Head of Field Operations

Northern Recruitment Group; Newcastle (WA); Hybrid; USD 140,000 - 220,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid working arrangements

Competitive salary

Job summary

Northern Recruitment Group is seeking an experienced Head of Field Operations to lead a large, geographically dispersed field workforce within the utilities sector. You will drive operational performance, oversee budgets, and uphold high safety standards across multiple client contracts.

The role requires a senior operational leader with a proven track record in managing large teams, strong financial oversight, and a commitment to continuous improvement.

Qualifications

• Minimum five years in a senior operational leadership role.
• Experience leading large, geographically dispersed field-based workforces.
• Strong background in utilities, metering, infrastructure or technical field services.
• Proven financial, budgeting and forecasting capabilities.
• Solid health, safety and regulatory compliance knowledge; IOSH Managing Safely preferred.
• Experience developing and delivering operational strategies and driving performance improvements.
• Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills; ability to influence at all levels.
• Collaborative leadership style with focus on developing people and high-performing teams.
• Leadership qualifications such as ILM would be advantageous.

Responsibilities

• Lead and develop a large field operations team, driving performance, engagement and accountability.
• Own regional operational performance, budgets, forecasting and delivery against strategic objectives.
• Ensure health, safety and regulatory compliance, championing a safety-first culture.
• Monitor operational KPIs, identify improvements and implement solutions.
• Build strong client relationships and ensure contractual commitments are met.
• Collaborate with senior leadership, planning and support functions to optimise efficiency.
• Identify opportunities to improve productivity, profitability and commercial performance across contracts.
• Lead operational change and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Foster an inclusive working environment that supports engagement and development.

Skills

Leadership

Stakeholder management

Strategic planning

Financial management

Health, safety & compliance

Change management

Negotiation

People development

Data analysis

Operational excellence

Education

ILM Leadership qualification

IOSH Managing Safely

Job description

We are supporting an established organisation in the appointment of an experienced Head of Field Operations to join its senior leadership team.

This is an exciting opportunity for a commercially focused and people-driven operational leader to take responsibility for a large-scale, geographically dispersed field workforce within the utilities sector.

Overseeing approximately 300 field-based engineers across multiple customer contracts, you will play a key role in driving operational performance, maintaining the highest safety standards and delivering against commercial and financial objectives.

The Role

As Head of Field Operations, you will have overall responsibility for the performance and delivery of a significant regional operation, ensuring operational excellence, strong client relationships and a highly engaged workforce.

Key responsibilities will include:

• Leading and developing a large, geographically dispersed field operations team, driving performance, engagement and accountability.
• Taking ownership of regional operational performance, financial budgets, forecasting and delivery against strategic objectives.
• Ensuring the highest standards of health, safety and regulatory compliance, championing a strong safety-first culture.
• Monitoring operational KPIs, identifying performance improvements and implementing effective solutions.
• Building strong relationships with key clients, ensuring contractual commitments and service expectations are consistently achieved.
• Working collaboratively with senior leadership, planning and support functions to optimise operational efficiency.
• Identifying opportunities to improve productivity, profitability and commercial performance across existing contracts.
• Leading operational change and continuous improvement initiatives to enhance service delivery.
• Creating a positive, inclusive working environment that supports employee engagement, retention and development.

About You

We are looking for an established senior operational leader with a proven track record of managing large field-based teams within a complex, commercially driven environment.

You will ideally bring:

• A minimum of five years' experience in a senior operational management or leadership position.
• Experience leading large, geographically dispersed field-based workforces.
• A strong background in the utilities, metering, infrastructure or technical field services sectors.
• Proven financial and commercial management experience, including budgeting, forecasting and operational profitability.
• A strong understanding of health, safety and regulatory compliance, ideally supported by IOSH Managing Safely.
• Experience developing and delivering operational strategies, driving performance improvements and managing organisational change.
• Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills, with the ability to influence at all levels.
• A collaborative, engaging leadership style with a genuine commitment to developing people and building high-performing teams.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to translate performance data into meaningful operational improvements.

Leadership qualifications such as ILM, alongside experience of incident investigation and technical field operations, would be advantageous.

What's on Offer?

• Competitive salary and hybrid working arrangements.
• A senior leadership position with significant operational and commercial responsibility.
• The opportunity to influence the direction and performance of a large regional operation.
• A collaborative environment where people leadership, innovation and continuous improvement are valued.
• The chance to make a meaningful impact on operational performance, employee engagement and customer relationships.