Technical Director - Power (HV Substations & Grid Connections)

Tempest Jones Recruitment; Birmingham; On-site; GBP 106,000 - 125,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading engineering firm in the UK is seeking a Technical Director to lead high voltage engineering, ensuring technical quality and capability. This position demands over ten years of experience in high voltage engineering and a strong understanding of substation design and UK power sector dynamics. The role emphasizes technical leadership, team development, and strategic contribution without business development pressures. A stable environment with substantial existing workload awaits the right candidate.

Benefits

Employee ownership

Competitive salary

Long-term opportunity

Qualifications

• Ten or more years of experience in high voltage engineering.
• Strong grounding in substation design, transmission and distribution.
• Experience working in the UK power sector.

Responsibilities

• Provide stability, capability and depth across the UK power function.
• Manage workloads and delivery performance as demand increases.
• Influence decisions on team structure and recruitment strategy.

Skills

High voltage engineering

Substation design

Technical guidance

Job description

Technical Director – Power (HV Substations & Grid Connections)

London, Manchester or Glasgow

Up to circa £125k + benefits and employee ownership

Full-time permanent role

This role will place you at the centre of client management and technical delivery for one of the most established engineering firms in the American market, now in a major global expansion phase. The organisation is employee owned, financially strong and deeply embedded with hyperscale data centre developers and major power clients.

The UK team has been operating for several years and is now entering a period of significant investment as it strengthens and expands its capability across transmission, distribution, substations and complex grid related programmes. For an experienced high voltage engineer, this is a point in time where your technical judgement and leadership will have a direct impact on how the UK business grows, performs and sets its standards.

The Business

This organisation is a recognised leader in the United States across several engineering sectors including power, data centres, infrastructure and complex buildings. It has a substantial global presence with operations across the United States, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Finland, Portugal, Spain and Germany. The UK business has been established for four to five years and is now entering an acceleration phase as part of a wider international growth plan.

The power division is receiving considerable investment. Leadership capability is being expanded, delivery teams are being strengthened and technical standards are being elevated as the organisation positions itself for long term UK and European growth.

A defining characteristic of this company is its employee ownership structure. Every person is an owner and has access to the broader strategy. This creates alignment, transparency and a culture that prioritises engineering quality and long term thinking. Decisions are made with clarity and intention rather than short term commercial pressure.

The combination is rare in the UK market : substantial global scale, serious technical depth and the operating mindset of an employee owned business. Joining at this stage offers significant long term opportunity as the UK and European operations continue to build momentum.

The Role

The Technical Director position is a senior technical and delivery leadership role. Your purpose is to provide stability, capability and depth across the UK power function while ensuring the technical quality of work delivered to major internal and external clients.

Technical Leadership

• Providing oversight across high voltage systems, substations, plant layout and transmission and distribution interfaces
• Setting and maintaining technical standards across delivery teams
• Acting as a reliable technical authority on complex engineering decisions

Delivery and Team Capability

• Managing workloads and delivery performance as demand increases
• Developing engineers and associates, strengthening capability at all levels
• Building a technical foundation that enables senior directors to focus on market growth and strategic development

Strategic Contribution

• Helping shape how the UK power division builds capability over the coming years
• Influencing decisions on team structure, technical direction and future recruitment strategy

This is not a business development role. It is a senior technical position focused on delivery, leadership and capability building.

What You Will Bring

• Ten or more years of experience in high voltage engineering
• Strong grounding in substation design, transmission and distribution, grid connections or plant design
• Confidence in providing technical guidance and making informed engineering decisions
• Experience working in the UK power sector, whether with DNOs, TNOs, OEMs, consultancies, renewables developers or as an owners engineer
• A leadership mindset focused on building capability around you and contributing to long term technical strength

This position will act as a key anchor beneath senior directors as the team expands.

What Is On Offer

This role sits within a power business that already has substantial work to deliver. The division is not hiring to create activity. It is hiring because the workload exists and internal client demand is high. The wider organisation has deep relationships with major hyperscale data centre developers, and a large volume of work flows into the UK team from the United States and other global groups.

For the right person, this is a low risk move into a stable and well supported environment. You will step into immediate delivery responsibilities across data centre and power programmes, while senior directors focus on expanding the UK and European market. You will not be chasing work or carrying business development targets. Your contribution is leadership, technical consistency and delivery performance.

The power division is moving through a transition period. It is managing increasing volumes of internal client work while building a stronger UK presence that will evolve into a self-sustaining business unit with both internal and external pipelines. This creates a strong long term opportunity for someone joining at this level.

The role requires a senior engineer who is commercially aware, confident navigating senior stakeholders and trusted to represent the business in technical discussions. It is suited to an experienced associate director or technical director who wants to take responsibility for delivery, develop people and influence the technical direction of a business that is expanding with intent.

If you’re looking to take the next step in your HV career, get in touch with Dean Forster at Tempest Jones on [e-mail], or apply now with your CV.