ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR - ENGINEERING OPERATIONS

Step into a pivotal engineering leadership role with genuine influence across people, projects and performance.

Decobu is an established Australian building services engineering consultancy delivering Mechanical, Electrical, Hydraulic and Fire Protection Engineering services across the building and construction industry.

We are seeking an experienced and commercially astute Associate Director - Engineering Operations to lead the day-to-day performance of our multidisciplinary engineering teams.

Reporting directly to the Director - Head of Engineering, you will act as the operational second-in-command, translating business priorities into practical action and ensuring our people, projects and resources perform effectively.

This is a hands-on leadership role with genuine influence across project delivery, team development, engineering quality, commercial performance and continuous improvement.

What You’ll Do

Engineering Leadership & People Management

Provide day-to-day leadership across our multidisciplinary engineering teams, acting as operational second-in-command to the Director - Head of Engineering. Coach and develop team members while building a culture of accountability, collaboration and high performance.

Project Delivery & Technical Oversight

Oversee the successful delivery of multidisciplinary projects, ensuring appropriate resourcing, coordination, technical quality and compliance. Identify project risks early and lead practical recovery actions where required.

Maintain oversight of project budgets, fee performance, forecasts,



variations, work in progress, invoicing and profitability. Strengthen commercial awareness and accountability across project teams.

Client Relationships & Business Development

Build trusted relationships with clients, consultants, contractors and other project stakeholders while supporting proposals, tenders, presentations and business development opportunities.

Operational Management & Continuous Improvement

Coordinate day-to-day engineering operations, team capacity and resource allocation. Lead practical improvements to systems, processes, productivity and interdisciplinary coordination.

Management Reporting & Performance Accountability

Provide transparent and timely reporting on resources, project delivery, financial performance and operational risks. Establish clear expectations, monitor performance and ensure agreed actions are followed through.

What Success Looks Like

Success in this role means building a high-performing and accountable engineering team that consistently delivers quality projects and strong commercial outcomes.

You will be successful when:

- Projects are appropriately planned, resourced and delivered to agreed scope, programme,



budget and quality expectations.
- Project leaders confidently manage their teams, projects and commercial responsibilities.
- Multidisciplinary coordination, technical oversight and project risk management are consistent and effective.
- Financial performance is clearly understood, actively managed and accurately reported.
- Clients receive coordinated, responsive and dependable service, supported by practical improvements to workflows and operational performance.

Through clear reporting, practical leadership and continuous improvement, you will enable the Director - Head of Engineering to focus on strategic priorities while maintaining confidence in the day-to-day performance of the engineering function.

About You

You are an experienced building services engineering leader who combines technical credibility with commercial judgement and a practical, people-focused leadership style.

You understand that successful engineering leadership is not only about producing technically sound designs. It is also about developing capable people, coordinating resources, delivering projects efficiently and maintaining strong commercial discipline.

You will bring:

- A relevant tertiary qualification in Mechanical, Electrical, Hydraulic, Fire Protection or a related engineering discipline.
- More than 10 years of post-graduate experience in building services engineering consultancy.
- Demonstrated experience leading multidisciplinary engineering teams.
- Strong knowledge of building services d

📌 Associate Director (Australia)
🏢 Decobu
📍 Australia