Associate Director - Water (Newcastle Upon Tyne)

RPS plc; Newcastle upon Tyne; Hybrid; GBP 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading engineering consultancy in the UK seeks an Associate Director for their Clean Water Technical Team. This role involves leading and managing teams to deliver major projects while fostering strong client relationships in the water/wastewater sector. The ideal candidate will have extensive leadership experience and a proven track record in bid delivery, with a commitment to health and safety. The position offers a company car, performance-based bonus, and a supportive work culture that values flexibility and diversity.

Benefits

Company car

Performance-based bonus

Pension contribution

Qualifications

• Extensive experience leading major project programmes in the water sector.
• Proven experience in bid delivery and winning client work.
• Excellent interpersonal, leadership, and communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Lead and manage delivery teams to achieve project targets.
• Develop strong relationships with key client contacts.
• Identify and manage project risks and growth opportunities.

Skills

Leadership and management

Commercial acumen

Team building and mentoring

Analytical project experience

Interpersonal communication

Job description

Location: NE1 1PJ, Newcastle Upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, North East, UK

RPS has an opportunity for an Associate Director within our Clean Water Technical Team. The Associate Director will be responsible for the overall management, direction and performance of our Analytics and Software teams, and for building strong client relationships. This is a unique opportunity for a candidate with experience in leading the delivery of large operational and technical programmes of work in the water/wastewater sector.

About the Team

RPS Water Consulting is a team of Engineers, Modellers and Data Analysts providing Asset Management and Operational Strategy development to our Water Industry clients to support business planning and delivery. We deliver a range of other technical delivery and clean water modelling services for several major water companies across the UK. We have a broad portfolio of long‑term framework agreements in place, securing a career for the next 20 years and leaving a lasting legacy.

About You

You will work alongside a multi‑disciplinary team of water project experts on a range of projects. You will have a substantial opportunity to contribute towards technical expertise across various frameworks and support a wide range of technically demanding projects in Clean Water and software provision. You will play a crucial role in the water industry, working with the largest water companies in the region and making a meaningful impact on millions of lives in the UK.

Your Responsibilities

• Leadership and management of delivery teams.
• Ensuring that project delivery and commercial performance deadlines and targets are achieved.
• Development and maintenance of strong relationships with key client contacts to understand strategic direction and service/programme risks, issues and needs.
• Development of project delivery strategies to support client needs, with associated training, development, recruitment and/or innovation plans.
• Identification and cultivation of innovative and optimised technical solutions aligned with client requirements and objectives.
• Consolidation and coordination of project delivery across the clean water team to drive efficiencies.
• Resource planning and management.
• Identification of escalated project risks and opportunities, together with risk and opportunity mitigation and management.
• Identification, implementation and support of growth opportunities across the UK.

Skills, Knowledge and Experience

• Extensive experience in the leadership and management of people and in leading the delivery of major project programmes in the water sector.
• Proven experience in bid delivery and winning client work.
• Commitment to a strong culture of health, safety and wellbeing.
• Commercial acumen and the ability to deliver commercially complex framework programmes successfully.
• Proven ability to build and mentor teams and drive collaborative behaviours.
• Proven ability to coordinate and facilitate teams to deliver successful outcomes at project and programme level through a balance of strategic and tactical approaches.
• Experience preferable in analytical projects and/or software development.
• Excellent interpersonal, leadership and communication skills; skilled in collaborative negotiation.

What’s in it for you?

You’ll be offered a company car, a performance‑based bonus, and a generous 7.5% employer pension contribution rising to 10% after five years in the plan. A personal development plan and a transparent career pathway give you the driving seat of your career. We encourage and value different ideas, perspectives and styles of thinking, fostering a diverse and inclusive community.

Work culture and benefits

We are a connected community working together to achieve exceptional outcomes. We understand the need to work flexibly, empowering our people to create a work‑life balance that works for them. With agile offices and hybrid working offered as standard, we trust our people to find the right balance to meet client needs.