Senior Planner | Water

Arup is seeking a Senior Planner for its Water team in Sydney, Australia. The role involves leading a team of planners, managing client relationships, overseeing project delivery, and driving business development in water infrastructure. Candidates should have relevant qualifications and experience in water/wastewater planning, strong leadership skills, and excellent communication abilities. Arup offers a hybrid working policy, emphasizing collaboration and individual growth.
Joining Arup

Arup’s purpose, shared values and collaborative approach has set us apart for over 75 years, guiding how we shape a better world.

Join Arup’s growing Water team in delivering strategic and detailed planning and modelling services for water, wastewater, and recycled water infrastructure across Australia and beyond. You will be responsible for providing leadership and mentorship to planners of varying seniority, you will manage key client relationships and oversee complex projects from both technical delivery and business development perspectives. This role blends hands on technical work with leadership, resource management, and strategic growth responsibilities.

The Opportunity
• Lead and supervise a team of up to ten planners (within a larger NSW Water Planning Team of about 15-20 people), fostering a collaborative and innovative environment through regular 1:1s and performance reviews
• Manage client relationships, maintaining existing partnerships and build new connections with regional water utilities
• Oversee project delivery including resource allocation, budgeting, scheduling, and quality control
• Drive proposal writing and business development initiatives to support Arup’s growth in the water sector
• Lead stakeholder engagement through meetings, workshops, reporting, and effective communication strategies

At Arup, you belong to an extraordinary collective – in which we encourage individuality to thrive. Our strength comes from how we respect, share and connect our diverse experiences, perspectives and ideas.

You will have the opportunity do socially useful work that has meaning – to Arup, to your career, to our members and to the clients and communities we serve. 

Is this role right for you?
• Relevant tertiary qualifications in civil engineering or related fields, with demonstrated long-term experience in water/wastewater infrastructure planning
• Proficiency in hydraulic modelling tools like Infoworks and experience managing complex network and asset planning
• Strong leadership skills with a proven ability to motivate, develop, and manage multidisciplinary teams
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to write clearly and engage diverse audiences
• Strategic thinking and adaptability, capable of managing resources effectively and navigating change in a dynamic environment

What We Offer You

At Arup, we care about each member’s success, so we can grow together.

Guided by our values, we provide an attractive total reward package that recognises the contribution of each of our members to our shared success. As well as competitive, fair, and equitable pay, we offer a career in which all of our members can belong, grow and thrive – through benefits that support health and wellbeing, a wide range of learning opportunities and many possibilities to have an impact through the work they do.

We are owned in trust on behalf of our members, giving us the freedom, with personal responsibility, to set our own direction and choose work that aligns with our purpose and adds to Arup’s legacy. Our members collaborate on ambitious projects to deliver remarkable outcomes for our clients and communities. Profit Share is a key part of our reward, enabling eligible members to share in the results of our collective efforts.

Explore The Perks Of a Career With Arup Australia
• Hybrid working policy and flexible working hours.
• Paid parental leave for the primary carer of 16 weeks or 32 weeks at half pay and as well as generous unpaid leave benefits.
• Paid parental leave for the support carer of 4 weeks plus the opportunity to access extra paid and unpaid leave if you later become the primary carer.
• Birthday leave
• Annual leave loading
• Ability to purchase additional leave of up to 20 days for permanent employees.
• International mobility opportunities
• Insurances (life & income protection)
• Interest free solar energy and bicycle loans
• Novated car lease
• Ovasaver including discounts, vouchers, cashback, and exclusive offers on more than 300 retailers.

Different people, shared values

Arup is an equal opportunity employer that actively promotes and nurtures a diverse and inclusive workforce. We welcome applications from individuals of all backgrounds, regardless of age (within legal limits), gender identity or expression, marital status, disability, neurotype or mental health, race or ethnicity, faith or belief, sexual orientation, socioeconomic background, and whether you’re pregnant or on family leave. We are an open environment that embraces diverse experiences, perspectives, and ideas – this drives our excellence.

Guided by our values and alignment with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, we create and contribute to equitable spaces and systems, while cultivating a sense of belonging for all. Our internal employee networks support our inclusive culture: from race, ethnicity and cross-cultural working to gender equity and LGBTQ+ and disability inclusion – we aim to create a space for you to express yourself and make a positive difference. Discover more about life at Arup at www.arup.com/careers/your-life-at-arup.

We are committed to making our recruitment process and workplaces accessible to all candidates. Please let us know if you need any assistance or reasonable adjustments throughout your application or interview process, and/or to perform the essential functions of the role. We will do everything we can to support you.

Our Application Process

Please apply directly through our applicant tracking system. Shortlisted candidates will be contacted by Talent Acquisition to discuss next steps. Stay safe online – Arup will never ask for your bank details as part of our recruitment process.

Arup does not accept unsolicited resumes from recruiters or employment agencies.