Associate Director - Water Quality & Management; Infrastructure Lead

Job Description

Ricardo is now a member of WSP. As we complete our integration, you may see references to both WSP and Ricardo during the application and interview process.

The Associate Director role within Aquatic Ecology is an opportunity to develop and shape a dedicated technical team, and build upon the existing extensive project portfolio, both in the UK and internationally.

Experience in engagement with clients, customers and environmental regulators is essential. Many of our projects are complex in nature and you will be required to work with other disciplines to create effective solutions. As well as driving delivery of our current portfolio you will contribute to the identification of opportunities and bidding for work.

• Provide technical leadership across the Ecology team to deliver expertise in aquatic ecology investigations across all project stages, from bidding/feasibility/optioneering, extensive field survey programming, detailed design and assessment.
• Act as technical lead for the production of consent related technical assessments such as Habitats Regulations Assessments (HRA) and Water Framework Directive (WFD) assessments.
• Maintaining quality of service provision.
• Business development, client liaison and establishing new clients.
• Growing, leading, and developing teams and supporting and training junior staff.

• A degree in a relevant subject, such as ecology or other biological sciences, and/or a relevant postgraduate qualification.
• Demonstrable commercial consultancy experience.
• Extensive knowledge of UK and EU Wildlife Legislation, planning policies, licensing requirements and best practice survey techniques.
• Demonstrable experience working on large scale environmental projects.
• Willingness to undertake line management responsibilities and a business leadership role.
• Strategic mindset able to contribute to wider team leadership.
• Confident to take on a mentor role to junior staff.
• Flexible approach to working, with inquisitiveness and willingness to learn.
• Ability to adapt to working on a wide range of projects.
• Broad knowledge across a range of ecological disciplines with specialist knowledge in e.g. fisheries, macroinvertebrate or macrophytes preferable