People Project & Change Manager

Who are we

Founded in 1896, Knight Frank was registered as Knight Frank LLP a Limited Liability Partnership, on 3 November 2003, registered in England & Wales at 55 Baker Street, London, W1U 8AN with the registered number of OC305934. Headquartered in London, UK, Knight Frank is one of the world's leading independent real estate consultancies. We work responsibly in partnership to enhance people's lives and environments in over 50 Markets, 600+ Offices, 20,000+ People, 1 Global Network.

At the heart of all we do are our Clients. A relationship built on trust is vital. As trusted partners in property, we act with integrity and care, understanding our clients’ unique needs and consistently thinking about the bigger picture to provide personalised, clear and considered advice across all areas of property. Through our deep understanding of key markets and sectors – both emerging and established – we are dedicated to meeting and exceeding their property goals.

A true partnership is a balanced one, and our People are passionate about, and committed to, making our business inclusive and diverse. We give every individual the space and opportunity to perform at their best and be recognised for the immense value they bring. We empower everyone to have autonomy in their role and encourage them to use their voice in how we can make a positive impact as a firm and shape the future of real estate, the built environment and the impact on the communities we serve. Our collaborative and engaged teams provide excellent and dedicated client service. In our workplace, opinions are respected, everyone is invited to contribute to the success of our business and innovation, and new ideas are celebrated.

In 2021 we celebrated our 125th anniversary and set out Our Desired Future, cemented in three pillars: People Potential, Client Centricity and always Creating our Future, together. Learn more about what sets us apart here.

About The Role

Role Purpose

The Project & Change Manager plays a pivotal role in shaping a more connected, inclusive and high‑performing colleague experience across the UK. Reporting to and working closely with the UK Head of Talent & Culture Strategy, the role blends project leadership, change expertise and people insight to turn strategic ambition into meaningful, lasting impact.

As the engine behind Talent & Culture delivery, the Project & Change Manager provides end‑to‑end project management for T&C priorities, acts as the change management lead for people‑related initiatives, and serves as the key connection point between the Talent & Culture team and the Platform (Workday/HRIS) team.

Success in this role hinges on deep understanding of our business, our people and our persona groups — ensuring change is designed in a way that reflects how colleagues work, what they need and what will help them thrive. Working collaboratively with Belonging & Inclusion, Employee Experience and other specialist teams, the role ensures that every change we deliver is accessible, inclusive and grounded in real colleague insight.

Operating with a high degree of autonomy, the Project & Change Manager brings order to complexity — translating ideas into clear, actionable plans; coordinating stakeholders; reducing ambiguity; and ensuring new processes, systems and ways of working are adopted smoothly and sustainably. This role requires exceptional organisation, strong judgement, confident stakeholder influence and the ability to anticipate needs, remove blockers and make informed recommendations.

Key Responsibilities

Change Management & Readiness

· Lead change planning and delivery for priority Talent & Culture initiatives, including readiness and change maturity assessments-maturity assessments.

· Conduct stakeholder mapping, persona based-based impact assessments and define behaviour shifts aligned to people and business priorities.

· Support the creation of Project Proposals, Business Cases and Board materials.

· Ensure all change plans reflect inclusion, accessibility and a seamless end to-to-end employee experience.

· Prepare executive sponsors with clear briefings, maintain alignment through governance rhythms and track progress against a defined change success -success framework.

Project Management, Risk & Delivery

· Own and deliver robust project plans for the Talent & Culture team, clearly outlining scope, timelines, milestones, dependencies, RAID and roles.

· Work independently to drive momentum, identify issues early and recommend solutions without the need for close oversight.

· Coordinate effectively with the wider People team, Internal Communications, Platform team and external partners as needed.

· Identify people‑related and adoption risks, run scenario planning and establish clear mitigations and escalation pathways.

· Develop reinforcement and sustainment plans (e.g., nudges, leader prompts, microlearning), completing 30/60/90‑day reviews and transitioning effectively to BAU owners.

Systems Change & Business Impact

· Act as the bridge between Talent & Culture and the Platform team across HRIS (Workday) releases, enhancements and configuration changes.

· Act as a people‑change advisor on technical or system changes, ensuring business and colleague impacts are understood and reflected in communications, learning and support led by the Platform and People Transformation teams.

· Support a coordinated approach to UAT and adoption, contributing a change and employee‑experience perspective across Workday processes and user journeys.

· Ensure Workday/HRIS changes align with wider employee experience, capability and readiness goals.

Change Network, Communications & Engagement

· Manage and upskill the cross‑business Change Network, creating toolkits, briefing packs, FAQs and feedback loops.

· Co‑create change and communication plans with Internal Communications, sequenced and tailored to different personas using inclusive language.

· Produce clear, accessible and user‑friendly learning and support resources (e.g., guides, walkthroughs, microlearning).

· Continuously monitor, review and refine the Change Network to ensure it reflects evolving business needs — adjusting membership, engagement rhythms and capability levels so the right people are equipped to support change at the right time.

Capability Building, Behavioural Change & Continuous Improvement

· Apply behavioural‑science techniques (e.g., nudges, social proof, friction reduction) to help new habits form and stick.

· Partner with Talent Management & Development to identify and implement learning interventions that support behaviour change.

· Capture lessons learned and continually improve change toolkits, processes and delivery rhythms.

Skills & Experience

· Experience delivering change, transformation, and complex projects (ideally within HR, Talent, or People functions).

o Strong technical change and project‑management capability, balanced with an employee experience (EX) and user‑centred (UX) lens.

· Practical proficiency with change methodologies (e.g., ADKAR/Prosci/Kotter) and readiness or impact‑assessment techniques.

· Proven stakeholder management and influencing skills — able to build trust quickly, challenge effectively and bring senior leaders and cross‑functional teams along through change.

· Ability to work autonomously and lead projects independently, anticipating needs, solving problems and progressing work without close supervision.

· Exceptional organisational skills — able to manage multiple initiatives, maintain pace and deliver high‑quality outputs consistently.

· Experience working with HRIS or technical teams (ideally Workday) and translating system changes into people impacts.

· Strong analytical and data‑literacy skills, with experience defining and tracking adoption, utilisation and proficiency measures.

· Robust project management and risk/RAID capability, including scenario planning and dependency mapping.

· Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to create accessible content and microlearning that supports adoption.

· Comfortable with ambiguity, pivots and changing priorities; adaptable and pragmatic.

· Familiarity with service design, journey mapping and behavioural design for habit formation (desirable).

Competitive salary

Please note: this is a Direct Search led by Knight Frank. Applications from recruitment agencies will not be accepted nor will fees be paid for unsolicited CVs, even if provided by PSL agencies.