Head of Consultancy

We are seeking an experienced and dynamic Head of Consultancy to lead, grow, and develop our consulting practice, currently consisting of 11 professionals, with a target to scale to 20+ team members within the next three years. The successful candidate will play a pivotal role in expanding (2-3x) the practice’s revenue, profit, and reputation while maintaining the highest standards of service delivery and thought leadership in sustainability.

This role consists of three main aspects:

• leading the business unit from an operational and strategic perspective, leading the team, line management, and managing the P&L;
• being a subject matter expert in one of our sustainability topics, supporting project delivery and external engagement; and
• business development lead for consultancy projects with existing clients

The first two of these will be the primary focus of this role, with business development aspects supported by a BDM for the Consultancy business.

Leadership, Team Management and Operational Oversight (roughly 50% of your time)

• Develop and implement a strategic growth plan to at least double the consultancy’s revenue and profit within three years.
• Identify new market opportunities outside of construction/built environment and service lines aligned with Action Sustainability’s core values and expertise in supply chain sustainability, climate and carbon, modern slavery, social value, and ESG.
• Look at international expansion opportunities where appropriate, including where we can grow internationally with existing accounts (similar to the work we have done with Burger King and Serco).
• Drive productization of the consultancy business’ primary use cases.
• Build strong relationships with key clients and stakeholders, positioning Action Sustainability as a trusted leader in sustainability consulting.
• Work closely with the senior leadership team to align consulting services with the company’s overall strategy and objectives.
• Oversee the day-to-day operations of the consulting practice, ensuring the effective management of resources, budgets, and timelines.
• Implement processes and systems to improve operational efficiency, project management, and knowledge sharing.
• Maintain high standards of quality assurance, ensuring all deliverables meet Action Sustainability’s professional standards.
• Lead, inspire, and manage a growing team of consultants, fostering a collaborative and high-performing culture.
• Set and communicate a clear vision, mission, goals and KPIs for the consultancy team, regularly reviewing performance to ensure targets are met.
• Oversee recruitment, onboarding, and professional development to ensure the team’s capabilities align with business needs. Promote a culture of diversity, equity, and inclusion within the consultancy team.
• Act as a mentor to team members, providing guidance on project delivery, client management, and personal career development.
• Monitor client satisfaction and feedback, taking proactive steps to address any issues and enhance the client experience.

Subject Matter Expertise and Service Delivery (roughly 30% of your time)

• Leading on the delivery of project work and new engagements with the requisite subject matter expertise and knowledge around topics such as Carbon and Climate, Modern Slavery, social value to enable this.
• Work closely with service stream leads and subject matter experts across Action Sustainability to deliver for clients.
• Collaborate effectively across the Action Sustainability business, especially with the Schools
• Being a leading industry voice on behalf of Action Sustainability. This will include creating thoughtful thought leadership content; speaking at conferences, events and webinars; and helping curate School content as appropriate.
• Stay ahead of trends and emerging best practices in sustainability.
• Drive innovation in service offerings, ensuring Action Sustainability remains at the forefront of sustainability consulting.

Drive Growth and support Business Development (roughly 20% of your time)

• Lead high-level client engagements, ensuring consistent delivery of high-quality solutions that meet or exceed client expectations.
• Bring a new focus on value-based selling with the aim of increasing the average side of each project/account (moving average project size from £18k to £25k+).
• Build a robust pipeline of new business with existing clients through proactive relationship management, networking, and thought leadership.
• Oversee the preparation of high-quality proposals and bids, ensuring a high win rate for new projects with existing clients, but also working with the BDM for new clients
• Identify cross-sell and up-sell opportunities where a consultancy client may also buy Action Sustainability’s other products (the School and/or SaaS Tools).

Essential

• Extensive experience (10+ years) in sustainability consulting in a leadership role, and ideally coming from a high quality, growing boutique sustainability consulting firm.
• Proven track record of successfully growing and managing a consulting practice, including scaling teams and driving revenue growth.
• Deep expertise in one or more of Action Sustainability’s key subject areas including climate and carbon, supply chain sustainability, modern slavery, social value, and ESG frameworks. Demonstrated in a professional qualification such as MIEMA.
• Demonstrable experience in business development and client relationship management, with a strong commercial acumen.
• Strong operational management skills, including experience in setting and managing budgets, resource planning, and project delivery.
• Proven ability to lead, inspire, and develop teams, with a focus on building a high-performance culture. Must have gravitas and be able to build credible relationships internally and externally.
• Excellent communication and presentation skills, with the ability to engage effectively with senior stakeholders in order to make the technical more understandable.
• Experience in preparing winning proposals and bids, with a track record of success in competitive markets.

Desirable

• Familiarity with key sustainability standards, frameworks, and reporting mechanisms, such as ISO 20400, GRI, SASB, TCFD, or the UN SDGs.
• Existing network of senior-level contacts within the sustainability field.
• Experience working in a boutique consultancy environment.

• Gravitas – You are an impressive and credible communicator able to build strong relationships and command respect within the business and from prospects/clients.
• Visionary Leader – You have the ability to set a clear direction and inspire others to follow.
• Entrepreneurial Mindset – You are driven by results, comfortable with ambiguity, and able to identify and seize new opportunities.
• Curious & Smart – Able to quickly pick up new topics and plug gaps in knowledge around new sustainability topics and trends through self-driven learning. Constantly looking to develop new knowledge in our space.
• Collaborative – You foster strong relationships, both internally and externally, and thrive in a team-oriented environment.
• Client-Focused – You are passionate about delivering exceptional value to clients and exceeding their expectations.
• Resilient – You remain composed under pressure and are able to navigate complex challenges with confidence.
• Ethical & Purpose-Driven – You share Action Sustainability’s commitment to driving positive change and sustainability.
• Analytical & Strategic Thinker – You can quickly grasp complex concepts and develop effective strategies to address client needs.
• Structured & Organised – You must have a good eye for detail and be highly organised.