Associate Director - Delay

Join a specialist disputes consultancy in Central London with WWL-recommended delay experts and play a key role in delivering first class expert services across the UK and internationally. 

As Associate Director, you will lead assignments, work closely with a Who’s Who Legal–recommended testifying expert, and take responsibility for methodology selection, analysis, and report authorship.

Project Details

You’ll represent the business in the market, support and develop junior colleagues, and contribute to practice growth. This is an excellent opportunity for someone who doesn’t feel they’re getting enough exposure to expert appointments and wants a clear route to becoming a named expert.

This is a long-term role with a future pathway to equity if successful.

Why this role?

• Step into a genuine Associate Director remit with leadership, client exposure and authorship of major deliverables.
• Mentorship from a testifying expert and clear runway to your own expert appointments.
• Team?centred culture where you can support juniors, shape standards and represent the business in the market.
• A chance to build something—grow the practice and share in its future success.

Responsibilities and Duties

Expert work & leadership

• Act as lead on delay analysis instructions in adjudication, arbitration, litigation and mediation, serving both employer and contractor organisations in the UK and overseas.
• Serve as lead assistant to the testifying expert on major matters and, depending on experience, act as named expert on smaller to mid?scale instructions.
• Independently scope, manage and deliver forensic delay analyses.
• Select, apply, and clearly explain appropriate retrospective and prospective methodologies (e.g., time?impact analysis, windows/time?slice, impacted as?planned, collapsed as?built, as?planned vs as?built), and defend the approach under scrutiny.
• Produce high?quality, well?structured expert and advisory reports, appendices and exhibits that stand up to Tribunal/Court review.

People & practice

• Support, coach and supervise junior colleagues; oversee day?to?day tasking, provide technical review and feedback, and help shape training materials and practice standards.
• Act as a team player and firm representative—present at industry events, meet instructing solicitors and clients, and contribute to proposals and thought leadership.
• Assist with business development: nurture client relationships, spot opportunities, help build the pipeline and grow the practice.
• Manage project budgets, resourcing and profitability; ensure delivery to programme, scope and quality.
• Technical
• Forensically interrogate baseline and progress?updated programmes (Primavera P6, Asta Powerproject, MS Project), including logic checks and scenario modelling to assess critical and non?critical delay.
• Compile robust document chronologies and contemporaneous evidence reviews to establish the nature, cause and extent of delay across sectors (buildings, infrastructure, power, oil & gas, transport, healthcare, pharma, marine and more).

Desired Skills and Experience

• Experience in delay analysis/disputes with a specialist consultancy, underpinned by planning, engineering or project management experience.
• Proven track record in adjudications, arbitrations, mediations (and litigation), including direct exposure to expert processes and hearings; ambition to progress to regular expert appointments.
• Experience of all major forms of delay analysis and the ability to explain the chosen methodology (and alternatives) clearly to technical and non-technical audiences.
• Deep appreciation of the Society of Construction Law Delay and Disruption Protocol and how to apply it pragmatically on live and retrospective matters.
• Advanced user of Primavera P6 and Asta Powerproject; strong Excel and document management discipline.
• Excellent report writing skills and confident oral presentation—able to produce clear, defensible narratives with rigorous cross-referencing.
• Client-facing, commercial, and collaborative—comfortable representing the firm, building relationships and helping to grow the business.
• Strong organisational skills with the ability to manage multiple assignments and meet demanding deadlines without compromising quality or independence.

Qualifications/Educational Requirements

• Degree in a relevant construction discipline (e.g., Civil Engineering, Construction Management).
• Ideally a Master’s in Construction Law or similar.
• Professional memberships (e.g., MICE, MAPM, MCIOB, AACE/PSP) advantageous.

Employing Company Overview and Profile

A privately-owned construction disputes consultancy recognised for the quality and independence of our advice. The team includes Who’s Who Legal–recommended Delay and Quantum experts who act on high-value, complex disputes across the UK and internationally. From their Central London base (with flexible hybrid working), their partner with instructing solicitors, employers and contractors on matters spanning buildings, infrastructure, energy, transport, healthcare, pharmaceuticals and marine.

Their scale is deliberate: you’ll work shoulder-to-shoulder with a testifying delay expert, gain real exposure to expert appointments, and take meaningful ownership of work—without the bureaucracy of larger firms. They value clear thinking, rigorous analysis and excellent written advocacy. Collaboration is central to how they operate: support and develop junior colleagues, share knowledge openly and encourage everyone to represent the business in the market through client engagement, proposals and thought leadership.

They invest in professional development and modern tools, and we reward contribution—high performers helping to grow the practice have a pathway to future equity/ownership. If you’re motivated by high standards, a supportive team culture and the chance to make a visible impact, you’ll thrive here.
A full company overview will be given to shortlisted candidates.

Additional Benefits Package and Incentives

• Basic salary: in the region of £90k–£140k (DOE)
• Annual discretionary bonus
• Pension contribution
• Private health insurance
• Mobile phone
• Professional fees paid