security, and performance requirements are considered throughout project delivery. · Support testing, sign-off, and deployment activities where required. · Ensure project documentation and handover materials are maintained. Essential Skills & Experience Project Delivery · Minimum 3 years' experience managing digital or website projects. · Demonstrable experience delivering multiple concurrent projects. · Experience working within Agile, Waterfall, or hybrid delivery environments. · Strong understanding of website development lifecycles. Communication & Stakeholder Management · Excellent written and verbal communication skills. · Strong stakeholder management and relationship-building abilities. · Experience communicating effectively with both technical and non-technical audiences. · Ability to manage competing priorities and challenging stakeholder environments. Organisation & Coordination · Exceptional organisational and planning skills. · Strong attention to detail. · Ability to work independently and manage multiple workstreams simultaneously. · Proactive approach to problem-solving and issue resolution. Tools & Platforms Experience with one or more of the following: · Jira · Confluence · Microsoft 365 · SharePoint · Project planning and collaboration tools · CMS platforms (WordPress experience desirable) Desirable Experience · Experience within higher education, education technology, or multi-brand organisations. · Experience managing website migrations and platform transitions. · Knowledge of accessibility, cookie compliance, security, or performance best practices. · Experience working with distributed international teams. · Understanding of UX/UI and digital marketing workflows. Key Attributes We are looking for someone who is: · Highly organised and delivery-focused. · Comfortable operating in a fast-paced environment. · A confident communicator and relationship builder. · Proactive and solutions-oriented. · Able to balance strategic initiatives with operational delivery. · Calm under pressure and able to manage competing priorities. Engagement Details This is a freelance maternity cover position supporting a global portfolio of education brands and websites. The role will involve managing a combination of: · Website builds and launches · Website enhancements and change requests · Business-as-usual website activities · Cross-functional digital projects · Stakeholder communications and reporting · Delivery coordination across multiple teams and vendors The successful candidate will play a key role in ensuring continuity of delivery, maintaining stakeholder confidence, and keeping projects moving forward throughout the maternity cover period. Other Information Please note this position is only available on our consultancy agreement. The post holder may be asked to undertake different or additional duties in line with business requirements at the request of their line manager. There is an expectation that all employees will maintain the values of the Group and comply with the Code of Conduct, as well as equality and diversity, health and safety, and safeguarding policies. Global University Systems equal opportunity employer. We provide equal opportunities and are committed to the principle of equality regardless of race, ancestry, place of origin, colour, ethnic origin, citizenship, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, record of offences, marital status, family status or disability.