Principal GIS Consultant in Belfast

What if you could do the kind of work the world needs? At WSP, you can access our global scale, contribute to landmark projects and connect with the brightest minds in your field to do the best work of your life. You can embrace your curiosity in a culture that celebrates new ideas and diverse perspectives. You can experience a world of opportunity and the chance to shape a career as unique as you.

A little more about your role: As a Senior Geospatial Consultant with WSP, you will support multi-disciplinary projects within the Geospatial team as part of the Transformation & Digital Insights service line. Reporting to an Associate and collaborating with GIS, Geospatial and Technical Specialist teams, you will help the team grow both personally and technically to maintain top-tier client service. Your tasks will include managing and analysing digital data, preparing GIS data, and producing maps and location-based solutions via web and/or mobile applications. You will leverage your GIS project management experience to develop innovative solutions for complex and interesting projects, ensuring they meet budget, deadlines, and quality standards while exceeding client expectations. You will collaborate with WSP Project Managers and colleagues for successful project delivery, providing guidance and ensuring process adherence. Strong technical and communication skills are essential, and you will represent the team in meetings and contribute to bid writing processes when necessary. Attention to detail and quality is crucial. You will need initiative and a passion for GIS, staying updated on industry trends and presenting new functionalities and efficiencies to the Senior Leadership Team and clients. Join WSP at a time of growth and transformation, where you will be part of exciting developments and innovations in GIS on landmark projects across diverse sectors such as land management, property and planning, energy and transportation.

Responsibilities

• Provide consultancy to internal and external clients to understand their needs and provide solutions.
• Work with clients to determine their Digital Strategy and support digital solutions and innovations.
• Manage and ensure efficient storage and usage of quality-assured data.
• Design and manage local and enterprise geodatabases.
• Lead and ensure quality assurance on deliverables across the team.
• Develop methodologies, standards, and training materials – utilising the latest efficiencies and enterprise agreements available.
• Promote our wider services to clients and lead on GIS elements of major projects.
• Foster a team-working and supportive ethos while promoting continued professional development.
• Provide technical advice and ensure comprehensive documentation of team processes and procedures.

Qualifications and Experience

• A customer-focused approach to quality and service delivery.
• Strong client-facing experience, with the ability to translate requirements into innovative geospatial and analytical solutions.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with proven creativity in applying GIS, automation, and spatial data science to real-world challenges.
• Strong experience in best-practice data management, including data quality assurance, governance, metadata standards, and automated workflow design.
• Demonstrated ability to produce clear documentation for data processes, automated pipelines, geospatial workflows, and technical solutions.
• Deep and broad GIS expertise, including advanced use of ArcGIS Pro, ArcGIS Enterprise, ArcGIS Online, and Esri mobile apps.
• Experience with FME Form (essential) and FME Flow (desirable), including designing ETL workflows, automations, and data transformation solutions.
• Proficiency in Python and ArcPy (desirable), including developing automated geoprocessing tools, spatial analysis workflows, data validation scripts, and integrations with FME, APIs, and enterprise systems.
• Knowledge of GeoAI, spatial data science (desirable), and ML techniques (e.g., feature extraction, spatial modelling, object detection, predictive analysis) using Esri, Python/ML libraries, or cloud-based AI services.
• A degree in a relevant discipline.
• Proven experience in managing GIS projects, including technical leadership and project governance.
• A self-motivated approach with a strong ability to innovate and drive the adoption of modern GIS, automation, and AI technologies.
• Awareness of data and information security, governance frameworks, and relevant compliance standards such as ISO27001 and GDPR.
• Experience contributing to proposals and bid preparation, particularly for geospatial data.

What’s in it for you?

• Work-life balance: At WSP, we understand that work is just one aspect of your life. It’s important to make time for you, your family, friends, interests and your community. Our hybrid working policy offers the flexibility to work from home two days a week, while also providing opportunities to collaborate in our modern offices across the UK.
• Inclusivity & Belonging: We welcome applicants with varied backgrounds and experiences. We enable rewarding careers by encouraging people to bring their whole and authentic selves to work so that our work represents the fullest spectrum of society. We celebrate integrity and treat people with respect, supporting each other and embracing a culture of inclusion and belonging at WSP.
• Health & Wellbeing: We are committed to supporting our people, giving you the tools to make improvements to your health and wellbeing through our Thrive programme. Our Virtual GP service gives you access to an NHS or Irish Medical Council GP at a time and place that suits you – giving you peace of mind and quick access to medical advice when you need it most.
• Flex your time: To enhance work-life balance, WSP offers the “WSP My Hour,” allowing you to take one hour each day for personal activities, with the flexibility to make up the time earlier or later that day.