About the Role
This is a pivotal 12‑month interim leadership role at the heart of West Dean's Estates and Campus Services function.
As Interim Deputy Director, you will act as the operational lead across a diverse and highly visible portfolio, including campus services, hospitality, events, gardens, residential accommodation, property, and facilities. Working closely with the Director, you will provide day‑to‑day leadership to a team of experienced Heads of Department, ensuring the safe, consistent, and high‑quality delivery of services across the estate.
A key focus of the role will be to strengthen operational performance and integration, embed robust governance, and develop a more data‑driven approach to decision‑making. You will enhance performance visibility, improve financial and operational oversight, and help deliver a more joined‑up customer journey across student, visitor, and commercial activities. You will also lead priority improvement projects and programmes, ensuring these translate into sustainable operational change and long‑term impact.
As part of the senior leadership team, you will contribute to organisation‑wide planning and decision‑making, working collaboratively with colleagues across academic, commercial, and operational functions.
About You
The successful candidate will be an experienced senior leader with a strong track record in complex, customer‑facing environments such as estates, facilities, hospitality, visitor attractions, or similarly diverse operational settings.
You will bring a strong track record of delivering operational transformation, driving measurable improvements in performance and service quality, and leading end‑to‑end service redesign. This will be underpinned by a relentless focus on continuous improvement and service excellence, ideally demonstrated within an interim or fixed‑term role. Comfortable operating at pace, you will combine strategic thinking with hands‑on delivery, establishing credibility quickly and driving measurable improvements.
You will have proven experience of leading multi‑disciplinary teams through senior managers and working across organisational boundaries to align priorities, enhance performance, and deliver consistently high‑quality services. Your leadership style will be collaborative, visible, and pragmatic, underpinned by sound judgement and the ability to make informed decisions in a fast‑moving environment.
You will bring a strong focus on operational excellence, governance, and continuous improvement, alongside the ability to use data and insight to drive performance. Financial and commercial awareness, together with a clear understanding of compliance, risk, and health and safety, will be essential.
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