Department: Cohort Implementation and Operations Manager
Location: Home based, UK (with occasional travel to our London office)
Reports to : Operations Performance Manager
Hours: 37.5 per week
Salary: (Depending on experience)
A quick note before you apply : This role is strictly UK-based and must be performed entirely within the United Kingdom; we do not employ remote staff overseas, nor do we offer relocation support. Candidates must have the legal right to work in the UK prior to commencing employment. While we hold a sponsor licence, visa sponsorship is only considered in exceptional circumstances and is not available as standard for this vacancy
Role Overview
As Cohort Implementation and Operations Manager, you will lead the team that turns every signed Funded Learning agreement into a cohort that launches on time and runs smoothly to completion.
Cambridge Spark delivers AI and data apprenticeships to large employers and public sector organisations, who expect the onboarding experience of an enterprise service: one clear plan, one point of coordination, and a launch that runs to schedule.
Your Cohort Implementation Leads manage each client's implementation from handover to kick off. Your Scheduling Lead maintains the calendar of cohort slots that Leads book into. Your Operations Coordinators provide support to live cohorts. You own how these fit together, and you are the senior point of contact for Sales and Delivery on onboarding and live cohort operations.
Key Responsibilities
1. Connect Sales and Operations
Make sure every agreed deal is handed from Sales to a Cohort Implementation Lead promptly, with the information they need, and own the handover standard with Sales.
Be Sales' senior point of contact for onboarding: timelines, readiness and changes.
Agree with Sales and other teams what information is needed for each new client, and when.
Lead the handover into delivery, so delivery teams start with a full picture of the client and their goals.
2. Oversee client implementation
Allocate new clients across the Cohort Implementation Leads and balance their workload.
Set the standard implementation plan that each Lead runs, from programme set-up and slot booking to kick off.
Scope requests to tailor programmes to a client's context or tools, and agree realistic timelines with Product and Curriculum.
Make sure tools discovery with our Senior Trainers is built into every implementation plan.
Confirm each cohort is ready to launch, and agree the way forward with Sales when plans change.
Lead complex or strategic client implementations yourself.
3. Plan scheduling and capacity
Oversee the cohort calendar: the Scheduling Lead publishes slots for open and client-specific cohorts, and Leads book each new client's cohorts into them.
Make sure the supply of cohort slots keeps pace with the sales forecast, opening more slots as the forecast and trainer headcount change.
Work with Training and Delivery leads to ensure there is clear visibility on trainer capacity vs sales forecast.
Give Sales a clear view of upcoming capacity to support their planning with clients.
4. Lead ongoing cohort management
Lead the Operations Coordinators in keeping all live sessions, trainer allocations and learner support on track from kick off to completion.
Make sure changes to live cohorts, such as trainer absence or rescheduled sessions, are handled quickly, with minimal disruption to learners and clear communication to clients, learners and Delivery.
Monitor recurring operational issues across live cohorts and fix the underlying process, not just the individual case.
5. Lead and develop the team
Line manage a team of six (the Scheduling Lead, three Cohort Implementation Leads and two Operations Coordinators), setting clear roles, priorities and objectives.
Balance work across many concurrent cohorts, including at peak times.
Build a team known across the business for being responsive, organised and easy to work with.
6. Improve how we work
Track…