Major Projects – Head of Engineering
Purpose
Own and lead the engineering function for major projects and contracts across the sector. Accountable for engineering strategy, delivery, technical governance, and safety, ensuring all projects are executed to the required standard, on time and to budget, in full compliance with DB procedures and regulatory requirements.
This role spans proposals, project delivery, and technical assurance, and exists to make sure engineering does not become the bottleneck, the risk, or the excuse.
Key Responsibilities
Engineering Leadership & Governance
- Set, maintain, and enforce engineering standards, processes, procedures, and governance frameworks across all major projects.
- Ensure all engineering activity is delivered by suitably qualified and experienced personnel (SQEP).
- Own technical compliance, assurance, and safety execution in line with DB procedures and regulatory obligations.
- Review, challenge, and approve engineering execution strategies alongside Project Managers and Project Engineering Managers.
Project Delivery & Performance
- Support Project Directors, Project Managers, and Site Managers to ensure engineering delivery aligns with agreed scope, specification, programme, and cost.
- Monitor engineering performance against schedule and budget; intervene decisively where performance deviates.
- Drive corrective action, continuous improvement, and lessons learned across the portfolio.
- Ensure engineering inputs enable project delivery.
Resource Strategy & Capability
- Lead engineering resource planning with Operations: deployment, utilisation, succession, training, development, and recruitment planning.
- Build and mobilise project-specific engineering teams aligned to project risk, complexity, and delivery requirements.
- Develop engineering capability to meet current and future workload demands.
Business Development & Proposals
- Act as the primary engineering interface to Business Development.
- Support bids and proposals, including defining scope, execution approach, and estimating engineering hours and resource requirements.
- Ensure proposals are technically sound, deliverable, and aligned with DB standards.
Supply Chain & Standards
- Provide engagement and oversight of engineering standards applied across the supply chain.
- Ensure suppliers and partners meet DB technical, safety, and quality expectations.
Innovation & Best Practice
- Identify, champion, and deploy best practice, innovation, and efficiency improvements within legal, regulatory, and industry standards.
- Drive standardisation where it improves delivery, quality, and margin.
Leadership & Culture
- Lead by example, embedding OneWay and HU leadership behaviours.
- Build a high-performance engineering culture focused on accountability, collaboration, and delivery excellence.
- Position DB as a contractor of choice through engineering credibility and execution strength.
Skills & Experience
- Degree qualified in a relevant engineering discipline.
- Chartered Engineer status.
- Significant senior engineering management experience within the process sector.
- Proven track record of leading large, multi-disciplinary engineering teams on complex projects.
- Strong commercial and financial acumen, with sound knowledge of governance and control.
- Clear, confident communicator with the authority to challenge, influence, and lead at all levels.
