Principal GIS Consultant

Location/s: Manchester, UK
Recruiter contact: Emma Cantley

Mott MacDonald is a global engineering, management, and development consultancy with over 20,000 employees across more than 50 countries and 140+ offices. 

We work across incredible global industries, delivering exciting work that is defining our future and making an important societal impact in the communities we serve. Our people power our performance – we succeed when they do. With countless opportunities to collaborate, learn, and grow, the possibilities for excellence are as varied as every individual. 

Whether you want to grow as a subject matter expert or broaden your experience with roles across our international community, you’re surrounded by global specialists who want to combine their expertise and champion you to be your best. As a proudly employee-owned business, we benefit our clients, our communities, and each other, investing in creating the right space for everyone to feel empowered, included, and valued. Whatever your ambition, Mott MacDonald is where people come to be brilliant.

About the business division
Environmental and social considerations are central to Mott MacDonald’s Purpose and its offerings across all sectors and territories. Our environment and social business provides essential services and innovative solutions which anticipate our clients' needs across all sectors.

Overview of the role
Our Environmental and Social GIS team has an opportunity for a resourceful, collaborative and innovative Principal GIS Consultant. The team believes in the power of well-managed data, automation and visualisation through the most appropriate technology. The efficient handling, insightful analysis and visualisation of this data underpin everything that Mott MacDonald strives to achieve.

Mott MacDonald's purpose has a significant focus on innovative digital solutions to improve society by considering social outcomes in everything we do: transforming our clients' businesses, our communities and employee opportunities. As a member of the global GIS community, you will have the opportunity to contribute towards this purpose. By joining our team, you can expect to work on a diverse range of projects including national scale infrastructure programmes, biodiversity assessments, integrated water resource management plans and ecosystem services analysis.

Due to strong growth, Mott MacDonald’s Environment and Social GIS team has an opportunity for an enthusiastic, resourceful, collaborative and innovative Principal GIS Consultant. You will be joining a diverse team of GIS consultants who are passionate about what they do, with a proven track record guiding our clients in the delivery of major infrastructure projects in the UK. 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 GIS services in a fast moving, client-focused commercial environment.

Key responsibilities and duties include:

• Lead, manage and deliver GIS services on complex projects
• Review and ensure technical excellence and standards
• Design, develop and implement digital solutions based on automation, geospatial data analytics, data science, data management and data integration to extract insights from data and improve decision making
• Work in multi-disciplinary teams to gather and evaluate requirements to deliver integrated digital solutions and outcome-based innovations
• Identify and support opportunities for improving workflows for achieving efficiencies and innovative solutions
• Identify existing and new data sources to best inform project teams
• Lead or support in business development activities, providing technical input and financial components to bids and identifying internal and external business opportunities
• Manage mobile data collection packages for field workers
• Work closely with GIS team members in ongoing development and implementation of standards and tools for day-to-day GIS processes and data management
• Undertake mentoring and line management responsibilities
• Participate in knowledge sharing and professional excellence activities in our Global GIS community of over 700 GIS specialists and users

Candidate specification
Essential:

• Postgraduate qualification in GIS, computer science, environmental management, geography or other relevant discipline
• Highly competent GIS Consultant with strong UK experience and client-orientated approach
• Experienced in leading large-scale geospatial project delivery, budgeting, task and resource planning and prioritisation
• Have a professional body qualification, preferably with the Royal Geographical Society (e.g. Chartered Geographer)
• Extensive experience working with a wide range of the ESRI’s ArcGIS products, especially ArcGIS Online/Portal for ArcGIS, and ArcGIS Pro
• Extensive experience in setting up and managing mobile data collection devices for surveys using ESRI’s ArcGIS apps for iOS/Android, including ArcGIS Field Maps or Survey123
• Proactive communication, collaboration and people skills to enable effective problem solving, ensuring delivery and report writing
• Excellent business development skills with drive and ambition to grow these key areas
• Experience in line management and supporting career development of direct reports
• A deep knowledge of spatial analysis workflows and management of spatial data
• A strong interest in keeping up with latest technologies and how to apply these to real business problems to provide innovative solutions
• An aptitude for problem solving using scripting (e.g. SQL, Python, ESRI Arcade, R, JavaScript) and/or FME
• Some ability with programming (Python, HTML or JavaScript & CSS, in conjunction with ArcGIS API)

Desirable:

• Some experience of database administration of databases (MS SQL Server, or PostgreSQL)
• Some exposure to use of scripting and automation across the Office 365 suite (MS Power Automate, Excel VBA, Power Query, Access VBA; Power BI and SharePoint)
• Confident in working with design and engineering data such as IFC, DWG, Revit, Infraworks
• Some experience in 3D GIS, Augmented/Virtual Reality and GIS; · Some experience of open-source GIS solutions
• Some experience with remotely sensed data – knowledge of different products available and their applicability (terrain, imagery, multispectral)

UK Immigration

Mott MacDonald Ltd. are not currently offering sponsorship to candidates under the Skilled Worker visa route in the UK. This decision is as a consequence of the changes made to the Skilled Worker route by the UK Government in April 2024. We continue to welcome applications from candidates who are eligible for alternative immigration routes in the UK, that do not require sponsorship as a Skilled Worker now or in future.

Equality, diversity, and inclusion 

We put equality, diversity, and inclusion at the heart of our business, seeking to promote fair employment procedures and practices to ensure equal opportunities for all. We encourage individual expression in our workplace and are committed to creating an inclusive environment where everyone feels they can contribute.

Accessibility

We want you to perform your best at every stage in the recruitment process. If you are disabled or need any support to enable you to apply or attend an interview, please contact us at reasonable.adjustments@mottmac.com and we will talk to you about how we can support you.

Agile working  

We are happy to talk openly about flexible working and how we can support your responsibilities beyond the workplace. 

We offer some fantastic benefits including:

Health and wellbeing

• Private medical insurance for all UK colleagues.
• Health cash plan to support you with every day health costs and treatments.
• Access to Peppy, providing free support from menopause experts for all UK colleagues.
• A variety of wellbeing support is available through our comprehensive wellbeing program, including access for you and your family.
• Ability to flex your salary to opt into a wide range of health benefits, many of which can be extended to your family too.

Financial wellbeing

• We match employee pension contributions between 4.5% and 7%.
• Life assurance equal up to 4 x your basic salary, with an option to increase the level of cover to 6 x your salary.
• Our income protection scheme provides a financial benefit, as well as absence and return to work support due to long-term illness or injury.
• Flexible benefits, including increased life assurance cover, critical illness insurance, payroll saving and will writing.
• As an independently owned business we share the financial success of the business with all our colleagues in various ways including annual bonus schemes.

Lifestyle

• A minimum of 33-35 days holiday each year, inclusive of public holidays and dependent on level, with the ability to buy or sell leave through our flexible benefits programme.
• Holiday entitlement increased to a minimum of 35 days after 5 years’ service.
• Variety of employee saving schemes and discounts from high-street retailers.

 Enhanced family and carers leave

• Enhanced family leave policies, including 26 weeks paid maternity and adoption leave, and two weeks paid paternity/partner leave.
• Our shared parental leave matches maternity leave meaning we pay up to 24 weeks at full pay.
• Up to five additional days leave are provided for those with significant caring responsibilities, two of which are paid.

Learning and development

• Primary annual professional institution subscription.
• A broad range of opportunities to enhance both technical and soft skills through mentoring, formal training, and self-development options.

Networks, communities, and social outcomes

• Join a wide range of groups including our Advanced Employee Networks which support our LGBTQ+, gender, race and ethnicity, disability, and parents/carers communities.
• Make a difference within our communities through our social outcomes.

Apply now, or for more information about our application process, click here.