Geotechnical Design Manager

Retained Search by May Consulting for Quinn Piling

May Consulting has been engaged by Quinn Piling to appoint a Geotechnical Design Manager — a role that sits right at the point where engineering judgement, ground behaviour and commercial delivery meet. Quinn Piling is a company with deep technical heritage in foundations and piling, operating across Ireland and the UK, and this position has been created to strengthen the front end of project design, ensuring the work they pursue is safe, buildable and commercially sound.

This isn’t a sales role. It’s not about hitting the phones or chasing leads. This is about taking an engineer — someone who understands soil conditions, piling methodology and why ground behaves the way it does — and placing them where they can make impact early. You’ll be the person who reads a ground investigation report and already sees the risks. The person who can look at drawings and imagine how the piles sit, how temporary works should be approached and what the cost and programme really mean on site. When a tender lands, you will be the one shaping it — developing methodology, modelling solutions and preparing designs that reflect reality, not hope.

You will work closely with engineers and operational delivery teams, guiding decisions that ultimately decide whether a bid is won and whether the project that follows performs as expected. You’ll help refine the company’s design approach, and champion buildability and value engineering from the outset. This is a role where an analytical mind matters, where curiosity is rewarded, and where technical credibility earns trust quickly. It’s also a role with leadership weight — you’ll oversee a small internal team, support their development, and raise the quality and consistency of design output across the business.

The right person for this will come from the world of piling or geotechnical engineering. Someone who knows what CFA, rotary bored and driven piles look like when the rain is horizontal on site. Someone who understands soil parameters, drainage, load paths and temporary works limitations — and who enjoys translating that into solutions that win work. You might already be designing; you may currently be a Project Engineer or Geotechnical Engineer ready for your next step. What matters most is that you are steady, technically grounded, commercially aware, and confident enough to form a view — then stand behind it.

The role can be based in Ireland or the UK, with travel as required. Salary and package will reflect experience, and you’ll join at a level where your work makes a visible difference. If you want a position where you’re close to decisions rather than buried under hierarchy, where engineering thinking influences tender outcomes directly, and where good judgement matters more than corporate politics, this could be the right move.

If you’d like a confidential conversation, I’d be very happy to speak.

Gerry May — May Consulting

This position is now closed.