Location: South of England (site-based with hybrid flexibility)
Contract: Permanent
The Opportunity
We are working in partnership with a leading UK construction business to appoint a Project Director for a landmark construction project.
This is a rare opportunity to take full leadership of a major, technically complex programme from its earliest stages through to completion. The project includes highly regulated and clinical environments requiring exceptional rigour in planning, stakeholder engagement and delivery.
A defining feature of this role is the extended pre-construction phase. The successful candidate must be both highly experienced and genuinely motivated by front-end leadership — shaping the programme, working with the end client, locking in scope, de-risking delivery and building the strategy that will drive success on site.
Your Role
As Project Director, you will have full accountability for the development, governance and delivery strategy of this flagship project. You will lead from concept and business case through detailed design, procurement, enabling works and into construction delivery.
Key Responsibilities
* Lead the programme through extended pre-construction, including design development, enabling works, procurement strategy and delivery planning
* Establish the programme governance, risk, commercial and reporting frameworks
* Own the programme, contribute to the cost plan and delivery strategy, ensuring the scheme is fully de-risked before site mobilisation
* Drive value engineering, buildability, sequencing and logistics planning in a constrained environment
Stakeholder & Client Leadership
* Act as the senior client-facing leader, managing complex stakeholder groups
* Build trusted relationships across a wide and often sensitive stakeholder landscape
* Lead decision-making and resolve competing priorities
Delivery & Commercial Oversight
* Transition the scheme seamlessly from pre-construction into delivery
* Provide executive leadership to the construction and commercial teams once on site
* Maintain control of cost, programme, quality, safety and risk throughout the lifecycle
* Ensure compliance with all governance, assurance and regulatory requirements
People & Performance
* Build, lead and inspire a high-performing, multi-disciplinary project team
* Set the behavioural and performance standards for the programme
* Drive collaboration, accountability and continuous improvement
What We’re Looking For
This role requires a rare combination of strategic pre-construction leadership and delivery credibility.
You will be able to demonstrate:
* Proven experience leading major projects (£200m+) within a Tier 1 contractor
* A strong track record of long-duration pre-construction leadership — not just bidding, but shaping projects over many months into fully deliverable programmes
* Experience delivering highly regulated, technically complex buildings, such as:
* Healthcare, Life sciences, Data Centres, Research & development and Secure or high-containment facilities.
* Evidence of taking projects from early design through to completion on site
* Outstanding client, stakeholder and political management skills
* Deep understanding of commercial, risk, programme and governance frameworks
* Experience leading large, multi-disciplinary teams in complex, live environments
Why This Role Is Different
This is not a fast-track delivery role. It is a true programme-shaping position, where success will be determined by how well the scheme is designed, planned, procured and de-risked before major construction begins.
It will suit someone who:
* Enjoys owning the front end of complex projects
* Understands that great delivery is built in pre-construction, not on site
* Wants to leave a legacy on an iconic project
To confirm the successful candidate must show a history of working on large-scale projects from a Main Contracting background.
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