AECOM - Graduate Design Managers (London) - Summer/Autumn 2026 starts

Company Description

Work with Us. Change the World.

At AECOM, we're delivering a better world. Whether improving your commute, keeping the lights on, providing access to clean water, or transforming skylines, our work helps people and communities thrive. We are the world's trusted infrastructure consulting firm, partnering with clients to solve the world’s most complex challenges and build legacies for future generations.

There has never been a better time to be at AECOM. With accelerating infrastructure investment worldwide, our services are in great demand. We invite you to bring your bold ideas and big dreams and become part of a global team of over 50,000 planners, designers, engineers, scientists, digital innovators, program and construction managers and other professionals delivering projects that create a positive and tangible impact around the world.

We're one global team driven by our common purpose to deliver a better world. Join us.

Job Description

At AECOM we recognise that the management and coordination of the design of major, complex, multi-disciplinary projects, presents a number of significant challenges. As part of our Design Management team you will establish and implement the processes/procedures and controls to successfully manage the design process and enable designers to focus on the design. This includes ensuring that there is clear definition of scope, promoting good communication, driving coordination, monitoring design quality, actively managing the client and stakeholder approvals processes, monitoring progress and ultimately delivering reduced design risk, greater programme certainty and increased quality of service.

Job Responsibilities
 
The Graduate Design Manager will be expected to support with the following tasks:

Managing Sub-consultants

• Prepare responsibility matrix to identify sub-consultant responsibility for each area of scope.
• Draft and agree sub-consultant back-to-back contracts so that all scope is accounted for.
• Prepare and update cash flow projections.
• Establish procedures for invoice submission for sub-consultants and monitor.
• Track and report on the progress of all sub-consultant invoices and prepare a monthly Financial Report.

Establish and Manage Design Procedures

• Establish and implement design procedures and protocols to be followed by the Design Team necessary for successful project delivery.
• Procedures shall be collated in a Design Management Plan and will include information such as organisation charts, Project Directory, communication routes etc.
• Management of any information exchange, including monitoring of deliverables issued by sub-consultants to determine whether submittals are as per agreed scopes.
• Production of an integrated design schedule following liaison with all Design Team members and including key milestones laid out by the Client. Internal milestones, co-ordination sequences and delivery dates will be shown.
• Monitoring Design Schedule and Progress
• Reporting design progress and identify areas of risk/ concern that are approaching.
• Identification of design deliverables, who they will be prepared by and when.

Documentation and Deliverables

• Prepare reports in the necessary format as required.
• Monitor and collate comments from the Client on design submission and manage responses from the Design Team.
• Track and monitor status of all comments affecting design stage and final close-out.
• Prepare and maintain drawing register.
• Manage project websites where necessary.
• Organise Project Meetings and the Decision Making Process
• Prepare and agree with the client and design team a schedule for all project workshops and meetings, including a preliminary outline agenda, location etc.
• Prepare in advance a formal timetable and agenda for all project workshops and obtain all necessary input from the Design Team to ensure all key issues are addressed.
• Prepare and issue minutes of all major project workshops and meetings, circulate these minutes for comment before formal issue to the Client where applicable.
• Establish procedures and processes to assist in the briefing and information gathering process such as a Request for Information (RFI) system. Responsibilities and roles of decision making to be identified.