Business Group Leader - Water, US Central Region at GHD in Houston, TX

The importance of water to the health of our world can’t be overstated.

As the frequency and intensity of floods, droughts and storms increases, the water industry must continue to build resiliency and lead from the front.

Together with our clients, we are thinking and doing things differently to help pre-empt and prepare for what's next. Be a part of this dynamic and committed team of diverse water specialists and drive change for your community.

You’ll be able to apply our powerful global network of skills and decades of experience to create positive water outcomes that respect nature and nurture communities.

If you are a high achieving leader, with demonstrated experience leading large teams in a demanding environment and looking to create your place in the industry, then this challenging role provides opportunities in leadership, project management, business development and mentoring.

Our diversified projects vary from upgrades of existing water and wastewater treatment plants, design of new pump stations, master municipal planning, asset management, linear infrastructure, and water resources.

Who are we looking for?

Our ideal candidate for this role will be a skilled and experienced leader with an ability to balance project delivery of Water projects with the operational requirements associated with running a well-established, successful team within a large organization.

You will have strong industry connections and be able to develop and grow GHD’s presence and market share, along with a commitment to further enhancing strong technical authority with a client-led mindset.

Lead a part of the business toward achievement of set business unit goals. Participate in and support vision and strategy development and decision-making for the whole company. Translate mission, vision, and strategy for the enterprise into mission, vision, and strategy for the business unit.

Our Hybrid Work Model:

Be part of the dynamic culture! Our workplace thrives on a hybrid model, combining in-office collaboration and flexibility. Join us in the office three days a week to contribute, connect and excel in our vibrant environment.

Working with an energetic and high performing team, this position offers a variety of work and will see you involved in:

• Lead, manage and grow our Water Group
• Manage Business Group performance, people, and resources.
• Develop and achieve our business plan objectives and targets aligned with GHD’s Make It Real strategy.
• Establish and maintain effective relationships with diverse sector clients and across GHD.
• Build a strong business development and winning work culture, with effective positioning and pursuit of large and strategic opportunities and expanding GHD's presence and market share.
• Lead the technical and commercial direction on significant projects, identifying and creating business opportunities and effectively managing risks.
• Provide technical leadership and overall execution of major treatment projects while working cooperatively with multidisciplinary design teams in the preparation of design packages and participating in quality reviews
• Develop and mentor a talented team of engineers and technical specialists.
• Drive a safety culture throughout the business and across our projects.

Responsibilities:

• Improvement/Innovation: Initiate, formulate, and implement new business practices within a specific discipline while managing the development and/or delivery of a significant element of the organization's change management program.
• Stakeholder Engagement: Identify and manage stakeholders up to and including management level, finding out their needs, issues, and concerns and reacting to them by leading and coordinating the development of stakeholder engagement plans to support the communication of business information and decisions.
• Corporate Representation: Represent the organization or institution in a variety of industry, institutional, and/or professional forums, boards, and committees, in order to promote the company or institution brand or efforts. Focus is on a specific smaller area of the organization, such as a sub-function or division. May involve preparation of presentations and materials for professional partnering meetings, seminars, and conferences.
• Financial Management and Control: Manage a significant portion of the organization's financial management and/or control processes.
• Leadership and Direction: Identify and communicate the actions needed to implement the function's strategy and business plan within the business area or department; explain the relationship to the broader organization's mission, vision, and values; motivate people to commit to these tenets and do extraordinary things to achieve local business goals.
• Performance Management: Manage and report on performance within the department or area of responsibility; set appropriate performance objectives for direct reports and hold individuals accountable for achieving them; take appropriate corrective action where necessary to ensure the achievement of annual business objectives.
• Organizational Capability Building: Evaluate the capabilities of staff within the department to identify gaps and prioritize development activities. Implement the organization's formal development frameworks within the area of responsibility. Coach and mentor others to support the development of the organization's talent pool.
• Customer Relationship Development / Prospecting: Develop and implement a relationship management plan for strategic, complex potential accounts to build key relationships at local and national levels. Coordinate the engagement of own organization with the customer organization to ensure effective two-way flow of information and resolution of issues.
• Business Planning: Develop and propose annual business plans for a given area or department, ensuring alignment with strategy. Recommend financial and headcount budgets; propose business targets, for example, revenues or other key performance indicators (KPIs); and schedule key activities/projects, ensuring integration with other elements of the organization.
• Brand Strategy and Effectiveness: Serve as ambassador for the essence of the brand and/or maintain a portfolio of brands, defining the measures used to determine brand effectiveness and using the results to inform future activities.
• Strategic Planning: Manage an element of the organization's strategic planning. This could involve being responsible for development or delivery or both.
• Strategy Formation and Implementation: Develop tactical plans for optimizing resources and assets being managed within a significant area or department.
• Corporate Strategy Shaping: Participate in the development of corporate strategy for a small local organization, applying functional expertise to test the viability of the strategy and contributing creative ideas and insights to support the strategy formation process.

Education

• Bachelor's Degree, preferably in Engineering, with a Master's Degree being an asset
• P.E. designation (TX preferred)

Experience

• General Experience: Wide and deep experience providing expert competence (Over 10 years to 15 years)
• Managerial Experience: Experience of planning, managing and organizing resources within short / medium timescales within the overall policy framework. (Over 6 years to 10 years)
• A proven track record of leading water/wastewater treatment projects, backed by technical experience in design, evaluation and upgrading of medium to large municipal and industrial water and wastewater treatment plants.
• A demonstrated ability to manage multi-disciplinary teams from concept through detailed design and construction is required.
• Experience of supervising and directing people and other resources to achieve specific end results within limited timeframes
• 15 years of experience in a professional water consulting environment, with notable project technical leadership and management experience.
• Strong business development skills and the ability to interact professionally with public and private sector clients
• Outstanding interpersonal communication skills (both oral and written), with the ability to interact effectively with all levels of the organization in a collaborative fashion.

Take on some of the world’s toughest challenges - with everyone at GHD backing you every step of the way.

We'll give you control over your career, empower you to find innovative solutions and help you create a lasting impact.

See where your commitment could take you with GHD.

As a diverse and inclusive organization, we encourage individual achievement and recognize the strength of a diverse workforce. GHD is an equal opportunity employer. Upon request, GHD will provide reasonable accommodation for applicants with disabilities throughout the recruitment and selection process.

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About the Company

Take on some of the world’s toughest challenges - with GHD supporting you every step of the way.

We'll give you control over your career, empower you to find innovative solutions and help you create a lasting impact.

See where your commitment could take you with GHD.

Our Pledge to You At GHD, we don’t just believe in the power of commitment, we live and breathe it every day.

That’s why we pledge to empower our people to make a positive impact. Combining our deep technical expertise with the capabilities of our clients and partners, we respond to some of the most complex challenges facing our planet today.

See where your commitment could take you. That’s the #PowerOfCommitment

Who we are
GHD is a global professional services company that leads through engineering, architecture, and construction expertise. We are an employee-owned company with over 11,000 diverse and skilled individuals, across more than 200 offices spanning five continents. The Power of Commitment is our brand promise. It’s what makes us different. We are bound to our stated vision and determination to address humanity’s most urgent needs: to make water, energy and urbanisation sustainable for generations to come.