Executive Director, Place Operations

Executive Director, Place Operations

Role ID: 204117

Directorate: Place Operations

Team: Place Operations

Location: Flexible

Grade/Salary range: £99,000 - £141,000

Working pattern: Full time - 37 hours per week

Working hours: 37.00

Contract type: Permanent

Welsh Language level: A1 – Beginner

Closing date: 21/09/2026

The role

Join Natural Resources Wales as our Executive Director, Place Operations, and play a leading role in shaping the future of Wales' largest Welsh Government-sponsored body.

Natural Resources Wales (NRW) plays a vital role in the sustainable management of Wales' natural resources, helping to ensure that people and nature can thrive now and for future generations.

We are strengthening our focus on place-based delivery and transforming how our strategies and policies are translated into meaningful action on the ground.

This is an opportunity to join a refreshed Executive Team and help shape the next chapter of NRW, ensuring we are equipped to meet the environmental, social and economic challenges of the future.

As Executive Director, Place Operations, you will lead NRW's operational and regulatory services across Wales, turning strategic ambition into tangible outcomes for communities, businesses and the natural environment. Your leadership will directly influence how we protect and enhance Wales' natural resources, respond to major environmental challenges, and deliver lasting public value across the country.

You will lead a significant and diverse portfolio, ensuring services are delivered safely, consistently and effectively while balancing environmental outcomes, public value, customer needs and organisational priorities. Working across a complex and constantly evolving landscape, you will navigate competing demands, build organisational resilience and drive continuous improvement in the way NRW delivers for the people of Wales.

As a member of the Executive Team, you will contribute to the overall leadership of NRW, helping to shape organisational strategy, influence national priorities and support collective decision making. You will take responsibility not only for your own portfolio but also for the success and long-term sustainability of NRW as a whole.

We're looking for a leader who can build trust and confidence with a wide range of stakeholders. You will work closely with Welsh Government, regulators, partners, communities and businesses, developing strong relationships that enable collaboration, influence and shared outcomes. You will represent NRW at the most senior levels and act as a visible ambassador for the organisation.

A key aspect of the role is creating the conditions for others to succeed. You will develop leaders, champion wellbeing and inclusion, and foster a culture where people feel valued, supported and empowered to perform at their best. Through courageous, authentic and compassionate leadership, you will bring people together around a shared purpose and help lead NRW through future challenges and opportunities.

This is an opportunity to shape the future of Natural Resources Wales and make a lasting contribution to the people, places and natural environment of Wales.

As an organisation we support flexible working. You will be contracted to the nearest NRW office to your home and a suitable hybrid working pattern will be agreed on appointment. Any regular face to face meetings or training will be planned in advance.

To discuss this opportunity

As an organisation we support flexible working. You will be contracted to the nearest NRW office to your home and a suitable hybrid working pattern will be agreed on appointment. Any regular face to face meetings or training will be planned in advance.

What you will do

• Leadership and organisational contribution
• Contribute to collective Executive Team leadership and organisational performance.
• Demonstrate corporate leadership and accountability for the success of NRW as a whole, beyond the boundaries of the directorate.
• Provide executive leadership to approximately 1,253 staff through seven Heads of Place, setting clear expectations for performance, accountability, inclusion, wellbeing, leadership capability and delivery across Wales.
• Lead through multiple layers of senior management, ensuring that leadership expectations, organisational priorities, performance standards and cultural expectations are understood and delivered consistently across Wales.
• Model NRW values and inclusive leadership, setting clear expectations, accountability and high standards of behaviour.
• Demonstrate courageous and ethical leadership, making evidence-based decisions and taking responsibility for organisational outcomes and challenges.
• Act as a visible and credible organisational leader, communicating with clarity, authenticity and influence across a diverse range of audiences.
• Champion NRW's wellbeing objective, promoting a culture that supports employee wellbeing, inclusion, engagement and sustainable organisational performance.
• Hold senior leaders to account for operational delivery, regulatory compliance, staff wellbeing, capability development, financial stewardship and performance outcomes.
• Build leadership capability and lead on workforce development, succession planning and organisational resilience.