Founders Associate

Hybrid (WFH/London)

About Arbtech

We help housebuilding and real estate clients secure planning consents where there are environmental constraints on a site. We’re the fastest. Our USP is speed and we marry that with unparalleled customer service. To turbo-charge our growth, in 2024 we partnered with Celnor, a built environment consolidator backed by London-based private equity firm, Inflexion. Although 20 years old, we are a hungry, lean, agile business.

What we don’t do

We don’t have a grandiose, ‘Fortune 500’ vision. There’s no eyeroll-inducing mission statement about “people and planet”—because all companies should be about people and planet. We aren’t raising capital. We fund growth by making a profit. We develop AI and ML models in house, but we’re not a tech business.

What we do

We are a people business. We sell intellectual capital. We take complete ownership of hard, chunky problems and slice them up into bite-size pieces, delivered in the form of rapid, cost effective, practical advice. We write reports, but our product is results.

FULL DISCLOSURE

This role is highly varied. One day you might accompany the CEO to a meeting with a new client, here or abroad. Another you might be cranking out an admin-heavy task that requires attention to detail. These are equally important and will require 100% effort, regardless of the disparity in satisfaction or challenge. You will be relied upon, and no one will be checking your work. Very few days will be the same and you will be assigned tasks that you have no experience of, with the expectation that you learn empirically. The variety and challenge inherent in the role must genuinely appeal to you.

Who should/not apply

We welcome applications from people with any academic or vocational background. However, this is not a graduate role. You must have hands-on experience of operating in a complex, fast-paced, high-accountability environment. You must already have the right to live and work in the UK. If you are working on a visa, you must confirm that you have at least one year remaining before it expires for your application to be considered.

What you’ll be doing:

• Project management – tenders, events, presentations, client work.
• Stakeholder management – comms with clients and external organisations.
• Research and prep – researching and crafting decks and supporting materials for a wide variety of end users.
• Admin and operations – keeping things moving smoothly behind the scenes.
• Marketing and PR – helping create content for socials and press.
• CEO’s right hand – from client events to boring but necessary logistics.

You

• Crave vertical learning curves.
• Are a self-starter and thrive without rigid structures.
• Find mediocrity terrifying.
• Can shift gears easily - no two days are the same.
• Are ruthlessly well-organised.
• Can work flexibly in respect to hours, travel, overnight stays, and in-person days at the office as required.
• Want to run their own business someday and sees this as a roadmap, or seeks a crash course to fast-track it to the top, here or somewhere else.
• Whether you have come from investment banking or the arts, you will have a strong affinity for the environment.

What we offer

Full-time, permanent role. £35k (rising to £45k after probation) + ‘The Perks’. Participation in incentive share scheme. Travel expenses and trivial benefits met. The chance to work 1-2-1 with the CEO and other senior leaders in the fastest growing company in the sector. A no-bullshit work environment, where building genuine friendships and having fun, while creating enormous, positive impacts matters more than prevailing dogma and politics. Learn how to build, scale and sell a business. This is the perfect role for an aspiring Founder/CEO.

The Process

Initial filter of applications. If successful at this stage, you may be given a small task to complete, which will inform the next stage. Teams call with someone from our senior team. As well as your opportunity to create a great impression, this is also your chance to ask questions about life at Arbtech and hear it from the people that work here. This is a formal interview. In person chat with Robert Oates (CEO).

How to apply and some friendly advice

The deadline for applications is midnight, 8th May 2025. Apply to quote “Founders Associate” in the email subject line, so we know that you have read this and aren’t a robot. Keep your CV to a single side of A4. Headlines only. The dates and title of your university course and/or job role and key responsibilities are fine. Feel free to write a covering letter. We want to know about you. No word limit. It doesn’t matter what your first language is, but you must demonstrate a very strong command of verbal and written English. Do not apply if you do not already live and have the right to work in the UK.

IMMEDIATE START AVAILABLE