General Manager

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.

General Manager - Midlands Operations

This full time permanent role is based in Leicester. The successful candidate will be accountable for the end to end performance of the depot, ensuring safe, compliant, customer focused and financially sustainable operations. The role has full responsibility for operational delivery, engineering performance, people leadership and commercial outcomes at depot level, and plays a key role in delivering franchising and contract commitments.

Responsibilities Operational & Service Delivery

• Deliver all operational and service performance targets for the depot, ensuring franchise and contract commitments are met or exceeded.

Safety, Compliance & Engineering

• Ensure punctual, reliable and high quality service delivery, minimising lost mileage and disruption.
• Maintain strong relationships with key clients and stakeholders (e.g. Transport Authorities), 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, ensuring vehicle availability, compliance and cost control.
• Ensure all depot operations meet legal, regulatory and licence requirements.

Financial & Commercial Management

• Deliver depot performance in line with agreed budgets, cost targets and EBIT.
• Maintain effective financial control, forecasting and reporting, ensuring compliance with company accounting and audit requirements.
• Drive cost efficiency initiatives while maintaining service quality and safety.
• Support the mobilisation of new contracts or service changes where required.

People Leadership & Culture

• 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.

Continuous Improvement & SLT Collaboration

• Deliver short and long term depot improvement plans aligned to wider business objectives.
• 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

• Experience within the transport or regulated services sector (ideally bus or rail).
• CPC in Road Transport Operations (or willingness to obtain) to act as O Licence Traffic Manager.

Rewards

• Simply Health & Smart Health for you and your dependents at no cost.
• Cash back benefits across optical & dental, virtual GP appointments, mental health support and nutrition and fitness advice.
• EAP provision offers 24 hour, 365 days a year mental health support.
• 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 plus bank holidays.
• Pension scheme and opportunity 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. We are always looking for skilled and talented people to join us across our sixty plus depots from Aberdeen to Truro. Our transformation programme is designed to reshape our business to meet tomorrow's travel needs.