Programme Director - Science Transformation Programme

Location: Based at Kew Gardens (Southwest London) with regular travel required including to Wakehurst and Reading sites. There will be the option of regular home working, subject to operational requirements.

The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew is a world-famous, collections-based scientific organisation, internationally respected for its outstanding collections as well as its expertise in plant and fungal diversity, conservation and sustainable development in the UK and around the world. It has two main botanic garden sites: Kew Gardens in south-west London, a top London visitor attraction and UNESCO World Heritage Site, and Wakehurst in West Sussex, our wild botanic garden which is home to the Millennium Seed Bank. We also have a permanent research office in Madagascar, one of the world’s biodiversity hotspots. The Science Directorate has over 750 staff and students committed to achieving Kew’s mission to understand and protect plants and fungi for the well-being of people and the future of all life on Earth.

Our aspiration to end the extinction crisis and to help create a world where nature is protected, valued by all and managed sustainably requires Kew to invest in our people, our collections, and our science facilities. We have already started this ambitious programme by commencing the full digitisation of our herbarium and fungarium collections.

The Programme Director – Science Transformation Programme is a newly created post within the Science Directorate’s senior leadership team, leading a multidisciplinary team and overseeing a budget of over £100m. Reporting to the Director of Science, you will have responsibility for driving  Kew’s flagship science transformation programme, building a new herbarium off site from Kew Gardens that will ensure the long-term security and provide future capacity for our spirit and dried plant collections of over seven million specimens. This will unlock the potential for creation of new science and collaboration infrastructure at the Kew Gardens site.

You will have a successful track record of successfully proposing, planning and delivering large-scale, high profile and complex projects related to research infrastructure and accompanying organisational change, ideally within a science-focused environment. Additionally, you will bring experience and evidence of being a highly influential communicator with senior stakeholders both externally and internally and be confident in leading and inspiring multidisciplinary teams, including through periods of significant organisational change.

The Royal Botanic Gardens Kew has appointed executive search specialists Veredus to support us with this appointment. For further information about the role and to apply, please visit: www.veredus.co.uk   quoting reference 15174.

Closing date: 23:55 GMT Sunday 28th January 2024