Astute People
Operations Manager

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Operations Manager
Astute Technical Recruitment are working with an industry leader within Waste & Energy from Waste and are looking for an Operations Manager to lead the Operations Team, managing the day to day activities and ultimately ensuring that the plant is operated in a safe and efficient manner resulting in the achievement of production targets.
The site currently burns approximately 160,000 tonnes of refuse derived fuel per year, producing steam which is exported to a local site for power generation and use within the district heating scheme.
If you have the relevant experience (please see below) and are looking for a rewarding role in the Power sector, then please apply.
Responsibilities and Duties
As the Operations Manager, you will be responsible for:
- Overall responsibility for the safe and efficient operation of the plant
- The day to day management of 20 + operations staff including shift teams and operations day staff
- Ensuring the EfW plant operates and complies within environmental regulations at all times
- Liaising with the Maintenance Manager and other relevant personnel regarding projects, maintenance, outages, and programming of plant improvements
- Overseeing 3rd party contractors
- Preparing the annual budget for the operations department for review and working within this budget
- Liaising with company directors and managers as well as external stakeholders such as contractors, principal client, and the environmental agency
- Deputising for the General Manager and Maintenance Manager when required
Reasons to use Rodeo
I’m in my final year doing Economics and I don’t know whether to apply for grad schemes now or do a masters first. What do you think?
Honest answer — it depends on where you want to end up. A lot of top grad schemes (Big 4, civil service, banking) don’t need a masters. Let’s look at the ones you’d be competitive for now, and we can decide if a masters actually adds anything.
Also worth knowing: most autumn 2026 applications are open now. Timing matters more than you think.
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Graduate Consultant — 2026 Scheme
Why you're a good match
StrongYour economics background and your summer at a regional bank line up with what PwC looks for on the consulting scheme. Applications close in four weeks.
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Why you're a good match
You’ve got the grades and the economics background, and your bank internship is exactly the experience this scheme looks for. Apply soon — deadlines close within the month.
Experience fit
Your summer at the bank plus your econometrics coursework map directly to the day-one responsibilities on this scheme — client modelling, market briefings, and deal support.
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Professional Qualifications
We are looking for someone with the following:
- Ideally having a HNC minimum qualification in an engineering discipline such as Mechanical, Electrical, Controls and Instrumentation, etc
- Ideally a formal health and safety qualification such as IOSH or NEBOSH
- HV Senior Authorised Person will be highly desirable
Personal Skills
The Operations Manager role would suit someone with:
- Supervisory or management experience in an operations role on a power station or similar heavy process environment such as Power Generation (EfW, Biomass, CCGT, Coal, etc), Paper Mills, Refineries, Petrochemical, etc.
- Prior experience of contract management and budget responsibility
- Good leadership experience and proven ability to lead large teams


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Salary and Benefits of the Operations Manager Role
- Competitive salary
- Bonus Opportunity
- Comprehensive benefits package
Astute People are acting as an employment agency in relation to this vacancy. We do not discriminate on the grounds of age, race, gender, disability, creed, or sexual orientation and comply with all relevant UK legislation. We encourage applications from individuals from all backgrounds but candidates must be able to demonstrate their ability to work in the UK. Astute is also committed to the government’s Disability Confident Employer initiative. We endeavour to get back to everyone, however, if you have not heard anything after 7 days, please consider your application unsuccessful.
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