Director of Civil & Structural Engineering

Director of Civil & Structural Engineering
Sheffield
Potential Equity Opportunity

There are Director roles where you're brought in to manage what's already there. Then there are opportunities where you're brought in because the owners genuinely want you to help decide what the business becomes next.

This is very much the latter.

I'm working confidentially with an established Yorkshire-based Civil, Structural and Geo-Environmental Engineering consultancy looking to strengthen its senior leadership team with another Director. The business has been established for well over a decade and delivers projects nationally, with a particularly strong reputation across major buildings, residential, high-rise, student accommodation, refurbishment and regeneration.

This isn't a small practice dealing exclusively with straightforward regional work. The team has delivered complex projects throughout the UK, including 30+ storey developments, major city-centre schemes, technically challenging refurbishments and projects involving significant structural alterations to existing and historic buildings.

Alongside Structural Engineering, the business has established Civil Engineering and Geo-Environmental capabilities, giving clients an integrated service and providing a strong technical platform from which the next Director can grow. They're currently sitting on a substantial pipeline of secured and prospective work - including around £5m across major buildings and higher-risk building projects alone - so this appointment isn't being made because something needs fixing. It's about growth, diversification and strengthening the leadership of the business for the next decade and beyond.

The current Directors have established networks and areas of expertise, so the last thing they want is simply another version of themselves, they want somebody who brings something different.

That could be relationships within another sector, experience developing a regional or national client base, or exposure to areas such as rail, industrial, infrastructure or another complementary market where you can see genuine potential.

You'll need a commercial track record - someone who knows how to develop clients, identify opportunities, turn conversations into projects and build relationships that last. But this isn't simply about arriving with a black book, winning a few projects and collecting a Director salary, they're looking for a future business partner.

You'll become properly involved in how the consultancy operates, where it invests, who it recruits and which markets it develops. If you believe the business should pursue a particular sector, build a new team or target certain clients, you'll have the opportunity and backing to make that happen.
Importantly, there's already plenty behind you. You'll have an experienced team of Civil Engineers, Structural Engineers and technical specialists capable of delivering complex work, established client relationships, a strong project portfolio and a leadership team that understands how to successfully run a consultancy.

The culture is collaborative and technically led, with a strong emphasis on communication, responsibility, teamwork, innovation and professional development. They don't want to create a collection of individual Directors protecting their own clients and teams; they want somebody who genuinely buys into the wider business and what they're trying to build.

And that's where the opportunity becomes particularly interesting.

This appointment forms part of the consultancy's long-term succession planning. They're thinking about who will be leading and owning the business over the next five, ten and fifteen years, and for the right person there is a genuine conversation to be had around equity and eventual ownership. It's not a vague promise of "future progression", but neither is anyone expected to make that commitment on day one. The relationship needs to work, trust needs to develop and there needs to be genuine alignment over where the business is heading. If those pieces come together, however, the opportunity is there to become a genuine long-term business partner.

You could already be a Director or Regional Director within a larger consultancy. Equally, you might be an Associate Director with strong client relationships who has realised there isn't a realistic route into ownership where you are. You'll need strong Civil and/or Structural Engineering credentials, but personality, commercial ability and ambition are every bit as important. You'll ideally bring a proven record of winning and developing work, established client relationships, commercial awareness and the ability to introduce the business to new sectors or markets.

Your network doesn't necessarily need to overlap with what they already do, in fact, it may be considerably more interesting if it doesn't. There is an unusual middle ground here. You get the security, resources, reputation, existing clients and pipeline of an established consultancy, but without having every part of your future already mapped out for you. For someone who has considered setting up independently but doesn't particularly fancy starting at zero - or a senior Engineer who has spent years helping somebody else grow a consultancy they'll never own - this could be a very interesting alternative.

The role will be centred around Sheffield, and at this level there naturally needs to be a meaningful relationship with the office and existing leadership team. That said, there is flexibility around hybrid working and potentially location for an exceptional individual with the right network and ideas. Ultimately, the person matters considerably more than the postcode.

Initially, it's simply about having a confidential conversation around what you've built in your career, where you think the opportunities are and what you'd want from the next ten years.

The package will reflect the calibre and value of the individual, with the potential equity element discussed properly with suitable candidates.

For a completely confidential conversation, contact Sam at Calibre.

Calibre Search promote equality in the workplace and we welcome applications from all suitably skilled or qualified candidates regardless of their sex, race, disability, religion/beliefs, sexual orientation or age. We act as both an employment agency and employment business.