Location
Manchester

Hours
Full Time

Salary
Negotiable

About the Role
Around the world, SYSTRA’s specialists plan, design, integrate, test, commission, project manage and deliver mass transit and mobility solutions relied on by more than 50 million people every day. With over 60 years of experience, the Group is committed to helping cities and regions develop by creating, improving and modernising transport infrastructure with sustainability, accessibility and innovation at the heart of every design. With over 10,300 colleagues globally and around 1,000 in the UK & Ireland, we are growing significantly and seeking the very best talent to join the SYSTRA signature team and lead the way in infrastructure design.

We are looking for an experienced Principal Engineer (Water and Flood Risk) to support project delivery across the United Kingdom. This is an excellent opportunity for a technically strong engineer with advanced expertise in SuDS and water engineering to bring leadership, sound judgement and practical design insight to complex multidisciplinary schemes. You will play a key role in delivering technically robust and well-coordinated engineering solutions, managing the design delivery of allocated work packages within the water team. You will ensure projects are delivered on time, within budget and aligned with client requirements, while contributing to reporting, cost estimating and achieving high-quality outcomes.

Main Duties
- Lead the design approach for water and flood risk projects, integrating multidisciplinary inputs and resolving technical, standards and stakeholder challenges.
- Drive delivery of work packages from planning through to completion, defining priorities, allocating tasks, managing dependencies and maintaining control of programme, budget and quality.
- Provide clear technical leadership throughout project delivery, setting key design checkpoints and guiding teams toward safe, practical and right-first-time outcomes.
- Ensure solutions meet project specifications and acceptance criteria, with a strong focus on reporting, cost control and timely delivery.
- Support and coach engineers and graduates daily, offering direction, technical review and constructive feedback to strengthen individual and team performance.
- Develop repeatable methods, practical tools and improved approaches to solve design challenges and reduce cycle time.
- Collaborate effectively across designers, disciplines and locations, coordinating contributions to maintain high standards.
- Build strong relationships with UK and international teams, including offshore production centres, to deliver integrated drainage and flood risk solutions consistently and with quality.
- Lead CDM design compliance activities, helping teams demonstrate hazard elimination, capture lessons learned and promote continuous improvement.

Why SYSTRA?
Our core values of Excellence, Connected Teams and Bold Leadership guide everything we do. We strive for technical excellence, teamwork and innovation, offering clear career development pathways, competitive remuneration including bonus and private healthcare, an electric car scheme and a broad suite of flexible benefits.

Flexibility
We offer hybrid working to balance home and office time, supporting team development and collaboration. Our flexible working policy helps you tailor your work life to reach your full potential.

Diversity & Inclusion
We welcome applications from diverse backgrounds to enrich our company and drive better solutions in an inclusive environment. Our employee-led groups and strategy ensure accountability and continuous growth.

Wellbeing
We support physical and mental wellbeing through our Wellness Programme, health checks, workshops, seminars and social activities. We also offer two paid days for charity work.

Apply to join SYSTRA and discover how we can support your career journey.

Experience
- Degree qualified in a relevant Engineering discipline.
- Chartered Engineer status preferred, with membership such as MICE or CIWEM.
- Strong experience and technical knowledge in drainage, SuDS and wider water engineering design.
- Sound understanding of water and flood risk design integration within transportation or civil engineering projects.
- Proficiency in relevant software such as MicroDrainage, InfoWorks and OpenRoads.
- Experience leading teams through direct line management or virtual project leadership, with the ability to unite others around successful delivery.

About you
- Technically strong with advanced expertise in SuDS and water engineering.
- Leadership skills with sound judgement and practical design insight.
- Collaborative and able to build strong relationships across multidisciplinary and international teams.
- Committed to delivering high-quality, safe and practical engineering solutions.
- Supportive mentor, able to coach and develop engineers and graduates.
- Focused on continuous improvement and efficient delivery methods.

Qualifications
- Degree in relevant Engineering discipline.
- Chartered Engineer status preferred (e.g. MICE, CIWEM).