Strategic Director – Business Development and Client Engagement – Sustainability, Earth

Job Description

What if you could do the kind of work the world needs? At WSP, you can access our global scale, contribute to landmark projects and connect with the brightest minds in your field to do the best work of your life. You can embrace your curiosity in a culture that celebrates new ideas and diverse perspectives. You can experience a world of opportunity and the chance to shape a career as unique as you.

Responsible for shaping, coordinating and delivering structured business development, client engagement and market profile activity across the Earth, Environment and Sustainability portfolio of Business Units. The role will help translate portfolio strategy into practical growth activity by strengthening relationships with existing corporate clients, opening access to new decision‑makers, identifying adjacent market opportunities and supporting coordinated work winning across priority sectors. It will focus on understanding client needs, market drivers and decision‑making processes, then mobilising the right technical, sector and commercial expertise to position the business effectively.

The role works across the Earth, Environment and Sustainability Business Units, operating as a connector between client need, sector strategy, technical capability and work winning activity. It will support both established and emerging markets where environmental risk, sustainability outcomes, planning and consenting, climate resilience, nature, digital solutions and multidisciplinary delivery intersect.

The postholder will work in close collaboration with Strategic Growth Leads, Managing Directors, Heads of Discipline, Sector Leads, Key Account Managers, marketing and communications colleagues, bid and proposal teams, technical leaders and wider growth professionals across the firm.

The primary emphasis of the role is client engagement and business development, with a strong focus on senior relationship building, cross‑selling, market positioning, strategic account development, client feedback and coordinated pursuit support.

A core part of the role will be to design and deliver a programme of strategic engagement with key clients across priority sectors. This will include improving relationship depth, increasing access to senior and C‑suite stakeholders, identifying new buying centres, developing cross‑selling opportunities and ensuring that client engagement is purposeful, well‑planned and followed through.

The role will support the identification of target clients in existing, adjacent and emerging markets, helping to turn market intelligence, client insight and technical capability into qualified opportunities and a stronger forward pipeline.

The postholder will coordinate and manage the client feedback process across the portfolio, ensuring that feedback is gathered consistently, analysed constructively and translated into clear actions that improve client experience, delivery confidence and future positioning.

The role will also lead and coordinate market profile activity, working with marketing and communications colleagues to raise visibility of the portfolio’s strongest propositions, technical leadership, campaigns, case studies and thought leadership.

The postholder will support work winning efforts by contributing to early positioning, capture planning, client intelligence, value proposition development, bid strategy and senior review of strategically important opportunities.

The role will act as the portfolio lead for client feedback, helping to embed a disciplined approach to listening to clients, learning from delivery and using insight to strengthen relationships and improve future performance.

We are a complex organisation, and this role requires collaboration and coordination with other growth professionals.

• Client engagement strategy:
  Develop and maintain a structured client engagement programme for priority clients and sectors, aligned to portfolio strategy, account plans and growth priorities.
• Senior relationship development:
  Build and support senior‑level client relationships, including access to executive…