Job title: Asset Management Specialist
Position type: Permanent
Job reference: 425623
No. Vacancies: 1
Location: Birmingham (B5 4UA) or London (E14 4HD) based with hybrid working
Salary: £38,764 - £50,000
Closing date: 23.55pm Tuesday 23rd September 2025
About Us
We are Ofwat, the Water Services Regulation Authority, a non-ministerial government department responsible for regulating the water sector in England and Wales. Following the Independent Water Commission's final report, the UK government has set out a bold new direction - one that brings together expertise from across the sector to deliver better outcomes for customers and the environment.
We are working in collaboration with the government and other regulators to help establish a new body for England, combining our strengths with those of the Drinking Water Inspectorate, the Environment Agency, and Natural England. We're also continuing to engage with the Welsh Government to support future decisions for Wales.
While these changes take shape, our mission remains the same: to hold water companies to account, drive performance, and ensure the sector delivers real value for customers, communities, and the environment. If you're passionate about making a difference, this is a unique moment to join us and help shape the future of water, and together we can continue to make a positive impact.
The Role
The Senior Associate - Asset Management and Operational Resilience role sits within the Sector Performance Directorate. The Sector Performance Directorate supports Ofwat's objective to be an assertive voice in strategic and investment decision making for the sector, working with other regulators and governments by shaping the future direction and transformation of the sector through alignment with government and other stakeholders, and leading innovation. The Directorate drives up sector and company performance by regularly, visibly, and proactively challenging companies on their performance, using data and operational expertise.
The Asset Management Specialist role has an important and valuable contribution to enable us to deliver on our goals and regulatory commitments.
This role centres on providing expert advice on assets, asset management, asset health, and operational resilience. You will work with others to develop policy solutions to address resilience challenges in the water sector and take ownership of project delivery. This includes defining and delivering a scope of work within agreed timelines, budgets, and contract parameters.
A key aspect of the team's work involves influencing the sector to improve its asset management capability and understanding of Operational Resilience. Previous key publications in this area include our Asset Management Maturity Assessment and Operational Resilience Discussion Paper. Your key activities within the team are outlined in the next section (Key Deliverables).
You will be part of a multi-disciplinary team, working independently and taking responsibility for your work areas. As a Senior Associate, you will have the opportunity to develop and consolidate your skills, exercising sound judgement aligned with our strategy and ways of working.
About You
Experience, skills and knowledge
1. Lead criterion: Experience in an area such as capital programme delivery, operations, asset management, business planning and/or water business operation or management.
2. A current understanding of asset management practice, including wastewater and/or water assets and their operation.
3. Understanding of water sector resilience, including asset health, and of quantitative and/or qualitative ways of measuring performance in this area.
4. Experience of project delivery, including contract management and leading complex projects including multiple stakeholders.
5. Demonstrable ability to analyse data and complex information and use multiple sources of information to solve problems.
6. Experience of working effectively in multi-disciplinary teams.
7. Experience of communicating and engaging effectively with both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
Why Join Us
• People Centric: Our people are at the heart of Ofwat and everything we do - we ensure all voices are heard and treat each other with respect; you'll be given the autonomy and the support to do your role in the best way.
• Innovative Work Environment: We embrace agile and new ways of working and have a culture build on trust, flexibility, and collaboration.
• Development Opportunities: Gain valuable experience and develop your skills in a supportive and dynamic setting.
• Work-Life Balance: Enjoy the flexibility of working from home combined with the benefits of in person collaboration in our Birmingham offices.
• Excellent employer pension contributions of nearly 29%. You can find further details about pension schemes under Terms and Conditions in the Candidate Pack.
• 25 days' annual leave, increasing to 30 with each year of service, plus bank holidays and an extra 2.5 days of privilege leave.
• Access to exclusive discounts on a variety of goods and services, including retail outlets, theatre tickets, holidays, insurance, and a gym membership.
• Fees paid for membership of relevant professional bodies.
• Up to 3 volunteering days per year.
• Recognition vouchers scheme rewarding your hard work.
• Generous shared parental leave and pay supporting your family life.