Programme Planner

Our mission  

At Vertical Aerospace, we are pioneering the way for electric aviation. The VX4, our eVTOL (electric, vertical, take-off and landing), ‘zero emissions’ aircraft will set a new safety standard for how we will navigate the sky.  

We won’t realise our mission following the same legacy processes and traditions our predecessors followed, instead, we want to ‘redefine’ aerospace best practices.  

We are growing quickly from a prototype business to a scaling SME, and the next few years will be critical to our success and delivering on our ambitious goals of having the VX4 in service by 2030.  

What to expect

As a Programme Planner, you will play a critical role in ensuring structured and effective planning across the programme. You will take responsibility for continuous development, maintaining and improving programme planning governance and ensuring all feeder plans integrate into a cohesive programme plan aligned with the strategic objectives. You will proactively manage dependencies, identify critical paths and support planning activities to ensure the programme remains on track.

What you'll do

As a Programme Planner, you’ll play a critical role in driving the successful delivery of complex, multi-workstream programmes. You will:

• Own and enforce best practices for programme planning, ensuring consistency across all workstreams and functions.

• Integrate feeder plans into a single, cohesive master schedule, proactively managing dependencies and sequencing.

• Identify and manage critical paths, highlighting potential schedule risks and collaborating with stakeholders to mitigate delays.

• Support programme managers in developing, structuring, and refining detailed delivery plans aligned with overall programme objectives.

• Assess the impact of changes, risks, and issues on the master schedule and programme milestones.

• Maintain accurate planning data, providing actionable insights, forecasts, and reports for stakeholders at all levels of the organisation.

• Facilitate planning discussions with stakeholders, resolving conflicts and aligning schedules across teams.

• Contribute to programme strategy by delivering structured planning insights and recommending process improvements.

What you'll bring

• Strong proficiency in Microsoft Project or equivalent tools, with proven experience creating and managing complex programme schedules.

• Demonstrated experience in planning and scheduling large-scale, multi-disciplinary programmes - ideally in technical or engineering environments.

• Experience supporting aerospace certification programmes or working within regulated industries.

• In-depth understanding of critical path methodology, schedule risk management, and dependency tracking.

• Experience generating and interpreting earned value data to support performance tracking.

• Ability to clearly communicate complex plans and timelines to senior leadership and cross-functional teams.

• Familiarity with change control and programme risk management processes.

• Exceptional stakeholder management and communication skills, with a collaborative and proactive approach.

• Experience in defining and improving planning methodologies and best practices in a large-scale programme setting.

What can you expect from us?

We're on a mission. Where others see limits, we see opportunity, and we work at pace. Working at Vertical isn't your average role but for those seeking a challenge, a flexible, supportive organisation and an incredible team; working here is an opportunity to do the best work of your career.

Our approach promotes ingenuity and courage, while our environment builds success through diligence in safety and being open in the way we work. The only way we're going to assure the next chapter of aviation history is by working as a team, relentlessly, towards our goal. 

Our benefits

Our people matter - we're not going anywhere without them. Which is why our company benefits go beyond the essentials.

• 26 days holiday, plus bank holiday

• 5 extra days per year to buy (or sell)

• 5 extra days holiday when you get married or enter a civil partnership

• Additional 4% of your salary to spend on extra benefits

• Award-winning digital health and wellbeing service (Help@Hand)

• Company Share Scheme - open to every Vertical employee

• Company Pension Scheme - 5% and we match it

• Breakfast on us, every day

We may just be the hardest job you've ever had, but we're confident it will be the most rewarding. Join the team today and help us shape the future of Advanced Air Mobility.

Disclaimer Statement

We encourage you to apply even if you may not have all the experience listed in the advert. We recognise that talent comes in various forms and we are committed to providing opportunities that create an environment of growth, diversity, and inclusion for everyone. As part of our desire to review and make our processes fair, we may ask you questions related to these aspects during the application process. For more information on how we will use your data, see our Legal section.