Principal Ecologist

Do you want to work for a company whose purpose is to improve society by considering social outcomes, and to transform businesses, communities, and opportunities for its employees? Mott MacDonald is a global consultancy whose people do exactly that.

The environmental demands in the water, transport, buildings, and power sectors in the UK and beyond need environmental specialists who can think laterally.
In collaboration with ecology colleagues and other environmental disciplines you will be responsible at a project-level for resourcing and over-seeing the ecological inputs for a variety of multi-disciplinary projects for a range of clients.
Project dependent, the role can span all stages of a project's life cycle, from design conception to implementation; giving opportunities to positively influence scheme design, enhancements and promote best practice. Mott MacDonald are committed to sustainable approaches that protect biodiversity and we actively encourage our clients to do the same.

We are passionate about providing our clients with sustainable solutions by constantly looking at challenges from a fresh angle. For us to continue maintaining our collaborative client relationships and further grow our environmental capabilities. This role will suit a dynamic, proactive individual who wants to work in a growth area of our business and help support the delivery of ecological services in a fast moving, client focussed commercial environment.

If you think this could be the job you are looking for, then we would like to hear from you. A degree in biology/ecology or a directly related subject is essential and an additional higher degree would be an advantage. We are looking for candidates with a strong combination of the following:

• Full Member of Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management (CIEEM) or equivalent and ideally a Chartered Environmentalist/Ecologist.
• Attention to detail and the ability to deliver contracts on time and to budget.
• Excellent communication skills including report writing, checking and approvals.
• Experience in the UK ecological consultancy market, with a strong external-facing, client-orientated approach.
• Thorough understanding of UK nature conservation legislation including planning processes and/or EIA/HRA assessments.
• Experience in field surveys including Phase 1 habitat survey, UK Habitat assessment, BNG condition assessment and protected species surveys.
• Experienced in Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG).
• Experience in protected species licensing.
• Experience in leading on ecological inputs into large-scale projects.
• Willingness to mentor junior staff.
• Willingness to encourage innovation and digital services.
• Willingness to travel throughout the UK.

If you meet 80% or more of what we're looking for, please still apply. We understand not everyone will meet all the requirements, but you might have skills we didn't know we need.