Technical Director – Water Infrastructure  

Pattle Delamore Partners (PDP) is a leading environmental and engineering consultancy with a strong presence across Aotearoa. With more than 300 professionals nationwide, we bring together specialist expertise across air, land, and water to deliver practical, enduring solutions for people and place.

Our Hawke’s Bay team is well established, highly regarded, and deeply connected to the region. With a strong pipeline of work and trusted relationships across local government and the private sector, we are seeking a Technical Director to help grow and strengthen PDP’s three-waters presence in Hawke’s Bay and Gisborne.

This is an opportunity to step into a senior leadership role within one of New Zealand’s most capable three-waters consultancies, based in a region that offers both professional challenge and lifestyle.

About the role

As Technical Director, you will play a key leadership role within PDP, combining technical excellence with relationship management, business development, and people leadership. You will work closely with existing clients while identifying new opportunities to grow PDP’s three-waters offering across the region.

Based in our Napier office, you will collaborate with local colleagues and teams across the wider business, contributing to complex municipal and private sector projects while helping to build and lead a strong local team of engineers and scientists.

This role will suit an experienced three-waters leader who enjoys being close to clients, shaping work programmes, and mentoring people, while also having influence over the direction and future of the business.

What you will do

• Grow and strengthen PDP’s three-waters presence across Hawke’s Bay and Gisborne, expanding services in both municipal and private sectors.
• Build and maintain strong client relationships, supporting ongoing work and identifying new opportunities.
• Provide technical leadership across three-waters projects, ensuring high standards of quality, safety, and risk management.
• Lead and mentor staff, with the opportunity to further build and develop a local team.
• Manage projects and contribute to successful delivery across a range of scales and complexities.
• Work collaboratively with teams across the Napier office and the wider PDP network.
• Play an active leadership role within the business, contributing to strategic direction and long-term growth.

What you will bring

• A degree in Civil, Environmental, or Natural Resources Engineering.
• Significant experience in the three-waters sector, typically 15+ years in consulting.
• Recognition as a senior industry practitioner with strong technical credibility.
• Proven commercial acumen, including business development and project management experience.
• Established relationships within local government and the private sector.
• Strong leadership capability, with a collaborative, team-focused approach.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• A creative, solutions-focused mindset and a genuine interest in mentoring and developing others.

What we offer

• A senior leadership role with real influence over PDP’s regional presence and future direction.
• The opportunity to build on an established, respected Hawke’s Bay practice with strong client relationships.
• A pathway to shareholding for the right candidate.
• Competitive remuneration and a comprehensive benefits package.
• Flexible working arrangements to support balance and lifestyle.
• The chance to work on projects that make a meaningful difference to communities and the environment.
• An employee-owned consultancy with a strong culture, clear purpose, and long-term stability.

About PDP

Pattle Delamore Partners brings together multi-disciplinary expertise across engineering, science, planning, and advisory services. We believe in partnerships that matter, working closely with clients, iwi, and communities to deliver enduring outcomes.

As an employee-owned consultancy with nearly 40 years of experience, PDP offers a supportive environment where senior leaders can shape both projects and people, while contributing to outcomes that matter for Aotearoa.