AECOM Advisory – Senior Director (Defence)

Overview

In this Senior Director role within AECOM Advisory, you lead business development and delivery across the defence sector, guiding multiple delivery teams and shaping strategic engagements for senior stakeholders. You work closely with cross-functional experts to win work, manage client relationships at C-suite level, and ensure high-quality, compliant solutions. You will drive thought leadership and practice development while mentoring staff, contributing to a mission-driven, collaborative culture. This is a high-impact opportunity to influence major defence programs and infrastructure insights within a global advisory team.

Pay / Benefits

• hybrid work options
• competitive compensation and well-being programs
• global firm with opportunities
• focus on equity, diversity, and inclusion
• transformational work with big impact
• access to industry-leading technology and thinking

Responsibilities

• Identify and originate business development opportunities through industry networks and targeted campaigns
• Define and shape business development campaigns leveraging industry expertise and commercial acumen
• Oversee end-to-end business development activities: client outreach, proposals, solutions architecture, pricing strategy, risk and compliance
• Lead and quality-control multiple delivery teams across diverse models and scopes
• Manage client interactions on progress and insights, including engagement with C-suite and senior management
• Coordinate inputs from peers and experts to address technical scope, client satisfaction, and commercial constraints
• Architect analytical workstreams and guide engagement teams
• Ensure timely quality assurance over scope, analyses, and deliverables
• Oversee narrative development and polished deliverables to meet client and firm standards
• Drive practice development through performance appraisals, FP&A, and thought leadership
• Coach and mentor staff

Key requirements

• Proven seller-doer track record in management consulting
• ≥10 years of management consulting or related industry experience
• Bachelor’s degree
• Deep defence sector knowledge and a strong professional network in MOD or OEMs
• Exceptional interpersonal, client-service mindset, and advisory credibility
• Ability to operate in a high-tempo, high-context client-facing environment under pressure
• Self-directed, collaborative, and able to navigate a devolved, matrixed organization
• Strong verbal communication and narrative development skills for executive audiences
• Commercial acumen with informed point-of-view on enterprise challenges (people, process, technology)
• Domain expertise across: corporate/enterprise strategy, market analysis, operating model design, transformation, corporate finance and project finance
• Experience in capital projects advisory and infrastructure investment appraisal
• Knowledge of economic development and market transformation

• Interpersonal excellence
• Client-service orientation
• Poise under pressure
• Solutions architecture
• Commercial and pricing strategy
• Industry analysis and target operating model design

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