Associate Director Sustainability Consultant in Birmingham, West Midlands (County)

To jointly manage the sustainability team on a day-to-day basis, providing a quality service within the boundaries of our professional and commercial capabilities. The Associate/Associate Director should lead projects on behalf of the Sustainability group and manage delivery of the client's services to the highest standard and on time.

Responsibilities and Authority

• Day-to-day contact for the Location Directors, organising and coordinating design team and client meetings discussing energy, sustainability, environmental and health & wellbeing topics.
• Specific focus on implementing client's Net Zero Carbon strategies, ideally leading the embodied carbon service-line.
• Assist the Sustainability Director to develop new business for the Sustainability team by building relationships with existing and new clients, both internally and externally.
• Effectively manage the Sustainability team day to day, including ensuring effective forecasting, measuring of works in progress and driving office initiatives, as well as managing the Sustainability team resource.
• Effectively distribute project workload and liaise with technical and other support staff to ensure acceptable product delivery.
• Act as a role model for the Sustainability Team.
• Attend business development events, conferences and other marketing activities.
• Carry out presentations to clients, take the initiative in organising and leading technical meetings.
• Liaise with and provide project focal point for clients and lead and/or support consultants to ensure that client interests are most effectively fulfilled.
• Maximise staff effectiveness and improve efficiency by enhancing client relationships, improving internal systems and developing staff skills.
• Interlink and work effectively with all others affecting or affected by your work.
• Adopt a responsible attitude to project manage and actively undertake training and development of subordinate staff.
• Ensure application and maintenance of all Quality System procedures.
• Ensure documentation issued from client in respect of a project has been processed in accordance with all relevant procedures.
• Manage multiple projects including organisation of trainee staff and project delivery to time and cost requirements.
• Assist in the preparation of bids, proposals and interviews.
• Develop thought leadership and technical articles for industry publications.
• Undertake building environmental modelling, building physics, and sustainability models (energy, overheating, daylight/sunlight).
• Undertake preliminary concept design studies to influence building shape, form and function.
• Develop energy and sustainability strategies for diverse schemes.
• Comply with all security procedures and commercial in-confidence restrictions associated with work duties.
• Carry out all personal management duties including weekly recording of man-hour commitments to individual projects and reporting on a monthly basis particular project input information.
• Undertake all other duties as may be required to assist in the fulfilment of the primary objectives of the Directors.
• Ensure compliance with the IMS, by supporting the administration of the Internal Audit programme, corrective action and customer feedback registers.

Education and Experience

• Ideally a Chartered engineer or equivalent discipline, preferably Sustainable Design and Energy.
• Experienced energy assessor able to develop, maintain and validate energy models using IES VE.
• Relevant accreditations (e.g. LCC, LCEA).
• Exposure to LCA/WLCA, Circular Economy, BREEAM, WELL, LEED etc.
• Knowledge and experience in implementation of planning policy sustainability requirements (including GLA requirements).
• Significant industry experience (typically 10 years or more), with demonstrated leadership experience (ideally 5 years).
• Experience of office and regional team management.

Specific skills, knowledge, competencies and training

• Confident engaging with senior design team personnel and clients, including Developers, Owners, Investors and Occupiers.
• Experience in managing multiple, concurrent projects covering all aspects of sustainability in the built environment.
• Ability to lead from the front and by example.
• Excellent people skills to ensure staff engagement.
• Excellent communication skills.
• Focus on quality and continuous improvement.