General Manager

Overview

We are looking for a General Manager to lead our Rochdale depot on a full time permanent basis. The role involves full responsibility for operational delivery, engineering performance, people leadership, and commercial outcomes at depot level.

Responsibilities

• Lead delivery of all operational and service performance targets, ensuring franchise and contract commitments are met or exceeded.
• Maintain punctual, reliable and high quality service delivery, minimising lost mileage and disruption.
• Forge strong relationships with key clients and stakeholders, acting as the senior local point of contact.
• Hold accountability for safety performance across the depot, embedding a strong safety culture and ensuring compliance with all statutory, regulatory and company standards.
• Ensure robust safe systems of work, SOPs and injury prevention practices are in place and actively managed.
• Oversee engineering performance in collaboration with engineering leadership to ensure vehicle availability, compliance and cost control.
• Ensure all depot operations meet legal, regulatory and licence requirements.
• Deliver depot performance in line with agreed budgets, cost targets and EBIT, maintaining effective financial control, forecasting and reporting.
• Drive cost efficiency initiatives while maintaining service quality and safety.
• Support mobilisation of new contracts or service changes where required.
• Provide strong, visible leadership to all depot colleagues, setting clear expectations and role modeling First values.
• Lead and develop the depot management team, ensuring performance objectives, reviews and development plans are in place.
• Ensure effective workforce planning to meet service requirements.
• Manage employee and industrial relations constructively within a unionised environment.
• Drive engagement, inclusion and wellbeing, creating a positive and accountable culture.
• Deliver short and long term depot improvement plans aligned to wider business objectives, and actively contribute to regional and functional leadership forums.
• Work closely with SLT colleagues across Operations, Engineering, Commercial and Performance functions to drive consistency, learning and improvement.
• Support franchising readiness and performance reporting, recognising that client priorities and metrics may vary.

Skills & Experience

• Proven senior management and leadership experience in a complex, customer facing operational environment.
• Strong commercial acumen with experience delivering performance against challenging financial and service targets.
• Demonstrable experience of leading and developing management teams.
• Experience managing industrial and employee relations in a unionised setting.
• Strong stakeholder management skills, including working with external clients or authorities.
• High level of financial literacy and confidence working with operational, engineering and financial data.
• Ability to work collaboratively across functions and influence at senior levels.
• Desirable: Experience within the transport or regulated services sector (ideally bus or rail).
• Desirable: CPC in Road Transport Operations (or willingness to obtain) to act as O Licence Traffic Manager.

Salary & Rewards

Competitive salary plus up to 15% annual bonus.

Benefits

• Simply Health & Smart Health, with cash back benefits and virtual GP appointments.
• Financial wellbeing platform with discounts on high street brands and supermarkets.
• Discounted train travel for you and your family after 6 months of service, and a free bus pass.
• Cycle to work scheme.
• 25 days holiday + bank holidays.
• Pension scheme and an option to buy discounted First Group shares.
• Enhanced maternity/paternity pay.
• Flexible working.

Equal Opportunities

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. We welcome applications from all.