The Operations Director is a key member of Cheshire West Recycling’s Executive Leadership Team and an Executive Member of the Board. They are accountable for the overall leadership, performance and delivery of all frontline services, ensuring they are delivered safely, efficiently, compliantly and to the required standard.
The role is responsible for the safe, efficient and compliant delivery of operational services, including household waste collection, household waste recycling centres, haulage operations, fleet services, and site based processing facilities such as the Materials Recovery Facility and bulking sites.
The postholder leads and holds accountability for Senior Managers responsible for operational delivery, materials and engineering, and performance, data, systems and ICT infrastructure, providing clear direction and pace to ensure services are delivered to the required standard. This includes ownership of operational performance, productivity, resource utilisation, material quality, system performance, data integrity and overall service outcomes.
Through these functions, the role holds end to end accountability for the delivery of frontline collection services, materials and asset management, and the systems, data and ICT infrastructure that underpin operational delivery, ensuring they are reliable, secure and aligned to business needs.
Working under the strategic direction of the Managing Director, the Operations Director translates organisational priorities into clear, deliverable plans and ensures consistent execution across all service areas. They are accountable for operational outcomes across the organisation, ensuring services are delivered at scale, to standard and in line with organisational and statutory requirements.
Principal Accountabilities
- Provide Leadership and Operational Oversight: Provide leadership and operational oversight of all frontline services, including collections, HWRCs, haulage, fleet, processing and engineering, ensuring safe, efficient and compliant service delivery.
- Regulatory and External Environment: Monitor changes in legislation, policy and sector developments, assessing their impact on operational services and ensuring appropriate planning, mitigation and response.
- Lead and Develop Senior Managers: Lead, support and develop Senior and Technical Managers, ensuring clear accountability for performance, standards and outcomes across all operational functions.
- Operational Performance and Productivity: Hold overall accountability for operational performance across the business, including productivity, service delivery, efficiency, resource utilisation, material quality, system performance, data integrity and customer outcomes.
- Financial and Resource Management: Ensure all operations are delivered in line with agreed budgets, staffing models and financial frameworks, driving efficiency, cost control and value for money.
- Legal, Regulatory and Safety Compliance: Act as the lead Director for operations, ensuring full compliance with legal, regulatory and safety requirements, including environmental and transport obligations.
- Operational Assurance and Standards: Oversee compliance with Operator Licence requirements, CMS (Competence Management System) and ISO standards, ensuring robust operational assurance and reporting to the Managing Director and Board.
- Business Continuity and Resilience: Lead operational business continuity planning and ensure resilience of services in response to disruption, peaks in demand and operational risk.
- Continuous Improvement: Drive continuous improvement across operations, embedding the Plan | Deliver | Review model to improve productivity, efficiency and service performance.
- Innovation and Service Development: Drive and deliver practical innovation across operations, identifying and implementing solutions that improve productivity, increase material recovery and value, reduce cost and enhance service and social value outcomes.
- Operational Efficiency and Value: Identify and implement opportunities to improve operational efficiency, generate income and maximise value from assets, workforce and supply chains.
- Data, Systems and ICT Infrastructure: Ensure effective use and continuous improvement of data, systems and ICT infrastructure, ensuring they support operational delivery, decision making and performance management.
- Service Mobilisation and Delivery: Lead the operational delivery of new services, contracts and mobilisation activity, ensuring successful implementation and transition into business as usual.
- Stakeholder and Commissioner Engagement: Work collaboratively with the shareholder and commissioning function to ensure operational delivery aligns with requirements, supports service development, and responds effectively to changing priorities. Develop and implement practical solutions that balance operational performance, cost and community outcomes.
- Social Value and Environmental Outcomes: Embed social value within operational delivery, ensuring services contribute to wider organisational objectives including environmental outcomes, community benefit and inclusive employment.
- Leadership and Culture: Act as a visible and engaged leader across the workforce, promoting a culture of safety, accountability, performance and continuous improvement.
- Governance and Compliance: Adhere to approved policies and procedures. Ensure work is delivered in line with CMS and ISO standards and take personal responsibility for handling personal and sensitive information in line with legislation and organisational requirements.
For full details and Person Specification, please download the Job Description below.
Applications to be submitted to: Recruitment@cwrecycling.co.uk by midday on Monday 13th April.