Infrastructure and Compliance Operations Leader

Job Introduction

Job Description for Infrastructure and Compliance Operations Leader:

There’s never been a more exciting time to be part of the nuclear sector. New opportunities are being created all the time. At NNL, you’ll be in the ideal place to capitalise on this momentum, face new challenges and develop a long, successful and meaningful career. 

We’re an organisation that’s here to experiment and push the limits of what’s possible. So, if you’re keen to excel in your chosen field, this is the place to do it. Because at NNL, anything is possible.

The Operations Leader is a prominent position of authority within NNL supporting the Head of Infrastructure Compliance in discharging accountabilities to ensure the company's continued compliance to all regulations governing the nuclear industry and site licence conditions. The role holder shall be accountable for the overall safety, including nuclear, conventional, industrial, radiological and environmental, by supporting and managing implementation of Site standards, Policies, Processes and Procedures within their area(s) of responsibility.  

The ideal candidate will be experienced in working in a regulatory capacity, holding people accountable, be detail orientated, and able to work to stringent deadlines in a high hazard industry.

Role Responsibility

Main Responsibilities for Infrastructure and Compliance Operations Leader:

• Ensuring effective arrangements are in place to robustly ensure overall safety of the facility, including nuclear, conventional, industrial, radiological and environmental aspects, when required adopting conservative decision making to pursue and secure resolutions to new or emergent EHSS&Q issues and the undertaking of investigations to derive learning.
• Leadership to the IC operations team, safety case and operations support areas – setting a clear and ambitious direction, ensuring growth and development of the team to ensure capacity and capability meets business needs, facilitating implementation of proportionate approaches, ensuring the delivery of company and facility objectives through development of team operational excellence objectives and performance standards, maintaining appropriate team oversight, while empowering team members to take the initiative and personal responsibility for decisions, actions, and service levels.
• Chairing and attendance at safety forums / committees – shaping the agenda and direction, providing robust governance and challenge with respect to facility arrangements.
• Maintain awareness of the impact and implications of current and upcoming legislation and regulatory and other compliance requirements such as shifts in licensee arrangements to proactively position the business in preparing the business for change.
• Undertake stakeholder engagements internal and external at a range of levels, such as leading on regulatory interactions and being the primary interface on all operational matters with the site licensee.
• Responsible for assisting the Head of Compliance in delivering the company values and vision throughout the department, maintaining a forward vision (12 months plus) to develop and implement the systems and processes in doing what is right for NNL.
• Responsible for assisting the Head of Compliance in financial forecasting, controlling the facility budget and ensuring it remains within parameters for forecasted targets.
• Champion and communicate continuous improvement seeking the review and refinement of current approaches, practices and solutions and identify opportunities to introduce best practice improvements from the wider business sector and industry.

The Ideal Candidate

Essential Criteria for Infrastructure and Compliance Operations Leader:

• Thorough knowledge with proven experience of managing operations within high hazard facilities, preferably nuclear operations.
• Degree qualified in a scientific discipline.
• Proven evidence of self-motivation with demonstrable levels of drive, energy and resilience.
• Proven experience in developing, managing people and of holding team members to account.
• Excellent problem solving skills at an operational level.
• Demonstrable experience of dealing with stakeholders at all levels to influence and resolve conflict.
• Commitment to continuous improvement, holding experience of delivering improvements and proposing alternatives to established approaches.
• Ability to obtain SC level security clearance (this includes but is not limited to identity, employment, financial and criminal record checks plus 5 years’ worth of UK residency).

Desirable Criteria for Infrastructure and Compliance Operations Leader:

• Thorough awareness of Safety Case implementation methodology.
• Experience in incident and emergency response situations.
• NEBOSH Certificate / Diploma in OHS.
• Good financial awareness and proven experience of managing an operational facility budget.
• Regulatory liaison experience.

About the Company

Grounded in robust science and decades of experience, National Nuclear Laboratory (NNL) is the authoritative voice in the UK and beyond for technological development within the nuclear power sector.

Our unparalleled understanding of the science, challenges and opportunities makes us an unrivalled authority and partner in the field, providing experts, technologies, and access to cutting-edge facilities to organisations around the world.

Harnessing potential technologies and translating them into to industry-ready solutions means our pioneering approach spearheads international improvement and technological progress.

We work on projects as small as drilling a hole to analyse underground wastes with our integrated micro drilling technology, or as large as developing state-of-the-art power systems for spacecraft, based on radioactive materials

NNL has a vision for Equality, Diversity and Inclusivity (ED&I) where NNL aims to be an inclusive workplace that attracts diverse talent through transparent and equal policies and procedures. We want you and the diverse mix of people that we employ, customers that we service and stakeholders that we influence to feel valued. We encourage a workplace culture where everyone can thrive with a sense of belonging.

Recruitment Agency Notice

We operate a strict Preferred Supplier List (PSL) for the provision of recruitment services. Only agencies on our PSL may provide CVs and only when the role is released to them by our recruitment team. We will not accept unsolicited CVs from suppliers not currently on our PSL. We explicitly reserve the right to add candidate details from unsolicited CVs from non-PSL agencies into our own candidate database and to pursue/hire such candidate(s) without any obligation, financial or otherwise, to the agency concerned.

National Nuclear Laboratory