Director of Operations

Location: National - regular face to face interaction with colleagues across all MMO sites in England, including our headquarters in Newcastle will be required.

Driven by government’s aim for clean, healthy, safe, productive and biologically diverse oceans and seas, MMO’s purpose is to protect and enhance our precious marine environment, and support UK economic growth by enabling sustainable marine activities and development. We are the independent regulator for England’s seas, professionally delivering service-focussed outcomes for our customers through our team of 400 colleagues located across the UK. Working as an accountable, innovative, inclusive and engaging organisation, our values guide us as we seek to deliver sustainability, protect marine habitats and administer support to critical parts of UK industry. This is a really exciting time to join the MMO as we become an independent coastal state, embedding new repatriated functions and services with an increased focus on the protection and enhancing of the marine environment. 

The Director of Operations role is a key role within the MMO senior leadership team reporting to our Chief Executive and responsible for nearly half of our workforce. The role holder will provide a critical contribution to the delivery of MMO ambitions by ensuring effective, efficient and outcome focused delivery across our fisheries management, marine protection and assurance services. You will be directly responsible for delivery on the ground, through managing and leading national geographically dispersed teams, spread across 17 locations in coastal rural locations, supporting customers in accessing support to enable them to meet statutory and regulatory compliance. This role will provide strong and supportive leadership to around 190 colleagues which include both marine specialists and generalists in delivering our services and shaping the future of our seas.

You will be an experience leader of multi-functional, multi-site operational services with a demonstrable track record of driving improvement in service performance and employee engagement. You will be comfortable and effective engaging and influencing at executive team and board level, alongside building strong working relationships with our key enforcement partners and industry. Whilst this experience does not need to have been gained within the marine environment, you will display and interest and affinity to the work we do and environment we serve. Culture is as critical as capability, and you will lead in a way that reflects personal values in line with our own as an organisation.

We are engaging with our advising consultants, GatenbySanderson, on the recruitment of this leadership appointment. For further information about this role, click Apply, or alternatively for a confidential discussion, please contact Matt Malone at GatenbySanderson on 07471 037070.

Closing date: 31st October 2021