Sustainability Associate or Associate Director

ZipRecruiter; Manchester; On-site; GBP 100,000 - 125,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading environmental design firm in Manchester is seeking an experienced Team Leader to drive sustainable projects. The ideal candidate has over 8 years in design consultancy, excellent leadership skills, and expertise in sustainability. This role offers a competitive salary, private healthcare, and a flexible work environment, championing a healthy work-life balance.

Benefits

Competitive salary

Private healthcare benefits

Generous paid time off

Flexible working environment

Matched pension contributions

Qualifications

• At least eight years of experience in a design consultancy or engineering practice.
• Deep technical knowledge in sustainability and environmental design.
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Lead multidisciplinary project teams through all design phases.
• Champion sustainable and climate-positive design outcomes.
• Build strong client relationships and represent the company at industry events.

Skills

Leadership

Sustainability expertise

Interpersonal skills

Project management

Client relationship building

Education

8+ years in design consultancy or engineering

Tools

BREEAM

LEED

Job description

Job Description

Who is Atelier Ten?

Thank you for asking! Kindness and curiosity are some of Atelier Ten’s core tenets.

We are a team of building services engineers and environmental designers championing for a healthier planet leveraging our vast, collective knowledge of sustainable spaces. We help bring elegance and efficiency to every building, and we work with architects, engineers, owners, and other stakeholders to accomplish their sustainable vision. We don’t just follow the trends of the industry, we trailblaze new paths to create high-performing, sustainable, and award-winning buildings.

Our Manchester office combines deep technical expertise with a modern, flexible approach to work and life. We are proud of our friendly culture, our network of industry-leading engineers, and a pipeline of climate-positive projects with signature architects, clients, and design teams.

What is this role on a high level?

We are seeking a visionary candidate to join us as a team leader, technical innovator, and client champion. You will play a pivotal role in delivering environmentally responsive, high-performance buildings, and in shaping the next of environmental talent.

You’d be responsible for leading a range of amazing projects with your team. You will also be responsible for leading and co-ordinating the internal efforts of junior staff across Atelier Ten, providing appropriate frameworks and tools, agreeing appropriate standards and co-ordinating delivery against these standards.

What your day-to-day looks like

We work across a variety of projects from museums to offices, labs to large masterplans. We promise to keep you challenged and never bored. Here are some regular tasks you may encounter:

Leading climate-positive design

• Champion sustainable and climate-positive design outcomes
• Apply your sustainability and environmental expertise to deliver innovative, efficient, and environmentally responsible solutions
• Align all project outputs with our ethos of elegant simplicity, environmental sensitivity, and technical excellence

Delivering technical excellence

• Lead multidisciplinary project teams through all design phases, from concept to completion with an awareness and understanding of other disciplines
• Coordinate effectively between internal disciplines and with external Clients, stakeholders and/or consultants
• Ensure technical quality, compliance, performance, and consistency across all design outputs
• Managing programmes, resources and finances on environmental projects
• As an experienced consultant, take lead responsibility for co-ordination between the disciplines within the office and to external consultants

Growing and inspiring a high-performing team

• Provide mentorship, technical guidance, and leadership to your team
• Contribute to recruitment, team development, and fostering a motivated and collaborative team culture
• Promote technical excellence and continuous learning within your team
• Grow the environmental engineering team around you and your team

Building strong client relationships and industry presence

• Act as a key liaison for clients and external stakeholders, managing expectations, and developing trusted long-term relationships
• Represent Atelier Ten at industry events and professional forums, enhancing our visibility, and thought leadership
• Work closely with our wider UK network to share knowledge and elevate project outcomes
• Undertaking business development and proposal writing for environmental services, either as stand-alone services or as part of integrated services offered by Atelier Ten

What we are looking for

Hopefully you’re on board so far and excited about what your days in the Atelier Ten Manchester office will look like. We do have a few items on our wish list for you to become the next great Atelier Tenner. We are looking for someone who is curious, proactive, and self-motivated. And if we’re not pushing our luck, you ideally will possess:

• At least eight years of experience in a design consultancy, architectural or engineering practice
• Deep technical knowledge in sustainability and environmental design, with a track record of delivering sustainable, high-performance solutions
• Experienced with benchmarking such as BREEAM, LEED or carbon/impact assessments
• Experienced in leading multidisciplinary projects, managing budgets, timelines, and design quality
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to inspire clients and team members alike
• Passionate about sustainable design and aligned with our commitment to climate-positive outcomes
• Ability to prioritise and to think strategically about the timing and way of delivering project information
• Ability to identify project resource requirements
• Provide expert and strategic decarbonisation advice to clients, helping them achieve their sustainability goals and comply with industry standards
• Proactive and autonomous – you are a doer, someone who thrives on making things happen, problem solving and taking ownership

What we offer

In return for your expertise, leadership, and commitment, we offer:

• Competitive salary
• Private healthcare benefits
• Generous paid time off from day one, with an additional four weeks of paid time off for long service
• A flexible, modern working environment that supports work-life balance
• Emphasis on work/home balance
• Matched pension contributions
• Highly engaged co-workers with a shared hunger for knowledge with access to a rich network of experienced engineers and technical mentors across our UK offices
• Mutual respect and support from colleagues and leadership
• Freedom to contribute ideas and make a personal difference that is not always possible in a large corporate environment
• Structured training and clear career progression opportunities within a growing and forward-thinking organisation

Reasonable adjustments

We are committed to ensuring an inclusive and accessible recruitment process for all candidates. If you require any reasonable adjustments or additional support—such as receiving the application form in an alternative format—please don’t hesitate to contact our recruitment team.

Your experience throughout the application process is important to us. We welcome feedback on how we can improve and are happy to provide any further information you may need to help you make an informed decision about joining us.

If there’s anything more we can do to support you, please let us know, we’re here to help.

Agency

Any unsolicited resumes/CVs submitted through our website or to Atelier Ten personal e-mail accounts, are considered property of Atelier Ten and are not subject to payment of agency fees. In order to be an authorised Recruitment Agency/Search Firm for Atelier Ten, there must be a formal written agreement in place and the agency must be invited, by the Recruitment Team, to submit candidates for review.