Location
Croydon (Hybrid working model with options to work from office, remote location or client site)

Hours
Full Time

Salary
Competitive salary and benefits package

About the Role
Join AECOM’s dynamic Nature team as an Associate Director and take the lead on major ecological projects across the UK and Ireland. You will be responsible for planning, managing, reporting, and defending technical ecology outputs to clients, project teams, and stakeholders through relevant planning regimes. Supported by a full ecology team, you will select and coordinate multidisciplinary teams to deliver high-profile infrastructure projects in sectors including energy, water, renewables, defence, and transport. Your role will include acting as ecology lead on major projects such as Development Consent Orders (DCO), providing technical advice, contributing to project bidding, delivery, and reviews, and liaising with internal teams on deliverables, scheduling, and budgets. You will also act as Lead Verifier/Approver for technical ecology deliverables and mentor ecology team members. This is a unique opportunity to work within a team of around 150 experts, including national and global leaders in species licensing, impact assessment, habitat creation, ecosystem restoration, and management. At AECOM, you will thrive in an inclusive, forward-thinking environment with access to career development, flexible hybrid working, technical practice networks, and volunteering opportunities. Join us to help deliver projects that create positive, tangible impacts for communities and the environment.

Experience
- Demonstrable experience in planning and delivery of ecological services on projects in the UK or Ireland
- Experience working on DCO schemes, including examination phases, is highly desirable
- Proven ability to act as ecology lead on major projects and manage technical outputs
- Experience mentoring and supporting ecology team members

About you
- Confident and proactive with strong problem-solving skills
- Committed to innovation, continuous professional development, and health and safety
- Excellent communication skills with the ability to lead client-facing work and represent the company at meetings, site visits, and stakeholder discussions
- Enthusiastic about working collaboratively across multidisciplinary teams and fostering an inclusive environment

Qualifications
- Membership of an appropriate professional institution (e.g., CIEEM) with evidence of working towards Chartership or equivalent
- Well-developed understanding of relevant wildlife legislation and regulatory frameworks
- Commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion in the workplace