Maxwell Stephens Recruitment
Managing Director Estates
How your CV stacks up
Upload your CV to see how well it fits this job role
?%
Managing Director – Estates
Grounds Maintenance | Arboriculture | Winter Services
£100,000 – £150,000 + Bonus + Benefits
South East based, national remit
Reporting to the CEO
Let's be clear about one thing up front: this is not a surveying or building estates role. "Estates" here means the green and external side grounds maintenance, arboriculture, and winter services. Crews, plant, fleet, and depots. If your background is building surveying, hard FM, M&E, or property asset management, this isn't the one.
If you have built and grown a commercial grounds, arb, or winter services business, keep reading.
The business
Our client is a PE-backed national provider of external property services, operating across thousands of sites in the UK. The group has a clear, funded plan to double in size organically and through acquisition.
The Estates Division is the largest part of that business, bringing together grounds maintenance, arboriculture, and winter services under one leadership. It is an established, profitable operation with directly employed teams, and it now needs someone to take it to the next stage.
The role
You will own the division outright full P&L, strategy, operations, and people reporting directly to the CEO and sitting on the group senior leadership team.
Reasons to use Rodeo
Start with a chat, not a search bar
Grad scheme, placement, apprenticeship? Not sure what you want yet — that's fine. Your agent talks it through with you and turns "I have no idea" into a shortlist.
It searches the market for you
Every day your agent scans the market matching roles against what actually matters to you, not just keywords on a CV.
Only hits
No noise. No "maybe this fits." Just roles with a clear explanation of why they're right — and where to focus when applying.
The mandate is growth. Not caretaking.
- Own and grow the divisional P&L, improving both revenue and EBITDA
- Build the operating model and leadership team capable of supporting a business twice the size
- Win new work in competitive markets and deepen existing client relationships
- Drive productivity across a dispersed, seasonal, plant-and-fleet operation
- Support acquisitions — identification, diligence, and integration
- Champion the technology and data that make service delivery smarter
Who we are looking for
You are running, or have run, a commercial contracting business in grounds maintenance, landscaping, arboriculture, forestry, vegetation management, or winter services or a division of one.
You will bring:
- Full P&L ownership of a business or division, ideally in the £10m–£40m range
- A genuine growth record — revenue and margin you have moved, in competitive markets, with the numbers to prove it
- Self-delivery experience — directly employed crews, plant, vehicles, and depots, not just contract management
- National or multi-region operational leadership, with the seasonality that comes with this sector
- Commercial credibility with major clients, frameworks, and tenders
- Comfort in a PE-backed environment, ideally with acquisition experience
- An appetite for technology — route optimization, telematics, asset systems, operational data
Get help with your application
Your very own career expert that helps elevate your application to the next level.
Sector knowledge matters here. So does the ability to build a business. We are looking for both.
This is probably not for you if:
- Your background is building surveying, chartered surveying, or building estates management
- You have come through hard FM, M&E, building fabric, or technical services
- You have managed grounds or arb contracts client-side, in-house, or for a local authority, rather than delivering them commercially
- Your growth has come from renewals and captive customers rather than competitive wins
- You are looking for a steady divisional management role — this is a build
What is on offer
A genuinely autonomous divisional MD role in a well-backed business with an exit horizon, a supportive executive team, and a market position worth building on. Competitive base, bonus, and benefits, with the total package structured for someone who will be measured on what the division becomes.
Interested? Apply here, or contact Peter Forshaw at Maxwell Stephens directly for a confidential conversation.
Maxwell Stephens is the UK's leading specialist facilities and property services recruitment consultancy.
“It took my CV and asked me questions relevant to understanding what kind of jobs to suggest for me. Suggestions were almost perfect. Jobs were exactly what I’ve been looking for.”
Jessica, London
Skills
Location