Ecology Practice Manager

Role Overview

• Lead the delivery of best‑practice ecological advice, providing tailored and pragmatic solutions to clients across a range of sectors.
• Collaborate with other SLR practices to deliver integrated, high‑quality projects and competitive proposals.
• Provide visible leadership on priority projects, from opportunity identification through to delivery, retaining hands‑on technical involvement to maintain expertise and mentor team members.
• Act as a senior technical authority on ecological assessments, impact assessments, and biodiversity management within the NSW regulatory framework.
• Manage workforce planning, resourcing, and utilisation for the NSW ecology team, collaborating with peers to balance workloads across regions where required.
• Identify and pursue regional market and business development opportunities aligned with SLR’s strategic priorities and growth objectives.
• Support and contribute to business development activities, ensuring sustained growth, strong client outcomes, and achievement of commercial performance targets.
• Ensure effective project management systems, utilisation, and performance metrics are implemented in collaboration with the Ecology Practice Lead.
• Mentor, coach, and develop staff at all levels, fostering a high‑performance, collaborative, and engaged team culture.
• Undertake and oversee technical and peer reviews to maintain quality, consistency, and compliance with SLR standards.
• Build and maintain strong professional relationships with clients and colleagues across SLR, supporting a cohesive One Team culture.

Requirements

• Tertiary qualifications in ecology, environmental science, environmental management, natural resources, or a related discipline and accreditation as a BAM Assessor.
• Extensive experience in ecological consulting within NSW, with deep knowledge of biodiversity legislation, assessment frameworks, and approvals pathways.
• Proven capability leading complex ecological projects in a consulting environment, including management of budgets, resources, risk, and competing priorities.
• Strong commercial acumen, with demonstrated experience in business development, client relationship management, and contributing to revenue growth.
• Established industry reputation, professional networks, and credibility with clients, regulators, and key stakeholders.
• Demonstrated operational and people leadership experience within a technical consulting or professional services environment.
• Ability to lead teams to meet delivery timelines, utilisation targets, and broader performance objectives.
• Experience delivering ecological components of large, multidisciplinary projects and collaborating effectively across technical disciplines and geographic regions.
• Highly developed communication skills, with the ability to clearly influence, advise, and engage in both written and verbal contexts.
• Collaborative leadership style aligned with a One Team culture, enabling strong cross‑practice and cross‑region outcomes.
• Strategic, solutions‑focused mindset, with strong analytical, decision‑making, and problem‑solving capability.

Benefits

• We are proud of our unique culture where we work together to collaborate on projects to get the best possible outcome for our clients. Whether you’re working in the office, from home or a mix of the two, we recognise that every person is different, and our benefits aim to ensure that we cater for all. You can find a comprehensive list here.