Deputy Operations Manager - Environmental Services in Didcot

At Amentum, we're not just solving problems; we're engineering the future. Our team is driven by an unyielding commitment to innovation, integrity, and collaboration, tackling some of the most significant challenges in science, security, and sustainability. If you're passionate about making a real impact and want to be part of a community that values ethical excellence, this is the place where your ambition can thrive.

We offer an exciting range of opportunities to develop your career within a supportive team who always strive to do the right thing for our people, clients and communities. People are our greatest asset, and we offer a competitive package to retain and attract the best talent. In addition to the benefits you’d expect, UK employees also receive free single medical cover and digital GP service, family-friendly benefits such as enhanced parental leave pay and free membership of employee assistance and parental programmes, plus reimbursement towards relevant professional development and memberships. Work-life balance and flexibility is a key focus area for us. We’re happy to discuss hybrid, part-time and flexible working hours, patterns and locations to suit you and our business.

About the Opportunity

We are looking for an experienced environmental professional to join our Earth & Environmental Services business as Deputy Operations Manager – Environmental Services. Working directly with the Operations Manager, you will take a leading role in the management, technical governance, commercial performance and strategic development of our environmental capability, encompassing three established teams: Land Quality; EIA and Planning; and Environmental Advisory & Permitting. This is a senior leadership position combining environmental technical expertise with people leadership, commercial management and business development.

You will work closely with the Operations Manager and the leaders of each environmental team to ensure that we maintain high technical standards, deliver successfully for our clients and continue to develop and grow our environmental capability. You will provide line management and support to the three environmental Team Leaders, helping them to manage, develop and grow their respective teams. You will also play an important role in integrating our environmental services with the wider capabilities of Earth & Environmental Services and the broader Amentum business, supporting the delivery of genuinely multidisciplinary projects.

We are looking for someone with an established technical background in one or more of our environmental disciplines. You do not need to be a technical specialist across all three areas, but you will need sufficient environmental breadth, curiosity and leadership capability to understand, support and develop each discipline and to recognise where specialist technical input is required.

This represents an opportunity for an established environmental professional to broaden their career beyond technical delivery into operational and commercial leadership, while remaining closely connected to technical practice and project delivery.

Candidates will be able to demonstrate a substantial track record across the following key responsibilities:

• Operational Leadership: Support the Operations Manager in the day-to-day leadership and management of the environmental teams, helping to manage workload, resources, priorities and performance across the business area.
• Technical Governance: Provide leadership and oversight of technical governance across Land Quality, EIA and Planning, and Environmental Advisory & Permitting.
• Commercial Management: Take a leading role in the commercial management of the environmental portfolio, supporting project performance, forecasting, resource management and appropriate management of commercial and delivery risk.
• Bid Leadership: Lead and coordinate bids and proposals for environmental and multidisciplinary opportunities, bringing together technical, commercial and project management inputs to develop competitive and deliverable solutions for our clients.
• Business Development & Strategic Growth: Work with the Operations Manager, Team Leaders and wider Amentum business to identify and develop opportunities for strategic growth, including development of existing services, new capabilities, client relationships and opportunities to enter new markets.
• People Leadership: Provide line management to the environmental Team Leaders and support them in the effective management, development and mentoring of their teams.
• Recruitment & Capability Development: Lead and support recruitment across the environmental teams, identifying capability and resource requirements and helping to build teams aligned with current workload and future strategic needs.
• Multidisciplinary Integration: Develop strong working relationships across Earth & Environmental Services and the wider Amentum business, integrating environmental capability with disciplines including geoscience, geotechnical engineering, hydrogeology, geophysics and geospatial services, as well as wider engineering and programme capabilities.
• Project & Client Delivery: Support the successful delivery of complex environmental and multidisciplinary projects, providing senior technical and commercial oversight where appropriate and developing trusted relationships with key clients.
• Health & Safety Compliance: Working with your peers, manage adherence to Amentum’s HSE requirements, both on-site and in office environments, ensuring you and your colleagues maintain safe working conditions.
• Professional Development: Maintain and develop your own professional and technical knowledge while actively supporting the development, mentoring and progression of others.

Suitable candidates are likely to have the following qualifications and experience:

• Education: Bachelor’s degree (or higher) in Environmental Science, Environmental Engineering, Geoscience, Planning or another relevant environmental discipline. A Master’s degree is advantageous but not essential.
• Professional Experience: Substantial experience within environmental consultancy, engineering consultancy or a related environmental profession, including experience operating at a senior technical, team leadership or management level.
• Technical Expertise: Established technical expertise in one or more of Land Quality/contaminated land, EIA and Planning, or Environmental Advisory & Permitting, combined with sufficient breadth and interest to provide effective leadership across the wider environmental portfolio.
• Professional Recognition: Chartered status or equivalent professional recognition through an appropriate professional body is desirable.
• Commercial Awareness: Experience of managing the commercial aspects of consultancy work, including project performance, resourcing, forecasting, scope and change management and management of delivery risk.
• Bid & Business Development Experience: Demonstrable experience of developing and leading successful proposals and contributing to client development and business growth.
• Leadership & People Management: Experience of leading and developing technical professionals, with the ability to support Team Leaders in managing performance, career development, recruitment and succession.
• Technical Governance: An understanding of technical assurance, quality management and the governance required to deliver high-quality environmental consultancy services, particularly within complex or highly regulated environments.
• Teamwork & Communication: Excellent written and verbal communication skills and the ability to work effectively across technical disciplines, projects, clients and different parts of a large organisation.
• Strategic Mindset: The ability to look beyond immediate project delivery and contribute to longer-term capability development, recruitment, market positioning and strategic growth.
• Motivation & Growth Mindset: An enthusiasm to develop both our people and our business, with the flexibility to work across disciplines and willingness to travel to project and client locations where required.
• Other: A valid UK driving licence (or ability to obtain one in the near future) is beneficial.

Our Culture

Our values are built on a strong foundation of safety, integrity, and respect for every individual. People are at the heart of our mission, and we believe in supporting one another through a culture of care and collaboration. We strive to create a workplace where everyone feels they belong and can thrive. Supporting mental wellbeing and fostering a sense of connection are essential to how we work. When we embrace different perspectives and work together, we become more innovative, more agile, and more successful.

As a Disability Confident employer, we will interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for a vacancy. We welcome applications from candidates who are seeking flexible working and from those who may not meet all the listed requirements for a role. If you require further support or reasonable adjustments with regards to the recruitment process, please contact.