Associate Director

Mega Recruitment; Sydney; Hybrid; AUD 230,000 - 300,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

2 days working from home

Flexible working hours

Bonus structures

Strong senior leadership support

Access to major international projects

Collaborative CBD office environment

Career progression opportunities

Long-term career within international\

Job summary

Senior Associate/DIR role in Sydney for a leading international architectural practice. You will lead and mentor experienced Associates across highly complex projects valued in the hundreds of millions, providing technical direction and strategic leadership from day one.

You will oversee delivery, drive critical decisions, manage client relationships and contribute to business development while operating with autonomy within a collaborative, globally-connected environment.

Qualifications

• 12+ years of architectural experience
• Proven leadership of experienced architectural teams
• Experience overseeing Associates and senior project leaders
• Experience delivering major, complex projects valued at $400 million+
• Ability to work with senior clients and stakeholders
• Strong problem-solving and decision-making abilities
• Experience mentoring and developing senior team members
• Commercial awareness and understanding of project performance
• Confidence representing the practice externally
• Interest in business development and relationship building
• Strong communication and leadership skills

Responsibilities

• Lead and mentor senior Associates and project teams on highly complex, large-scale projects
• Provide technical and strategic direction across projects
• Resolve high-level project challenges and guide critical decisions
• Coach teams to deliver on time, budget and client expectations
• Develop strong client relationships and support business development
• Represent the practice in industry and networking events
• Collaborate with Directors and senior leaders to shape project outcomes
• Support career progression and development of future leaders
• Foster a collaborative culture within an international practice
• Lead with autonomy while aligning with wider business objectives

Skills

Leadership

Mentoring

Team leadership

Client relations

Strategic direction

Problem solving

Communication

Business development

Collaboration

People management

Education

Professional architecture degree

Registered Architect

Job description

Associate Director | Sydney | Complex Projects

We’re partnering with a highly regarded international architectural practice based in Sydney’s CBD to appoint an experienced Associate Director into a senior leadership position.

This is a role for someone who knows how to lead.

You’ll be managing and mentoring a team of experienced Associates working across highly complex, large-scale projects valued in the hundreds of millions and, in some cases, billions of dollars.

You’ll be stepping into a role where your technical judgement, leadership capability and ability to solve complex project challenges will be relied upon from day one.

As Associate Director, you’ll oversee a team of Associates responsible for delivering major, technically complex projects. Your role will be to provide leadership, direction and support across those teams, helping people navigate challenges, resolve issues and drive projects towards successful outcomes. You won’t be doing this alone.

You’ll be surrounded by an experienced group of Associate Directors and Directors who will provide support, collaboration and senior-level guidance when required. The structure is there, but you’ll also have the autonomy to lead in your own way and make an impact. This is not a role where you’ll be restricted to one narrow area of responsibility.

You’ll have the opportunity to be involved across:

• Leading and mentoring experienced Associates
• Overseeing complex project teams
• Providing technical and strategic direction
• Resolving high-level project challenges
• Supporting teams through critical project decisions
• Managing project performance, resources and delivery
• Building strong client relationships
• Supporting business development activity
• Representing the practice at industry and networking events
• Collaborating with Directors and other senior leaders
• Developing future leaders within the business
• Helping shape successful project outcomes across major commissions

In the role as an Associate Director, we are seeking someone with the following:

We’re looking for someone who can step into this role with confidence and credibility.

You will ideally bring a minimum of 12+ years of architectural experience and have a strong track record of leading teams and delivering major, complex projects.

Due to the scale and technical complexity of the work, we are particularly interested in people who have worked on projects valued at approximately $400 million or above.

This is a very senior role, and you’ll need to be comfortable operating at that level.

You will ideally have:

• 12+ years of architectural experience
• Experience operating at Associate Director, Senior Associate or equivalent level
• Proven leadership of experienced architectural teams
• Experience overseeing Associates and senior project leaders
• Strong technical and project delivery capability
• Experience across major, complex projects valued at $400 million+
• Confidence working with senior clients and stakeholders
• Strong problem-solving and decision-making ability
• Experience mentoring and developing senior team members
• Commercial awareness and an understanding of project performance
• Confidence representing a practice externally
• An interest in business development and relationship building
• Strong communication and leadership skills

Most importantly, you’ll be someone who enjoys working with people.

You’ll need to be comfortable leading experienced professionals, giving them direction when required, challenging thinking constructively and helping them succeed in their own projects.

This role will suit someone who enjoys complexity and responsibility.

You may already be an Associate Director looking for a practice where you can have broader influence, or you may be a highly experienced Senior Associate who is already operating at this level and is ready for the next step.

You’ll be someone who can walk into a room, understand the problem, bring people together and help find the right solution.

You’ll enjoy mentoring others, building strong client relationships and creating an environment where experienced teams can perform at their best.

You’ll also need to be comfortable taking leadership immediately. This is not a role where you’ll be sitting on the sidelines for six months before being given responsibility.

The practice is looking for someone who knows their stuff and is ready to contribute.

While this is an international and well-structured architectural practice, the culture is collaborative, supportive and highly people focused.

The business is well known for its work-life balance, strong office culture and the way teams come together to achieve the best possible project outcomes.

You’ll have:

• 2 days working from home
• Flexible working hours
• Bonus structures
• Strong senior leadership support
• Access to major international projects and expertise
• A collaborative and social CBD office environment
• Genuine opportunities for continued career progression
• The ability to build a long-term career within an international practice

The practice places a strong emphasis on collaboration rather than hierarchy.

You’ll have the structure and resources of an international firm around you, without feeling boxed into a rigid role.

This is a genuine senior leadership opportunity within a highly respected international practice. You’ll be working at a scale that few architectural firms can offer, leading experienced people across some of the most complex projects in the market.

At the same time, you’ll be joining a business that values flexibility, collaboration, culture and long-term career development.

For someone who enjoys leading strong people, solving difficult problems, building relationships and having genuine influence across projects and teams, this is an opportunity with plenty of scope.

If you’re an experienced Associate Director or Senior Associate with major project experience, strong leadership capability and a desire to build a long term career within an international practice, we’d love to hear from you.