Masterplanning Integration Lead

Location/s: Any major Mott MacDonald office
Recruiter contact: Aoife Cullen

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 unit  
The Buildings Unit (BLD) has a major presence in Mott MacDonald's regional offices throughout the UK and mainland Europe, providing a wide range of diverse and transferable cross-sector skills across five key Sectors; Advisory, Built Environment, Energy, Transportation and Water. We also provide local services to customers and technical leadership to the rest of the Group in these sectors.  

Overview of the role

This role sits within our Cities Studio team which forms part of the Buildings Unit. We provide strategic planning, placemaking, masterplanning, economic development and appraisal services to public and private clients. Our projects are in towns and cities, as well as industrial markets such as energy, transport and defence. Our aim is to fully realise the potential of our front-end consultancy skills to increase Mott MacDonald’s market profile from the earliest stages of strategy development and project creation.

We are recruiting for an individual who will undertake a leadership and technical integration role on large masterplanning and infrastructure-led projects, such as urban/town centre regeneration and industrial/energy sites. Projects will be characterised by complex infrastructure requirements, strategic planning and economic drivers for change, and a need to plan flexibly for 10-15 year evolution of land use. Our clients include Local Authorities, arms-length public bodies and private site owners/promoters. Typical project deliverables are masterplans, development frameworks, technical due diligence studies and infrastructure delivery plans. Our recent project portfolio includes Future Port Talbot, West Burton and Bristol Temple Quarter.

Significant career development opportunities will be available including a diverse portfolio of projects with local and national prominence, plus high exposure to clients and wider stakeholders. By working closely with urban designers, engineers, economists, town planners and other disciplines, you will develop a holistic understanding of the UK built environment. There will be opportunities to progress to more senior roles offering greater levels of responsibility and assisting in business development.

Key responsibilities and duties include:

• Define a bespoke technical methodology for project delivery, including:
  • Producing bids and project plans that respond to a complex and ambiguous brief with a clear, logical sequence of activities
  • Defining the scope and level of detail for evidence-base inputs which are proportionate to support primary masterplan deliverables, such as technical feasibility studies, due diligence, and capacity testing
  • Validating and refining the methodology with internal and external stakeholders to ensure the client’s strategic needs are embedded
• Lead and coordinate a structured process, including:
  • Consistently articulating the ‘big picture’ of a project and how technical inputs contribute towards this outcome
  • Intelligent commissioning, managing and integrating between urban designers, infrastructure engineers, transport planners, town planners, economists and environmental specialists
  • Accommodating flexibility and iteration through refinement of options/scenarios, assumptions logs and risk registers
• Client and stakeholder engagement, including:
  • Be a visible team project team leader (internally and externally) to set the collaborative culture and give confidence that the project has a ‘steady hand’
  • Prepare agendas, presentations and facilitate meetings/workshops which share work-in-progress outputs, explore technical issues and achieve progressive client buy-in
  • Act as the interface who translates between technical and non-technical. You do not need to be an expert, but you need to know enough to interpret technical risks and opportunities and communicate them to non-technical stakeholders
• Produce (or oversee) deliverables that:
  • Interpret, extract and synthesise outputs from multiple technical disciplines into a coherent and concise, written report
  • Communicate key risks/opportunities/unknowns to advise clients on decision-making and future stages of work
  • Contribute towards an overall design/planning/placemaking narrative case for change
  • Fulfil Mott MacDonald standards for competent checking and approval

Candidate specification

Essential:

• Degree qualification in a built environment discipline, such as engineering, urban design, town planning, estate management or transport planning
• Project experience in early stages of large and complex UK planning projects, such as infrastructure-led masterplans
• A broad understanding of the built environment. Someone who has not restricted themselves to ‘staying in their box’ and has naturally developed a proficiency in adjacent technical disciplines
• Excellent oral, written communication and stakeholder engagement skills
• Ability to take ownership, organise and drive a structured methodology
• Proactive, collaborative and flexible leadership of multi-disciplinary teams

Desirable:

• Project management skills – able to control budgets, programme, quality systems and reporting
• Chartered status, or working towards chartership, with a relevant professional institution (e.g. RIBA, RTPI, CIBSE, IStructE, ICE, CIOB or equivalent)
• Business development skills – able to build and maintain relationships with internal and external stakeholders
• Sector-specific knowledge such as energy/industry, transport hubs, defence and urban regeneration
• Experience in contract administration and contract management
• Experience supporting business cases and economic appraisals
• Security clearance or eligibility to obtain security clearance

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.

Agile working  

At Mott MacDonald, we believe it makes business sense for you and your manager to choose how you can work most effectively to meet your client, team, and personal commitments. We offer a hybrid working policy that embraces your well-being, flexibility, and trust.

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.

AI Usage

At Mott MacDonald, we see the value AI can bring, but we take a people-first approach to hiring. While AI tools can help candidates prepare and build confidence, every application and hiring decision is reviewed by our recruitment and hiring teams. We encourage the responsible use of AI while ensuring we get to know the real person behind the application.

Accessibility

We want you to feel supported and able to perform at your best throughout our recruitment process. If there is anything we can do to make applying or interviewing with us more accessible, please contact us at reasonable.adjustments@mottmac.com and we'll be happy to discuss how we can help.

We offer some fantastic benefits including:

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.

Employee Ownership

• Our employee ownership model means no external investors, just us, creating a culture of shared success.
• Our employees have a stake and a voice in our business, giving them a direct connection to our success through our personal and group performance bonuses.
• As your career grows, so does your stake, recognising your long-term impact and contribution.
• Your voice matters, with the opportunity to connect directly with senior leadership through formal channels to help shape our future.
• For our senior roles you will have a direct pathway towards ownership from day one.

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.

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.
• 10 days additional paid leave for Armed Forces Reservists and Cadet Force Adult Volunteers.
• 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.
• We offer policies and dedicated support to help military families balance service life with career and wellbeing.

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.
• We are proud signatories of the Armed Forces Covenant and Gold Award holders in the MOD Employer Recognition Scheme, supported by our dedicated internal Armed Forces Network.
• Make a difference within our communities through our social outcomes.

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