Job Description

Innovation Technical Specialist

Are you ready to make a real impact and shape the future? Join our dynamic Innovation Team at Yorkshire Water and help us provide the best possible service to our customers while protecting the environment. We're looking for curious minds who are passionate about innovation and eager to make a difference.

Why you'll love working with us:

• Competitive Salary: 4a, £50,718 - £63,398 based on experience and development
• Development in Role: Role specific progression plan to support and enable personal development.
• Annual Bonus: Up to £1,000 based on company performance.
• Fantastic Benefits: Enjoy a generous pension scheme with up to 12% employer contribution, 25 days of annual leave plus bank holidays, two wellness days off work, life assurance cover, and optional benefits like health cash plans, dental insurance, and gym membership discounts.
• Flexible Work Arrangements: Our hybrid working model allows you to balance office and home working, giving you the flexibility you need. Our office is based in Bradford (although we are moving location to Leeds in late 2026), and we try to get there a couple of days of week to collaborate.
• Career Growth: Take advantage of our training and development opportunities to advance your career.

What You'll Be Doing:

As our Wastewater Treatment and Environment Innovation Technical Specialist, you will be at the forefront of driving change - shaping how Yorkshire Water tackles some of its biggest environmental challenges and unlocks new opportunities. You will:

• Get under the skin of the business - understanding strategic and operational needs, translating complex risks and challenges into clear opportunities, and identifying the gaps where innovation can deliver real impact.
• Spot and champion game-changing ideas - scanning the horizon for cutting-edge solutions, rigorously evaluating their effectiveness and value, and enabling the selection of innovations that will make the biggest difference, both now and in the future.
• Lead innovation from concept to reality - prioritising and driving a dynamic programme of projects that test new ideas, prove concepts, and enable accelerated adoption - while building strong sponsorship and momentum across the business.
• Be the technical authority and connector - bringing the right expertise to the table, whether from within YW or beyond, and unlocking additional funding to amplify impact through routes such as Ofwat’s Water Innovation Fund, UK Water Industry Research (UKWIR), or UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).
• Turn innovation into business-as-usual - ensuring successful ideas don’t stop at trials but are embedded into operations through compelling business cases and clear, actionable insights that colleagues can deliver against.
• Be a visible advocate for innovation - actively promoting its value across Yorkshire Water and the wider sector, influencing strategy, shaping industry thinking, and representing YW on national and international stages.

This is your opportunity to lead from the front - transforming bold ideas into real-world environmental impact and helping shape the future of wastewater innovation at scale.

What we're looking for:

• Demonstrable technical experience in the area of Wastewater treatment and associated environmental impacts.
• A science or engineering degree and/or significant (5+ years) experience in the relevant technical area.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills, with a particular talent for communicating complex, technical concepts to both technical and non-technical audiences.
• A drive for continuous learning and development in your technical specialist area, with a curiosity and passion to keep at the forefront of emerging knowledge and technologies.
• Ability to analyse and challenge perceived norms and new ideas, and to be creative with solutions and ways of working to solve problems.
• Ability to develop and maintain effective internal and external relationships with experience of collaborative working and ability to influence for real change.
• Technical appreciation of the operations of a water company, including treatment assets, infrastructure, regulatory frameworks and customer service requirements.
• Experience of working within a team to deliver significant projects in a Research and Development environment.
• Experience of supporting and embedding change, able to influence and drive the right culture and behaviours.
• Experience in a commercially orientated role within a regulated sector.
• A positive attitude and a growth mindset

Why Yorkshire Water?

Everyone has an idea of what a water company does. Here in Yorkshire, we make sure that over 5.4 million people living in the region and the millions of people who visit our region each year, can rely on our services, and have clean and safe drinking water on tap and that their wastewater is taken away. But for us, it’s so much more than this.

We look after communities, protect the environment, and plan to look after Yorkshire’s water, today, tomorrow, 24/7, 365 days a year. We provide essential water and wastewater services to every corner of the Yorkshire region, and play a key role in the region’s health, wellbeing, and prosperity. 

New environmental legislation, unprecedented levels of investment and changing expectations from customers means that this is an exciting time to discover opportunities within the water industry.

Location:  This role will initially be based in Bradford but we’re moving our office to Leeds Valley Park in Autumn 2026, so you’ll be based there in the future. We have a hybrid working arrangement in place, a mix of office and home working, and travel around the UK from time to time.

Work type: Permanent, working full time 37 hours per week, Monday – Friday. Although we operate 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, it's important to us that we support flexible working patterns and job share options where we can, to help you make the best of both your work and home life. We know that juggling carer responsibilities or getting that ideal work/life balance isn't always easy!

Ready to Apply?

If you're excited about the challenge and want to be part of a forward-thinking team, apply today and discover what a career with Yorkshire Water can offer you. Please submit your CV and a covering letter to complete your application.

If successful for the role, you will be required to undergo pre-employment checks that will include a Basic Disclosure Check, carried out through a Third-Party Company, prior to commencing employment. Depending on the role, you may also be required to go through the security vetting process for either a Counter Terrorist Check or Security Check clearance.

All our roles are subject to a medical questionnaire, and further medicals when required.

We are proud to serve the Yorkshire region and are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment that is reflective of the communities we serve. We strongly encourage candidates of all different backgrounds to apply.

Just a Heads-up!! We may close this campaign as soon as a suitable candidate is found. We therefore advise that you complete and submit your application as soon as possible.

No agencies please