Head of Workspace

Job Description

Head of WorkspaceNewcastle upon TynePermanent Role, Full Time (37.5 hpw)Salary c£60,000 pa, negotiable based on skills and experience. Car payment of c£5,000 per annum plus brilliant benefits!Creating innovative and collaborative workspaces for the future. Thats when it hits home.We have a brilliant opportunity for you to join us here at Home Group and take on a brand spanking exciting new job. Weve recently given the go ahead to our Developer partners to start work on building our new Head Office in central Newcastle upon Tyne, and weve appointed our Interior Design Partner. Our new office is being built around (yes around) the famous Strawberry pub, just across the road from the shrine that is SJP!As one of the oldest Housing Associations in the country, were proud of our heritage, but even more proud of being innovators, pushing boundaries, as well as being disruptors in our sector! Were keen to continue innovating with the development of not just our new Head Office but also our regional hub offices and workspaces.Our culture, achievements and brilliant people, have helped us achieve No. 10 in the UKs Best Super Large Great Places to Work, 7th Best Place in the UK for Great Places for Women to Work, 18th in the Stonewall Top 100 and we recently secured the Investors in People Platinum Standard!The challengeEven before Covid we knew our new offices needed to be collaborative spaces not just work environments. Spaces not only for our colleagues, but also for our customers and the wider community, as well as a Third Space partners. We intend to build environments that promote the wellbeing, productivity and creativity of those who work or gather within it, and thats where you come in!Leading our workspace approach, youll scope, design, and implement the exciting evolution of our workspaces across the UK. Youll lead the creation of a blank canvas that can be adapted in a multitude of ways, where we can facilitate all the users of that space in different unique, creative and quirky ways. We want you to help us fill in the blanks and show us what could be!Were keen to explore how we can continue to push boundaries, so youll review not just where we work, but also how we work. We know that Workspaces shape behaviour, and can help to communicate a strategy, brand and culture. Using your skills and insights youll help us maximise colleague engagement, wellbeing and productivity.Reporting to our Chief Exec Mark, youre confident working with senior leaders, as well as influencing and negotiating up to board level. Youll quickly discover Mark is a direct talking and avid "Toon" supporter who loves motorbike racing. Mark, who originally hails from Scotland, isnt just passionate about his beloved NUFC, hes also passionate about building workplaces of the future.About YouYoure an established "workspace design" professional with an extensive and impressive portfolio of results. With relevant professional qualification or equivalent transferrable skills, youre up to date on regulatory and legislative compliance for commercial buildings. You also understand current statutory compliance and accessibility requirements.A fantastic collaborator, youre comfortable operating at a senior level and building strong working relationships across different parts of a business. Youre not just a great team player, youre also comfortable walking the fine line between challenging the status quo and your colleagues, without stepping on their toes (too much!). You know how to galvanise plans and groups of people to find solutions and to make things happen and you thrive on a challenge!As an innovator, you appreciate theres a time and place for using better-known or traditional approaches but thrive on finding new and exciting ways to work. Youre confident designing solutions that support the needs of colleagues, customers and third-party organisations or whoever uses our building.It goes without saying that you are established at creating workspaces. Perhaps you have worked in the design field within an agency or been involved in setting up some of the cool co-working environments that are springing up around the country. Youre an established collaborator with the key players that make spaces like this work, such as Facilities, Technical, Design Teams and HR and external design partners.We know this challenge will take around 2 years to deliver, so after that, well review things together and look to evolve the role.Your base and travelWe have workspaces across the country from Scotland to Cornwall, key to those are our main regional hubs which lie between Southampton and Edinburgh and our Head Office in Newcastle upon Tyne. When we can again, you will travel on a regular basis. The great news is that until then we are comfortable with you working from home and well give you the technology and kit to make that easy.Working hoursIts the teams unwritten rule that you attend the important appointments in life, be it your childs school play, your partners graduation, or to get your new fridge delivered. You can elect to fit these around your working day or use your flexi to take the time off. Our focus is on getting the job done, not your working hours!Be yourself at Home GroupHome Group is committed to tackling prejudice and discrimination, not just for our customers, but for our colleagues too! Were super proud of our Internal Diversity Networks (Multicultural, LGBTQIA+ and Disability) which support colleagues from different backgrounds to be their true selves.Were especially keen to encourage your application, if you are from a Minority Ethnic or Multicultural background (BAME), Female, if you identify as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual or Transgender (LGBTQ+) or if you are registered or consider yourself disabled. This is because these groups are currently underrepresented amongst our colleagues.We recognise and celebrate our differences, together we make Home Group a great place to work! Want to know moreIf youre not reading this advert on our jobs pages, press the APPLY NOW button to access lots of useful stuff! You can download the Head of Workspace Job Description, and find out more about Home Group. Weve also got some short films that show you what its like to work here, and we know youll want to find out more about our award winning benefits and rewards package!During CovidWere continuing to deliver services for our customers during the COVID-19 pandemic, and our brilliant colleagues are at the very heart of making that happen. Were doing things a little differently right now, so to keep everyone safe, well engage with you digitally where poss