Market Director Defence and Nuclear

London, Glasgow, Derby, York or Bristol with hybrid working across COWI offices. Permanent Office/Home Hybrid Working.

Do you want to drive growth within an engineering consultancy? Can you collaborate with an international market team? Are you experienced in business development within the defence and nuclear sector? Then join us to shape a sustainable and liveable world.

Create Solutions that will enable a better tomorrow. To lead growth for COWI across the UK nuclear defence market, we are looking for a commercially astute and strategically credible Market Director to join us. In this role you’ll shape and deliver market strategy, build trusted client relationships, and convert priority opportunities into sustainable revenue. Working across major programmes, secure infrastructure and complex engineering environments, you’ll position the business as a valued partner to defence and nuclear clients, delivery organisations and strategic collaborators.

Your key responsibilities will be:

• Develop and implement a focused growth strategy for the nuclear defence market, aligned to COWI business objectives and priority client accounts.
• Identify, qualify and pursue opportunities across defence nuclear infrastructure, major programmes, secure facilities and long‑term frameworks.
• Build and maintain senior relationships with defence clients, government bodies, delivery partners, prime contractors and wider supply‑chain stakeholders.
• Lead capture planning and support high‑value bids, proposals and presentations, working closely with technical, operational and commercial teams.
• Shape compelling value propositions that combine engineering excellence, programme delivery capability and client outcomes.
• Maintain a robust pipeline and provide accurate forecasting, reporting and market intelligence to senior leadership.
• Support strategic partnerships, framework positioning and cross‑business collaboration to strengthen market presence and client value.

Your skills. Our team. Together we design the future. Like us, you believe that leadership success comes from setting a clear and meaningful direction for your team and supporting them in taking ownership of their work. You always delegate responsibility and ensure an open and safe dialogue, and you coach your people to achieve their aspirations through constructive, fact‑based feedback. Attracting and nurturing a diverse group of high‑potential team members is at the top of your agenda, as is creating an inclusive, caring and trusting culture in your team.

On top of that, you’ll have:

• Relevant degree or professional qualification in engineering, energy, business or a related discipline; chartered status or equivalent professional recognition.
• Proven experience in business development, client engagement or market leadership within UK nuclear, defence, or other highly regulated infrastructure sectors.
• Track record of securing complex opportunities, frameworks or major programmes in multi‑stakeholder environments.
• Strong understanding of the UK defence and nuclear landscape, including procurement routes, client decision‑making and delivery models.
• Commercially aware with the ability to influence senior stakeholders, negotiate effectively and shape winning propositions.
• Degree qualified in engineering, business, project management or a related discipline, or equivalent relevant experience.
• Experience working within consultancy, engineering or professional services environments is highly desirable.

Security, Compliance and Personal Attributes:

• Able to meet baseline personnel security requirements and, where required, hold or obtain UK security clearance appropriate to nuclear defence work.
• Demonstrates integrity, sound judgement and professionalism in secure and safety‑critical environments.
• A strategic and collaborative leader who can work effectively across technical, commercial and management teams.
• Resilient, proactive and confident operating in complex pursuit cycles with long lead times and multiple stakeholders.
• Strong communication and stakeholder management skills, with the credibility to represent the business in senior client and industry settings.

This role is suited to a candidate who combines market insight, commercial discipline and relationship strength with an understanding of complex engineering delivery. It offers the opportunity to shape growth in a strategically important market and contribute to programmes of national significance.

A place to work and so much more. At COWI, we work together with our customers to shape a sustainable and liveable world. We do it by applying our knowledge and curiosity – and sometimes even our courage – to create the solutions the world needs today to enable a better tomorrow. We support our customers’ transition towards increased sustainability. We strive to lead by example by embedding environmental management, social responsibility and good governance into our business practices and the options we provide to our customers. We value differences and development and cultivate an environment of belonging and having fun. Because that is what brings out the best in you, at work and at home.

With offices primarily located in the Nordic region, the UK, North America and India, we are currently more than 7,500 people who bring their expertise in engineering, architecture, energy and environment into play.

What we also offer:

• 28 days holiday plus all UK bank and public holidays.
• Formalised development plans and yearly promotion opportunities.
• Private health care, for you and a contribution from you for your immediate dependents.
• Flexible and hybrid working conditions.
• Annual subscription fees paid for your membership of two Professional Institutions.
• Group personal pension scheme – salary exchange.
• Life assurance.
• Maternity Leave: 1‑20 weeks full pay, 21‑26 weeks half pay, 27‑39 statutory (SMP), 40‑52 weeks unpaid (eligibility criteria will apply).
• Paternity Leave: 12 weeks full pay (eligibility criteria will apply).

Optional benefits include:

• Electric vehicle lease.
• Annual Rail card (available for under 30s).

If you have any unanswered questions about the role or what we have to offer, please reach out to Ciaran Gilfedder at cigi@COWI.COM. Get to know us even better at our website, www.cowi.com, where you can learn more about our projects, our strategy, what we want to achieve and what life is like at COWI.

COWI provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to ethnicity, colour, religion, gender, national origin, age or disability. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.