First Bus

Role Description As a Bid Solutions Specialist (Network), you will play a crucial role in designing creative, efficient, and commercially valuable solutions that position First Bus as the partner of choice for our clients. Your work will directly support First Bus’s growth agenda by designing high-performing, client-focused networks that exceed expectations. You will: - Quickly assess client requirements for new opportunities, developing innovative, competitive solutions. - Analyse current network performance, leveraging data and industry insights to model and enhance routes, timetables, and schedules. - Create compliant and efficient driver and vehicle schedules that balance operational efficiency and robustness. - Collaborate closely with Finance to ensure timely, accurate costing of resource requirements. - Articulate your solutions through clear, concise verbal and written summaries to support compelling bid submissions. - Stay ahead of industry best practices, continuously improving our approaches to scheduling, route planning, and network design. - Work alongside operational teams to ensure a seamless transition from bid assumptions to real-world application for successful contracts. Qualifications - A proven track record in large, complex operations and expertise in computerised scheduling tools such as Optibus and Prospective. - Strong analytical skills to process complex data sets, identify trends, and drive actionable insights. - Exceptional communication and presentation skills, enabling you to clearly articulate complex solutions to a range of stakeholders. - The ability to stay calm, focused, and organised under pressure, particularly when working to tight deadlines. - A proactive, self-sufficient approach with a genuine passion for teamwork and continuous improvement. Requirements - Improved contract win rates and high-quality scores. - Positive feedback from clients and colleagues on the strength and innovation of your solutions. - The confidence and trust you inspire within the bid team. Benefits - Simply Health & Smart Health for you and your dependents at no cost, including cash back benefits across optical & dental, virtual GP appointments, mental health support, and nutrition and fitness advice. - Financial wellbeing platform with discounts on high street brands and supermarkets. - Discounted train travel for you and your family after 6 months of service, as well as a free bus pass. - Cycle to work scheme. - 25 days' holiday + bank holidays. - Pension scheme and chance to buy discounted First Group shares. - Enhanced maternity / paternity pay. - Flexible working.

Role Description As Head of Customer Excellence, you’ll lead the customer experience strategy across Regional Bus, turning insight into action and driving measurable improvements across proposition, operations, digital channels, contact centres and frontline delivery. This is a remote based role with UK travel required. Key Responsibilities - Customer Experience Strategy & Vision - Define and lead a clear, Customer Experience (CX) strategy aligned to business growth ambitions. - Establish a CX framework and standards that can be applied consistently across regions. - Identify and track external CX trends, benchmarks and best practice to continuously evolve our approach. - Customer Insight & Voice of the Customer - Own customer insight, including feedback, complaints, NPS and behavioural data. - Act as the central source of truth for customer experience. - Identify systemic issues, trends and growth opportunities. - Ensure insight is accessible and drives decision-making at all levels. - Partner with Commercial and Customer Proposition to shape segmentation and proposition. - Service Design & Customer Journey Excellence - Drive and deliver service design, embedding structured approaches such as customer journey mapping and experience blueprinting. - Identify critical customer journeys and moments that matter, prioritising improvement where it will have the greatest impact. - Work closely with the Digital team and Customer Proposition Director to ensure seamless, end-to-end experiences across physical and digital channels. - Insight-Led Transformation & Delivery - Translate insight into clear, prioritised interventions that improve customer outcomes. - Partner with Regional teams and Transformations Managers to deliver change at both systemic and local levels. - Track and measure the impact of improvements, ensuring changes deliver tangible and sustained results. - Embed CX into governance, decision-making and performance management processes. - Frontline Engagement & Customer Culture - Champion the customer agenda across frontline teams, ensuring colleagues understand their role in delivering great experiences. - Work closely with HR and Training teams to embed customer-centric behaviours, capability and accountability. - Translate strategy into simple, practical guidance that empowers teams on the ground. - Contact Centre & Customer Channels - Lead the Contact Centre and customer interaction strategy, improving quality, efficiency and resolution. - Use customer contact data as a critical source of insight to identify root causes and inform improvement plans. - Ensure customer channels are aligned, effective and deliver a consistent experience. Qualifications - Proven senior leadership experience in Customer Experience, Insight, Service Design or Transformation roles. - Strong track record of defining and delivering CX strategies in complex, multi-site or operational environments. - Expertise in customer insight, analytics and translating data into action and measurable outcomes. - Experience in service design and customer journey mapping methodologies. - Ability to operate at both strategic and operational levels, balancing national consistency with regional nuance. - Strong stakeholder leadership skills, with the ability to influence across senior and frontline audiences. - Deep understanding of how to embed customer-centric culture and behaviours at scale. Benefits - Your health is important to us which is why we offer Simply Health & Smart Health for you and your dependents at no cost to you! This offering includes cash back benefits across optical & dental as well as virtual GP appointments, mental health support and nutrition and fitness advice. - We are also committed to your financial wellbeing, and we offer a platform with many discounts on high street brands and supermarkets etc. - Working at First you also receive discounted train travel for you and your family after 6 months service as well as a free bus pass. - Cycle to work scheme. - 25 days' holiday + bank holidays. - Pension scheme and chance to buy discounted First Group shares. - Enhanced maternity / paternity pay. - Flexible working. Equal Opportunities Public transport serves everyone, whatever their differences. At First Bus, we want to be an employer open to you, no matter what your differences are. We aspire to be an inclusive organisation because diverse backgrounds, thinking and experiences bring so many benefits to our customers, communities, and people. We welcome applications from all.

Role Description This is a newly created, high-impact leadership role where you’ll shape how operational excellence is delivered nationally, ensuring our regions are equipped with the standards, tools and capability needed to deliver safe, reliable and consistent service for our customers. This is a remote based role with UK travel required. Key Responsibilities - Setting the Standard - Define and govern mandatory operational standards, processes and operating frameworks across Regional Bus. - Establish clear governance, decision rights and accountabilities to ensure consistent adoption across regions. - Ensure alignment and consistent application of safety, compliance and best-practice standards. - Establish and maintain a single source of truth for operational performance, ensuring data integrity, consistency and transparency. - Own and continuously develop operational performance reporting (including Power BI and First Bus Basics dashboards), ensuring insight is accurate, relevant and drives action. - Capability & Training Frameworks - Define and govern training and capability frameworks for front-line operational roles. - Ensure capability standards directly support service reliability, safety and customer outcomes. - Embed structured approaches to capability development, ensuring consistency across regions and measurable impact on performance. - Driving Assurance & Risk Reduction - Provide independent assurance of operational performance through audits, standards reviews and structured assurance frameworks. - Identify, quantify and mitigate operational performance risks through robust governance and intervention. - Use data and insight to diagnose systemic gaps in capability, process or compliance. - Lead corrective action, working in partnership with Regional teams and Transformation Managers to ensure issues are resolved at root cause and improvements are sustained. - Reduce repeat audit findings and strengthen overall compliance maturity across the business. - Performance Assurance - Diagnose performance gaps and deploy targeted interventions to improve operational performance. - Identify, standardise and embed practical, best-in-class ways of working that improve performance and consistency across regions. - Lead delivery of operational improvement initiatives, ensuring clear ownership, pace and measurable impact on performance. - Ensure operational requirements and standards are embedded within national transformation programmes from design through to delivery. - Build a culture of continuous improvement, ensuring learning from audits, incidents and performance reviews is systematically captured, shared and embedded. - Apply structured continuous improvement methodologies to support problem-solving, prioritisation and delivery of sustained performance improvement. - Leadership & Capability - Coach and influence senior operational leaders to embed standards, best practice and consistent ways of working across regions. - Build strong, effective collaboration between Operational Excellence, Engineering, Safety and Customer Excellence to strengthen end-to-end delivery capability. - Develop and lead a high-performing Operational Excellence team, building specialist capability in standards, audit, training and assurance. - Champion a culture of continuous improvement, safety and accountability, ensuring learning from audits, incidents and performance reviews is embedded across the business. - Act as a visible role model for First Bus “Our Way” behaviours, promoting inclusive leadership, high standards and customer focus. Qualifications - Proven senior leadership experience in operational excellence, service delivery or performance improvement within a regulated or safety-critical environment. - A strong track record of setting standards, strengthening governance and driving measurable operational improvement. - Experience leading audit, assurance, compliance or large-scale continuous improvement programmes. - Strong analytical and data-led decision-making capability, turning insight into action and sustained results. - Deep understanding of Lean, Six Sigma or similar continuous improvement methodologies (formal accreditation desirable). - The credibility, resilience and influence to challenge senior stakeholders, drive accountability and lead change at scale. - A genuine passion for raising standards, building capability and delivering safe, reliable and consistent performance. Salary - Competitive, plus up to 30% annual bonus. Benefits - Your health is important to us which is why we offer Simply Health & Smart Health for you and your dependents at no cost to you! This offering includes cash back benefits across optical & dental as well as virtual GP appointments, mental health support and nutrition and fitness advice. - Our EAP provision offers 24hr, 365 days a year mental health support. - We are also committed to your financial wellbeing, and we offer a platform with many discounts on high street brands and supermarkets etc. - Working at First you also receive discounted train travel for you and your family after 6 months service as well as a free bus pass. - Cycle to work scheme. - 25 days' holiday + bank holidays. - Pension scheme and chance to buy discounted First Group shares. - Enhanced maternity / paternity pay. - Flexible working. Equal Opportunities Public transport serves everyone, whatever their differences. At First Bus, we want to be an employer open to you, no matter what your differences are. We aspire to be an inclusive organisation because diverse backgrounds, thinking and experiences bring so many benefits to our customers, communities, and people. We welcome applications from all.

About First Bus: Are you ready to advance your career with one of the UK's leading bus operators? Join a forward-thinking company that embraces cutting-edge bus technology, from innovative mobile apps to environmentally friendly vehicles. We are passionate about delivering passenger journeys that are sustainable, comfortable, and efficient. We are at the forefront of innovation in the industry, connecting communities and shaping the future of public transport. About FirstGroup FirstGroup plc is a leading provider of transport services in the UK and Ireland, and a member of the FTSE 250. Our colleagues work across the UK to provide easy and convenient mobility, improving quality of life by connecting people and communities. The Role We have a fantastic opportunity for an Internal Auditor to our audit team on a full time permanent basis. This is a home-based role with the potential for up to 50% travel across the UK and Ireland (Dublin). Reporting to the Senior Internal Audit Manager, the successful candidate will be responsible for providing independent assurance and advice on governance and internal control processes . Key Responsibilities - Lead and report on compliance reviews in line with internal audit methodology and professional standards, from research and planning through fieldwork to report delivery. - Assist in the delivery of risk-based audits. - Provide high quality written reports. - Manage the audit action follow up process. - Liaise with all levels of management across the business. - Develop and maintain a good working knowledge of the key business activities and changes across FirstGroup. - Actively participate in the formulation of the bi-annual internal audit plan Skills/Experience - Audit skills: Internal audit or compliance experience in industry an advantage. Similar experience in the public sector, or practice will be considered. - Professional qualification: Committed to professional development and willing to work towards a formal qualification (CIA, AAT, ACCA). - Business acumen: Builds strong professional relationships and understands customer needs. - Communication skills: Communicates clearly and effectively, both in writing and verbally. - Critical thinking: Applies logical thinking to analyse problems and find solutions. - Organisation skills: Well organised, with the ability to manage multiple priorities and meet strict deadlines. Salary - £30-£35,000 Please note that the availability of the following rewards and benefits may vary depending on your employing entity. Rewards Your health is important to us which is why we offer Simply Health & Smart Health for you and your dependents at no cost to you! This offering includes cash back benefits across optical & dental as well as virtual GP appointments, mental health support and nutrition and fitness advise. Our EAP provision offers 24hr, 365 days a year mental health support • We are also committed to your financial wellbeing, and we offer a platform with many discounts on high street brands and supermarkets etc • Working at First you also receive discounted train travel for you and your family after 6 months service as well as a free bus pass • Cycle to work scheme • 25 days' holiday + bank holidays • Pension scheme and chance to buy discounted First Group shares • Enhanced maternity / paternity pay • Flexible working Equal Opportunities Public transport serves everyone, whatever their differences. At First Bus, we want to be an employer open to you, no matter what your differences are. We aspire to be an inclusive organisation because diverse backgrounds, thinking and experiences bring so many benefits to our customers, communities, and people. We welcome applications from all.