Principal Hydrologist

Ecological Australia; Melbourne; On-site; AUD 150,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary

Workplace flexibility

Paid birthday leave

Study assistance

Professional membership

National project exposure

Parental leave (12 weeks)

Salary packaging options

Employee stock purchase

Job summary

Eco Logical Australia (ELA), a Tetra Tech company, seeks a Principal Hydrologist to lead hydrological projects from Melbourne office. You will manage clients, mentor a team, and collaborate with hydrogeologists, geochemists, and ecologists across Australia.

A senior leadership role with focus on delivering complex water studies. You will oversee modelling, data analysis, and reporting while growing the practice and supporting national opportunities.

Qualifications

• Engineering degree in Civil or Environmental Engineering.
• Chartered status with Engineers Australia or within 6 months of joining.
• NER and RPEQ status or ability to obtain within 6 months.
• 15+ years of consulting/industry experience.
• Experience in Project Management and Directorship.
• Strong communication and leadership abilities.

Responsibilities

• Client management and business development.
• Project Management and Directorship of hydrological studies.
• Conduct hydrological work across project life cycle from desk reviews to field studies and reporting.
• Develop and run hydrology models (flood, water balance) and review results.
• Deliver water resource studies for clients and manage potential impacts.

Skills

Hydrology

Project management

Leadership

Communication

Education

Engineering degree

Chartered status (EA)

NER / RPEQ status

Tools

RORB

TUFLOW

GoldSim

ArcGIS

QGIS

Job description

At Eco Logical Australia (ELA), A Tetra Tech Company, we're more than just an environmental consultancy. We're a multi-disciplinary community of over 200 approachable experts who lead with science to inform critical environmental decisions and deliver positive solutions.

Our "Find Your People" philosophy means you'll be surrounded by smart, grounded, and genuinely supportive teammates who love what they do. Our clients trust and rely on us for solutions; together, we work on some of the most complex and meaningful biodiversity projects in NSW and beyond.

ELA operates autonomously within the Tetra Tech group, a leading provider of consulting services worldwide with a network of 49 specialist companies. This unique blend of local expertise and international strength gives our clients the agility of a mid-sized consultancy, backed by the security, resources and opportunities of a global organisation.

We're deeply committed to creating a welcoming, inclusive and supportive workplace where everyone feels they belong and their contributions are genuinely valued. This commitment is grounded in our core values: Listen First, Share Your Genius, Be Courageous, and Feed the Culture.

Our recruitment practices uphold equal opportunity and accessibility, and our culture actively supports professional growth, wellbeing, and career development in a safe and respectful environment. We offer full-time, part-time and flexible work arrangements - so our people can live their best lives while doing their best work.

We are implementing our Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) and are proud to partner with CareerTrackers to provide meaningful internship opportunities for First Nations university students.

That's what makes us more than just an environmental consultancy.

What You'll Be Doing

Our National Water Team is searching for a Principal Hydrologist to join the team based in our Melbourne office.

You will be joining the company in a key leadership position to support project delivery for existing clients and also grow, lead, and mentor a team with the support of the wider technical discipline and company.

What sets ELA's Water Team apart from our peers is our focus on collaborating nationally with other water services (hydrogeologists, geochemists, aquatic ecologists) and wider environmental services (approvals, ecology, cultural heritage, bushfire) to provide our employees with interstate opportunities and encourage diverse perspectives.

As a key leader in strategic growth and mentorship for the office and wider business, you will be undertaking the following:

• Client management and business development.
• Project Management and Project Directorship of hydrological, hydraulic, and water resource studies.
• Undertake hydrological work across the whole life cycle of a project - from desktop literature reviews, coordinating and undertaking field studies, to collecting and analysing the data, and finally writing or reviewing the technical report.
• Support the Surface Water Team with development and running complex hydrology and hydraulic models from flood modelling (RORB and TUFLOW) to water balance modelling (GoldSim).
• Deliver water resource management studies for clients who depend on these resources or clients who wish to manage and mitigate potential effects to water resources.

What You'll Bring

To be considered for this role you will have:

• A relevant engineering degree in areas such as Civil Engineering or Environmental Engineering.
• Chartered status with Engineers Australia or be able to obtain within 6 months of joining.
• National Engineering Register (NER) and Registered Professional of Queensland (RPEQ) status or be able to obtain within 6 months after joining.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to understand the unique context, objectives and requirements of each client and project, and to develop tailored, practical approaches that address project-specific challenges rather than relying on standardised solutions .
• A minimum of 15 years of consulting and/or industry experience.
• Experience in Project Management and Project Directorship, delivering small to large-size projects.
• Experience building and leading teams to deliver successful projects in a supportive manner.
• Detailed working knowledge of the latest Australian Rainfall & Runoff Guidelines.
• Detailed working knowledge of RORB, TUFLOW (and preferably GoldSim) and the ability to build, modify, run and post-process model results.
• Working knowledge of ArcGIS and QGIS, including relevant RORB and TUFLOW plug-ins and the ability to create maps.
• Strong commercial acumen, with an understanding of the dynamics, drivers and opportunities across different market sectors, and the agility to adapt your approach to changing client needs, market conditions and business priorities.
• Experience working across numerous Australian states and territories would be highly desirable.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to present the outcome of a technical investigation to a non-technical audience in plain language.
• Experience in preparing and reviewing a range of high-quality hydrological study reports including those for environmental approvals, project operations, and project closure/rehabilitation.

Why You'll Love Working with Us

You'll love working with us because we will value your expertise, encourage your curiosity and your contributions will have a real-world impact. You'll be part of a team that genuinely enjoys what they do and supports each other to succeed. We offer,

• A competitive salary subject to annual review.
• Workplace flexibility.
• Paid birthday leave.
• Study assistance scheme and learning opportunities with industry experts.
• Paid membership to one professional organisation annually.
• Collaboration on national projects, building your expertise within a supportive community of practice.
• Genderless 12-week paid parental leave.
• Salary packaging options including for car leasing and salary sacrifice into superannuation or to purchase up to 4 weeks of additional annual leave.
• Opportunity to participate in the Tetra Tech employee stock purchase program, and purchase at a discounted rate (NASDAQ TTEK).

Most of all, we offer purpose-driven work, incredible colleagues, and the opportunity to grow a career where you don't have to choose between quality of work and quality of life.

Next Steps

If you're an Australian citizen or resident and you're looking to join a supportive, values-driven organisation that prioritises workplace culture and offers genuine opportunities for growth and development.