Director - MPA - Technology, Sustainability, and Innovation

Job description

The Team

KPMG’s Major Projects Advisory (MPA) team works with industry-leading organisations, helping to solve some of the biggest challenges in infrastructure. As a true market leader, we boast an impressive client base across the commercial and public sectors, delivering lasting results on projects and programmes which are household names.

We focus on providing clarity to organisations, including their Boards, Executives and SROs (Senior Responsible Owners) at major public, regulated and private sector organisations, on the delivery of their projects and programmes. We work on some of the UK’s most strategically important programmes, and across all infrastructure sectors including transport, natural resources, energy, power and utilities, corporates, defence, health, housing & education.

Our team comprises specialists with deep construction industry experience, from working for Governments, contractors, engineering consultants and other organisations in the UK and overseas.

On the back of continuing growth, we are investing in our team and boosting our numbers, which means the successful candidate will be joining one of the fastest growing areas of the firm at a time of real significance.

The Role

This role is for an innovative professional at director level with significant major project and construction advisory experience. This role will work alongside our existing team to build commercially attractive propositions and assist in the delivery of services across the capital project life cycle.

The Technology, Sustainability, and Innovation (TSI) cluster within MPA is seeking a highly motivated individual to provide expert advisory services at the executive-level. This role will focus on driving strategic and creative initiatives, developing compelling business cases, and delivering expert guidance in the areas of technology, sustainability, and innovation.

The role requires a breadth of top-level management consultancy experience – ideally gained from another leading management consultancy. This is a demanding job, helping to solve some of the most complex challenges in infrastructure. You will therefore possess the necessary grit and determination to reset and try different approaches. You will work within a highly collaborative, high performing team, that is well blended and contains a vast range of skillsets and personalities – introverts as well as extroverts are equally welcome.

You will be responsible for helping to grow, deliver and lead our MPA business, working with our leadership team, client organisations and other KPMG teams to develop our offerings and value propositions. You will be providing advice to a broad range of clients on many different matters, helping them to achieve successful outcomes through planning and implementing innovative and robust solutions.

You will be joining at an exciting time of exceptional growth within the cluster. To further support this growth, we are seeking a senior-level candidate with proven commercial acumen to identify and capitalize on market opportunities. The ideal candidate will demonstrate expertise in strategic positioning, exceptional communication skills to influence key stakeholders, and a proactive approach to driving business development initiatives.

The MPA team in the UK are mainly based in London, Birmingham, and Manchester. This role will be based in one of these locations but will require travel to client locations throughout the UK and occasionally overseas. Alternative KPMG UK office locations will be considered.

The Person

Skills, Qualifications & Experience

Successful candidates must have relevant skills and experience in four key areas:

1. Business development

• Possess an extensive and established personal network within the UK construction/infrastructure sector.
• Demonstrated proficiency in leading and delivering successful client pitches.
• Proven track record of leading and being accountable for developing propositions and go-to-market strategies.
• Strategic thinker with the ability to identify emerging market trends, new opportunities, and service gaps.
• Exceptional commercial acumen to identify and capitalize on market opportunities.
• Expertise in strategic positioning and exceptional communication skills to influence key stakeholders.
• A proactive approach to driving business development initiatives.

2. Client Delivery & Engagement Management:

• Client-facing role with direct impact on KPMG's reputation and perception; responsible for end-to-end management of client engagements using KPMG systems (comprehensive training provided).
• Prior experience at Big 4 and top-tier advisory practices is highly desirable.
• Proven ability to clearly communicate strategy, align complex stakeholder groups, listen to diverse perspectives, and broker mutually agreeable approaches.
• Experience in leading project teams to deliver successful client engagements.
• Extensive delivery experience with accountability for progress against deliverables, team resourcing, and team wellbeing.
• Demonstrated proficiency in financial management of engagements (projects), including budgeting, reporting, and invoicing.
• Experience in managing quality and risk on engagements to meet KPMG's high standards.
• Highly experienced and confident in communicating with executive-level stakeholder groups.
• Experience in business case development (or early involvement in the capital project lifecycle) with the ability to collaborate with clients to develop outcome-focused strategies and address challenges (such as market capacity) in capital project delivery.

3. Team development & wellbeing:   

• Proven track record of leading, developing, and mentoring diverse teams to ensure their success.
• Significant experience in sustainably growing teams and strategically planning for future personnel needs.
• Ability to quickly identify and address imbalances within the team environment.
• Established leader with unwavering ethics and experience in navigating difficult discussions with colleagues and clients.

4. Building internal network:

• Highly collaborative with the ability to identify and develop joint propositions with supporting teams.
• Proven ability to lead and guide the development and launch of joint propositions.
• Skilled in identifying and articulating the diverse roles and skillsets required to develop and deploy holistic client services, while upholding the highest service standards.

Key Attributes

• Ability to generate and uplift team energy to ensure successful client delivery.
• Exceptional communication skills (both written and oral).
• Proven ability to develop and maintain sustained relationships both internally and with senior-level clients.
• Excellent at working with diverse and complex stakeholder groups, with the ability to convene and lead workshops/chair meetings, ensuring all perspectives are considered and aligned to the collective solution.
• Understands the importance of attention to detail and is self-motivated to deliver high-quality results within tight timeframes.
• A self-starter who can lead, inspire, and motivate others.
• Exceptional leadership skills, with experience in deploying various leadership tools to suit different situations.
• Confidence in navigating complexity and ambiguity, setting direction, and engaging stakeholders.
• Ability to make high-complexity decisions, often autonomously and with incomplete information/facts.
• Highly reflective of their responsibility and accountability to the team, with the ability to self-reflect and adjust their approach as needed.
• Proven track record of managing upwards within their business and the businesses of their clients.
• High levels of resilience to incorporate feedback, adapt, and persevere.
• Embodies the principle of leading by example, setting the standard for others to follow.

There is no one-size fits all in MPA; our clients demand a lot from us, which requires a well-blended team to work collaboratively and to bring their true selves to work. Candidates from all walks of life are celebrated both for their individuality and their contribution to the team. Every member of our team has a valid opinion, regardless of grade. We will encourage, support, and empower you to voice your opinion.

For this opportunity, we’re looking for candidates with a strong consulting background - primarily built around the delivery of major Projects/Programmes.

One final word from us…

Everybody likes to say they’re different... but we really think we are. We do what we say, and we say what we mean.

We’re hugely proud of what we’ve managed to achieve so far – but we’re only just getting started. We’re looking for people to grow with us and are committed to helping everybody reach their destination, regardless of what that is.

No matter what skills you bring to our team, you’ll be surrounded by spirited, naturally curious people. People who want to learn from you, and who’ll also teach you a thing or two along the way. It’s how we make a collective impact, greater than the sum of its parts. It’s how we add value and help to bring to life complex infrastructure programmes.

And if this isn’t the role for you but you like what you see, keep in touch. There will be other opportunities to join us.