**This role has been appointed to. Please do get in touch with us if you are looking for a similar role**
The District
Leeds has an ambitious vision to create an innovation district delivering economic and social value in the city for generations to come. The Leeds General Infirmary is at the heart of these plans; the investment in two new hospitals will deliver 80,000sqm of state-of-the-art healthcare facilities and unlock 5ha of estate to create a health innovation village bringing together clinicians and academics with business and investment.
This is an exciting time. We have the resources, the partners and the commitment to achieve change and now need the right person to lead this. We have a vision and ambition, with an initial master plan, but now it’s time to start making the change happen.
Role
Our new Development Director will shape the creation of a health innovation village by creating the infrastructure to accelerate innovation and entrepreneurship which delivers improved health outcomes, new jobs and economic benefit. This is one of those rare, career defining roles, where people will lead the planning, design and creation of this new hub as part of a radically different Leeds economy. Reshaping part of the city centre and all it entails will take an exceptional leader with vision, deep market experience, a hard nose wrapped in an engaging style, one foot rooted in the here in now, with the other planted firmly in the future.
Initial priorities will be to lead the selection of the right development partner, building out the masterplan and connecting to and shaping the market both nationally and globally, building the coalition of shared interests across the city needed to ensure success. With your expertise, we will use our assets to transform our site and the wider city centre.
The new Development Director will be immersed in relevant urban, mixed use, city centre development, with an understanding of how to create a vibrant crossover between cutting edge healthcare, research, innovation and business. They will have gained the insights and critical knowledge through deep experience of similar developments. While commercially astute, they will have created both economic and social value within an urban environment. They’ll likely be some type of property professional but regardless of whether they are a surveyor, architect, planner (or none of these) they will believe in the power of development to change economies and change lives.
The candidate will be a self-starter with meaningful experience of commercial practice in development, deal making, financing, the complexities of land assembly, the challenge of place shaping from planning, through development to end use, and a real feel for the market. They’ll relish working at Board level, with senior executives and politicians, and will bring the judgment, political nous and credibility to succeed. They’ll have experience of working at the interface of the public and private sector with a track record that demonstrates they can lead this significant programme, aligned to the passion, values and sheer excitement of seeing this happen.
